We always say that social media is all about building and maintaining relationships. One way to do that is to make sure that complaints and comments are responded to as quickly and as diplomatically as possible.
But, lo and behold. In the UK, a BizReport article statesthat even though more customers are turning to social media, the people behind the channels seem to disappoint.
New research from Eptica revealed that 26% of British and 31% of French consumers are complaining that they are not getting their desired social media response. More than 80% of the 2,000 people surveyed were “unhappy” with the response they got from social media channels after airing their concerns. And that’s just the beginning of the story—17.5% of those who complained did not even get any response at all.
According to Dee Roche, global marketing director of Eptica, “not answering basic questions is essentially slamming the shop door in the face of potential customers.” She added that social media is akin to a megaphone—a small complaint can be blown out of proportion because of the kind of audience that it can reach out to. As such, companies who do social media should not just stop at creating accounts. They should actually deliver the customer service that is expected of them.
Ironically, there are still many companies that have yet to integrate their social media efforts with their current customer service strategies. An industry analyst estimates that by year 2013, at least 35% of customer service centers will have integrated social.
The report also noted that 36% of UK consumers now use social media to engage with brands—a 19% increase from eight months ago. The migration to social media is exciting and impressive but the challenge is to keep up with the expectations. If there is anything to be learned from this, it is that online retailers and Internet marketing service providers should not forget what social media is about—more than the business, it is about the relationships.