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Legal Landmines in the Social Media Terrain
 There is no doubt that LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and blogging are making a huge impact on how business gets done. With its popularity growing, questions surface regarding the risk and legal side of this new landscape.
Often times, law is based on precedence and previous rulings by the courts. But with Social media so new, there’s not much prior history to look at. The legal issues associated with Social marketing remain fairly unsettled.
There is resistance from company executives when it comes to endorsing a social media initiative within their organizations. Fear of information (confidential, protected or otherwise illegal or inappropriate information) seeping outside of the corporate walls is the culprit. Embracing a social strategy, creating guidelines for usage and clearly communicating expectations is the key to helping your organization understand what should be allowed to leave the corporate sanctum. Without these clear expectations, it’s a free for all.
Concern with negative sentiment in the marketplace about the brand is the second reason executives say they hold back. There is this “hear no evil, speak no evil” sort of thinking around the boardroom. With certainty I can tell you that there is a conversation about your brand or industry going on in social media right now. The only question is whether you decide to participate in that conversation.
Participating, even if only by listening, puts your company in a better position to protect itself. Listening on the internet alerts you to when your protected information (trademarks, copyrights) is being infringed upon.
(Clients and friends of BĒM Interactive please use discount code VIP2009 for special registration rate.)
Malinda Pengelly
President, BEM Interactive
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Join us November 19th at the Greensboro Chamber for this month’s Tech Thursday program on Going Mobile – is your Web Site and Interactive Marketing Strategy Ready? Please register on the Chamber’s 
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