Social Media has Sparked Change in Customer Service

Photo courtesy of detroitnews.com

On Jan. 16, there was a great article in The Detroit News that discussed social media and customer service. We discussed this same topic in my social media and journalism class, so I’d like to discuss it a little bit today.

Social media is a powerful tool. Consumers have no restrictions when it comes to voicing their concerns or pleasures with a product or service. The ability to do so gives users the chance to quickly catch the attention of companies.

Twitter is one of many popular tools used to reach out to organizations. It allows consumers to connect with like-minded individuals quickly and efficiently causing their “voice” to get noticed. Twitter is also a great tool for organizations to monitor what is being said about them-whether it is positive or negative. The hashtag feature allows users to find relevant information quickly and efficiently. Whatever is being said about a product or service will definitely be seen.

The article in The Detroit News said, “Most major companies have a social media presence by now. And because they don’t want negative mentions turning up in search results, any reasonable question or complaint is likely to get a response.”

Consumers have to keep that in mind. People who go on unreasonable rants are not going to be getting the attention that rational consumers will get.

The article went on to outline a few steps to take to get service from the organization before resorting to voicing concerns on social media. After all, if the consumer doesn’t give the company a chance to respond and fix the problem, is it fair to cause negative news about them? Certainly not. So here is a list of what the author recommends consumers do:

• Try to get in touch with a high-ranking official (through mail, Email or by telephone)
• For matters that need to be addressed quickly, try Twitter
• If your requests are being ignored, get a third party involved (such as the Better Business Bureau)

Utilizing social media as a customer service tool is something all companies need to do. It is a great way to connect with consumers. The ability to get complaints in real-time is a wonderful way to build loyalty and trust with consumers while also monitoring for prodromes.

**Here is the link to the article that I referenced from The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20120116/BIZ01/201160311