5 guidelines to include in your company’s social media policy

I’ve been asked several times lately for examples of a good corporate social media engagement policies.

Rather than link to specific examples, I’m going to provide some guidelines for what I think a good policy should include and invite those who read my blog to contribute to the discussion.

I’m sure my readers will help identify anything I may have left out and point to any of these recommendations with which they disagree.

And just to set the foundation of a good policy, since technology changes, the policy should focus on people and behavior, rather than on specific tools. It should encompass all types of digital communication: e-mail, blogging, commenting on blogs, multimedia sharing sites and in online forums, microblogging, etc.

Five guidelines for a good corporate social media engagement policy

1. Don’t say bad things about the company.

2. Don’t say bad things about the competition. Not on any platform at any time

3. Don’t engage in sexual harassment. If you question what you’re typing — “Can this be misconstrued?” — stop and don’t say it.

4. Don’t share trade secrets or insider information.

5. Don’t use curse words. They’re unprofessional. Period.

Employees should be empowered to represent their employer in the social media space. They should know the company’s guidelines, which should be realistic and not cumbersome, long or too technical.

My suggestion: have your corporate communicators write the policy, then run it by legal. I wouldn’t start the process with your legal counselors as it’s likely to quickly become unwieldy.

Thoughts? Comments?