Social media expert, Regina
Luttrell, recognizes social media policies as a guide for social strategies and
implementing tactics. A social media policy requires four characteristics in
order to be successful: encouraging participation, building relationships,
fostering transparency and minimizing risks. Each characteristic makes for a
good social media policy, but combining all four makes for a great social media policy.
The biggest consumer electronics
corporation in America, Best Buy, is
commonly recognized as a model for its social
media policy. Here is how Best Buy incorporates
all four characteristics into one cohesive social media policy.
Encouraging participation:
Best Buy encourages employees
to use social media by being smart, respectful and human but most importantly,
remembering to protect the brand and yourself while participating in online
conversations.
Building relationships:
By participating in the
digital world, relationships have the potential to be built. Best Buy doesn’t tolerate
discrimination toward racial, ethnic, sexual, religious and physical disabilities.
Fostering transparency:
Both the disclose your
affiliation and state that it’s your opinion section promote transparency. By being
honest about who you are and who you work for makes you credible, but also separates your opinions and views from Best Buy.
Minimizing risks:
Best Buy has an extensive “what
you should never disclose” section. Best Buy encourages employees to never
disclose the numbers, promotions, personal information, legal or confidential information
and anything that belongs to someone else. All six of these sections minimize
risk while using social media to maintain the reputation and brand of Best Buy.
