Customer Service isn’t just a desk and a phone anymore. Who wants to sit on the phone all day when we can vent to everyone on the internet!?
As a customer, when you take the conversation online and mention a brand’s name anywhere on social media, that brand is willing to fix that problem for you by immediately responding to your request. Why? Because they want YOU to talk GOOD about their brand on social media. Your bad mentions on social networks kill their reputation because your one subtle post is influencing many other customers.
It is proven that 71% of consumers who experience a quick and effective brand response on social media are likely to recommend that brand to others, compared to the 19% of customers who do not receive a response at all. (NM Incite)
Digital and social media demonstrate the proven principles of relationship marketing better than any other communication channel, particularly when it comes to customer service. Listening to what your customers are saying and/or complaining about online is easier than you think with social searches, and responding to them with excellent customer service on social networks is much more efficient and quicker than done over the phone.
No matter how big or small your business is, pay attention to how well you can satisfy your customers with great social customer care.
How are brands taking advantage of this?
The best brands on Twitter have a quick responsive rate (AND in 140 characters or less!) to all enquiries. If perhaps the conversation needs more than 140 characters, they will give you a call or continue the conversation via direct message.
Comcast: Take Comcast for example: @ComcastCares has helped the company better handle the 3 million customer service calls (and the most unhappy ones to say the least) each year. The company goes though blogs and Twitter searches and persistently replies with 3 simple words: Can I help? The company reviews 6000 blog posts and about 2000 Tweets each day to service its customers better than the traditional inbound way. And think about it – HOW MUCH DO WE ALL HATE COMCAST?! Better customer service on their part gives a lot of customers reassurance as to why they continue to be paying customers.
H&R Block: Face it, everyone hates tax season. H&R Block capitalized on that using social media. The company uses Facebook and Twitter to provide immediate access to a tax professor for Q&A sessions called “Get It Right.”
This campaign has collected over 1 million visitors and 1 million questions. What did this do? Increased their business by 15% from the previous year when they had NO social media efforts whatsoever.
Social Customer Care Creates Brand Advocates
Every brand has negative commenters, but the best brands look at them as golden opportunities. Embrace these negative comments for what they are, and know where you stand. But take action and improve using this feedback, and show that customer that you actually care. Use social media to respond to these customers in real-time. Your response time as a business is an indicator of how much you value any customer feedback. The longer you wait, the higher your building up this wall that shows that you don’t necessarily care about their opinions and/or feedback.
Connecting directly with customers in a two-way dialogue increases customer satisfaction, engagement, and measurable success. Going above and beyond for one negative customer can touch far more potential customers and improve your brand’s perception in ways that other marketing tactics cannot. Using situations like this can create a customer-oriented stigma for your brand and inevitably increasing the amount of brand advocates you have. As stated above, brands that respond quickly with customer service prompt more customers to tell a person about that brand. They are your brand advocates. Brand advocates drive 33% more sales and 18% more traffic than regular customers. (Zuberance)
Have you ever complained so unmannerly on social media that that brand got back to you so quickly? Think about how that made you feel. You’re opinion changed a bit, not a lot, but slightly. In your head your underlying thoughts probably were, ‘Wow, I didn’t think they would do that so fast, let alone care in the first place.’ Your perception of that brand changed, and when your friend has a problem, you will most likely go and tell them, ‘Ask them online, their customer service is great!’ Problem solved, ay?
Think about how social customer care can help your business. Maybe people don’t have complaints about your company for you to do this, BUT what are those constant questions you always get asked? Incorporate those questions into your social or content strategy. Answering these questions before your customers even think about asking or complaining about them is what keeps them in love with your brand.