The Importance Of Social Media Policy

Social media policy seeks to set different expectations for an appropriate usage that employee’s posts will not expose the company to legal problems. By definition, social media policy describes the who, how, when, for what purposes, and consequences for noncompliance of social media usage. Such policies include directives for what types of information can be shared and restrictions on disclosing any confidential or proprietary business secrets or any type of information that could influence of stock prices for public companies. One example of bad implementation of social media policies is when Taco Bell and Domino’s Pizza had videos portraying employees practicing disgusting acts with the food. Like any company policy, social media policy contains eight effective elements. The first element states to “create safe channels for employee concern before going online” where the company provides adequate means to deal with any concerns employees may have. “Clarify what is confidential” along with “outline consequences for violations” and “explain what is considered illegal” is an important step for employees to understand the do’s and don’ts when sharing information online and the respective consequences. “Designate a spokesperson for online policies” allows the company to have control over the communication of certain policies.

However, companies should have established social media policies to ensure the right usage and rules when allowing the usage social media. By blocking social media, it can cause employees to wander what is going on which will cause them to be more distracted. Nevertheless, social media can help employees feel connected and increase their productivity as several studies have confirmed. Certainly, evert company should implement an effective social media policy if they decide not to block the usage, while keeping a great communication and trust with their