5 Ways Social Media Improves Customer Service

• Tweet

• Tweet

We all know by now that brands are being discussed on social media sites whether they like it or not.  This raises major concerns for businesses about how these sites impact their ability to provide high quality customer service.  Social media can be a great customer service tool, and the companies that embrace it as a way of communicating with consumers are the ones who are going to benefit from it the most.  Here are a few ways social media helps companies improve customer service:

1. Makes brands available and accessible – Through social media, companies can represent the human aspects of their business and put a face behind it.  Customers appreciate knowing that there are actual people listening to what they’re saying, answering their questions, and responding to their feedback.  This ultimately leads to more trust and a stronger sense of connection with your brand.

2. Sends the message that you’re there to help – Making yourself available through social media doesn’t just show that you’re listening, it’s also a way to show consumers that your company really cares about your customers and wants to help.  Companies can also demonstrate their commitment to their customers by posting product related content such as how-to videos, blogs, and other resources that can proactively help consumers.

3. It’s easy monitor customer feedback – Tools such as Facebook Insights allow companies to search social media sites and see how things are going.  It’s an easy way for businesses to gather useful information such as recommendations, ratings, questions, and complaints, which show your business in the consumer’s eyes.  This information can be used to create real changes and inform practices in the future in order to better serve customers’ needs.

4. Provides a place to address and correct negative complaints – Unfortunately, consumers frequently use sites like Facebook or Twitter to express their anger about a company or product.  On the plus side, this allows brands to acknowledge problems front and center.  In addition to dealing with individual customer complaints, social media is a resource where customers can go for updates and communication about larger issues until they have been are resolved.

5. Adds another medium to answer questions – Social media sites make it easy for customers to ask questions about products, brands, etc., and it’s just as easy for companies to provide a quick and efficient response.  Real-time, direct answers on a public forum such as a social media site also reach a much bigger audience than a phone call between the customer and a customer service rep.

Overall, social media can be a highly effective customer service tool.  Has your brand taken advantage of any of these benefits?