Avoiding mistakes in social media use.

• Author: Werner, Randy R.

Social media has blurred boundaries between work and personal lives, partly because sites are open to both personal and work-related content that can be posted from both home and work computers.

This overlap can enable people to post positive information about your firm and its services, either voluntarily or for marketing or recruitment purposes. But it also can enable people to post negative or false information, which has the potential to harm the firm's reputation.

The Wrong Approach

Consider the case of Sam, who was employed as an auditor for a mid-sized CPA firm. Sam frequently posted on his personal Twitter account. In response to some news about employee perks, Sam issued a series of tweets and identified his firm. The tweets were clearly Sam's opinion, but he neglected to state that he was speaking only for himself and not for his firm. He proceeded to make inaccurate, exaggerated and boastful claims about the firm and urged all CPAs to consider applying for work there, because the firm "has the best benefits in the profession." He also boasted that the firm "always uncovers all types of embezzlements and fraud."

Sam's actions exceeded his job description and encroached on the jobs of the firm's marketing and human resources staff. Furthermore, his exaggerations contradicted the firm's engagement letters, which warn clients that there is no guarantee or absolute assurance of fraud being uncovered. Sam was undermining the firm's communications with certain clients and possibly damaging the firm's reputation for honesty.

While this case illustrates the harm that can come from the use of social media, it's also very important not to underestimate the benefits, such as using your firm's presence on social media sites to provide valuable tips and thus enhance its perception as a reputable firm with knowledgeable professionals who are willing and able to help others. That's why it's so important to set out guidelines that make social media a workable option for your firm and enable you to take advantage of its many opportunities.

Institute a Policy

As your firm works to sort out the good and bad of social media, be sure to have a social media policy that includes a code of conduct, sets forth acceptable and unacceptable communications and requires certain disclosures and disclaimers. (Note: The PCPS Social Media Toolkit includes a sample social media policy and guidelines.)

In Sam's case, his firm's social media policy should have...