Today, building a social media presence is crucial. Consumers expect brands to have an active online presence and to answer any questions they have — fast. As a result, social media platforms have become the way to build a brand presence and interact with customers.
None of this will come as a surprise. With multiple platforms available for companies to reach customers, businesses invest huge resources into social media management. Perhaps your company does too.
Yet, 45% of companies don’t have a social media policy for employees in place. That’s a scary stat when you consider reputations can be won and lost on the strength of social posts. And although people may forgive your brand, the internet never forgets, so it’s better to be safe than sorry.
And the safest way is to design a social media policy that helps protect your employees and your brand. How? Read on to find out.
What is a social media policy?
Let’s start with the basics. A social media policy is an official document that outlines a company or organisation’s expectations for the way employees use social media. Whether it’s part of their wider social media marketing strategy, employee handbook or onboarding docs, a clearly written social media policy helps employees understand the conduct that’s acceptable — and the conduct that’s not — on social media.
Your policy should cover your brand’s official channels, as well as how employees use social media, both personally and professionally. As part of your company’s business code of conduct, you want it to outline how employees should represent themselves and the brand on social media. That means including guidelines to protect the brand’s security, privacy and legal interests.
Social media policies can also cover key issues your marketing teams need to be aware of to help companies avoid legal or confidentiality issues.
It should be designed to apply to all staff — from the CEO to interns. So, think straightforward guidelines, accessible language: this is a document you need to make easily understandable for everyone.
How a social media policy can safeguard your brand message
Remember Pippa, who included Geri Halliwell’s instructions in the post caption when she wished Mel B a happy birthday? Or York City FC, who reposted Tommy Robinson?
They’re just a few examples of how social media can be a minefield — and why you need an effective social media policy in place. Because while the platforms are the perfect place for brand promotion, one wrong post can turn your brand message sideways.
You can keep a handle on this by writing a social media policy that outlines clear expectations for online interactions and social media engagement. That will give your employee clarity and help to protect them, and the company brand, from negative perceptions.
Within your social media policy, you’ll also be able to:
- define your company brand
- improve diversity efforts
- avoid security breaches
- create contingency plans
- explain responsibilities
- maintain your brand identity across different channels
- create brand advocates.
Above all, it’s a about consistency. The reality for many companies is that multiple people are managing multiple accounts across multiple channels. Yours might be the same. An overarching social media policy keeps things on-brand.
Why a social media policy is essential for promotion
As we mentioned, social media is a great tool for getting your message out there and promoting your brand. By having a solid policy around social media, you’ll be able to enjoy all the benefits of employee advocacy, without risking your brand credibility.
You’ll see this most clearly when your employees post about your company online. Employee advocacy can:
- increase brand awareness and reach by 561%
- establish thought leadership
- enhance trust and authority signals
- convert seven times more leads
- help social selling
- support social recruiting efforts
- attract 58% more top talent to your company.
And when you’ve got big product news or a message to share, it’s great to have your whole team on board.
It’s for times like these that your social media policy should give your employees the guidance they need to represent your brand in the way you’d like them to.
You can also use it to champion diverse voices on social media, which can help drive greater representation and attract top talent from marginalised communities to your company. An inclusive social media policy will empower and encourage voices from all backgrounds to advocate for your brand.
The stats back this up: according to the 2023 Sprout Social Index, 21% of consumers follow brands on social media because their values align with their own.
And employee advocacy can be key to social media success — especially on LinkedIn, a key channel for B2B brands — as we’ve explained in our blog, ‘The benefits of employee advocacy’.
How to prevent a PR crisis
All too often we see businesses wondering what their social media crisis policy is only after they’re facing a PR disaster. Shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted is never a good strategy, but it’s even worse when the horse is already well down the road, causing total mayhem and wearing clothes emblazoned with your brand name.
The solution to this is simple: be proactive. Design a social media policy as early as possible, making sure to include a crisis plan.
