Social media archiving enables you to record posts, comments, media, and other information for future reference. Many of your followers collect crucial information and also make clarifications from your pages, making it a key business tool. However, this information can be used against you in a court of law in case something goes wrong. This is particularly if you are in sensitive industries such as health, finance, and food and beverage. You may also need older data from your pages for other uses, and an archive would be the best place to get raw, unedited data. Below we explore five frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding social media archiving.
What is Social Media Archiving?
Social media archiving is the creation of an original backup for your social media posts in their raw form. This includes posts, comments, messages, and any other associated metadata. The archived information should not be edited since it can be requested by regulating bodies for compliance or for litigation in case there is a complaint or legal suit.
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Why is Social Media Archiving Important?
Having archived information makes it readily availapreble when it’s needed. In case you need to reference certain information or require data for a certain period in history, it’s possible to quickly search for it in older pages and make relevant references.
Preserving your social media data has a great historical value. In case of litigation or complaints from your followers, it’s easy to retrieve the information without alterations.
The information can also be used for future planning. For instance, if you ran a campaign a few years ago and it was a success, you can refer to older posts. You can also use this information to inspire future generations.
Your social media pages are a great source of verifiable information and records. For instance, you can post press releases, new developments, answer important questions, and arrest situations before they get out of hand. With such information frequently updated on your pages, your clients do not need to keep calling or sending emails to clarify information that is already out there.
The public records law requires compliance and, at times, makes records requests depending on whether you are in the regulated industries. With archived information, it becomes easy to comply with and respond to such requests.
How Do I Archive Social Media?
There are many avenues to archive social media data. These include the different social media network’s default archiving systems, screenshots, printouts, and social archiving software, which is a great option. Unfortunately, for big organizations that churn out a lot of information daily, taking screenshots and printing comments is not only time-consuming but may also be an expensive affair since you may need to hire someone to do it.
Social media companies are also not obliged to archive specific data. Some even delete posts if they deem them controversial and against their terms. A good social media archiving software should help you archive your pages with ease.
What Do I Look For in A Social Media Archiving Software?
Some of the key features crucial for archived data include near real-time data capturing, complete metadata in case of litigation, and records of deleted, hidden, and edited comments. You also need an automatic replay of conversations if there is a need to respond to requests. This should be easily available in an easily readable form. The software should also enable you to easily search specific information by different parameters such as topic, people, timeframe.
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Good software should make the above processes easily available. Archived information should be easily accessible, accurate, and searchable while at the same time protecting your records.
The above FAQs should answer the most important issues regarding social media archiving that you may be interested in. Always ensure you are using the best software for moments when you need to retrieve crucial data.