Have you set up a company Social Media Policy? If not, what has put you off? Is it the thought of having to draft a long policy document? The thought of having to make sure that everyone in your company ploughs through it so that they know how Social Media Guidelines impact employees?
When I received a link to the BBC News Social Media Guidance I won’t lie, I made myself a cup of tea and a sandwich to keep me going as I thought I was in for the long haul. When I opened it I was pleasantly surprised. It’s brief, no nonsense and to the point, and excellent advice for any employer who wants to set up guidelines for their own staff.
I love the fact that the first point is;
They can all be summarised as: ‘Don’t do anything stupid’.
This covers everything – checking that you are in the right twitter account (unlike this unfortunate ITV news tweeter); don’t swear (unlike this Cheapflights post which also ties in with check you are tweeting from the right account. Note – SFW, asterisks out the swearing but does use a pejorative term); check before making a site live (oops, that’s a BBC one) and many other things.
You shouldn’t state your political preferences or say anything that compromises your impartiality. Don’t sound off about things in an openly
partisan way. Don’t be seduced by the informality of social media into bringing the BBC into disrepute. Don’t criticise your colleagues. Don’t reveal confidential BBC information.
Take out “BBC” and put in your company name and these are excellent rules for all Social Media. “Seduced by the informality of Social Media” especially. If you wouldn’t say it in a meeting, don’t say it on Social Media. You know your customers and the level of informality they are comfortable with so if you stick to that you won’t go wrong.
