In a recent article, Lilach Bullock points out that while many companies may view their social media customer service as high quality, only a small percentage of their customers agree. Almost every B2C company could benefit from improving their customer service on social media channels. If companies answer customer complaints on social media in under an hour and the response is actually helpful, then companies can expect to see growth in customer loyalty and an increase in the amount of customers championing their product or service to their friends and family. Bullock’s article also provides the following four tips to stand out from other companies with your social media customer service:
1) Respond in less than an hour, but if you can do it immediately, that would be ideal.
2) Corporate jargon and confusing answers will get you nowhere on social media. People expect responses that are conversational and straight to the point. In addition, don’t try to hide anything. Be honest and open with your responses and customers will be more inclined to trust you.
3) Track mentions of your brand name on social media channels to find opportunity for community engagement. In addition, Bullock recommends monitoring mentions of your name that don’t necessarily tag your exact social media handle, because customers often vent without thinking to tag them. It’s also important to monitor keywords related to your company’s product or service. For example, if you’re a restaurant that specializes in bar food, keep an eye out on Twitter for people talking about cheeseburgers. If somebody is asking the general public on Twitter if they know of a great burger, you can chime in and recommend your restaurant.
4) Properly measure your social media presence by tracking: number of messages reviewed, response rate, and response time. Bullock describes these metrics in more detail in the original article.
Social Media Call Centers Can Transform the Customer Experience
Customers now demand that businesses interact with them on the communication platform of their choice, including social media. Specialized social media call centers can handle high customer interactions 24-hours a day. The social media customer service agents can monitor all customer interactions with brands on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, or any other networks. What makes this significant?
We live in an era where one misstep from a brand can lead to irreparable damage due to the word-of-mouth snowball effect that can occur on social media channels. Having a call center to deliver 24/7 social media monitoring is a game-changer because companies can now correct a negative customer experience immediately through the social media channel, which can help companies avoid major backlash from their customers. Some of the benefits of social media customer service include:
- Brand image protection
- 24/7 customer interaction
- Increased customer engagement
- Expanded marketing platforms and channels
- Improved customer satisfaction and loyalty
- Extra data for sales and marketing analytics
- Call deflection
When it comes to social media interaction in call centers, they can provide the following services for companies:
- Monitoring
- Engagement/Response
- Moderation
- Analytics
- Content Development
- 24-hour support
This blog post is based on an article from CustomerThink. To read the original article, please click the link below:
How to handle your customer service on social media like a pro – Lilach Bullock
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