How to Connect Meaningfully with Customers on Social Media
Building relationships with your customers means meeting them where they are. And your customers’ favorite hangout spot is on social media.
85% of U.S. customers use social media. Every second, 11 people use social media for the first time, which equates to one million new social media users appearing on the web daily. And with 25% of U.S. customers preferring to be contacted by brands via social media, your business has to prioritize social media marketing to stay relevant.
But how do you build lasting relationships with your customers on social, when they’re scrolling through thousands of posts per day? Read on to find out.
Listen First
Are you listening to your audience on a daily, moment-to-moment basis? Social listening helps you create content that your audience will respond to; it helps you know what they like and what they don’t like. Don’t be afraid to lean into the conversations happening around your brand. Because even a negative comment or a customer calling you out after a less-than-desirable experience isn’t necessarily a bad thing. According to a Sprout Social study into call-out culture, 55% of people who call out brands on social just want to be heard.
What’s a brand to do? Listen.
Listening to customers on social will likely generate more positive comments than negative ones. And while you can never completely get rid of complaints, it’s important to keep an open mind when it comes to customer feedback, as opposed to letting negative comments sit and fester without a reply—or worse, go viral.
Respond to What You Hear
52% of consumers who have reached out to companies on social media say they expect a response within 30 minutes. This means that while it’s important to strategize your response, it’s equally important to respond quickly.
A quick response time doesn’t just make your customers happy. It also converts. For example, a report by Twitter found that airlines responding to Tweets in under 6 minutes earned customers who were willing to pay $20 more per fare. Fast responses helps create the impression that your brand is one that customers can rely on when an issue arises—and they’re willing to pay for these benefits.
Personalize Your Conversations
Anyone who has a social media account knows how intimate the different platforms can be. After all, social media is where your followers connect with their own friends and family, and with people whom they consider influencers in their lives. Social media is often where they share deeply personal experiences via photos or stories.
They expect their communications with brands to be just as authentic as any direct message to a friend or somebody they’re close to. You’ll have a deeper connection with your customers if you do the following when talking to them directly:
- Use their first name when possible
- Communicate in language that is easy to understand and friendly in tone
- Sign off on comments with your team name or first name
- Reaffirm that you hear them and you’re there to help them
Create Social Media Customer Service Guidelines
It’s absolutely crucial for any business to have social media guidelines for customer support. These guidelines are an extension of your Customer Service Team’s guiding principles and should reflect your company values.
In creating your brand’s social media guidelines for customer support, consider the following:
- Tone of voice
- Response time for each channel
- Answers to frequently asked questions
- Process on escalations should the issue be unresolved
Be Authentic
Encourage your customer service team to bring authenticity in each social media reply. After all, he or she is a human being—as opposed to a bot—connecting with another person. Use emojis if it fits your brand’s style guidelines. And join in conversations among your followers if there is genuine interest.
If a sense of curiosity about your customers is already built into your company DNA, then that authenticity shows up in how your customer service team connects with your customers on any social platform.
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