Getting Started with Social Media
LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook business pages, are the only permitted social media and must be connected to Hearsay. Hearsay is a social media management tool to help ensure regulatory obligations are met and provides marketing tools and the ability to post pre-approved content from their library.
To create a LinkedIn profile:
- Complete the LinkedIn Profile Review Request form. (if you already have a LinkedIn account please submit for review, you do not need to take it down prior to review).
- Send to your Office Manager to email to the ARU.
- Once your LinkedIn profile is approved by ARU, you may publish the profile.
- You will then receive an email to connect to Hearsay.
To create a business Facebook profile:
- Have a LinkedIn profile approved by ARU and connected to Hearsay.
- Complete the Facebook Business Page Review Request form
- Send to your Office Manager to email to the ARU.
- Once your business Facebook page is approved by ARU, you may publish the page.
- Connect your profile to Hearsay
To create a Twitter business page:
- Have a LinkedIn profile approved by ARU and connected to Hearsay.
- Complete the Twitter Business Review Request form.
- Send to your Office Manager to email to the ARU.
- Once your Twitter page is approved by ARU, you may publish the page.
- Connect your profile to Hearsay.
Prohibited Social Media
Using any other social media for financial, or securities and investment advisory activities is prohibited. This includes, but is not limited to:
- Using unapproved social media sites for promoting, discussing, or soliciting customers for annuities, variable life, securities, or investment advisory products or services.
- Having business profiles on unapproved social media such as:
- Creating an Alignable account
- Using WeChat for business
- Having business info on personal social media such as:
- Posting business information on SnapChat
- Retweeting a business post on your personal Twitter
- Posting or promoting business content on your personal Facebook page.
Hearsay
Posts on social media are to be managed within Hearsay.
- Including posts that are not business-related helps to ensure that any content required to be reviewed is captured.
- All new content and changes to existing content, including deleting information, must be reviewed and approved by ARU through Hearsay prior to making the change to the site.
You may delegate another person to have access to your Hearsay to assist you with managing your social media under the following conditions:
- Notify Deb LaRose in the ARU (dlarose@nationallife.com) to assign a workspace assistant.
- She will send the designee an invitation to be a workspace assistant in Hearsay.
- You must pre-approve and are responsible for all activity performed by the workspace assistant on your behalf.
Your Hearsay subscription must remain active:
- Your sites must be connected to Hearsay and you must log in at least once a year to authorize access to your social media accounts.
- If you do not, your social media sites will be disconnected from Hearsay.
- If this occurs, Hearsay will send a notification to reconnect as will ARU. Please reconnect to ensure changes to your approved social media are completed through Hearsay as required.
Other Reminders
All content on social media must meet the standards of all other retail communications. Social media content and communication may only be in English.
Please review your business social media periodically to ensure it is still current. When reviewing social media, we discover old addresses, terminated OBAs, and states where RRs are no longer registered. If updates need to be made, submit for review through Hearsay.
All LinkedIn accounts are assumed to be for business. Facebook and Twitter are considered used for business when posting business-related content. You are required to obtain prior approval before accepting an endorsement/recommendation or adding a skill that is not on this list.
Please review the updated Social Media Compliance and Advertising Policy for more details on the use of approved social media sites: LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Instagram is currently in pilot. Unless you are in the pilot group you are not allowed to create or use Instagram at this time.
Please note that what you do on your personal social media has a direct impact on your personal brand, be mindful of what you post and how you represent yourself.
Questions
If you have any questions regarding social media, please feel free to contact Deb LaRose at 802-224-1659 or dlarose@nationallife.com.
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