As a general rule, your social media guidelines should encourage your team to practice kindness and positivity online. On the other hand, it should also emphasize that the business does not tolerate any form of online harassment, whether from or against employees. Now that we’ve established the “what”, it’s time to address the “how”. As in how social media guidelines can help your company develop a healthy social media presence. For example, franchises could use these social media guidelines in their multi-location marketing strategy to ensure consistent branding and messaging across all their branches or outlets.
What Goes Into Your Social Media Playbook?
Statements and slurs about race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity and gender can be considered offensive. Remind employees that their professional brand and personal brand are tied together. Providing protocol and tools helps your team nip problems in the bud before they grow into a full-blown social media crisis. So, it’s a good idea to put a quick and punchy list of your most basic social media code of conduct right upfront.
Social Media Content
Within the CUNY community, social media accounts are typically created to represent programs or offices. Occasionally, there might be a reason to create an official social media account for senior leadership, like a president or a dean. Such accounts do not transfer to the employee’s personal use should they leave the University. The Director of Digital Communications may designate other staff to assist with specific social media communications as deemed necessary for the main brand. Des Moines Public Schools has created this Facebook page to serve as an additional means to share news, provide information, and facilitate communications within our school district community. We thank all of the Facebook users who “like” our page and contribute to our online community.
However, without clear social media guidelines, non-profits may face reputational risks, inconsistent messaging, and compliance issues. A well-crafted social media policy for non-profits ensures that all communications align with the organisation’s mission, branding, and ethical considerations. Every department can (and should) have a hand in shaping your social media style guide.
How To Create A Social Media Style Guide
For company accounts, the policy might advise employees to avoid copyrighted images and credit the source of images where appropriate. Employees should also be aware of privacy laws, like the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which protects the privacy of healthcare records. Some companies might go as far as to prohibit employees from mentioning them on social media, while others might encourage employees to advocate for their brand.
If the account represents Mizzou, make sure “Mizzou” is included in the name of the account. Given the reality of social media in the workplace, this “Advanced” social media policy template acknowledges and encourages this behavior for employees’ and the company’s mutual benefit. We created this template for companies that are more comfortable with the idea of having their employees participate in social media, and in particular to help build the company’s brand online. These guidelines apply to all types of use of social media on behalf of Stanford, including departmental use and use by individual employees whose job duties entail such use. Employees whose job duties do not entail such use may engage on social media on behalf of Stanford only with consultation from the communications lead for their respective schools or university units. How should your team respond when customers ask questions, share your content or engage with you?
Lastly, It’s beneficial to have a committee or even one designated team responsible for reviewing the content before it is published on social media as a safeguard measure. Adding your own voice increases trust and demonstrates that you are a real person with genuine interests and ideas. If using AI for generating ideas or content, ensure that the final posts retain a personal, human touch. AI can assist, but authenticity and personal engagement should always come through in your communications. Clear social media policies do more than protect your brand—they create a safer, more cohesive workplace. By keeping teams out of unnecessary online drama, these guidelines foster unity and make employees feel supported, no matter their background or beliefs.
The next step is to set clear standards for content shared on the social media landscape by your company. It’s about defining what kinds of posts are appropriate and ensuring they align with the brand identity in terms of tone, voice, and style. The social media guidelines created by FedEx encompass comments on various social media platforms, as well as different situations. The contact person will be responsible for protecting the passwords of all the social media channels. Also, they will be tasked with posting social media posts and monitoring of their engagement daily.