Don't Force It

Image Source: stock.xchngA new report from Nielsen has revealed that 22.5% of Americans’ time spent online is using social media, making it the number one specific category. Unsurprisingly, most of that time (53.5 billion minutes) is spent with Facebook, which reaches 70% of active U.S. Internet users.

The numbers are pretty staggering, and they certainly show that social media won’t likely be going anywhere anytime soon. However, this information could be misconstrued as either 1.) proof to start using social media, if you haven’t already, to avoid failure or 2.) Facebook is the only place to be in the social space. Both are thoughts that have entered the conversation around social media marketing, and both can be risky propositions.

Consult Your Customer

Studies and statistics are always valuable, but ultimately, it comes down to your customer and how he or she uses (or doesn’t use) social media. Lacking a social media presence won’t kill a business if it’s customers aren’t there, and Facebook isn’t the social media silver bullet. With more and more brands using Facebook, it's getting more difficult to stand out. Perhaps, another platform makes more sense for you and your customers.

The missing piece is the bit of primary research to connect social media with your customers and identifythe intersections before you determine the approach.

Where, When and How

Your actions need to be determined by your audience’s actions. How do they use social media? Don’t pull the trigger without first taking aim because you’ll almost certainly miss the target and have nothing to show for your efforts.

You need to understand:

• Where: What platforms do your customers use? Is it compatible with your brand? You may find that your customers are ravenous YouTube addicts, which is great if you have the resources to produce video content. However, maybe they can’t get enough of Tumblr. In that case, it may be a better option to identify relevant Tumblr bloggers, reach out and establish a dialogue. The point is don’t just go with your gut. Understand where your customers spend their valuable online time and prioritize from there based on what they value and what you can execute well.
• When: What days and what time of day do your customers use social media? This will help you determine when to share your content to reach the maximum number of people. Perhaps, your customers are white collar businesspeople who can’t get enough of Twitter. Knowing that they probably leave work around 5:00, you might want to tweet at 4:50, as they're giving everything one last check before heading home.
• How: This is the most important factor because it’s a blending of your customer with where and when they interact. This will really determine what social media will mean for you. Your customers may prefer to be contacted by phone or perhaps by mail. However, more and more, they’ll prefer to reach your customer service department via a Facebook Page and be put into direct contact with someone using a direct message on Twitter. You need to determine how your customers want to interact with your brand. That will determine your approach.

Don’t Force It

Too often businesses try to force their social media prowess onto their customers only to see it fall flat. Forcing your customers to interact with you the way you want to interact will never create success. Understand your consumers, what they want and what they expect from you. All you need to do is put some feelers out there, find them and listen.

Fulfill Your End of the Social Customer Service Promise

Image Source: disZineSocial media opens up a lot of avenues for brands to connect with consumers, but like Spider-Man, with great power comes great responsibility. Creating a social media presence for your brand means opening the doors to positive interactions as well as negative commentary, which is where brands can run into trouble.

Negativity will always find its way to you as unhappy consumers will use your and their personal platforms to call you out. It’s easy to ignore, delete and even block this type of content, but don't let temptation get the best of you. That doesn’t build trust in your brand or create relationships that can be leveraged over time. Consumers are smart, and brands behaving this way will lose all credibility in the social space and eventually, offline as well.

We know ignoring, blocking and deleting negativity will only make the problem worse, but how do we make it better?

Know the Situation

Dealing with a social media customer service issue isn’t the same as receiving a complaint through a phone call or email, where the conversation is private and between the brand and the consumer.

Social media is public, anyone can see the complaint of someone else at any given moment, which means it’s important to act swiftly and respond meaningfully. There are no hours of operation. The boundaries of social media customer service are non-existent.

Social customers bring different characteristics. They have a monitor and keyboard between themselves and brands, which means they have no fear. Why would they? When they call you out, your brand is guilty until proven innocent. They have time to research and contemplate interactions with brands. These customers are armed with knowledge and only respond to ingenuity. Attempting otherwise will only deepen a problem.

