Comments on: Social Media Policies: Let’s Talk About What You Should Do

By: Jim Zaccaria

Jim Zaccaria — Sun, 08 May 2011 23:00:26 +0000

Don’t be Stupid is Good Advice Anytime AND informative, useful tips are Always Good.
Thanks for a positive article I actually read completely,
[so unlike me] :)

By: Michael

Michael — Fri, 06 May 2011 19:47:47 +0000

Hi Lauren,

Thank you for offering a case study of the effectiveness social media policy can have. I think there is a balance and that some regulation is essential for social media if it is to become sustainable.

Michael

By: Lauren Wiseman

Lauren Wiseman — Thu, 05 May 2011 14:48:09 +0000

Great article!
Here’s an example of a good social media policy:
http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/socialmedia/

By: Sean Clark

Sean Clark — Thu, 05 May 2011 13:16:16 +0000

When will the newspapers get this stuff! They no longer have control, the longer they tie their staff down the harder they will find it to compete in this world of instantly available news.

A Social Media policy should be as simple as this:

1. Do not Tweet what you wouldn’t say to your CEO
2. If in doubt see item 1.

Social Media requires freedom of expression, spontaneity and character with a little bit of self restraint.

You can’t bottle it or template it and it doesn’t come with a set of T’s & C’s, stop trying to Tame the Tiger, become one.

Sorry, rant over.

Sean

By: Aaron Eden

Aaron Eden — Thu, 05 May 2011 03:57:01 +0000

I think that most social media policies beat the purpose of getting social on the Social Web. What’s the use of social networking when you can’t talk to people? Authenticity and trust are hard to replicate online and I think brands are failing big time if they don’t allow their people to post online in a unique manner and tone that speaks of their personality, without putting the brand under fire. If I were to add one more on your tips, I would say ” Never ignore bad reviews ” – and you should deal with it… with tact and maturity.

By: Mathew Ingram

Mathew Ingram — Wed, 04 May 2011 18:30:44 +0000

True enough, Sol — but there are also plenty who aren’t, it seems.

By: Peggy Dau

Peggy Dau — Wed, 04 May 2011 18:21:38 +0000

You’ve touched on a point that is indicative of the society we live in…command and control or fear and hate vs share and empower or trust and love. Somehwere along the way we lost the trust. Social media is ‘forcing’ us to rethink everything from personal communication to business models. Thank goodness!

By: Michael

Michael — Wed, 04 May 2011 16:15:26 +0000

Thanks for stating the issue and addressing it with clear, tangible solutions. The biggest thing that gets me is not responding to the audience. The premise of social media is to interact with followers in an effort to build community. I guess some companies aren’t interested in engaging with and growing their audiences.

Michael

By: Sol Chrom

Sol Chrom — Wed, 04 May 2011 13:20:28 +0000

Great piece, and long overdue. Of course, anyone with any sense is already doing the things you recommend …

By: Elias Shams

Elias Shams — Wed, 04 May 2011 09:12:16 +0000

Matt, It’s no brainer to see that social media is here to stay for good. Given vast variety of the existing channels to choose and stick with, it’s time for such a hot space to enter into a new category. There is a need for a portal to provide a quick and intelligent decision for both the consumer and the enterprise about their online connections.

A Platform to Help us to Distinguish Our Quality vs. Quantity Friends, Fans, Followers, and Companies

Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Youtube, Flickr and others have been doing a decent job of providing additional marketing exposure and even in some cases, additional revenue. However, as more and more social networking sites pop up, how do you manage your brand across all these channels? Maybe more importantly, which one of these sites should you select as the one that will help you best reach your target audience? The proliferation of the social media avenues is becoming overwhelming.

This glut of information reminds me of the early 90’s when WWW was adopted broadly by the general public. Every company rushed to have a presence, to the point it became literally impossible to find the right information on the Web. That’s when a better generation of search engines – at first the Yahoo! and then Google – entered the market and helped us find the most relevant information by just typing simple keywords in their search box. If you had asked before Google launched, if there was a need for another search engine – most would have said no, we already have those….

Then came Web 1.0 & 2.0 – Youtube, Flickr, myspace, Facebook, Twitter and countless others have turned everyday people into content producers, influencers and experts. We basically tripled down on the information overload How do you know which channels to select for deploying your social media strategy? How do you know which one is the right channel to let your fans and followers to find you, your products, and services? Most importantly, who is Joe Smith that is recommending that person, that company, that product?

I hope my awesomize.me can accomplish such a mission. The site is not another social networking platform. Yet the portal to all your existing social media channels. The platform helps you, your fans, your potential clients to make an intelligent decision as to which company to connect to or follow via which social media channels and why? It’s free!

Elias
CEO & Founder
http://awesomize.me