Social media has been a place where people go to see what their friends or complete strangers have had to say about a product, service, or business. Social media is also the place where people have no problem complaining about their experience, because that person feels invisible when posting on Facebook or tweeting on Twitter. I have seen sports fans tweet directly to professional athletes on Twitter to let that athlete know how awful they are. But would a sports fan bash an athlete directly to their face? I'm not too sure.
When it comes to having a bad experience with a product, service, or business, people want to tell the world because they are dissatisfied. They want to be heard, even though they feel invisible as if no one will respond to their complaint.
You get the point and you also understand that satisfied customers are valuable to a business for a number of reasons. Not only are happy customers more likely to do business with you again but they are far more likely to spread positive sentiment about their experience which will help to attract new customers to you.
So what are the best practices of customer service on social media?
First of all, it is very important for your business to have social media pages for customers to release their anger on. By seeing their complaint on your social media account, you can handle their complaint yourself. Otherwise a customer can put out a bad review on a message board that you may never see.
Respond to customer complaints as soon as you can. Even if you do not have a solution or an answer just yet, let them know that you will follow up with them in a timely manner. This way they know that they were heard. Its not good to respond with an answer that you can't promise. So having the right answer at a later time is more important.
Remain professional at all times and most importantly, show empathy and understanding. Don't be afraid to put your hands up, admit a mistake and apologize. No one is perfect and admitting a mistake might help show that you're human, ultimately enhancing trust in your business.
Not all customer service is related to complaints. Your current customers who are being your promoters by giving your product, service, or business two thumbs up want to be heard as well.
Social media is a two way street. Use it effectively to respond to customers and have conversations to add value wherever you can. Don’t forget to say thank you to your customers and social media followers; feeling appreciated and valued goes a long way!
Remind people that you are there to help and encourage them to ask questions. Remember, it is very easy for people to say whatever they want on social media. With this being said, people feel comfortable asking whatever questions they have.
Don’t forget to regularly monitor your social media accounts to enable you to keep on top of the communications you are receiving. If people are routinely posting sales questions for example, you want to be in a position to answer as quickly as possible.
Hopefully by now you understand the importance of customer service on social media. If you do not have the time to monitor your social media accounts regularly, find somebody who can! It is important for a constant conversation on a platform (social media) that is ever so growing in popularity.
At Blue Frog Marketing, we are here to help you with all of your social media needs including monitoring your accounts and responding to your followers. Post on our Facebook or tweet at us on our Twitter if we can assist with your business' social media.