Social Media Guidelines

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Contents

Social Media Guidelines:

Purpose

These guidelines are meant to give any staff member the tools they need to manage a successful social media account, in keeping with the library’s Social Media Policy.

Guidelines

Types of accounts:

The Portsmouth Public Library System, its branches, and departments may establish social media accounts with the permission of the library director and social media team. All social media accounts must maintain at a high, professional standard.

Social media accounts should be updated at least once a day and no more that 4 times in one day. Staff are encouraged to make use of post-scheduling options, which allow multiple days’ worth of posts to be planned at once. All social media accounts should be kept active with regular posts and quick responses. Accounts that can not be regularly updated should be suspended.

Be sure to create unique content for each social media account. For example, do not create a Twitter account that only tweets a copy of each Facebook post.

Content of posts:

Language for social media posts should be conversational and light in tone (though still professional). Social media content should be written from the point of view of the “We”, which represents the library as a whole and not as an individual staff member. As an employee and representative of Portsmouth Public Library, you are expected to demonstrate best practices and appropriate etiquette on social media, including but not limited to the following:

  • Be respectful to all
  • Check spelling and grammar before posting
  • No confidential company info
  • No profane language or hate speech
  • No personal attacks, insults, or threatening language
  • No private or personal information, including phone numbers and addresses, or requests for personal information
  • No promotion or endorsement of political issues, groups or individuals
  • No copyrighted, trademarked, or plagiarized material. Using images or any other third party generated content without the creator’s permission or verification of reuse rights can constitute copyright infringement.

Do not copy and paste the full text of a press release; instead, post a flyer, graphic, or link to a press release and briefly describe the material. Add graphics or images to posts whenever possible, as these are much more likely to get users’ attention. If you need help designing attractive graphics, contact a member of the social media team.

You may repost content from other sources if it seems of interest to our patrons. Please consider the source when doing so; social media users can be very quick to judge a repost/retweet as an endorsement of political or social positions, etc. If in doubt ask the Library Director.

The following uses of social media are strictly prohibited, whether on or off duty:

  • Comments or displays about coworkers, supervisors or the Portsmouth Public Library System that are vulgar, obscene, threatening, intimidating, harassing, or a violation of the Portsmouth Public Library System’s workplace policies against discrimination, harassment or hostility on account of age, race, religion, sex, ethnicity, nationality, disability, military status or other protected class, status, or characteristic.
  • Statements or uses of the Portsmouth Public Library System’s logo which are slanderous or detrimental, including evidence of the misuse of the Portsmouth Public Library System’s authority, information, insignia or equipment.
  • Unprofessional communication which, if left unaddressed, could potentially result in a civil or criminal cause of action against the Portsmouth Public Library System. Unprofessional communication also includes that which the Portsmouth Public Library System could demonstrate has a substantial risk of negatively affecting the Portsmouth Public Library System’s reputation, mission or operations, such as slander, defamation or other legal cause of action.
  • Disclosure of confidential and/or proprietary information acquired in the course of employment. Confidential information includes not only information that would not be available pursuant to a public records request, but also includes any information which does not relate to an issue of public concern.
  • Comments or displays which impact employees’ abilities to perform their job duties or the Portsmouth Public Library System’s ability to maintain an efficient workplace.

Responding to users:

Managing social media is not just about publishing posts; it requires responsiveness and engagement. Make sure a staff member is assigned to check the account and respond to messages and/or posts in a timely manner. Patrons using social media expect quick responses -- especially during operating hours.

As stated in the policy, negative comments or complaints should not be deleted. Instead, engage with the patron as we would with any other complaint, preferably by moving the discussion to a private venue. For example: Thank you for telling us about your experience in the library. We want to address your concern -- please check your direct messages.

Violations of Social Media Policy:

Social media sites may be inspected by the Library Director for cause to determine potential policy violations. If an employee believes that an online communication violates a Portsmouth Public Library System policy, the employee should immediately report the communication to the LibraryDirector. Violations of the Social Media Policy shall be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and may result in appropriate disciplinary actions per the Personnel Policy Handbook. This policy does not apply to communications protected by the U.S. or Ohio Constitutions.

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