Formula to perfect social guidelines >>
Our latest research has revealed the majority of brands are entering unguided territory when it comes to social. Jessica McGreal reveals the power of social media guidelines
Social has settled. Employees are comfortable tweeting, uploading pins, recording vines and updating statuses across all networks in a business capacity. However, they are doing so in the dark, according to research from B2B Marketing. The number of brands with social media guidelines has dropped by nearly 10 per cent since 2013, to 52 per cent.
There could be a number of reasons behind this decline, from a new found confidence in social, to laziness. However, in an age where social can make or break a brand in a matter of seconds creating and implementing social media guidelines should be top of the agenda. Despite 44 per cent of B2B companies admitting they do not have guidelines in place, 75 per cent said social guidelines enable good content creation and only seven per cent believed they are very restrictive. ocial has settled. Employees are comfortable tweeting, uploading pins, recording vines and updating statuses across all networks in a business capacity. However, they are doing so in the dark, according to research from B2B Marketing. The number of brands with social media guidelines has dropped by nearly 10 per cent since 2013, to 52 per cent.
Clare Johnson, account director at Loudmouth PR, stresses: “Having social guidelines helps establish a strategy or a business’ social media activity and can provide guidance and support to the members of the business who are carrying out social activity to ensure messages are on brand.”
The small print
Even digital natives need social guidance at times, and that’s why social media guidelines should underpin a successful social marketing strategy. However, putting them together is not a simple process. Marketers need to ensure social policies are unique to their brand while reflecting wider business goals. If you’re feeling nervous, collaborate with your agency, this can add expertise and give a fresh perspective on the project.
Alex Bates, head of marketing at Gorkana, reiterates: “Social media should not just be done by someone as a part-time role because they have an interest in it. Social media now needs to be part of your overall communication programme, used and monitored correctly.”
Once your social team is assembled, brands need to consider both business and individual guidelines for employees’ personal accounts.
Matt Harper, account planner at The Marketing Practice warns: “There’s an argument for saying the less you have in there, the better results you’ll see. If your guidelines are too detailed or too restrictive, people not confident with social media will just not engage. And then you have a missed opportunity.”
Guidelines need to be clear and concise, avoiding corporate jargon. They need to address the basics, covering issues such as how often you should tweet, platforms to use and brand voice. But, they also need to address more complex issues such as dealing with criticism, complaints and the press. If you work for a large corporation it’s likely you have a sign off process for blogs and other social content, in which case these should also be outlined here.
Unguided territory
The days when social media was banned in the workplace are hopefully over (or at least on the way out). Consequently, companies need to embrace employees using social in a professional capacity as brand ambassadors. Employees need to be made aware of the dos and don’ts of social media in business.
Will Kennard, marketing executive at Mint Twist, believes guidelines should be integrated into employment contracts. He says: “There could potentially be a negative impact on a brand if it does not control its staff privacy on social media. These days even ‘views are my own’ isn’t going to stop a person associating a member of staff with the brand if it’s obvious. At the very least guidelines should be in place to make sure social channels are controlled in a non-damaging way.”
The implications of not having clear guidelines can be serious. The document should set out clear objectives and goals to ensure social is successful. It is also essential when things go wrong. At a time of crisis, such as when faced with criticism, there are direct instructions to follow. This can diffuse an otherwise panicked situation.
“Just imagine, it’s your first day of a new job and you don’t have a contract”, says Flora Busby, group social media manager at Xchanging. “How would you know what your job was, what was expected of you, even the corporate dress code, if you did not receive a contract? The same goes for social guidelines. It leaves you open to a whole bunch of problems. People don’t go to work to get fired so let them know what is expected and give them support and you will have some happy employee followers.”
Get creative
Implementation is an ongoing process which includes both building trust and educating employees. This is when you can get creative, so banish the word document and encourage engagement. Guidelines could be included as part of a wider social media and digital training scheme, conveyed through an infographic or even become part of a webinar series.
For example, as the social media manager at Xchanging, Busby has set up ‘Tech Tools’ to educate colleagues about the power of social. She explains: “These are a series of five minute videos which give an overview of how to use LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest and Google+. Because they are short, clear and simple people watched them. They gave the key points around how to use each platform, what the common lingo was (e.g. what’s a ‘+1’ versus a ‘repin’) and how they could make the most of each.”
Whichever path you choose to follow it’s essential these guidelines are kept up-to-date and employees understand any changes. Refresher sessions twice a year or internal newsletters are great ways to ensure staff are aware of any external social news or adjustments to brand policy.
Social is well and truly here to stay and so should social media guidelines. It’s worrying marketers are getting overly confident and comfortable with social and are falling behind in this area. Without social guidance brands can land themselves in a crisis with nowhere to turn.