Seize the Opportunity

The first time you receive negative feedback from a customer online can be a bit scary, but don’t panic. That customer has simply served up an opportunity to make your relationship with him or her stronger, right any wrongs, share accurate information and showcase your brands points-of-difference. This is a public space and people are watching. The right approach means a positive interaction will affect more than just the customer with a problem, so take those detractors and arm them with the information and service to turn them to advocates!

Fulfill the Promise

Consumers expect a helpful response in the social space. It’s an unspoken rule. If you’re brand is out there, you’re able to address concerns and provide solutions (or at least should be).

Every issue is unique, which means every issue requires a different approach. However, there are some things you can do to set your brand up for a positive outcome:

• Don’t be a robot. Be competent, accessible at any time and personal. Consumers can see right through a standard, prepared response that doesn’t speak to them directly. Let them know that there’s a person behind a response who is thinking of them, eager to help and ready to address their individual problem.
• Personalize and customize. Address the customer by name, be professional (never get into an argument), customize the message and respond quickly (they need help).
• Provide a real solution. There’s no point in tiptoeing around a problem. Consumers will see right through it. Be straightforward and honest. You don’t have to disclose anything that will hurt your brand, but instead, provide the mechanisms and resources to help the customer. The key is to never leave the customer hanging. Always, leave them with a takeaway, whether it’s a resolution or next step.
• Take the Conversation Offline (when needed). Even if a customer service issue starts online, it doesn’t have to be resolved there. Under circumstances that include personal information, you don’t have control and the customer is a little irrational, or you have a resolution that you don’t want to be public, take the conversation offline. Give the customer the contact information (email, phone number) and name of who they should connect with. Don’t forget to ask them to post a follow-up to their original complaint to let others know that everything got taken care of if they're inclined to do so.

Consumers are online, and if you’re so lucky to have them interacting with you, they expect value in return. Part of that is proving yourself as a resource and partner. Do that to build trust, which will in turn lead to advocacy and long-term success.

Leverage Your Brand's Makers

The “Maker” Culture

Last week I attended Bold Fusion, an event put on by Cincinnati HYPE (which I’m affiliated with) for young professionals, and listened to David Pescovitz of BoingBoing.net discuss the “maker” culture.

The “maker” culture is a movement of individuals working to make the world their own. By crafting their own brand of fashion, technology and art, the “maker” culture symbolizes, creativity, open access and collaboration.

Embrace Your Brand’s “Makers”

Pescovitz’s presentation got me thinking. The “maker” culture is an opportunity for marketers to embrace their brand advocates, the individuals who don’t only like a brand; they love it to the point of making it their own. Find out what they do, why they do it and how it can make your brand stronger.

Every brand has those advocates. If they don’t, they aren't around for too long. These individuals aren’t only valuable because of their continued support and word of mouth referrals. They are important because of the ideas they bring to the table. Just like a parent who wants the child they love to grow and improve, these advocates are full of ideas for improving what your brand stands for and what it has to offer consumers.

Ask and Respond

The simplest way to leverage brand advocates is to ask them, and social media is the perfect vehicle to accomplish this by monitoring the online conversation. See who comments on Facebook, who tweets about you, who writes blog posts, creates videos and shares photos featuring your brand. Not all of these individuals may be advocates, but you should be able to develop a pretty good guess, especially after making a list of potential advocates and keeping track of them over time.

Bringing your advocates into the fold is the next step. The more exclusive, the better. You might want to invite them to a private online community/focus group, solicit their feedback on new products or even invite them to your headquarters. The key is to make them feel special (because they are) and ask for their thoughts, opinions and ideas. Finally, and most importantly, respond with real action or an explanation if a suggestion cannot be fulfilled.

Embrace the ones who share your passion for your brand. They offer insight that’s unmatched by any expert and may hold the key to gaining more advocates and customers.