Blogging Policies, Does Your Business Need One?
Weblogs or Blogs as they are more commonly referred to, have become extremely popular in the last several years. So popular in fact that many large businesses are letting some employees post Blogs on their corporate websites. While many businesses are jumping on the Blog bandwagon for use as a creative marketing technique; a few businesses have fired employees for what they posted on a Blog. These businesses accuse the employees of allegedly disclosing trade secrets, proprietary information, and making statements that showed the employer in a bad light.
First it may be important here to explain what exactly a Blog is. A Weblog or Blog is a website not unlike a diary that people post their ideas, views, daily events and opinions on. These Blogs in most cases are able to be viewed by anyone with access to the internet. It is for this reason that you may want to consider a Blog policy for your business.
Blogs have even become a part of the underground news media, especially since the last election in the United States. They are even getting the attention of the large global news media that now on occasion report on what the bloggers are saying. The point is, like it or not, it appears Blogs are here to stay.
The best thing a business can do to protect themselves and the interest of the employee is to create a Blog policy for all employees. This policy should include specific topics that employees should not mention within the Blogs on a business website. Employers should also have policies for people that have their own weblog that they control and run themselves as well. It is essential that these policies be created so that there will be no confusion as to what the employer deems as inappropriate for its employees to post on the Internet. This policy will also protect the employer from possible future lawsuits that may arise from the publishing of Weblogs as well.
If you are considering implementing a Blog policy for your business, please be sure to consult with an attorney as to what exactly you should place in your policy. This policy should include any topics that the employer deems as inappropriate, proprietary, secretive and in conjunction with any confidentiality agreements and "blackout periods".
People who choose to blog on their own personal Weblogs should be sure in the very least that they include some type of disclaimer on the Website that is easily visible to all of the people who visit your Website. The disclaimer does not have to appear on every page of your Website but, should be displayed in such a way as to be seen by the people who visit, such as on the home page or the about me page. The disclaimer should say something along the lines of:
The views expressed on this site or Weblog are mine alone and are not necessarily that of my employers.
Along with this make every effort not to disclose information that would violate any confidentiality clause of your employer. Also take the time to review this clause if you have one before you post to avoid any confusion as to what this clause states.
The use of a Blog policy by businesses will go a long way to prevent any problems on either side of the issue if and when one should arise because the policy will clearly define what cannot be posted on Weblog. Happy Blogging!
© Keith Erwood, Dynamic Network Technologies, 2005 All Rights Reserved
Keith Erwood is the head consultant and owner of Dynamic Network Technologies, a computer consulting and services business in New York City. Visit us at http://www.dynamicnetworktechnologies.net
 Google News Updated : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:05:39 GMT Nokia Forecasts Drop in Third-Quarter Market Share (Update1) - Bloomberg
Bloomberg - By Juho Erkheikki Sept. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Nokia Oyj, the world's biggest maker of mobile phones, forecast a drop in third-quarter market share after competitors slashed prices and a new handset was delayed. Nokia Sees Market Share Slipping in Third Quarter Nokia Lowers its Third Quarter 2008 Mobile Device Market Share Outlook Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:50:07 GMT In Long-Awaited Maps of Cancer, The Breakthrough Is the Problem - Wall Street Journal Wall Street Journal - By GAUTAM NAIK After struggling for years to improve the treatment of cancer, scientists now hope to fight the disease with the help of the same techniques that deciphered the human genome eight years ago: mapping it. What You Need to Know About Mapping the Cancer Genome Data on defective genes make tailored remedies possible Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 04:01:28 GMT Dell looks to sell factories worldwide - CNNMoney.com
CNNMoney.com - By Scott Moritz Dell (DELL) is getting more serious about trimming costs and is exploring plans to sell its PC manufacturing plants, according to a news report Friday. Dell said to consider sale of factories Ahead of the Bell: Dell may sell plants, WSJ says Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 13:15:09 GMT PIECING TOGETHER A PLEA How the deal got done - Detroit Free Press
Detroit Free Press - BY JOE SWICKARD • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • September 5, 2008 Prosecutors rolled Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's plea deal into court Thursday praying the wheels wouldn't fall off. Detroit Mayor Acknowledges 'Poor Judgment' Detroit mayor pleads guilty, to leave office Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:57:24 GMT Lebanese ruling majority accuses Syria of interfering in Lebanon - Xinhua
Xinhua - BEIRUT, Sept.5 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese ruling majority accused Syrian President Bashar Assad of interfering in Lebanese internal affairs and not recognizing Lebanon's sovereignty, local press Naharnet reported Friday. Video: Sarkozy in Syria : the press is divided Editor's Notes: A losing battle, so far Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 11:59:29 GMT Lavrov rejects Cheney's attack on Russia - CNN International
CNN International - By CNN's Matthew Chance MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- Russia on Friday rejected sharp criticism by US Vice President Dick Cheney that its intervention in Georgia raises doubts about Moscow's reliability as an international partner. Video: Cheney Slams Russia for War Against Georgia Russia says Cheney fanning Georgian aggression Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:45:40 GMT Reviews of McCain's speech - MSNBC
MSNBC - The AP’s Ron Fournier says McCain “preached bipartisanship and unity from a stage retooled to carry him out to the Republican faithful. McCain: I work for you ‘Change is coming,’ McCain tells GOP in speech Publ.Date : Fri, 05 Sep 2008 13:35:16 GMT Increase Web Traffic |
PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts,
Websites, and more... This question does not have a one sentence answer! If... Read More You have created a blog and your blog is dedicated... Read More Putting up your business blog is an advantageous way of... Read More Niche marketing is an old and very successful marketing strategy... Read More The easiest way to get acquainted with the conventions of... Read More The more I use Wordpress, the more I love it.... Read More People start blogs for all kinds of reasons. Ego. Political... Read More I've sure you've heard before that it's a possibility to... Read More Long have I been proclaiming the effectiveness of RSS as... Read More Earlier this month, Realtor Magazine announced that they would be... Read More Let's start at the beginning. What is a 'Blog' and... Read More For some it's just a fun thing to do, while... Read More RSS, or Really Simple Syndication as it is commonly known,... Read More It seems like everyone is talking about RSS Feeds. They've... Read More (An RSS primer can be found near the bottom of... Read More Even though I've had several personal blogs for years, I've... Read More Blogs are becoming more and more popular. The word "blog"... Read More So why use RSS? Well, I can find a whole... Read More If you have a blog, or are thinking about starting... Read More You hear so much talk about RSS these days on... Read More Blogging is hot, and seems to be becoming hotter each... Read More The most boring part of getting traffic to a website... Read More RSS is the interactive communication tool being popularized by bloggers.... Read More In today's online world of high-speed websites and giant portals,... Read More How RSS really does pay off...Have you heard of RSS... Read More
Adsense
websites
What Is The Orange XML or RSS Icon I See More and More On Web Sites?
