Corporate Social Media: Is there such thing as TMI?
Growing up, my mom used to say, "Those who have nothing to hide hide nothing", usually right before she'd read my diary. Transparency may not be the best policy when you're 16, but the mentality is well-regarded in the professional world. Corporations make their financial records public too, whether online, in an annual report, or in a press release. Charities are open about sharing their financial information so the public can see where their money is spent. Everybody likes to toot their own horn a little bit, so agencies of all sizes often issue a release when they win a new client or a new piece of work.
Transparency goes beyond financial information and a public client roster. It can mean things such as sharing information about how your business is run - your internal processes, your full client list, the way you work. Most companies have a section of their website dedicated to profiling their team members, perhaps a few images of their office - a little peek inside the doors of an organization, a way to put a face to the names of the people you're working with.
Some companies take it a step further, publishing snapshots of the day-to-day activities in their workplace on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter. We're able to see what they're eating for lunch, whether their outfits coordinate, what they're listening to, how they get down at their holiday party.
At Headspace, we're revamping our corporate social media policy, and the question we're contemplating a lot these days is: does it ever become TMI? And does it help or hurt your business?
If you're a client, and you see pictures of the team of designers or developers who are working on your project clustered around an iMac posing with fake Movember moustaches or sipping elaborate boozy lattes on company time, how do you feel? Do you think, "I'm so happy I get to work with such a cool bunch of people" or "I want them to design my new website!"
Or do you think: "take off that @#$@ moustache and get to work - we have a deadline this afternoon"?
Do you look less credible and less professional if you're wearing reindeer antlers, or if there's a bottle of Bailey's clearly visible on your desk?
Before you put too much of yourself out there, you need to figure out what kind of clients you want to attract and behave accordingly. If you're looking for big contracts with corporate types or government associations, you should probably scale back on the Instagram feeds of your staff smoking doobies and funnelling beers.
That said, if that's your style and you want to work with like-minded clients, there's no need to hold back. As long as you're getting your work done and delivering results, it shouldn't matter that you want to have an office-wide pie-eating contest on a Friday afternoon topped off with some Jello shooters. Just don't be upset when you aren't shortlisted to build a Baptist church website. Think before you post and understand the implications of what you're sharing, not just with the clients you currently have, but ones you want to work with.
