# Social Media Policy > Writes social media policies for businesses covering employee guidelines, brand voice, crisis protocols, and compliance. Use when formalizing how your business and team behave on social media. - Skill: `reaperinvest/social-media-policy` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add reaperinvest/social-media-policy` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/reaperinvest/social-media-policy/raw - Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS) - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - Author: reaperinvest (https://skillmd.com/u/reaperinvest) - Updated: 2026-09-22 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/reaperinvest/social-media-policy --- # Social Media Policy ## When to Use This Skill Use this skill when you need to: - Write a social media policy for your business or team - Define employee guidelines for personal and professional social media use - Create crisis communication protocols for social channels - Document brand voice rules and compliance requirements **DO NOT** use this skill for content strategy, posting calendars, or writing social posts. This is for governance and policy documents. --- ## Core Principle A SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY SHOULD PROTECT THE BUSINESS WITHOUT SILENCING THE TEAM — CLEAR GUIDELINES EMPOWER PEOPLE TO POST CONFIDENTLY. --- ## Phase 1: Brief ### Required Inputs | Input | What to Ask | Default | |-------|------------|---------| | **Business name** | "What is your business?" | No default — must be provided | | **Team size** | "How many people represent your brand on social?" | 1-5 | | **Platforms** | "Which platforms does your business use?" | All major platforms | | **Industry** | "Any regulatory or compliance requirements?" | None | | **Past issues** | "Have you had any social media incidents?" | None | | **Existing policies** | "Do you have any current guidelines?" | None — starting from scratch | **GATE: Confirm brief before writing the policy.** --- ## Phase 2: Outline ``` 1. Purpose & Scope 2. Brand Voice Guidelines 3. Employee Social Media Guidelines 4. Content Approval Process 5. Crisis Communication Protocol 6. Legal & Compliance 7. Enforcement & Consequences ``` **GATE: Approve outline before writing.** --- ## Phase 3: Write ### 1. Purpose & Scope ``` ## Social Media Policy **Purpose:** This policy provides guidelines for [Business Name]'s social media presence and for team members who represent or reference the company on social media. **Scope:** This policy applies to: - All official business social media accounts - Team members posting on behalf of the business - Team members referencing the business on personal accounts **Effective date:** [Date] **Review schedule:** Annually or after any social media incident ``` ### 2. Brand Voice Guidelines ``` ## Brand Voice on Social Media **We are:** [3-4 adjectives — e.g., helpful, direct, confident, approachable] **We are NOT:** [3-4 anti-adjectives — e.g., aggressive, preachy, corporate, sarcastic] **Tone by platform:** | Platform | Tone Adjustment | |----------|----------------| | LinkedIn | Professional, thought leadership | | Instagram | Visual, casual, community-focused | | Twitter/X | Concise, witty, conversational | **Topics we engage with:** [List — industry news, customer wins, education] **Topics we avoid:** [List — politics, religion, competitor attacks, internal drama] ``` ### 3. Employee Guidelines ``` ## Employee Social Media Guidelines ### Official Business Accounts - Only authorized team members may post from business accounts - All content follows the brand voice guidelines above - Scheduled content must be reviewed before publishing - Respond to comments and DMs within [X hours] during business hours ### Personal Accounts - You are welcome to share your work and professional achievements - When discussing [Business Name], be transparent about your role - Do not share confidential information (financials, unreleased products, internal discussions) - Do not engage in arguments or inflammatory debates while representing the company - Add a disclaimer if sharing personal opinions on industry topics: "Views are my own" ``` ### 4. Content Approval Process ``` ## Approval Workflow | Content Type | Approval Required | Approver | |-------------|-------------------|----------| | Routine posts (planned content) | Pre-approved in batch | [Role] | | Community responses (comments, DMs) | No approval needed | Follow response templates | | Announcements or launches | Approval required | [Role] | | Crisis or