SMA Brandportal
Social Media
With our social media presence, we want to increase brand awareness among new customers, retain existing customers and establish a fan base. After all, a loyal community can give effective product recommendations, share success stories and defend our brand in the event of a crisis.
Reaching the various target groups requires a consistent and distinctive presence, but one that is custom-tailored to the specific channels.
Everyone who is recognizable as an SMA employee or actively involved with SMA on social media bears a heavy responsibility for the positive perception of our company. In order to preserve this and to guarantee a uniform Internet presence, clear rules are required about the powers, rights and obligations of all participants. There are two guidelines on this.
In addition to the information in the brand portal, both employees and Social Media Managers have their own guidelines that deal with the specific requirements for these target groups
To the guideline for employees
To the guideline for Social Media Managers
Overview of the channels
We are constantly generating new content that we display on one or several of our social media channels, depending on the target group and market.
Here is an overview of all the relevant channels. Any questions in this regard can be addressed to Carolyn Schlosser at carolyn.schlosser@sma.de or Leonie Blume at leonie.blume@sma.de. The guidelines explained in more detail in the following section must also be observed.
Germany
Italia
India / SEA
America
Iberica
South Africa / MEA
France
UK
China
Benelux
Australia
Poland
If a new subsidiary or a subsidiary that does not yet have a social media channel wants to open its own account, this must be coordinated with Leonie Blume or Carolyn Schlosser in advance.
Social Media Guidelines
Employees
The guideline for employees is directed at all colleagues who are active on social media. It was not designed as a regulation, but as an aid that describes the broader objectives of SMA in social media, gives recommended actions and names of contact persons for follow-up questions. The guideline is available as a download here in the brand portal as well as on the intranet under "Corporate Communications".
Download Guideline for Employees
1. Speak only for yourself:
When SMA is being criticized, let the social media team respond. If you are contacted by journalists or for legal details, please refer to our press office. If you are talking about topics relating to SMA in a private context, make it known that it is only your own opinion.
2. Communicate respectfully,
regardless of the religion, nationality, ethnic origin, culture, gender and sexual orientation of the respective person.
3. Be honest and authentic:
Do not write under an alias. Particularly if you are talking about SMA, give your name and your position.
4. Observe the insider guidelines:
Internal affairs remain internal. Only universally available or already published information from official pages can be shared.
5. Respect the privacy of others:
All people depicted in photos must give their consent for the photos to be published in advance and in writing. (see: release form)
6. Protect copyright:
Sharing other posts is allowed, but uploading external content without permission is forbidden. If you want to publish references, discuss this with your Social Media or Marketing team, because we also need written consent.
7. Preview your posts
before you publish them. Once something has been on the internet, it is often difficult to delete content again.
8. Protect your privacy:
Double-check what you are sharing and with whom. Check the privacy settings on the platforms to see what content is visible to the public and what is not.
Social Media Manager
The guideline for Social Media Managers serves to establish a consistent communication culture. It clearly defines the framework conditions, but offers enough freedom to create a variety of content. Apart from the contents of posts, it focuses on the community management in particular, i.e. the interaction with users. The guideline is available as a download here in the brand portal.
Download Guideline for Social Media ManagersGeneral guidelines
Image selection
Images with a high resolution should be used wherever possible.
However, spontaneously taken images of a lesser quality (e.g., cell phone images of events) may also be used to maintain an authentic presence. The relevance of the story is the key factor here.
As much as possible, all images should conform to the new visual language. Existing images can also be edited to make them conform (e.g., brightening).
You are free to upload several pictures in one post. This has been very well received by users.
Using the typography
Strategic posts with an image focus
SMA Futura Global is used.
Color: Black or white, also blue for quotes.
Highlighting: Red/blue and shades thereof in color, through the font type (italics or bold) or the font size.
It must be clearly legible on all end devices.
The minimum size is 25 px. The font should not be any smaller than this.
The font size can vary depending on the text length and the space available in the design.
The text must not take up more than 20% of the image (Facebook/Instagram) because otherwise these platforms will limit the reach.
