Online Social Media Principles

INTRODUCTION
Everyday,peoplediscuss,debateandembraceTheCocaColaCompanyandourbrandsinthousandsofonline
conversations.Werecognizethevitalimportanceofparticipatingintheseonlineconversationsandare
committedtoensuringthatweparticipateinonlinesocialmediatherightway.TheseOnlineSocialMedia
Principleshavebeendevelopedtohelpempowerourassociatestoparticipateinthisnewfrontierof
marketingandcommunications,representourCompany,andsharetheoptimisticandpositivespiritsofour
brands.
ThevisionoftheCompanytoachievesustainablegrowthonlineandofflineisguidedbycertainsharedvalues
thatwelivebyasanorganizationandasindividuals:
LEADERSHIP:Thecouragetoshapeabetterfuture;
COLLABORATION:Leveragingourcollectivegenius;
INTEGRITY:Beingreal;
ACCOUNTABILITY:Recognizingthatifitistobe,itsuptome;
PASSION:Showingcommitmentinheartandmind;
DIVERSITY:Beingasinclusiveasourbrands;and
QUALITY:Ensuringwhatwedo,wedowell.
TheseOnlineSocialMediaPrinciplesareintendedtooutlinehowthesevaluesshouldbedemonstratedinthe
onlinesocialmediaspaceandtoguideyourparticipationinthisarea,bothwhenyouareparticipating
personally,aswellaswhenyouareactingonbehalfoftheCompany.Itiscriticalthatwealwaysrememberwho
weare(amarketingcompany)andwhatourroleisinthesocialmediacommunity(tobuildourbrands).The
samerulesthatapplytoourmessagingandcommunicationsintraditionalmediastillapplyintheonlinesocial
mediaspace;simplybecausethedevelopmentandimplementationofanonlinesocialmediaprogramcanbe
fast,easy,andinexpensivedoesntmeanthatdifferentrulesapply.
TheCompanyencouragesallofitsassociatestoexploreandengageinsocialmediacommunitiesatalevelat
whichtheyfeelcomfortable.Havefun,butbesmart.Thebestadviceistoapproachonlineworldsinthesame
waywedothephysicalonebyusingsoundjudgmentandcommonsense,byadheringtotheCompanys
values,andbyfollowingtheCodeofBusinessConductandallotherapplicablepolicies.
COMPANYCOMMITMENTS
TheCompanyadheresstronglytoitscorevaluesintheonlinesocialmediacommunity,andweexpectthesame
commitmentfromallCompanyrepresentativesincludingCompanyassociates,andassociatesofouragencies,
vendorsandsuppliers.Anydeviationfromthesecommitmentsmaybesubjecttodisciplinaryrevieworother
appropriateaction.
TheFiveCoreValuesoftheCompanyintheOnlineSocialMediaCommunity
1. Transparencyineverysocialmediaengagement.TheCompanydoesnotcondonemanipulatingthe
socialmediaflowbycreatingfakedestinationsandpostsdesignedtomisleadfollowersandcontrola
conversation.EveryWebsite,fanpage,orotheronlinedestinationthatisultimatelycontrolledbythe
Companymustmakethatfactknowntousersandmustbeauthorizedaccordingtoapplicableinternal
protocolsinordertotrackandmonitortheCompanysonlinepresence.Wealsorequirebloggersand
socialmediainfluencerstodisclosetotheirreaderswhenwereassociatingwiththem,whetherby
providingthemwithproductsamplesorhostingthematCompanyevents,andweneedtomonitor
whethertheyarecomplyingwiththisrequirement.
2. Protectionofourconsumersprivacy.Thismeansthatweshouldbeconscientiousregardingany
PersonallyIdentifiableInformation(PII)thatwecollect,includinghowwecollect,store,use,orshare
thatPII,allofwhichshouldbedonepursuanttoapplicablePrivacyPolicies,lawsandITpolicies.
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 3. Respectofcopyrights,trademarks,rightsofpublicity,andotherthirdpartyrightsintheonlinesocial
mediaspace,includingwithregardtousergeneratedcontent(UGC).Howexactlyyoudothismay
dependonyourparticularsituation,soworkwithyourcrossfunctionalteamstomakeinformed,
appropriatedecisions.