sensitive topics | Approval required | [Role/Owner] | | Paid/sponsored content | Approval + legal review | [Role] | ``` ### 5. Crisis Communication Protocol ``` ## Crisis Protocol ### What qualifies as a crisis: - Viral negative post about the business (1,000+ engagements) - Customer complaint gaining public traction - Factual error in published content - Data breach or security incident - Employee behavior causing public backlash ### Response steps: 1. **Pause** — stop all scheduled posts immediately 2. **Assess** — identify the issue, scope, and facts (do not respond emotionally) 3. **Escalate** — notify [Owner / Crisis Lead] within 1 hour 4. **Draft response** — prepare a factual, empathetic statement 5. **Approve** — get approval from [Role] before posting 6. **Respond** — post the approved response publicly 7. **Monitor** — track the conversation for 48-72 hours 8. **Debrief** — after resolution, document what happened and update the policy ### Crisis response template: "We're aware of [issue]. [What we know / what we're doing about it]. We take this seriously and will share updates as we have them. If you've been affected, please [specific action — DM us, email support, etc.]." ``` ### 6. Legal & Compliance ``` ## Legal Guidelines - **Disclosures:** All sponsored content, affiliate links, and paid partnerships must be disclosed (FTC requirement) - **Copyright:** Do not use images, music, or text without proper rights or licenses - **Privacy:** Never share customer information without explicit consent - **Trademarks:** Use proper trademark symbols when referencing other brands - **Competitions:** Contest and giveaway posts must include official rules and comply with platform terms - **Industry-specific:** [Any regulatory requirements for the industry] ``` ### 7. Enforcement ``` ## Enforcement - First violation (minor): Conversation and coaching - Second violation or first major violation: Written warning and temporary posting restriction - Serious violation (confidential info leak, discriminatory content): Immediate account removal and disciplinary action **All team members must acknowledge reading this policy by signing below.** ``` --- ## Phase 4: Polish ### 1. Policy Checklist ``` ## Social Media Policy Checklist - [ ] Purpose and scope are clearly defined - [ ] Brand voice guidelines include examples and anti-examples - [ ] Employee guidelines cover both official and personal accounts - [ ] Content approval workflow is documented - [ ] Crisis communication protocol has step-by-step instructions - [ ] Legal and compliance requirements are addressed - [ ] Enforcement consequences are fair and graduated - [ ] Policy is concise enough to be read in one sitting - [ ] Annual review date is scheduled - [ ] Team acknowledgment process is in place ``` ### 2. One-Page Quick Reference Create a one-page summary of the most important rules for daily reference. --- ## Example: Social Media Policy for a 5-Person Agency ``` Voice: Helpful expert — share insights, not lectures Employee rule: Share your work, disclose your role, no confidential info Approval: Routine posts pre-approved weekly. Announcements need owner sign-off. Crisis protocol: Pause posting → assess → escalate to owner → draft approved response Compliance: Disclose partnerships, no customer data shared, respect copyright ``` --- ## Anti-Patterns - **Too restrictive** — a policy that discourages all employee posting misses the opportunity for organic brand advocacy. - **Too vague** — "Use good judgment" is not a guideline. Provide specific examples of acceptable and unacceptable behavior. - **No crisis plan** — every business will face a social media crisis eventually. Planning after it happens is too late. - **Never updated** — platforms and norms change. Review the policy at least annually. - **Not distributed** — a policy nobody reads is useless. Require acknowledgment and make it easily accessible. --- ## Recovery - **Incident already happened:** Address the immediate situation first, then write the policy to prevent recurrence. - **Team pushes back on restrictions:** Focus on empowerment, not restriction. Frame guidelines as "here's how to post confidently." - **Policy is too long:** Cut to the essentials. If it is over 5 pages, nobody will read it. Create a detailed version and a one-page summary. - **No legal expertise:** Note that the policy is a starting point and recommend legal review for regulated industries. - **Solo business (no team):** Write a personal social media code of conduct — guidelines for yourself to follow consistently.