While social media has enabled widespread conversations between brands and their customers, for some organizations, it’s also an opportunity to hide behind social channels. These organizations are still struggling with how to manage the 24/7 nature of online customer service. Here are some signs that you may be hiding from your customers:
- You never have humans answer the phone– all calls go to voice mail.
- You do not respond to Facebook posts or Twitter feeds or use any social listening platforms.
- There’s no obvious contact method on your website or it’s buried at the bottom.
Are Customer Expectations Changing or Just Changing Channels?
But customers expect you to be there and many expect a response from you when something goes wrong. Some expect you to respond within 30 minutes and, according to the Sprout Social blog, 26% of consumers post a negative comment on social networking sites after less than stellar customer service.
“Customer service is not about speed. It’s about expectations and satisfaction. For businesses, setting and managing customer expectations may be the single most important step to improve customer service,” says Alan Berkson in a recent post on Social Media Today.
A third example, in a recent infographic by KISSMetrics, shows that the majority of customers still want a response within one day. This makes doing customer service via social media very manageable for many organizations.
Customers Still Want to Be Heard
Customers still want to know that someone hears their problem. And if you can respond by saying “I’m working on it” within a day, your organization will stand out. Look at all your digital sites and see how can make them more obvious. Is it a form, a button, a phone number or an email? How about using all of them? Now you are on the road to being more visible with your customers.