Your crisis plan should cover:
- which teams are responsible for handling a PR crisis
- what legal and regulatory help you might be able to fall back on in the event of a PR disaster
Ultimately, your policy needs to be easy to understand and quick to put into practice by everyone. After all, the consequences of breaking them can be major.
Addressing security concerns in social media policy
Recent years have seen brands hit by a rise in phishing, hacking, and impostor accounts. A solid social media policy combined with proper security protocols helps protect your accounts against these kinds of attacks.
You’ll want to include security guidelines in your policy, like making sure all employee passwords meet high standards and are changed frequently, and that set rules are in place when it comes to employees using social media on company equipment.
No matter your level of security, though, crises and breaches do happen. Sometimes the violation or crisis comes from a part of the organisation that has nothing to do with social media.
So make sure you’re also prepared for this eventuality by including an emergency-response plan in your social media policy. And bear in mind, if the breach impacts customers or stakeholders, you’ll be expected to address this quickly on the social channels themselves.
What every social media policy should include
There are some things you’d think you wouldn’t need to tell people — like don’t use the company’s social accounts to rant about politics or write about ‘getting slizzerd’. But when your company’s reputation is on the line, it’s best not to make assumptions. And actually, there’ve been a run of social media admins posting content you wouldn’t necessarily think is on brand, but definitely works to generate reach, build community and get a laugh. Just take a look at this example of Citizen’s Advice posting from the Pitbull concert in London.
All that’s to say, you need to spell out exactly what’s appropriate and what’s not so that you never have to reprimand an employee for posting a screenshot of your banking details.
A well-crafted social media policy will empower your staff and protect your brand. But to see those benefits in action, your policy needs to be clear, comprehensive and consistent.
Here are some essential ingredients you need to include:
The purpose of the policy
Explain why your company uses a social media policy. Be transparent and illustrate why your brand needs it.
Who the policy applies to
Make it clear that your social media policy applies to everyone, from executives and managers to interns and freelancers.
Responsible engagement
Say exactly who can speak on behalf of your company on social media, whether that’s certain teams or specific people. And make sure your employees know how to respond if, for instance, someone leaves a negative comment about your brand on social.
How much freedom you give your staff will of course depend on the nature of your business. But it can be a good idea to train staff on the following, as well as outlining it in your policy:
- Brand guidelines: how to talk about your products, services and company
- Etiquette: how to respond to comments from customers (tone of voice, customer escalation strategies, etc.)
- Confidentiality: which details should absolutely not be shared on social media.
- Consequences: what will happen if employees fail to follow the company’s social media policy. For some businesses, the best option will be to direct the situation toward staff trained to manage PR matters and conflict resolution. You should nominate the members of your team responsible for crisis response, message approval, customer service, public relations management and social engagement.
An overview of copyright law
Despite the fact that every Tom, Dick and Harry uses trending audio across TikTok, you need to be very careful with it (and any other materials owned by someone else) as a brand. Copyright infringement can land you in very hot water with hefty fines, so it’s best that social media teams understand the risks.
Familiarise your team with common copyright issues and create a clear checklist to make sure everything you share online is compliant with copyright law.
Include a section on AI usage
AI tools that help everyone do their jobs are rife now. Today, your social media managers and admins might already use AI for post idea generation, copywriting, graphic creation, video production and even manage some community engagement for you.
And while it saves time and resources, it’s a good idea to make sure that if you’re using AI in social media, you’re mindful of things like data privacy and copyright infringement. Be clear on what your social admins can and can’t use AI for. And if you need help with that, get in touch with our AI experts.
Set a review date
So that’s it. A good social media policy could be the difference between a winning online strategy and one that has you up at four in the morning firefighting a PR nightmare.
And when you’ve got one written, bear in mind social media changes fast. Which means your social media policy should be regularly reviewed to make sure it’s up to date with digital developments.
Include in your social media policy how frequently reviews should happen to ensure expectations are always up-to-date and accurate.
If you need some social media support, get in touch. Our team can sort out your social media content, distribution, strategy and management.
Written by Louise Watson-Dowell, Head of Digital PR and Social Media, Definition
Updated on 01/05/2025