The generally applicable typography rules should be observed.
Platform-specific tools
The special features of each of the platforms should be used (e.g., Instagram stories) to appear more authentic and approachable.
The font type “Basic” should be used for Facebook.
“Classic” has to be selected for Instagram.
These tools should not be used in combination with SMA Global Futura.
Interactive elements (e.g., surveys) are permitted. However, they should be tailored specifically to the topic of the post and used in moderation.
The tools can be combined with text in SMA Global Futura.
Using the logo
The company logo should be used as a profile picture without any additional text or visual elements.
The company logo must not be used on posted images, because it is already displayed in the profile picture and is clearly defined to the sender here.
Exception: Where SMA works in partnership with other companies, the company logo may be used in connection with the logos of these partners. This means that SMA is also represented when the partner shares the post.
Animations
Use of animations such as fading, moving typography, etc. is welcome, in order to grab more attention.
SMA facts and infographics are ideally suited to this.
The speed setting selected should allow enough time to read the text.
Using the beam of light
The beam of light must and should not be used on every single post.
It should be used primarily for overarching strategic topics (e.g., sustainability), but it can also be used to announce webinars and events or for quotes.
It must serve a specific purpose, e.g., to highlight text, and must not be used as a purely decorative element on images. You can read more about how to use the beam of light here.
Whenever the beam of light is used, it should be used with the font SMA Global Futura, unless an additional interactive tool (e.g., Instagram stories) is being used.
How to deal with international celebration days on social media?
We have to pay attention to how we position ourselves internationally as a brand. Therefore, we focus on a few, selected celebration and commemoration days.
The selection is based on:
Importance (e.g. global holidays such as Christmas, Ramadan, Chanukah, Divali, Chinese New Year etc.)
Relevance to SMA (e.g. days referring to sustainability, climate justice, diversity, renewable energy)
What we avoid:
National holidays (when possible)
No military or nationalistic commemorative days
Commemorative days that are thematically too far away from SMA (e.g., pancake Day)
Political issues that do not fall within the above thematic areas
What we keep in mind:
We avoid posts with few interactions, because LinkedIn penalizes these channels with declining reach
When we commemorate memorial days, we try to avoid layouted “company posts” with logos wherever possible, but instead introduce colleagues, combine these days with insights into the company or entertain
We prefer to put our resources into real social posts that fit SMA, have added value, encourage interaction, or have a wide reach
For further questions, please contact Leonie Blume or Carolyn Schlosser.
Tagging
It is possible to tag other accounts in social media posts from SMA. We are pursuing various goals:
- Visibility: By tagging people or companies in posts, these posts can be seen by a larger public.
- Networking: We can tag other companies or influencers to draw attention to collaborations, partnerships or joint projects.
- Customer loyalty: Tagging customers or followers enables direct interaction and a closer relationship with our community.
- Events: If we participate in events or organize our own events, our target group can be informed about upcoming events.
To ensure a uniform and professional appearance, the following guidelines must be observed:
- We only tag people on LinkedIn, not on the meta platforms or other social networks. Exception: People of current events such as well-known politicians or celebrities.
- We tag top people and well-known companies in the continuous text, others are collected at the end of the copy. Board/GEC members or speakers at events should always be tagged, provided they are clearly visible.
- In exceptional cases, images may be tagged in order to shorten the post texts.
- Persons who are tagged must have given their consent in advance.
- We try not to set more than 5-6 tags so as not to be disadvantaged by the algorithm. In any case, we remain under 10 references.
- Tagging is not possible for dark posts/ads.
Meta: Facebook & Instagram
Facebook and Instagram belong to the technology company Meta and are therefore similar in terms of format specifications and design options.
Target group
Both platforms are used more for private than for professional purposes. Content therefore competes with that of friends and influencers. As a result, the design of the posts is different to the posts shown on LinkedIn, for example.
Topics and content
The topics of the posts are focused more on the target groups: end customers, system operators and installers from the Home segment. The content should be short, concise and entertaining.
