Social media has proven to be a powerful tool for business growth and development. But one bad post can damage a brand.
Remember the Facebook photo of a Taco Bell worker licking a stack of tacos? Or the YouTube video of Domino’s Pizza employees doing disgusting things to the food?
In both cases, the posts went viral and the workers were fired. #Fail
Social media use has skyrocketed since 2005 and not all companies are prepared to deal with it. Last year, the Pew Research Center reported 65 percent of American adults use sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, up from 7 percent just a decade ago.
Sharing information has never been faster or easier. It’s changed the way we communicate and build communities, and of course, the way we work, which is why Jeana Goosmann, the founder, CEO and managing partner of Goosmann Law Firm, decided to offer a free downloadable social media policy template on goosmannlaw.com.
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“Social media has become so pervasive in our personal and professional lives with the advent of smart phones and tablets,” she said. “It is imperative for all businesses in the 21st century to have a social media policy.”
Here are seven reasons why.
1. Your existing policies may be out of date. “Most company conduct policies are not relevant to situations that arise on social media,” Goosmann said. “In addition, there have been a number of recent decisions by the National Labor Relations Board addressing limits to what an employer may or may not do when it comes to social media. Employers must review their social media policies to ensure compliance with relevant labor regulations, even when it is a company that does not have a unionized workforce.”
2. You don’t want to break any laws. Labor laws allow employees the freedom to discuss terms and conditions of employment without interference or retaliation by their employer. “But there are limits to what employees may post on social media,” Goosmann said. “Employers must know and understand what types of postings can result in disciplinary action against an employee.”
3. You don’t want to land on a list of cautionary tales. Something can start trending on Twitter or Facebook in a matter of minutes. “The speed of social media is the biggest risk to an employer’s brand,” Goosmann said. “While this can help grow a company’s brand, abuse of social media can also quickly magnify negative issues and create a significant public relations nightmare for a company.”
4. Your workers need boundaries set in place. Are you employees allowed to be on social media at work, or is that a big no-no? Your workers need to know. A social media policy should also spell out what types of posts are subject to disciplinary action. “A basic rule of thumb is if the comment would not be tolerated in person because it would violate anti-discrimination laws, criminal laws or is primarily vulgar, then those comments are also not tolerated when communicated through social media,” Goosmann said.
5. Some employees need to be reminded that their strict privacy settings won’t necessarily keep their posts private. “If you’re posting anything work-related on a social media site, an employee should think twice before hitting send,” Goosmann said. “Even if you limit the audience that is receiving your post, there is no guarantee that your post won’t be copied and re-sent.”
6. You may think certain rules of order go without saying, but they still need to be said. Businesses need to clearly outline policies and employees need to be aware of them to avoid highly visible blunders. “Trade secrets, impending business transactions, etc., should not be posted on social media,” Goosmann said. “An employee could end up in civil and possibly criminal legal trouble for posting confidential information.”
7. You want to protect your company and your people. “One of the dangers of social media – coupled with the fact that it is accessible on so many mobile devices – is that people have a tendency to respond quickly to matters by sending a post, and once your post has been sent, you have very limited options for retrieving that post,” Goosmann said. “Be careful before you hit send.”
