August 26, 2016

How Your Employees Should Use Social Media

Let’s face it—almost everyone in today’s age has some sort of social media profile. Between Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, and everything in between, there are a variety of different platforms in which people can communicate, share memories, and post opinions.

Undoubtedly, many of your employees use social media daily. If used properly, social media can have a positive effect on your business. If used poorly, however, it can also destroy your organization’s reputation.

As a leader, it’s important to communicate with employees your expectations of how social media should be used so your business can thrive and not be put at risk.

Advantage of Employees Staying Active on Social Media

While you may argue that social media accounts should strictly be used for personal use, employees’ social media accounts can actually help your business grow and be seen. When your employees are active on social networks, it could help the following:

Engagement

Chances are, your business has at least one social media account—and if not, it should! Social networking is a great way to help grow your business by pushing blog posts, company updates, upcoming specials, and engage with customers. However, in order for these posts to be successful, people must see them.

If you have employees who are active on social media, encourage them to share, like, and comment on your company’s posts. Social media is like a middle school dance: No one likes to be the first to engage. Therefore, with your own employees stimulating engagement, you can expect others who are not a part of your organization to like, comment, or share. Then, you as the business have more customers to interact and engage with.

Visibility

On both Facebook and LinkedIn, people have the option to share their place of employment. As a business owner, you should encourage your employees to state they work for you. This can help prospective customers see who works there, engage with them, and helps show employees are proud of where they work.

It can also help when it’s time to hire a new team member. Applicants who are interested often look to see who works there to get a feel for the culture. Increase your company’s visibility by encouraging your employees to post where they work to help job seekers trust and apply for future positions.

Culture

If you have younger employees, they probably have social profiles on Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. If your company is hosting an event, luncheon, or team-building activity, encourage your employees to document and share their experiences. This can help show that your company is a great place to work and let your company’s culture shine—which may help fill your current or future open positions!

Risks of Social Media

Employees who share and comment on information regarding your business can help stimulate growth, it is also important to note that what employees do on their own personal profile can be damaging to a business’s success. As a business owner, the way employees use their social media profiles can be very concerning.

While discussing social media with your employees, we recommend bringing up the following:

Negativity

After a stressful day, it’s easy for an employee to go to social media and post horrible things about your business. Make it clear to employees that negative comments related to a boss, co-worker, customer, or company will not be tolerated. Negative comments such as these could damage your reputation and scare away customers or future employees. It’s also an opportunity to speak with the individual and get to the bottom of the issue.

Inappropriate Behavior

Your employees represent your organization on and off social networking sites. Express that posting inappropriate images or comments could not only hurt their own reputation but could also be seen by customers and clients which could hurt the reputation of the company. Some things you should have your employees avoid include:

  • Images of illegal activities
  • Posts or comments with vulgar language
  • Explicit images
  • Embarrassing or inappropriate images of other employees

Security

As a business owner, it’s your responsibility to keep people safe while at the workplace. To keep everyone safe, ensure you address the following:

  • Social media shall not be used while operating a company vehicle or machinery
  • No employee shall post images, videos, or text which contains confidential information about a customer or employee
  • No employee shall post images, videos, or text which could be a security threat to the company or another employee. This includes passwords, money information, etc.

Social media isn’t leaving anytime soon. Therefore, business owners should address these concerns before they become an issue. While social media could help your business grow, it should also be used carefully. If you have further questions about how your employees should use social media or how your business should be using social media, contact the marketing experts at PHOS.

Alexis Fillmer

With a strategic mind and a love for culture and leadership, Alexis spends each day working to get the most out of every idea and person on our team. As our Director of Operations, she’s responsible for creating organizational clarity, ensuring excellence in our services, and creating a culture in which our team members can flourish.

Outside of PHOS, you can find Alexis playing with her son at the park, starting a new house project (and maybe finishing it), at the nearest farmer’s market, trying a new recipe, or scoping out live music with her husband.