target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="#fb3_img_img_8cecadd5-7fd1-5885-b403-e6a9adc3252a.png" alt="Tip"/> The complexity of your social media policy depends on the extent of your social media marketing effort and the number of people and departments involved. Generally, the larger the company, the longer the policy.
Staying on the Right Side of the Law
Just about everything in social media pushes the limits of existing intellectual property law. So much information is now repeated online that ownership lines are becoming blurred, much to some people’s dismay and damage.
When in doubt, don’t copy. Instead, use citations, quote marks, and links to the original source. Always go back to the original to ensure that the information is accurate.
https://techcrunch.com) for information about legal wrangling. New case law, regulations, and conflicts bubble up continually.
Obtaining permission to avoid infringement
Though small text extracts with attribution are permitted under the fair use doctrine, the copyright concept is intended for individuals and educational institutions, not for profit-making companies. If you don’t obtain permission, you and your company can be sued for copyright infringement. In the best-case scenario, you can be asked to cease and desist. In the worst case, your site can be shut down, and you might face other damages.
The way around this situation is simple: Send a permission request, such as the one in the nearby sidebar, “Sample copyright permission.”
Be especially careful with photographs, which are usually copyrighted. Here are a few places to find free or low-cost images legally:
Select from the wealth of material offered under a Creative Commons license (http://creativecommons.org). Search for items that can be used for commercial purposes or are in the public domain.
Search for copyright-free images from the federal government.
Take advantage of all the free, high-resolution images from Unsplash (https://unsplash.com).
FreeImages (www.freeimages.com) has thousands of free photographs.
Search http://images.google.com: Click the Settings link in the bottom-right corner of the window, and then select Advanced Search from the pop-up menu that appears. In the Advanced Search screen that appears, scroll down to the Usage Rights drop-down list and select Free to Use or Share, Even Commercially. Note that these images may still require attribution or have other limits on use; you should still contact the copyright holder for permission.
Look for stock images from sources such as iStockphoto (www.istockphoto.com), Shutterstock (www.shutterstock.com), or Freerange Stock (http://freerangestock.com).
SAMPLE COPYRIGHT PERMISSION
Dear _____:
Watermelon Mountain Web Marketing wants permission to use your (information, article, screen shot, art, data, photograph) on our (website/blog/social media page) at [this URL: WatermelonWeb.com] and in other media not yet specified. We have attached a copy of the information we want to use. If it meets with your approval, please sign the following release and indicate the credit line you want. You can return the signed form as an email message, a PDF file, a digitally signed document, a fax, or a first-class mail message. Thank you for your prompt response.
The undersigned authorizes Watermelon Mountain Web Marketing to use the attached material without limit for no charge.
Signature:
Printed name:
Title:
Company name:
Company address:
Telephone/fax/email:
Company domain name:
Credit line:
Respecting privacy
Providing a disclaimer about keeping user information private is even more critical now that people sign up willy-nilly online. Individual privacy, already under threat, has become quite slippery with the Facebook Connect sign-in available on all sorts of third-party sites. Facebook Connect may make sign-ins simpler for a user, but it gives Facebook access to user behavior on the web while giving third parties access to users’ Facebook profiles for demographic analysis.
Photographs of identifiable individuals, not taken in a public space, historically have required a waiver to use for commercial purposes. When individuals post their images on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, or elsewhere, they may not intend to give permission for that image to appear elsewhere.
Respect a person’s space; do not post publicly viewable images of people’s faces on any of your social media pages unless you have permission. For a simple photo waiver, see www.nyip.edu/photo-articles/archive/basic-model-release.
Revealing product endorsement relationships
Taking aim at companies that were arranging paid recommendations from bloggers, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) updated its regulations for digital advertising, including blogs, in 2013. The rule (found at www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/attachments/press-releases/ftc-staff-revises-online-advertising-disclosure-guidelines/130312dotcomdisclosures.pdf)
