Most  business owners, executives and HR managers agree that it is probably  important for companies to have social media policy. But how do you get  started? Here are a few tips for crafting your company's social media  policy.

A Social Media Policy Should Match Your Culture

Before you start  writing a treatise on policy and the evils of Facebook, consider the  culture--actual or desired--of your workplace. If you maintain or strive  to create an open, free and creative culture, then your policy should  be fairly open. At a minimum, you MUST have policies that restrict the  ability and authority of people to post on behalf of your company. Aside  from that, if you're a laissez faire office, then social media  privileges should be assumed until lost due to bad behavior.

A Social Media Policy Should Match Laws and Regulations

Large  corporations have a good handle on their legal and regulatory  requirements. However, smaller firms sometimes don't realize their  exposure in allowing employees to engage in social media activities.  Insurance and financial services, and some medical services should be  careful because of the appearance of giving advice or exposing personal  information of clients

A Social Media Policy Should Match Your Brand

It  doesn't take customers long to figure out if you're not living the  values you espouse in your marketing information. If you are supposed to  be a fun-loving, engaging brand, and your customers are using Facebook  to help make purchase decisions, then isn't it a good idea to have your  employees out there in the mix?

A Social Media Policy Should Be Specific

Like dress  codes, the overwhelming majority of your employees will follow the  policy if it is specific. "Here at Zoomerific, we want you to have fun  and stay connected. Please don't dedicate more than one-eighth of your  time to social media, and please make sure some of that time is good for  the brand that signs our paychecks!"Syndeo can help your business come up with an excellent Social Media Policy to protect your business. Check back here to learn more specifics about how to craft your social media policy or visit our contact page to get a hold of us.