Anyone who has been reading this blog over the last few months knows that I am a believer in the growing importance of social media--Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and others. Lately I have become especially bullish on Twitter as both an editorial and business tool--more on that in a future post.

I also know that growing numbers of us are using these tools not just for business purposes--for instance to promote our publications, drive traffic to our websites, or provide added value to our conferences--but also for personal reasons. A number of media organizations have recognized that there can be a potential conflict between business and personal use of these new tools, and have begun to set ground rules. So, for instance, we wouldn't want one of our journalists to use their personal blog to editorialize on a subject that they are supposed to be covering objectively for our publications. Or to post a personal comment on Twitter that could be mistakenly confused as coming officially from our company.

A few months ago I asked our HR Director, Felicia White, to develop a policy on personal use of social media, primarily so that there would be no confusion about where the line is between business and personal commentary. She's been working with our Editorial Director, Aric Press, and others to develop such a policy and will soon be distributing it. I think it is pretty straight-forward and common-sensical. But if you have questions or comments about it, I hope you will share those with me.

So if you want to blog about gardening, Twitter about your cats, or rekindle high school romances on Facebook--go for it. But if your comments overlap with Incisive's editorial or business interests, or could be construed as creating a conflict of interest--think before you post. And if you have any doubts, talk to your editor or supervisor before your words go out to the world.