Your peers are doing it. Your managers are doing it, too. It’s conceivable that even you’ve done it today. We’re talking about using social media in the workplace. More than half of businesses rate social media as a positive resource for improving revenue and sales, but the attitude toward social media within the workplace varies between businesses.
There is no doubt that companies are within their rights to expect compliance with some common-sense social media etiquette.
-says S. Kumar, a journalist.
However, there is a vast difference between asking for employees to exercise good judgment and hovering over their Tweets like Big Brother.
Kumar also pointed out that extreme monitoring of social media can destroy trust between companies and their workers and undermine loyalty. So, before we explore the advantages of allowing social media in the workplace, let’s establish the legal parameters for employers to use employees’ social media as a workforce training and resources tool.
The National Labor Relations Act protects the rights of employees to post limited information about their jobs or to engage in online discussions about work with their coworkers. Even concerted activity among coworkers that may be critical of employer practices can be protected according to the National Labor Relations Board.
The good news is that when used with leveraged discretion and influenced by proactive company policies, your employees’ social media habits can benefit your company.
Here are some advantages of promoting social media use in the workplace:
1. Free promotion of your business
With small businesses spending an average of $75,000 per year, or 35 percent of the company’s marketing budget, on digital marketing campaigns, utilizing an audience that is already engaged can mean optimal advertising for a company. “Content shared by employees gets eight times more engagement, on average, than content shared by brand channels—and is re-shared 25 times more frequently,” says Shannon Gausepohl.
2. Improved company morale
It’s easy for monitoring social media to seem punitive to employees. But by encouraging social media use in the workplace, employers can trigger positive employee morale. Regardless of company policy, employees spend at least 1.5 hours every day trolling through social media.
Rather than spending valuable time and energy monitoring prohibited social media, why not consider opening up a company social media platform for making company announcements, training, or gathering feedback?
3. Improved clients-to-business connectivity
Following the lines of social selling, social media in the workplace is a solid foundation for building a bigger client base.
Your employees can strengthen professional relationships with people outside the company.
-says Anthony Jeanetta.
Then, these relationships can lead to opportunities that would otherwise not have been available.
Think about LinkedIn, which entirely relies on social media connections.