Make Money Blogging
Strategies to Make Your Blog More Interesting
The Viability of Blogging to a Niche Market
Top 10 Places to Find the Most Popular Blogs
Why Wordpress is now my Blog of Choice
Tips for Better Blogging - Promote any Product or Service
Making Money With Your Blog
RSS more effective than email
RSS and Blog Marketing for Real Estate
Blogging Tutorial
Bloggin for a Reason
Steps To Creating and Promoting RSS Feeds
5 Reasons Why Your Site Needs to Publish a News Feed
You Are Losing Money If Youre Not Using RSS Feeds On Your Website!
6 Ways That Blogging Can Save You Money
Get Website Visitors From Blogs
Why Use RSS?
Google AdSense and Blogs
5 Easy Ways To Use RSS On Your Site
To Blog or Not to Blog: Are Blogs Becoming More Popular than Forums, Newsletters and E-zines?
Building Backlinks With Blogs
RSS: This Publishers Choice
Top 7 Reasons Why Your Business Should Use RSS
Simple Syndication (RSS) -- Wheres The Payoff?
Affordable and Reliable Web Hosting Starting at $4.49/Month
RSS Meets the Needs of Direct Marketers
Contrary to general opinion, RSS meets the needs of even... Read More
Make Money Blogging
You have created a blog and your blog is dedicated... Read More
Bad Blogs Have Got To Go, Blogging Could Be Really Cool If Done Properly
There's a lot of blogs out there on the Web,... Read More
How to Write A Blog... And Survive
Copyright © 2004 Priya Shah The... Read More
Why It Took Me So Long To Blog
When I saw my first blog, I wasn't impressed.The first... Read More
How to Increase Buyers Traffic Through Writing Articles and RSS Content Syndication
Benefits of Writing Articles:1. Every Webmaster would like to publish... Read More
What Is A Blog?
Blogs can be described in many definitions and they are... Read More
Google Does RSS
Has Google finally embraced RSS with their new XML powered... Read More
Blog Construction
Blogs like all forms of writing are an art form... Read More
The Language of Blogs
I read over a lot of blogs each week, casually... Read More
How to Reel in Web Site Visitors by Building Your Own Blog
I know, I know, blog this...blog that. Seems like everyone... Read More
How to Use RSS for Free Targeted Website Traffic
RSS (real simple syndication) is the new rage in communication.... Read More
Blogging for Business
Not long ago a blog was simply an online diary.... Read More
Sales Marketing: Secrets To Using Blogs (Online Diaries) To Increase Your sales And Profits
These days, everybody is blogging.How about you?You can incorporate blogging... Read More
The 6 Top Reasons Marketers Should Blog
If there is a downside to blogging, I have yet... Read More
Why you should be using RSS
RSS opens up a whole new channel of communication between... Read More
16 Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Blog
You've got your blog set up and you've started posting... Read More
How to Activate The Firefox Live Bookmark Feature on Your Site
Live Bookmark is Mozilla's response to offering RSS feeds through... Read More
How To Make A Cool Xanga
A xanga is something akin to a blog. It all... Read More
RSS, Feeds, and Aggregators
When you work online all the time, immersed in bits... Read More
The Viability of Blogging to a Niche Market
Niche marketing is an old and very successful marketing strategy... Read More
Get Website Visitors From Blogs
Blogs are becoming more and more popular. The word "blog"... Read More
Fun Free Feed Tools For Both The Publisher And The Reader
As you've probably been reading, there are basically three problems... Read More
Blogging will Soon Take Over the World
In recent years, it's been pretty obvious that "blogging" (Web... Read More
Could There Be A New Way Of hearing The News Stories We Feel Are Relevant In Our Lives?
Mainstream media has become a single-minded authority on how we... Read More
Blogging, RSS & Feeds |