Tips for Developing Social Media Practices at Your Company

It’s 2014. The majority of the people at your company, large or small, are using some form of social media. That’s terrific! There’s really no reason to limit the continued use of social media for these folks, so long as it doesn’t hinder their work on your company’s behalf.  In more cases than not, your employees’ use of social media could turn into a natural way to advocate for who you are and what you do. Yep, that’s a win/win!

Here are some tips to help your employees use social media in the best way possible.

1.     Create soft social media guard-rails

Notice how we aren’t using the term ‘guidelines.’  Guard rails are a better visual for enabling someone to continue to express themselves in the social space without hurting the reputation of the company.  Some things to consider as you write your guidelines:

• Employees who mention your company and/or products should disclose they work for you.  If disclosure isn’t there, it may look like that employee is ‘stacking the deck’ as it relates to providing a positive review of what you sell or do.
• Slamming competitors in a public forum probably isn’t the best idea.
• Remind your employees that they work at your company and are an extension of your brand.

2.     C Level Tweeting

The more you can encourage the top leaders of the company to use social media, the better.  When employees see their fearless leader sharing fun tips, pictures or ideas, etc. it encourages the rest of the crew to take part without fear.

3.     Share everyone’s personal handles (if they so chose)

Often times, colleagues don’t know that one of them is a super baker or LEGO DIYer.  Encourage the office to have a place (a visual whiteboard or online community) that shares everyone’s handles.  Build a list out of your staff’s handles (you can keep your list private or public, depending on your comfort level), and follow/support your colleague’s best shares.

These initial steps will put you and your organization to social media goodness. Let us know how things go and if you have any additional questions!

Blagica Bottigliero
Vice President of Digital Media