Today, no one can deny the immense power of social media in impacting an event, influencing an action, starting or igniting a discussion, forwarding a cause, etc. Do you know that social media has tremendous potential to considerably improve interaction with your employees and enhance turnaround time? Read on.
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The meaning of social media
A social media site or platform is a virtual space where people and applications interact with each other, express views and exchange opinions, through networking channels and community-based activities, for general leisure or productive purposes.
The most popular social media platform is Facebook. There are several other social media sites such as Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Koo, LinkedIn, etc. A company and its employees usually have a presence on such platforms. Keep in mind that a company needs to have a single official page on a single social media site and not multiple handles.
Who operates the social media of the company?
Social media managers run the social media handles of the company. They are employees of the company and belong to its administration.
Professional social media tools
There are many professional social media tools that the company can use to improve interaction with its employees. Some examples are Trello, Slack, Cliq, etc.
- You can do away with emails, and communication can happen on the social media handles
- It would allow for informal interaction with the team as well and promote reaching out to other members inside the team
- Taking feedback will become more accessible through these applications/platforms
- You can promote using personal social media handles to organically spread the work/name of your organization/company
Most of the employees have active social media profiles
Every individual is on the bandwagon today. You will, as an HR head, generally find that most of the employees of your company have active or semi-active social media profiles, especially on Facebook and LinkedIn.
Numerous ways to use social media as an effective tool
From a practical viewpoint, there are multiple methods to leverage the power of social media to improve interaction with employees.
Locating the worker who is disengaged
The task of providing incentives to your workers becomes simpler. You gain the knowledge of who among your workers are more dedicated and who are less engaged. As a senior officer of the HR department, you can also send a reminder to the employees about working more responsibly.
Rewarding the employees who advertise the company brand
It is easy to notice the workers who love the company and admire it. They frequently share news and achievement of the company on their timelines and via posts and tweets.
These are indications that particular employees are loyal to the company. They are keen to deliver the best for the management. It becomes easier for HR to appropriately reward the employees for their gestures and efforts.
Processing the employee referral credits
Does your company have a programme of employee referral credits? If you are yet to implement it, then it is high time you integrated the model with the operational framework of your business. It is a great way to enrich the talent in your company and get access to top candidates in the industry.
You can let the employees share the referral links in their social media profiles. It helps to spread the requirements of your company. It is hugely cost-effective to convey your needs to the industry and get quick and solid responses from prospective candidates.
Reminding the employees that the company cares for them
At times, it is essential to remind the employees that the company truly cares for them. It is a good idea to share interesting stories and snippets surrounding your employees on various social media platforms. It does two things simultaneously. Firstly, it reflects the genuine level of appreciation for the employee. Secondly, it upholds the benevolent image of the company.
The employee, with such a gesture from its employer, gets more attached to the company. The strength of the professional bond grows to a significant extent. Social media plays a vital role in this context.
Taking quick questions from your employees
In certain instances, the company has arrangements to take quick questions from its employees on specific management issues. It helps to expedite the process, saving precious time. Moreover, it is interactive, and the employees show interest in participation.
Engaging employees in surveys
Another fantastic activity that is possible using social media is conducting surveys. It is simple to engage your employees to participate in the surveys. They respond to the questions enthusiastically. Also, it is very convenient and cost-effective to conduct surveys on social media platforms.
Asking employees to share their work experience
The company’s HR can ask the employees to share their experience of working for the company on their social media pages. It helps to create a nice picture of the company to a bigger audience, which leads to an increase in reputation.
Healthy social media interaction can increase efficiency
There have been studies that tell that social media interaction between the employer and the employees are impactful in improving employee productivity. In the long run, the results are in favour of the company. It gains more stability in the competitive environment.
There is a clear protocol of social media activity
It is the responsibility of the HR department of the company to set the protocol of interactive sessions and the nature of posts when it comes to using social media as an effective tool. Each employee should get a clear message from the HR department.
Implementing an exclusive policy
The company needs to implement a separate social media policyThe legal document issued to the policyholder that outlines the conditions and terms of the insurance; also called the ‘policy to use the platforms effectively in channelizing the interactions and getting the desired results. Also, it is essential to evolve the strategies from time to time, in tandem with changes in social media technologies. It helps the company to remain more relevant in social media.
