How to Take an Ethical Approach to Social Media Marketing
Social media gives your business a platform to connect directly to customers. This is unique from most other forms of marketing because you are creating a relationship. That said, there is the serious matter of upholding ethics so as not to break the trust of your followers. Here is how your business can handle social media marketing in an ethical manner.
Privacy and Transparency
These are two of the biggest areas where businesses get in trouble on social media. Privacy is a big concern on the internet, and many people are hesitant to trust any platform that requires them to offer personal information. If your business interacts with customers in this way, then you need to make it a top priority to secure your customer’s data so that it won’t get leaked to social media. By establishing strict privacy rules when sharing on your website or page, you will increase your credibility. Speaking of credibility, being dishonest is one of the quickest ways to lose credibility. Make sure that you are transparent about any affiliations you have; whether the content you post involves a third party, or if your proceeds for a particular offer will support a specific charity. People want to be well informed about who your company is and what they’re values are, and even if they don’t agree with you, they will respect your transparency.
Be Inclusive
Although it’s important to clearly establish what your company values are, it’s also good to keep in mind that you don’t alienate or offend people. In the past, most people didn’t care as much about a company’s political, religious, or cultural background and standings. But now audiences are much more sensitive and are likely to call you out if your business appears exclusive. You don’t have to change who you are or what your company’s core values are, but it’s important to keep in mind when you are putting out content on social media that you acknowledge audiences of all backgrounds.
Credible Sources
Lastly, it’s highly important that you verify all of your sources before you post. You don’t want to perpetuate “fake news” by basing your post on false information you found on the internet. Everything you share should come from well-researched and accurate sources you can trust. In fact, you should be comfortable referring your audience back to those sources. Once you know that your sources have the correct information, then your marketing campaign will maintain it’s credibility.
Contact Adventure Web Interactive Today
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