Last May, The Langham Hotel in Hong Kong unwittingly created a firestorm of controversy on the internet.

A series of three videos were produced to present the hotel as a safe haven for culture-shocked travelers. After the videos were released, they received a lot of negative criticism as "racist" and "offensive." The videos were pulled from YouTube, and the hotel had to issue a formal apology. 

But as this hotel learned the hard way, you can never completely erase negative buzz online.

Of course, the solution isn't to avoid all forms of online interaction. Social media can serve as a powerful channel for your staff to serve guests.

The Internet marketing managers at the Roger Smith Hotel in New York City have developed a web presence that shows what's possible when social media is done right.

Through a dedicated website, blog, Facebook fan page, YouTube channel, Flickr photo stream, and a Twitter account with over 3,000 followers, the hotel is able to build loyalty and attract attention using social media.

And then there's the vast majority of hotels that have either a nonexistent or a mediocre social media presence. The problem there is that their social media campaign is so boring it doesn't attract any attention: negative or positive. They're simply not on the radar.

This is why a social media policy is so important

A good social media policy serves as a roadmap for encouraging your staff to take part in promoting your hotel online…but also serves as a safeguard against tarnishing your brand's reputation. It recognizes that social media is by definition a personality-powered platform. It encourages your staff to actively participate in spreading the word about your organization online.

It's not so much a set of rules as it is a written philosophy to clarify your engagement strategy.

Original article: www.hotelmarketingstrategies.com/social-media-policy

About the author
This blog is written by Josiah Mackenzie, who enjoys exploring the relationship between emerging technology and the hospitality industry. 

www.hotelmarketingstrategies.com