Remember the days when gathering customer feedback involved filling out a comment card? ?In these social media-obsessed times, customer service is more likely to involve Tweets and updates than pen and paper!? This should come as no surprise to us in a world where people chose emailing and text messaging as a preferred means of communication.
Consider this: in 2010 filmmaker, Kevin Smith tweeted his complaint about a Southwest Airlines flight. The result? Eight responses from Southwest within a 48 hour period of time. The last being a public apology. Now I don?t know about you, ?but I am pretty sure I have never received that response from a a comment card!? So what?s the lesson for those of us managing a small business? Educating ourselves about the growing need of handling customer service via social media is time well spent.
Social Media or by phone ? People don?t like to wait for customer service
In Customer Service, Every Moment Counts
We all know how frustrating it is to wait for customer service. Try calling a cable company and finding yourself on hold for twenty minutes. By the time we get through to customer service we are even more annoyed than when we picked up the phone. Social media is no different. In fact, with how quickly social media posts are made available to the public eye, this gives even more impetus to addressing comments and complaints promptly. Recent studies have shown that most fans expect a response within 24 hours, yet most businesses are not meeting that expectation.
Don?t Be Afraid to Be Human
While technology has made our lives easier, when online customer service lacks a human touch, you will find it difficult to truly satisfy your customers. Try this: As mentioned above, respond to the matter as quickly as possible via the main account (I.e.@AcmeCustomerService) or from your company?s Facebook Page or Google Plus account, but consider signing the response with your own name, ie., ?? we will do every thing we can to resolve this in a timely manner- Tina G,?.? Give them a way to respond to you directly by phone or email to take the discussion off-air.
Fight the Urge to Delete Negative Comments
Try to remember the customer has made an effort (even if it?s in the form of a complaint) to give your company feedback. Ignoring the comment will not resolve anything, in fact, a customer who feels ignored is liable to get angrier about ?the issue at hand. Make such comments a high priority, addressing them as soon as possible.? Of course, it is your prerogative to delete abusive or profane comments and to block users who continue to ignore your posting policies.
The World is Watching, so Reply in a Kind and Helpful Manner.?
Remember that social media puts your business in a fishbowl and magnifies your personality ? for good or bad. Avoid ?reacting? to negative comments and instead be ?proactive? about attaining a resolution by letting customers know you will do everything possible to rectify the situation. Not only will this calm the frustrated customer, but it may also go a long way in earning the respect of ?prospective customers.
Yes, times have changed. The days of a written complaint via a comment card may well be in our past. However, customer service is customer service, ?whether it?s received formally at a desk, or on a public forum. If we learn to utilize social media as a tool for achieving a high level of customer service both the consumer and entrepreneur is sure to achieve satisfying results.
What has been your experience with customer service via social media? Please share in the comments below!
If your company is interested in becoming a social business, you may enjoy our free eBook on Enhancing Your Internet Presence With Social Media.? Download it today!
With six years experience in managing a small business and many more enjoying creative writing as a hobby, Tina is happy to use both as part of the Scalable Social Media team.Tina believes that if you understand something well, you can explain it simply, so that's her aim here. How's she doing? Let her know in the comments! When she's not blogging for Scalable you might find her behind a camera or hiking in Europe.
Source: http://scalablesocialmedia.com/2012/10/customer-service-social-media/
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