Distractions are often an issue in the workplace. From conversations with co-workers at the water cooler to that colleague who routinely stops by your office to ask a quick question that always leads to an hour-long discussion, these distractions prevent your employees from devoting their time to more important tasks or projects.
As a business owner, it’s understandable that you assess productivity issues in your company such as making sure your employees aren’t wasting company time surfing their social media channels. It’s important to consider whether or not social media is a meaningless distraction in the workplace or a platform to help spur your company’s business growth.
Meaningful distractions
Distractions can actually be meaningful while boosting office productivity. For example, our brains are not configured to solve problems repeatedly for hours at a time, so it’s better to decompress with a welcomed distraction or break from the situation at hand. Many employees find that their best problem-solving happens after the have stepped away from the issue and then return with fresh eyes. Social media may serve as a welcomed distraction, which allows your employees to relax their brains. So, those few “wasted minutes” on social media can be an investment.
Information sharing
Millennials and other tech-savvy employees often turn to social media channels such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook for breaking news. Because these platforms play a critical role in syndicating and spreading news, your employees can serve as ambassadors of your brand by sharing news and updates about the company on their personal social channels. For salespeople, social media is an opportunity to learn the latest trends and capitalize on them.
Connecting and networking
Social media continues to transform the way we network; It’s important to remain on the forefront of networking by empowering frontline employees such as account coordinators and salespeople to connect with new people as a way to potentially grow your company’s reach. Every new social media connection your employees add becomes a potential business lead or customer, so encourage your team to grow their personal networks.
Individual branding
Social media also has the power to serve as an outlet for your employees’ respective individual brands. Consumers are more likely to trust a personal brand more than corporate brands, so encourage your team members to hone in on their unique identities in the world of social media. For example, if your company has 20 employees and each of them has 300 followers in addition to the 500 followers your business account has, that’s an opportunity to reach 6,500 followers if your employees share company news in their personal feeds. Their personal branding is still loosely tied to your company’s brand and has the potential to evoke interactions that may enhance your company’s visibility on social media.
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