At Ironistic, helping our clients step up their social media games is one of our favorite marketing tactics. But the key to creating a strong presence on all platforms? Engaging with customers! Check out these reasons why our team believes responding to customers on social media is of the utmost importance.
Everyone likes to be heard. Simply acknowledging a customer comment will go a long way. Regardless of whether or not the customer is correct in their post, they are free to, and will, vocalize their thoughts. Before reacting emotionally though, reflect on the comment and determine whether or not changes should occur. Then respond to the post, thanking the customer for their feedback and indicate what action, if any, was impacted by their post.
– Rita Foss, Co-Founder & Advisor
Imagine a customer walking into a store and asking a question loud enough to be heard. What if none of the workers responded to that question? Or worse, what if none of the workers were even on the showroom floor. That’s exactly what it feels like to a customer when they ask a question on social media with no response. Social media is just an extension of your store or place of business. Someone that is asking a question on social media is just as important as the person walking into that store. Pay attention to both. You never know what kind of business could be generated by either interaction!
Your response time tells people that you care about your clients and customers. We are more connected now than ever before, so we need to be able to respond quickly or we may lose our edge over our competitors.
For exactly the same reason it’s important to respond to your customers in the real world — silence breeds assumptions and negativity. If your customers reach out to you, respond! Otherwise, they will start reaching out to someone else and will no longer be your customer. Just keep in mind that you don’t typically want long conversations out on various social platforms. Let the customer know you’ve heard them and then invite them to discuss privately through direct messages, a phone call, or a meeting.
Responding to your messages, good and bad, can help you build your brand loyalty and following. It shows customers that you stand behind your product and should they have an issue or question, there is a real person out there who can help them. Many brands, like Wendy’s or Netflix even interject some of their humor and company culture into their responses, which further elevates their customer loyalty and level of interaction.
To show the human element behind the brand— people appreciate personal connection, whether it’s a large or small brand!
If they reach out to you via social media it would be important to respond because maybe they aren’t the only one with that question and you may help out numerous people at the same time.
Customers want to know that there’s a human being behind your social media account and that you care about what they have to say. Taking the extra 5 minutes or so to respond lets customers know that they matter and that you’re listening.
If your target audience is spending time on social media platforms, it is imperative that you keep an eye on your DMs, post comments, and tags. Many individuals use social media as a way to communicate with brands by asking questions or providing feedback about a product or service. You want to make sure your customers know that they are seen and heard and that you value them as a current or potential customer. It’s great to hear positive feedback through your social media channels but you’re likely to get some negativity along the way. With social media being a public format, you want to make sure you address both positive and negative comments strategically to structure the narrative in a way that best suits you in the eyes of other readers as well.
Your customers are online — waiting for you to engage with them! Show them you’re here and paying attention to what they have to say. It’s important to respond to both the good and bad comments/reviews. This is an opportunity to build trust and connection through a human voice. Even a negative comment can lead to positive word-of-mouth if handled the right way!
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