social media

Social media is one of the largest mediums of communication available today, with over half of the world hanging out on some platform or the other. Plus, it is easy to use and interact with people.

These aspects of social media are what make it a great platform for customer service. If you are wondering why you should use social media as a customer service channel and some strategies on how you can begin, then read on to learn more about it.

Why Should You use Social Media as a Customer Service Channel?

1. Make your Customer Service Easily Accessible and Hassle-Free

Today, no one has the patience to hop on customer service calls or have a back and forth email conversation. By enabling customer service on social media, you make customer support a lot easier for your customers. 

2. Reduce your Customer Service Expenses

Did you know that customer service through social media is 83% cheaper than through call center interaction? So, Using social media can drastically reduce your overall customer service expenses. 

3. Improve your Online Reputation

Unlike an email conversation, a one-on-one chat, or a phone call, the conversations on social media are open to the public. 

While this can be a bad thing for companies that provide lousy customer service on social media, the same thing can be used as a great opportunity for building your online reputation.

When prospects see that you respond to your customers quickly and resolve every complaint or issue that any customer has, then the prospects will develop a positive perception of your brand. 

And these people are bound to pick you over your competitors because of the premium customer service that you offer your customers.

4. Reduce your Customer Churn Rate

Social media can turn customer service into a not-so-painful task for both you and your customers. Your customers would be happy to receive prompt responses to their queries and complaints.

This will ultimately lead to increased customer satisfaction, which will, in turn, lead to reduced customer churn rates for your business.

Tips for using Social Media as a Customer Service Channel

Now that you are convinced on why you should be using social media as your primary customer service channel let’s look at some tips that will help you get better at it.

1. Be Prompt with your Responses

Most social media users expect you to respond to their complaints and queries within an hour. Hence, it is very important to be prompt with your customer service responses. 

Failing to do so may lead to a bad reputation for your business on these social media channels, which you definitely do not want.

So, have a proactive approach towards customer service on social networking channels. Monitoring these channels and offering quick responses will keep you out of trouble. 

2. Use a Customer Relationship Management Tool

A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool such as SuperOffice will help you store all your customer information at a commonplace.

This is essential because your customers will use different channels for customer service, and you do not want to start all over on every channel.

Using SuperOffice, your customer service team can pull up all the customer history and data through a single click, so they can offer premium and omnichannel service to your customers. 

3. Humanize every Customer Support Conversation

Consider adding your first name to the customer support conversations you have with your customers. 

This will help you add a human touch to the conversations instead of sounding like a brand. Your customers will also be more empathetic and forgiving if they are unhappy with something.

4. Take the Conversation Offline if Necessary

Having social media as a customer service channel doesn’t necessarily mean that you should have the entire conversation and resolve the issue over the platform. You can use the social media platform as a starting point for the conversation. 

If you foresee the interaction to be a long one, consider hopping on a quick phone call or having the conversation over emails.

Make Social Media your Primary Customer Service Channel

Social networking is a super-powerful tool that can completely transform your customer service strategy. You’ll notice an improvement in your brand’s reputation and an increase in your business’s overall profitability. 

So, start trying out these strategies, and you’ll soon be surrounded by happy customers.

Gaurav Belani is a senior SEO and content marketing analyst at Growfusely, a content marketing agency specializing in content and data-driven SEO. He has more than seven years of experience in digital marketing. He likes sharing his knowledge in a wide range of domains ranging from ecommerce, startups, marketing to human capital management and much more. His work is featured in several authoritative business publications. Connect with him on Twitter at @belanigaurav.

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