4. Responsibilityinouruseoftechnology.WewillnotuseoraligntheCompanywithanyorganizationsor
Websitesthatdeploytheuseofexcessivetrackingsoftware,adware,malwareorspyware.
5. Utilizationofbestpractices,listeningtotheonlinecommunity,andcompliancewithapplicable
regulationstoensurethattheseOnlineSocialMediaPrinciplesremaincurrentandreflectthemostup
todateandappropriatestandardsofbehavior.
COMPANYANDAGENCYASSOCIATESONLINESOCIALMEDIAACTIVITIES
TheCompanyrespectstherightsofitsassociatesanditsauthorizedagenciesassociatestouseblogsandother
socialmediatoolsnotonlyasaformofselfexpression,butalsoasameanstofurthertheCompanysbusiness.
Itisimportantthatallassociatesareawareoftheimplicationsofengaginginformsofsocialmediaandonline
conversationsthatreferencetheCompanyand/ortheassociatesrelationshipwiththeCompanyanditsbrands,
andthatassociatesrecognizewhentheCompanymightbeheldresponsiblefortheirbehavior.
OurExpectationsforAssociatesPersonalBehaviorinOnlineSocialMedia
TheresabigdifferenceinspeakingonbehalfoftheCompanyandspeakingabouttheCompany.Thissetof
5principlesreferstothosepersonalorunofficialonlineactivitieswhereyoumightrefertoCocaCola.
1. AdheretotheCodeofBusinessConductandotherapplicablepolicies.AllCompanyassociates,from
theChairmantoeveryintern,aresubjecttotheCompanysCodeofBusinessConductineverypublic
setting.Inaddition,otherpolicies,includingtheInformationProtectionPolicyandtheInsiderTrading
Policy,governassociatesbehaviorwithrespecttothedisclosureofinformation;thesepoliciesare
applicabletoyourpersonalactivitiesonline.
2. Youareresponsibleforyouractions.AnythingyoupostthatcanpotentiallytarnishtheCompanys
imagewillultimatelybeyourresponsibility.Wedoencourageyoutoparticipateintheonlinesocial
mediaspace,buturgeyoutodosoproperly,exercisingsoundjudgmentandcommonsense.
3. Beascoutforcomplimentsandcriticism.Evenifyouarenotanofficialonlinespokespersonforthe
Company,youareoneofourmostvitalassetsformonitoringthesocialmedialandscape.Ifyoucome
acrosspositiveornegativeremarksabouttheCompanyoritsbrandsonlinethatyoubelieveare
important,[email protected].
4. Letthesubjectmatterexpertsrespondtonegativeposts.Youmaycomeacrossnegativeordisparaging
postsabouttheCompanyoritsbrands,orseethirdpartiestryingtosparknegativeconversations.
Unlessyouareacertifiedonlinespokesperson,avoidthetemptationtoreactyourself.Passthepost(s)
alongtoourofficialinmarketspokespersonswhoaretrainedtoaddresssuchcomments,at
[email protected].
5. Beconsciouswhenmixingyourbusinessandpersonallives.Online,yourpersonalandbusiness
personasarelikelytointersect.TheCompanyrespectsthefreespeechrightsofallofitsassociates,but
youmustrememberthatcustomers,colleaguesandsupervisorsoftenhaveaccesstotheonlinecontent
youpost.Keepthisinmindwhenpublishinginformationonlinethatcanbeseenbymorethanfriends
andfamily,andknowthatinformationoriginallyintendedjustforfriendsandfamilycanbeforwarded
on.RememberNEVERtodisclosenonpublicinformationoftheCompany(includingconfidential
information),andbeawarethattakingpublicpositionsonlinethatarecountertotheCompanys
interestsmightcauseconflict.
OurExpectationsforOnlineSpokespeople
Justaswithtraditionalmedia,wehaveanopportunityandaresponsibilitytoeffectivelymanagethe
Companysreputationonlineandtoselectivelyengageandparticipateinthethousandsofonlineconversations
thatmentionuseveryday.Thefollowing10principlesguidehowourCertifiedOnlineSpokespeopleshould
representtheCompanyinanonline,officialcapacitywhentheyarespeakingonbehalfoftheCompany:
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 1. BeCertifiedintheSocialMediaCertificationProgram.Allassociateswhowishtoofficiallyrepresent
theCompanyonlinemustcompletetheSocialMediaCertificationProgrampriortobeginningor
continuingtheseactivities.
