Main expectations customers have for social media using companies

As the world becomes more and more dependent on social media, brands are already engaging with social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, Pinterest and Instagram to communicate with their customers.

Marketing is no longer the most important way to reach customers on these networks, and social customer service is quickly becoming a useful and a necessary tool to meet customer expectations.

Many customers have turned to social media to write positive comments about their experiences, but a significant number of people use it to let their complaints be heard publicly.

These negative comments can be very detrimental to a company’s reputation, especially if they are not handled accordingly. Only a  correct response from a customer service team can make a huge impact.

The biggest cause of social media crises last year has been the exposure of poor customer experiences that were shared online. Ignoring complaints or issues that arise on a company’s social media page can be very bad for business, but effective social customer service brings real benefits. In fact, research has shows that 91% of people agree that social customer service is a positive thing for customers.

Customers have expectations from companies using social media platforms like;

1) Speed; A social customer service team’s performance can be measured by their response on time and the number of queries answered.

2) Usefulness; Resolution is the key to customer satisfaction from Customer Service. The right tools and processes help companies to get queries to the right team member, as quickly as possible so that helpful answers can be delivered straight through social media.

3) Friendly; Tone of voice is the most important, and the most difficult, challenge to master for social customer service teams. It’s important to deliver genuine, professional help, but in keeping with the ways in which your customers reach out through social platforms.

The demand for social customer service is rapidly growing, due to the convenience it offers consumers. Companies are shifting online activity into social networks, and there’s no reason why they interactions with consumers shouldn’t follow.

Developments in mobile technology makes it even easier for people to stay constantly connected, and in order to keep up with their customers, businesses will need to incorporate social media into their customer service agendas.

For purpose of  moving forward, companies must become truly socialized and it all begins with the establishment of a dedicated social customer service team.

I found these graphics that highlights the challenge and opportunity for brands to use social media to solve customer problems.