To encourage users to interact with SMA for longer, it may make sense to include a call-to-action that links to further SMA content. However, it is important to bear in mind that posts containing links do not perform well and can only be included on Instagram via the profile bio and ads. Emojis should be used in moderation and where appropriate. The use of hashtags should be avoided on Facebook. Between 3 and 7 hashtags can be used on Instagram.
Tagging people is not permitted on the meta platforms. This is only possible on LinkedIn. Further information is described in the “General Guidelines” section.
Formats and design
1080 x 1350 px (feed image), 1200 x 1200 px (feed image) and 1080 x 1920 px (story) formats are used for Meta platforms. Videos should be uploaded as reels in 9:16 format.
Note: The latest information can be found on the websites of the social-media-platforms.
Target group
As a professional network, LinkedIn is ideal for communicating with existing customers and prospective business partners and applicants. Higher-ranking executives with decision-making authority in particular can be reached via this platform.
Unless otherwise defined by the topic of the post, we focus on the Commercial and Large-Scale segment, EPCs and investors.
Topics & contents
Relevant but still entertaining: To reach this target group, we should use business-relevant content with a strong product focus. Our long-term aim is therefore to strengthen our expert status.
Possible content may include references, product whitepapers, sector studies and also company figures intended to impress new customers and applicants alike.
Hashtags may be used in moderation (max. three per post) and serve to form a long-term link between them and the brand. Examples: #solarpower #solarenergy #energystorage.
It is possible to tag other people or company profiles in LinkedIn posts. The exact guidelines are described in the "General Guidelines" section.
Formats & design
The preferred format for LinkedIn is 1200 x 1200 px (feed image), 1080 x 1350 px (feed image) or 1080 x 1920px (story). Only for link posts you need a wide format of 1200 x 627 px. Templates are available for download.
YouTube
Target group
YouTube is used in both the private and the professional domain, which gives us the opportunity to target end consumers as well as professional stakeholders such as installers.
Professional, more non-academic target groups such as installers are also easy to reach there compared to LinkedIn.
Topics & contents
Moving images enable us to extensively present informative content in a lively and entertaining yet professional manner. Even emotions can be conveyed effectively.
Possible formats for this include product presentations, installation videos for our solutions and promotional films that represent the overall brand. However, our priority is to give our customers the best possible professional assistance.
For each video, three hashtags can be selected that appear above the video title.
Formats & design
Videos are published in the 16:9 format. Detailed information on how to design videos will be available shortly on a separate page of the brand portal.
Note: The latest information can be found on the websites of the social-media-platforms.
Application examples
Full-page image
Collage with several images
Beams of light
Quote
Save the Date
Webinar
Webinar with partners
Webinar for which there is no good image material available
Webinar with different presenters
Webinar with different presenters - versions
Transparent layer (blue)
Transparent layer (red)
Infographic (shade of blue)
Infographic (red)
Infographic (shade of red)
Award (tagline from the upper or lower edge - for clearer distinction from the image, the badge can be highlighted with a white border)
Quote
Expertchat
Whitepaper
Example of hashtags on YouTube
Animation SMA Fact
Don’ts
These don’ts apply across all channels, even if one specific channel is shown in the example.
The “white curved line” may no longer be used.
Logos may not be used on posts (duplication with channel image).
Images must comply with the format guidelines (e.g., square or rectangular).
Pixelated images are not permitted.
Photos of the backs of people’s heads and their backs should be avoided.
The logo must not be misused (e.g., as a filler for the map of a country or inserted into a sentence).
Larger amounts of text should be avoided and integrated into the post instead.
Beams of light that serve no purpose should be omitted.
Images must comply with the visual language.
No icons other than those in the Icon Library or those defined for the system level should be used. Where required, new icons can be requested from Corporate Communication & Brand.
Downloads
Design suggestions that go beyond the templates can be requested or released for use from Isabella Polewka (isabella.polewka@sma.de) or Leonie Blume (leonie.blume@sma.de).