There is one situation that we get very much familiar with on the Internet - a customer complaining about a company on the social media. Everyone is doing it, social networks are the place to be heard, we get it. But what happens next? Either the company handles the complain and turns the angry customer into a loyal one, or they can ignore it and have a PR disaster on their hands.
Customers expect replies on social media. Actually, they demand replies on social media. Fast and exact. Now get this - studies show that if a company can adequately address concerns in public forums they can effectively get many more loyal customers. This means that, like it or not, you need to be in and monitoring social media websites.
Here are some more reasons why to do this:
1. Customers use social media to connect with you - the statistics say that nearly 62% of customers have used social networks websites like Facebook and Twitter for customer service. 47% of social media users claim they actively seek customer service via Facebook or Twitter.
2. Customers prefer social media - 30% of customers prefer contacting a company for their problem via message or wall post on Facebook, rather than through a phone call. The traditional ways of customer service contacts are now less preferred.
3. Customers want to show they like you - more than 70% of customers who had a positive customer service experience with your company through the use of social media, want to recommend the brand to their friends and relatives. Also, they are more likely to spend nearly 40% more.
4. Not being on social media can cost you a lot - on the other hand, if you miss the chance to respond to an angry customer through social media, you can loose more than you think. Most people won't do business with a company which provided them with bad or no customer service through social media.
5. The personal touch - one third of people will contact a company on their Facebook page to ask for product specifications or other product-related questions, because they like the one-on-one situation the social network provides.