SOCIAL NETWORKING AND THE WORKPLACE
policies to ensure that these issues are addressed. Social networking has the potential to transform how we conduct business. Its power cannot be over- looked. Statistics demonstrate that: • People spend 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook;
• More than 250 million people access Facebook through their mobile devices;
• More than 2.5 million websites have integrated with Facebook;
• 30 billion pieces of content is shared on Facebook each month;
• 190 million average Tweets per day occur on Twit- ter (May 2011);
• Twitter is handling 1.6 billion queries per day; • Twitter is adding nearly 500,000 users a day. Employers should consider what limitations are ne- cessary for individual employees who engage in social networking and have a clear plan to develop social net- working so that it is effective. The authors of this article created a Twitter account
during the fall of 2011. Our Twitter profile for @SM_ EmployerLaw is: Stewart McKelvey's Labour & Employment group
tweeting about what impacts your workplace. Contact us for tailored solutions to workplace issues. Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
By the time you read this article we will have tweet- ed over 2,000 pieces of information to our 600 plus followers and have read most of the newsfeeds provid- ed by the 1,300 plus Twitter accounts we are following. Some of the tips we have learned for starting and main- taining an interesting Twitter account include: • Have a clear and concise profile - adhere to what it is you say you are going to tweet about;
• Don't forget humour – some of our most popular retweets have been about one of Lady Gaga's em- ployees and March Madness at the #workplace;
• Make your tweets meaningful – we tweet about the most recent cases affecting the workplace from hu- man rights to jury decisions on general damages. Nine out of 10 times, those tweets are retweeted, mentioned or generate discussion by our followers. Getting it out in 140 characters or less is challenging but sometimes more compelling than spending a few hours briefing a decision for a blog or presentation.
• Be social – if you're following someone who tweets on similar issues, use your conversational skills.
• Create a relevant hashtag - so that your most rel- evant tweets are stored in an easily accessible place.
4 SUMMER 2012 DOING BUSINESS IN ATLANTIC CANADA In our case, we use #employerlaw.
• Weed and feed – have a "following" strategy - if you don't and you follow everyone, you're going to have a newsfeed of tweets that is exhausting to keep up with and largely irrelevant. Immediately block and report spam followers.
• Give them something no one else is – share business or company news or developments that are written by members of your team – there is no better way to use social networking to demonstrate know- ledge, expertise and ability.
• Don't develop a re-tweet dependency – there is nothing worse than reading the same thing over and over again and that is what re-tweets do. Look for new and novel ways to communicate.
• Stop, think, tweet – your tweet speaks about you. There is no room for spelling errors or otherwise when it comes to tweeting. As a general rule, before rushing off a tweet – read it twice, think about it three times and then tweet it. You won't regret it.
• Enjoy – using social networking to promote your business should not be drudgery. Keep on top of assistive tools and have more than one person doing the work while avoiding duplica- tion. If you're having fun doing something – it's going to show and you'll discover that this is appealing and engaging for your followers.
Lisa Gallivan Halifax, NS 902.420.3392 lgallivan@stewartmckelvey.com
Sacha Morisset Moncton, NB 506.853.1942 smorisset@stewartmckelvey.com
Clarence Bennett Fredericton, NB 506.444.8978 cbennett@stewartmckelvey.com
Alison Strachan Halifax, NS 902.420.3387 astrachan@stewartmckelvey.com
