Social Media Marketing Blog

In 2009, there have been a multiple instances where an employee’s misuse of social media and social media marketing has lead to their dismissal. However, it appears that these aren’t just outliers, but the result of a serious crackdown by corporate America on tracking their employee’s online activities.

According to recent studies by Proofpoint, an Internet security firm, of companies with 1,000 or more employees, 17 percent report having issues with employee’s use of social media. Almost 10% of those companies having issues with online use have actually dismissed someone for their behavior on sites like Facebook and MySpace.  This trend is more than double the numbers from 2008, where just 4 percent reported having to fire someone over social media misuse.

These firings occurred in companies not blocking these social media outlets.  It is said that 1 in 3 companies have blocked access to popular social media sites, with that number expected to rise in the coming months as employers look to increase productivity and decrease potential distractions to its employees.

The two factors this writer sees at play are employers closely monitoring social media sites and employees who continue to not use common sense when posting online.  Many individuals do not draw a line in the sand when discussing work and life outside of the office, either by sharing sensitive corporate details, or simply by making foolish remarks about their employer.  Employees, especially those fresh out of college, could avoid any potential problems by creating a more PG-13 and professional version of their Facebook profiles. 

If you choose to maintain only one facebook or other social media account,  please be mindful that anything written behind the corporate firewall could potentially be monitored. This is not meant to create FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) but it is meant to educate worktime users of social media sites.  It is recomended to keep the social media commentary offline, at least unless you’re absolutely sure both your privacy settings and IT setup make sure that whatever you’re saying will only be read by its intended audience.