Employee content: What to ask your team and new hiresBy Emma

Some people just don’t want to make content. And, contrary to popular belief, social media managers don’t want to make those people feel uncomfortable for the sake of a post.

Content creation would be so much more efficient if SMMs knew who was happy to get involved and which type of content they’d be happy making.

This is our call to People & Ops teams to include questions like these in the onboarding process and 1:1s.

• Are you comfortable being filmed or having your photograph taken?
• To what degree? Are you okay being directly in front of the camera, or would you prefer being in the background?
• How do you feel about speaking on camera?
• Would you be okay with doing voiceover content?  [Show examples]
• Our marketing team often shoots fun content like this [show examples]. Is this something you’d be happy to get involved in?
• Have a look on our social channels. What type of content would you not like to feature in?
• We also have a blog and newsletter—would you be interested in providing comments and insights for those?
• For you, how much notice would you like to be given before being asked to contribute to content?
• Sometimes we use our content for promotional purposes—would you be comfortable being featured in this?

The main thing to note here is that not all content is the same. Someone who hates speaking on camera might not mind if they’re in the background of a shot. Other people are happy to contribute their insights in an article, but they’re not going to dress up as an elf for a festive skit. Everyone has their reasons.

While team content can impact company culture for the better, forcing people to contribute to content when they don’t want to can have quite the opposite effect. But by asking your team their preferences, you show that you respect their privacy and personal autonomy.

Dive deeper 🤿

꩜ An easy form-builder to ask those questions

꩜ The Happiness at Work podcast

꩜ What NOT to do as a social media manager

꩜ Perks don’t make a strong company culture

꩜ Other company culture green flags

In the pool with…Alex

Alex* has worked in marketing for over 15 years. In their early career, they were employed by a company that made a lot of fun, team content. And while this was great, there were a couple of things Alex wished they did differently to make it a better experience for everyone.

*Name changed for anonymity.

Let’s start on a positive—what did you like about working in a company that got the whole team involved in making content?

Involving everyone in content creation can be great for team building! It encourages the exchange of ideas, and everyone can share their input to produce something fun and engaging. I always enjoyed this aspect, and in many ways it made me (and my teammates) feel more connected to the business and often more valued.

For you, what were some of the problems with that company’s approach to team content?

It’s one thing to help make content, but to be in it too is a whole other thing entirely. If you’re having a difficult day, feeling low in confidence or feeling a bit stressed with workload, the last thing you feel like is having a camera on you! So it can create frustration with people, and be off-putting. Another issue is that people like to feel like they are being authentic, and when asked to participate in content that doesn’t feel like you’re being yourself can be hard— even when it is part of your job!

I also think timing is key, and you have to read someone’s mood. If featuring in content is your core role, I get that you’d need to be available to do it on the company’s terms. But if it’s not, and you have other tasks and deadlines to worry about, it’s easier when you have the time (and energy) to participate!

How do you think your employer could have approached team content better?

Better forward planning! Requests to feature in content often came up at the very last minute, meaning dropping other tasks already on deadline and putting additional pressure on the team. This could have been avoided if it was planned in advance so that the team could plan around it.

I think it’d also have been better if people felt they could say “no thanks I’d rather not” more easily and without fear of this being held against them. Not everyone feels comfortable being featured in a photo or video.

What advice would you give to businesses and social teams looking to create content with their wider team?

1. When it comes to asking your team to feature in content, be clear about where/when/how the content will be used so that you can ensure the person is comfortable with it.
   
2. Forward plan as much as you can! It means people know what to expect, and can plan it around their workload. If you’re able, also give them a brief—e.g. This is what we are creating and why, this is what you’ll be asked to do. Plus relevant details like what to wear, because people could be worrying about such things. Additional detail will put their mind at ease!
   
3. And finally, don’t force it! Unless someone has taken a role that specifically requires featuring in content, people should have the ability to say no without any consequences. From personal or cultural reasons, to just personal preference, there could be many things that mean they don’t want to. It’s best not to force them into it even if you think it’s great for them or the business.

Content idea of the week 💡

Hiring new people soon? Try this idea from Dr Bronner that lists some of their employee benefits. We love that it shows the real people bringing this product to life.