2. FollowourCodeofBusinessConductandallotherCompanypolicies.OurCodeofBusinessConduct
providesthefoundationfortheseOnlineSocialMediaPrinciples:Asarepresentativeof[theCompany],
youmustactwithhonestyandintegrityinallmatters.Thiscommitmentistrueforallformsofsocial
media.Inaddition,severalotherpoliciesgovernyourbehaviorasaCompanyspokespersonintheonline
socialmediaspace,includingtheInformationProtectionPolicyandtheInsiderTradingPolicy.
3. BemindfulthatyouarerepresentingtheCompany.AsaCompanyrepresentative,itisimportantthat
yourpostsconveythesamepositive,optimisticspiritthattheCompanyinstillsinallofits
communications.Berespectfulofallindividuals,races,religionsandcultures;howyouconductyourself
intheonlinesocialmediaspacenotonlyreflectsonyouitisadirectreflectionontheCompany.
4. FullydiscloseyouraffiliationwiththeCompany.TheCompanyrequiresallassociateswhoare
communicatingonbehalfoftheCompanytoalwaysdisclosetheirnameandtheiraffiliation.Itisnever
acceptabletousealiasesorotherwisedeceivepeople.StateyourrelationshipwiththeCompanyfrom
theoutset,e.g.,Hi,ImJohnandIworkforTheCocaColaCompany.Thisdisclosureisequally
importantforanyagency/vendor/partner/thirdpartywhoisrepresentingtheCompanyonline.They
mustdisclosethattheyworkwithTheCocaColaCompany.
5. Keeprecords.Itiscriticalthatwekeeprecordsofourinteractionsintheonlinesocialmediaspaceand
monitortheactivitiesofthosewithwhomweengage.Becauseonlineconversationsareoftenfleeting
andimmediate,itisimportantforyoutokeeptrackofthemwhenyoureofficiallyrepresentingthe
Company.RememberthatonlineCompanystatementscanbeheldtothesamelegalstandardsas
traditionalmediacommunications.KeeprecordsofanyonlinedialoguepertainingtotheCompanyand
[email protected].
6. Whenindoubt,donotpost.Associatesarepersonallyresponsiblefortheirwordsandactions,
wherevertheyare.Asonlinespokespeople,youmustensurethatyourpostsarecompletelyaccurate
andnotmisleading,andthattheydonotrevealnonpublicinformationoftheCompany.Exercisesound
judgmentandcommonsense,andifthereisanydoubt,DONOTPOSTIT.Inanycircumstanceinwhich
youareuncertainabouthowtorespondtoapost,[email protected].
7. Givecreditwherecreditisdueanddontviolateothersrights.DONOTclaimauthorshipofsomething
thatisnotyours.Ifyouareusinganotherpartyscontent,makecertainthattheyarecreditedforitin
yourpostandthattheyapproveofyouutilizingtheircontent.Donotusethecopyrights,trademarks,
publicityrights,orotherrightsofotherswithoutthenecessarypermissionsoftherightsholder(s).
8. Beresponsibletoyourwork.TheCompanyunderstandsthatassociatesengageinonlinesocialmedia
activitiesatworkforlegitimatepurposesandthattheseactivitiesmaybehelpfulforCompanyaffairs.
However,theCompanyencouragesallassociatestoexercisesoundjudgmentandcommonsenseto
preventonlinesocialmediasitesfrombecomingadistractionatwork.
9. Rememberthatyourlocalpostscanhaveglobalsignificance.Thewaythatyouansweranonline
questionmightbeaccurateinsomepartsoftheworld,butinaccurate(orevenillegal)inothers.Keep
thatworldviewinmindwhenyouareparticipatinginonlineconversations.
10. KnowthattheInternetispermanent.Onceinformationispublishedonline,itisessentiallypartofa
permanentrecord,evenifyouremove/deleteitlaterorattempttomakeitanonymous.Ifyour
completethought,alongwithitscontext,cannotbesqueezedintoacharacterrestrictedspace(suchas
Twitter),providealinktoanonlinespacewherethemessagecanbeexpressedcompletelyand
accurately.

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