Take care when posting photos on social media

SAIF thanks our PR Consultant Mark Binnersley for this month’s blog:

In this age of social media saturation, many organisations and individuals understandably feel the need to share content everyday. However, it’s really important to take care each time we post something online. It’s easy to find tales online of funeral directors, as well as other businesses, who have used photos without permission.

Whilst we wholeheartedly encourage the use of social media by our members, we advise you to take great care. Our three golden rules to keep you safe are as follows:

1. Always without any exception seek a family’s permission to use images from a funeral on your marketing materials, and be sure to explain fully how they are going to be used and stored. If you spot an opportunity to use the images on another platform at a later date, re-seek permission.

2. No means no. Never try to persuade a family to participate in your marketing activity. If they’ve said no, that’s it. Additionally, if they change their minds and ask for a post to be deleted then please honour their request.

3. Never assume. Make sure every detail of any post on social media is accurate, even down to the title they gave their loved one. For example, calling a grandfather ‘granddad’ could cause great upset if the deceased didn’t like to be called that. If in doubt, don’t post until you’re 100% certain of the accuracy of the information.