Social Media in Business Blogging Policy

As a conference series with big ambition we are keen on doing the right thing from the outset in all areas of business operation, and blogging is no exception.

This has led us to putting out a blogging policy document which indicates what a blogger (mainly our social media expert speakers) on the Social Media in Business website may or may not do.

Having read through countless blogging and social media policies (no really we did) we decided to take a leaf out of the book of Hill & Knowlton. Rather than re-invent the wheel we have adapted their policy for our own needs and published it below, we therefore extend our gratitude to Hill & Knowlton.

Any person who becomes a blogger for SMiB must be informed of the following:

• Most weblogs publish RSS feeds that others can subscribe to, so remember that others, including your colleagues, may be actively reading what you write.
• Think of what you say in your weblog in the same way as statements you might make to the media, or emails you might send to people you don’t know. If you wouldn’t include it in those, don’t post it on your weblog.
• Never disclose any information – including textual or visual material – that is confidential or proprietary to Social Media in Business, Audana Ltd or any related company brand, or any third party that has disclosed information to us (e.g.clients, journalists, suppliers, etc.).
• Talking about our revenue, future plans, will get you in legal trouble, even if it is just your own personal view, and whether or not you directly identify yourself as an employee/affiliate of SMiB or Audana Ltd.
• You may not sell any product or service that would compete with any of our company's products or services without permission in writing from the CEO. This includes, but is not limited to events, training, books, products, and freelance writing. If in doubt ask!

You should make it clear that the views you express are yours alone.

In addition, we include some advice on best practice:

• Link, link, link - The web is all about links. When you find something interesting and relevant, link to it. You’ll be helping your readers, and you’ll generate links back to your blog.
• Be on topic - keep your content themed around social media in business. Straying into life-style areas is OK, it presents you as human, but always look for ways to make it fit contextually with our site. And remember that your blog is a public place so try to avoid embarrassing your readers or others.
• Check your facts - Even though your blog postings will be primarily made up of personal opinion, do your research well and check that your facts are accurate. Make sure you have permission to post any copyrighted items (e.g. images) to your blog, and be careful about posting or linking to items that may contain viruses.
• Write about what you know - The best way to be interesting is to write about what you know. If you have a deep understanding of something, talk about the challenges and issues around it. Try not to rant about things you don’t understand, as you’re more likely to get embarrassed by a real expert.
• Quality matters - Use a spell-checker and keep things clear and concise. Ask people whether your blog looks good, design-wise, and take their advice to improve it.

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