If you want better customer service -- and who doesn't? -- there are strategies, and there are social media strategies.
Like many consumers, Ryan James, has discovered the latter lately. When he needed to arrange a wheelchair for a recent flight from Budapest to Montreal, he skipped the phone and just tweeted to Air Canada.
"They were so responsive," says James, college professor from Budapest. Problem solved.
Trouble with his virtual private network company, NordVPN? After sending a tweet, the company fixed it "within minutes." When he needed a list of Panera locations, he contacted the company via social media. It filled his order quickly.
But you'd be surprised at what's happening behind the scenes. Companies are responding to customers through social media channels like never before. Research suggests more consumers are turning to Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, to contact companies -- whether the companies are ready or not. There are important takeaways, both for companies and customers.
"Social media is the future of customer service," says Anna Yates, a content marketer for The Social Reach, a digital marketing agency. "Not only are consumers turning to social media more and more to learn about products and services, but new tools are available to make customer service faster, easier, and smarter."
The customer service social media tactics I see
As a consumer advocate, I've seen my social media channels go from busy to bubbling over with activity in just a few short months. Customers are looking for help, and they want to contact a company in a way that's convenient for them. They expect a fast response time. I know because they're either contacting me directly for helpor copying me on the angry tweets sent to companies.
I've covered some of the trends, including the rise of Facebook Messenger for customer service purposes, in my weekly Washington Post column.
Companies know customers expect a response. And now, they're answering.
Take Red Oxx, a small luggage manufacturer in Billings, Mont. Jenna Shanahan, the company's customer care consultant, uses Helpscout, a help-desk software system that integrates into its social channels and allows her to do social media monitoring, to answer incoming messages from its site. Red Oxx also deployed Smooch, a program that connects business software to all messaging channels, to link the Facebook messages to Helpscout.
"We often receive customer inquiries through these channels," she says.
At an airline conference a few months ago, everyone seemed to be talking about social media strategies and customer support. Some carriers confided that they had assigned their most senior customer service representative to staff Facebook and Twitter channels.
In other words, if you want to deal with someone who has a lot of experience handling complaints, you may be better off sending a Facebook message or a tweet.
Ready or not, here come the customers!
There's another angle to this social network story. Companies are as interested in helping customers as they are in preventing negative publicity.
There it is, the "D" word -- damage control.
Steve Pritchard, a digital marketing consultant at Cuuver.com, an insurance website, is quite open about the need to manage the critics.
"It is important that you set up a process to deal with disgruntled customers on social media, as many take to social media first when they encounter an issue," he says. Answer that criticism quickly, he says.
"Generally, the best way to deal with these complaints is to show that you understand their frustration and sympathize with them, before referring them to your customer service team," he adds.
Put differently, social media customer service is not the same thing as customer service. Soon, many companies will integrate their social media response teams with their customer service teams. But for now, they are mostly separate -- at least, internally. But it's important to note that people don't care about internal structures. Consumers expect a quick response online. When they see a tweet, it might as well be coming directly from the CEO.
Don't be so corporate
Which brings us to the other issue regarding damage control on a social platform. It's being done in such a corporate way that it makes users wonder: "Do they really get it?"
Jay Perkins, the co-founder of Kettle Bell Kings, a health and fitness site, says companies often forget that social media allows them to defend themselves "and show what you have done right." You can push back in other ways to offset any negative reviews.
"Show off a bit," suggests Perkins, who manages the company's social media support department. "One of the ways we have built a great social community is by sharing customer reviews and experiences of our products by re-sharing their candid posts on social media. This would include photos or videos of them using the product directly with a quote for them and thanking them for their share in the caption. When others see this, it creates more great opportunities like this for your brand."
These social media strategies will help you give -- and get -- better customer service
The takeaway for customers is clear: Companies are paying closer attention than ever to their Twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms. Despite what corporate America says, you might find a quick resolution to any service problem online with the right social media strategies.
The trick for getting better service through social media is equally apparent. Instead of hammering Twitter with angry comments, try what I like to call the three Ps -- be patient, persistent, and polite. Companies tend to flip into "crisis" mode when you send angry messages that threaten lawsuits, bodily harm, or the end of civilization. You might find a very receptive, senior customer service agent on the other side, ready to assist.
And how about companies who want to serve those customers? Well, most brands are still using social media to engage consumers in product and service discussions, says Jonas Sickler, marketing director at ReputationManagement.com. "But savvy companies are building customer care into their social media teams. This involves hiring and training a customer experience professional to work with your social marketing team," he says.
That just may be the future of customer service.
And one more thing. Don't throw money into a Zendesk or Helpscout plan if your customer service reputation is already circling the drain. Social media won't improve customer service. In fact, it may do just the opposite.
"If brands have a poor customer service process, migrating that onto social media will amplify your imperfections," adds Sickler. "You'll essentially be airing your own dirty laundry."
Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that empowers consumers to solve their problems and helps those who can't. He's the author of numerous books on consumer advocacy and writes weekly columns for King Features Syndicate, USA Today, and the Washington Post. If you have a consumer problem you can't solve, contact him directly through his advocacy website. You can also follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, or sign up for his daily newsletter.
