To protect the brand image and help your employees feel confident posting on social media, here’s an overview of the 12 social media guidelines for brands that we recommend. Social media guidelines should be the cornerstone of your online presence. In a world where every tweet can become viral and having your reputation ruined can be caused by the right person sharing a bad take, social media guidelines are essential. And to protect your reputation and maintain those guidelines, well, there’s always Planable.
Most recently, in June 2025, British Airways instituted a new social media policy that prohibits all pilots and flight attendants from posting videos or photos from their layover hotels. By following these tips, you can create an effective social media policy that promotes responsible and ethical use of social media platforms within your organization. There are hundreds of millions of people who use social media on a daily basis. There are plenty of companies that have an entire social media marketing team. At the same time, social media can be harmful if it is not used properly.
By incorporating these elements into your social media brand guide, you can establish a solid foundation for building and maintaining a strong and cohesive brand presence across all digital platforms. Consistent adherence to your brand guidelines will help strengthen brand recognition, foster audience trust and loyalty, and drive meaningful engagement and conversions on social media. This social media policy applies to all [company name] employees, including paid interns, volunteers, contractors, and seasonal, part-time, and full-time employees.
Moderation Guidelines
It may be decided that comments will require approval prior to publication. Individual site administrators are responsible for adequate monitoring and responding to content on their sites. Conflicts over posted content that are not resolved at the local ministry site are to be referred to the Diocese of Raleigh Communication Department for resolution. This is your chance to take a step back and see if your rules still make sense with your current marketing goals and where your brand is heading. It’s also about proactively stoking the fire of positive conversations.
Rather than focus on the negatives and tell employees what they shouldn’t do, it promotes employee trust. The Additional Policy section of the template is open-ended, allowing you to add any specific information about your company or its services. Ensure you maintain an SOP or continuity book to ensure the account seamlessly transitions to new personnel. Use your command’s website or if your organization does not have a website. Social media managers are required to complete OPSEC training to avoid content on their unit’s critical information list (CIL).
For example, the Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council (DSSRC) conducts regular monitoring. They recently found sellers for the multilevel marketing brand Limbic Arc making inappropriate product and income claims on social media. The council notified Limbic Arc, who contacted sellers to remove the claims. Limiting access to your accounts is critical to keeping your content under control.
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Looking at how other organizations structure their social media policies can be a helpful starting point. Many well-known companies make their policies public to showcase transparency and build trust. Creating a social media policy from scratch can feel like a lot, but using a template makes the process much simpler.
Social Customer Care Policies
Employees need to know what to do (and what not to do) when there are tricky things happening with your brand. Or when they encounter negative content about your brand on social channels. Some businesses may need to think more broadly about security risks and protocols. It also keeps the quality of your conversations with followers on brand. Here are some of the most important reasons to implement a social media policy.
It covers which platforms are included and what content is appropriate. To avoid running into such social media issues (big or small), you need a good social media policy. It is also essential for you to highlight the real do’s and don’ts of social media communication between your employees and potential customers, regardless of the size of your company. A social media policy provides the guidelines and standards for social media postings, whether someone generated them internally or externally. Just to be clear, an internal post refers to staff, volunteers, or others who publish a post on behalf of your nonprofit.
Depending on your business you might need to cover your bases, especially if your organization handles sensitive information or operates in a regulated industry. Match your policy to each role’s visibility and how much they represent the company. Train managers so they know how to enforce the rules and where the legal lines are.
Authorized employees are not permitted to share access with other employees without receiving permission from the HR manager and chief marketing officer. A social media marketing strategy summarizes all your action plans for your company’s social media accounts. On the other hand, guidelines just tell you how to post or behave on social media. Your social media policy covers your brand’s official channels and how employees use social media platforms — personally and professionally.
Learn everything about the 7 most important types of employment contracts, and avoid potential penalties by staying compliant with labor laws. To make this guide as comprehensive as possible, we’ve included an FAQ section where we’ll answer the most common questions regarding this topic. Keep in mind that you should never violate the privacy of your employees and that you must have a balance between your expectations and employee freedom. Preventing PR crises is not an easy task, and there will come a time when a crisis will occur in your company eventually. These can be especially challenging for organizations subject to HIPAA or FERPA. Make your Social Media Policy easier to absorb by using visuals like infographics, flowcharts, or short explainer videos.
Regular audits and ongoing training round everything out so teams stay ahead of issues, not just react to them. The policy notes that the company must pre-approve statements discussing health benefits. In Australia, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) regulates financial institutions. They provide specific directions for financial influencers and firms that work with them. New hires, agencies, contractors — anyone touching social needs to understand the rules before they log in.