Social Media Customer Service in 2020: Perks, Benefits and More

For modern consumers, social media customer service has easily become the best option. Waiting to talk to a customer service representative over the phone usually takes a long time, and going to the company’s office takes so much time and too much of a hassle. Since social media provides immediate attention and response, it’s the fastest and most effective way to cater to customers, especially in the digital age. 

The importance of social media customer service have grown more amplified in 2020. Quarantine protocols all over the world have limited physical and social interactions, and further encouraged online businesses and transactions. Now, more customers have become reliant on your social media presence as a customer service channel.

What is social media customer service?

Social media customer service is exactly what the name suggests – customer service issues processed through social media channels such as mobile apps, live chats and the like. In this type of customer service, concerns are raised and dealt through engaging and communicating through social media. Here, customers or potential customers bring up their questions or issues through contacting the social media accounts of your business. Interactions happen in social media posts, customer comments and tagging (or in the case of Twitter, mentions, threads and replies) and private messages (i.e. Facebook Messenger, Instagram direct message, etc.), or depending on the communication features of the said social media site or app. 

How does social media customer service help your business?

Social media customer service is not just an ongoing fad – it’s opened up many possibilities in communication, especially when it comes to urgent matters that just couldn’t wait for successive phone calls or emails. Not only does it give your brand a new platform, it is also an opportunity to gain an edge over competitors.

Aside from bringing customer service closer to your customers and leads, social media can take your business to different heights by providing you with accessibility and a wider reach. Here are only some of the benefits of social media customer service:

Instant service

Back in the early days of the internet, email has made written correspondence much quicker. Now that instant messaging through social media has escalated messaging even more, social media customer service provides not just accessibility, but the ability to handle urgency. A customer might reach out to your email address, but as more customer concerns and inquiries flood your email inbox, many concerns can be lost in the pile, making you unable to cater to all of them. With social media, your response time will be shorter, hiking up your customer satisfaction by letting your customer know that you’re reachable anytime they need you.

Promote your customer service quality

With this channel, you will not only be able to help out your customers, you also create a good impression with customers both old and new. Making an effort to be as reachable as possible gives customer an impression that you care deeply for them. When you promptly resolve inquiries and complaints, you are not only advertising your brand, and but letting everyone know that quality service is part of the package as well, even long after the purchase. 

Handle your brand reputation

While accessibility is the main goal, social media customer service also helps improve and uphold your brand reputation. Your brand’s online presence helps garner interest from possible leads, as many customers do their due diligence by looking through your brand’s online activity and reputation. Customers (and potential leads) follow you on social media to learn more about your brand and your services, and as well as to monitor the performance of your brand.

This is mutually beneficial for you as well, as a solid online presence helps you get to know your market and your reach, helping you monitor how they see your brand. This allows you to shape your brand and marketing based on how customers see you through each post that you create, each update that you publish, and each untoward comment made towards you and your services.

Enhance customer experience

Social media is an excellent platform to give a highly personalized customer experience. By connecting with them on a personal level, your customers can easily form a strong bond with you and your brand. Keep in mind that while your product or service may be really good, if customers have a bad experience with customer service, they are most likely to shift to your competitors.

Become an authority in the industry

Industry-specific communities also exist on social media. An active and up-to-date online presence can make all the difference. Joining and actively participating in these communities can build your brand and eventually make you an authority in your industry. You will also be able to connect with experts and professionals in your field who can give credence to your brand. LinkedIn a social media site for business networking and recruitment, is a marketplace on its own and is one of the best social media platforms for this purpose.

Track and collect valuable data

Social media customer support platforms offer a lot of relevant insight about your brand and your customers. There are many ways to track how your company’s social media sites engage with customers. Analyzing patterns from the data you collected can greatly help with marketing, sales, customer acquisition, and customer retention strategies and decisions.

How can you improve your customer service on social media?

Now that we’ve made a point about the importance of social media to your brand, you decide to bolster your online presence for better branding and revenue. Now what?

Having a strong social media presence does not end with simply creating a social media account. Building a good social media presence takes time and effort. You can maximize your social media customer service by doing the following:

Optimize your profile. 

Include complete but concise information about your business. Use high-quality images, relevant tags, and industry-related keywords to make your brand easier to find. You can also customize your public profile’s URL to distinguish yourself from other users.

Share relevant content and update regularly.

Keeping up with the times can change the tides for your brand real quick. Using relevant content gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your expertise, as well as offer industry insight to your audience. Take this as a chance to provide social customer care through your profile, if anyone makes inquiries or voices concerns about your brand.

Avoid hard-selling or spamming. 

Spamming your page with product promotions and hard-selling your brand can turn off your followers and discourage them from engaging with you. Keep posts and conversations on relevant topics. Likewise, avoid flooding other users’ groups and profiles with posts about your goods and services. Keep in mind that being persistent comes in many forms, and the last thing you want is to scare customers away by being too imposing. 

Join active communities.

The internet is a hub for many different topics that often converge and create networks. Many groups or communities about your industry are active online, and many customers use these threads to get information and updates about your service or industry. Create an active online presence by joining active groups and networks to make sure that your posts are exposed to the right audience to ensure a high level of engagement. These groups can also introduce you to valuable connections and help expand your network. Be just as active and participate in group conversations, as well.

Monitor and examine analytics. 

Tracking the analytics of your strategies on social media is the only way to know if your tactics are working. It helps determine which methods are working and not working for you, so you can change course if necessary.

Try outsourcing.

Outsourcing your social media needs is always a reliable and cost-effective solution. Lessen your staff workload while saving time and money while enjoying expert service. Expand your workforce to experts and professionals without spending much on onboarding, employee premiums, new equipment, and additional workspace.

What are the social media services that you can outsource?

There are multiple social media services that you can outsource to a third-party service provider. Each of these services has its own benefits, especially if you are exploring an omnichannel business approach. Some social media outsourcing services include:

• B2B lead generation services
• B2C lead generation services
• Social Media Management
• Moderation in Social media
• Social media marketing

How much does it cost to outsource social media services?

There are no fixed industry standards for the rates of social media outsourcing services. Most of the time, service providers calculate the cost according to the needs and preferences of your business. There are also several factors that can affect the pricing, such as:

• Types of service(s)
• Number of personnel
• Staff expertise level
• Length of contract

Offshore outsourcing is always an ideal option for small and medium businesses (SMBs), where time and funds are always of the essence. Countries with bustling BPO industries, like China, India, and the Philippines, are the go-to areas for cost-effective deals that don’t scrimp on quality.

Magellan Solutions is a BPO company that offers social media call center services to businesses around the world. We have been in the call center industry for over 15 years, with hundreds of satisfied clients. Our company is ISO and HIPAA certified, so we can guarantee that your data is safe in our hands.