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op handles issues quickly by responding Customers are using social media to openly and honestly. “A recent example shout out about their brand experiences, that comes to mind is when a customer is your company ready to respond? wrote to us on Facebook to complain Companies that have not embraced the about our car wash. He even included a idea of responding to customer requests photo to show that the wash did not do on social media are missing out on a very good job. I responded with a sin- some of the most valuable benefits of cere apology and let him know that he connecting with customers online. These could return to the location where he got include increased customer satisfaction the wash and receive a new one for free,” and retention. If your company is not said Penny Sopel. She told us that the cus- already providing customer care via social tomer was grateful, because he was not media, here are some steps to consider expecting such positive response to his when planning your social customer complaint. This is a good example of ef- service approach: fective social customer service. • Develop a list of responses to common
customer service comments or questions you might receive via social media. Have a group of experienced team members think through every possible scenario. They should agree on how the company will respond. This way you will be better prepared to respond quickly and effectively. • Establish a social customer service policy so community managers and customer service representatives are clear on how and when to respond online. Have your management team sign off on the approach. • Provide social media training for customer service team members who will be responding. Your brand voice should be consistent across all customer-facing channels. Practice active social listening by monitoring your social media sites 24/7. You can also use helpful social monitoring tools like Hootsuite™ or Reddit to see what customers are saying about your brand. There are many options available so look for a social monitoring tool that fits with your unique community. While your customer care team best understands how to respond to customer service issues, the social media team is highly skilled in communicating on the various social media channels. These two groups should work closely on an ongoing basis to develop appropriate customer responses. Brands who are proactively developing effective approaches to social customer service are not only improving the customer experience, they are gaining valuable data about their community which can help them develop future products and services. These smart companies view social media customer engagement as an opportunity to build stronger relationships with customers and earn new ones.
“Companies should put themselves in their customer’s shoes. How do they like to be responded to? And how do they NOT like to be responded to? Then model their own policies and customer experiences based on that.” – Mike Barter