Business posting guidelines
With Business Posts, businesses can post to the community newsfeed to share updates, crowdsource for requests and feedback, and draw in new customers. Neighbors can react and reply to posts to engage 1:1 with the business.
Only local businesses are allowed to post into the newsfeed. National brands and e-commerce companies cannot utilize business posting. However, local franchises of national companies may post.
Read on to learn more about what is and is not allowed with Business Posts.
Posting Guidelines
All business posts must adhere to Ship2Mates’s Community Guidelines. In addition, there are some guidelines specific to business posts. See below for details on what is and isn’t allowed.
Allowed
- Posting informational content like changed hours or upcoming opportunities.
- Asking questions that prompt neighbor feedback like, What should we add to our summer menu?, What local events would you like us to host?, What would bring you in to our store?
- Posting about Local events
- Customer or employee spotlights
- Posting community-engagement questions like what are your weekend plans? What is your favorite thing about our community? What are you most looking forward to post-covid?
- Posting expert advice related to a service you provide
Not Permitted
- Negative posts about competitors.
- Using false promises, exaggerated claims, or untrue statements when describing your products or services.
- Posts relating to products and/or services in Ship2Mates’s list of prohibited goods & services.
- Posting a neighbor’s information or their Ship2Mates content in your post without their consent.
- Fraudulent content, phishing, or content we deem to be spam
- Suggesting that Ship2Mates endorses your business.
Posts about alcohol are allowed, but must follow these guidelines:
- Images may not show people consuming alcoholic beverages.
- Images may not show people under the influence of alcohol while participating in risky, antisocial, or illegal behavior. (e.g., operating machinery, driving.)
- Copy & images may not insinuate that drinking is beneficial or can enhance any aspect of social life. (e.g., physical performance, social standing, dating success.)
- Copy & images may not promote excessive drinking or rapid consumption of alcohol.
- Copy & images may not highlight alcohol by volume % (ABV) as a positive quality.
- Ads that promote or reference alcohol must comply with all applicable local laws, required or established industry codes, guidelines, licenses and approvals.
What happens if a business does not comply with these rules?
Neighbors may report business content that they believe violates the Community Guidelines. Reported business content is sent to Ship2Mates, rather than Leads. If your business content is reported and we find that you are in violation of Community Guidelines or business posting policies, Ship2Mates may take one or more of the following actions:
- Contact you with a warning
- Remove the inappropriate content
- Place your account on read-only access temporarily or permanently
- Disable your account temporarily or permanently
- Remove your business page from Ship2Mates
Ship2Mates reserves the right to take action on Guidelines or policy violations without first reaching out to the business page owner.
What can I do if my account is disabled for a business posting violation?
If your account is disabled, you will not be able to access Ship2Mates or receive notifications from your Ship2Mates community.
If your account was disabled temporarily, the bottom of the screen will indicate when your account is eligible for reinstatement. If you sign in again after the given number of days, you will be able to access your account after agreeing to follow the Community Guidelines.
If you do not see a reinstatement date, this may mean that your account has been disabled indefinitely. Accounts may be indefinitely disabled for violations of the Member Agreement or for severe or repeat violations of the Community Guidelines or posting business policies. In this case, you can contact us for more information on the status of your account. Note that eligibility for reinstatement depends on your account history and the severity of the violation.
If you believe your account was disabled in error, contact us to request a review of your account. We generally respond to these requests within 48 hours.