A social media policy is a crucial tool for any business that uses social media - dance studios included! A good social media policy is a living document that provides guidelines for social media use for teachers, students, and their parents/guardians.
Chances are social media is a BIG part of how you market your dance studio. It's an inexpensive and effective way to communicate with existing families and attract new students to your studio. Chances also are that a lot of your students, their families, and your own team members also have social media accounts that they use to interact with the studio.
So how do you ensure that your studio, students, staff, and intellectual property are all protected in the big wide online world?
A social media policy helps to define what's appropriate for your students, their families, and your staff to post about your studio on social media channels. Having clearly defined guidelines means everyone knows the difference between what's appropriate and not appropriate to discuss on social media.
What should you include in your social media policy?
There are three main areas you need to cover in your studio’s social media policy:
Protecting your brand and reputation
Remind your students and staff that their behaviour on social media must remain in keeping with your code of conduct. Any comments or posts that may be obscene, defamatory, threatening, harassing, discriminatory or hateful will need to be addressed.
Protecting your team and your students
Make it clear to both your students and your staff that their anonymity on social media is never guaranteed and to exercise particular caution when posts, images or videos that identify students. Identifying information - including names, ages or location - should definitely be removed when your studio or your staff are posting on social media.
Protecting your confidentiality
If your staff choose to identify themselves as an employee, they need to do so respectfully and adhere to your privacy and confidentiality policy. Any business information (eg, fees, scheduling, placements or performance opportunities) should only be communicated via Social Media when you approve it.
Should your staff be 'friends' with students on social media?
You may choose to discourage parents / students and teachers from becoming ‘friends’ or ‘followers’ on social media, unless there is an existing relationship.
Be cautious of setting grounds for termination that is contingent upon teachers being connected through their profiles with students or their parents. You do not have the time nor should you be policing their social media relationships. However, you can make requests that any and all dance studio related business never be discussed through personal profiles.
Sample Social Media Policy
At [insert studio name] (“the Studio”) we understand the interest in social media networks (such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn etc.) and that a majority of our students and employees may be involved within the social media community in some personal capacity.
It is important for all students, parents and employees of the Studio to be aware that all information exchanged within social media networks online or otherwise falls within the public domain, and the line drawn between what is considered to be personal and public is not always clear. It is also important to remember that information posted on social network sites can be easily traced and can be accessed at any time.
The purpose of this policy is to outline minimum standards regarding social media use and participation for all students, parents and employees during their time with the Studio. The following guidelines should be followed by all students, parents and employees of the Studio in relation to social media networks and participation within the online social media community:
Recording of any classes is strictly prohibited without the express permission of the teacher. Any video taken must NOT be posted to any form of social media.
Students and parents using social media to knowingly disparage any aspect of their team, instructors, their peers or Studio staff will run the risk of dismissal from the team and studio. No video containing studio choreography should be posted on any social media site.
When participating in social media networks online or otherwise, employees of the Studio should ensure that personal comments do not bring the Studio or any of its directors or its employees into disrepute.
It is unacceptable to disparage the Studio, its directors or its employees when participating in social media networks.
Employees of the Studio should not participate in social media networks in such a way that negatively impacts upon their effectiveness and productivity at work.
Employees are not to access social media sites during working hours unless the use is directly related to the performance of duties required in the course of their employment.
When participating in social media networks online or otherwise, students, parents or employees of the Studio should not imply that any personal comments are endorsed in any way by the Studio.
When participating in social media networks online, students, parents or employees must not disclose confidential information belonging to the Studio.
Students, parents and employees of the Studio should not participate in social media networks in such a way that harasses, discriminates or treats unfairly or inappropriately any other employee, customer or client of the Studio. Any breach of this policy may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment.
Need some inspiration for your studio's social media accounts? Check out our Free Resources page for FREE your copy of 40 Social Media Post Ideas for your Dance Studio.
Inside you'll find 40 simple ideas for engaging, entertaining and educational posts to uplevel your socials. That's one idea for every week of the dance year!
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