The importance of responding to clients
You wouldn’t ignore a customer in your store asking a question at the customer service desk would you? Or even one that called in on the phone? Of course not! For years the customer service desk and telephone calls have been perceived as a normal way for customers to interact with business to get answers to questions about products or services. However, for the last ten years, a new player has been on the field of business to customer engagement and it is one that, although it is here to stay, goes unanswered 7 out of 8 times.
That new playing field is social media and it is where more and more consumers, young and old, are turning to get their questions resolved. According to a recent study, customers seeking support on social media is up 21 percent in just the last two quarters of 2015 alone and seven out of eight customer messages go unanswered within a 72 hour period.
Unfortunately, most businesses are 4 times more likely to post things to their social media then they are to answer a customer’s question or reply to a comment. If your response is “If they want to know something they can call or come in person to my store” then you can probably expect to lose that particular customer. And as it was with the telephone, it is a trend that will continue to grow.
Statistics show that the Real Estate industry is currently struggling the most with this trend, as they are 11.7 times more likely to post something than return a message from a potential client on social media and consumer goods based business are 40% slower than educational establishments which have the quickest response time.
So now that the scary numbers are out of the way what is the good news , you ask? Why is this important to your business? Customers who engage with companies on social media spend 20 – 40% more with those companies. 71% of those who have positive customer service through social media will recommend the brand to friends. So what is a small business who does not have multiple employees to do with limited resources in the face of this new surging trend? Simple! Follow these four steps:
- Develop a social media customer care strategy for your business.
- Equip yourself with the right tools to execute that plan.
- Listen and provide timely answers to questions and comments.
- Be genuine. You wouldn’t be otherwise in person, and your online persona should reflect the same.
If your business needs assistance setting up and implementing a social media customer care strategy or someone to maintain it for you, contact us today for a fee consultation.