Customer service in is one of the fundamental aspects of online presence of any company, but if it is eCommerce it becomes a vital element. The larger the company and the more customers it has, the greater the challenge and the more resources must be allocated in this regard, lest the company inevitably fall off a cliff.
Within a type strategy, in which the customer should not perceive differences regardless of the channel they use, customer service in social networks must be specially cared for, since unlike any other channel, performed, at least in part, in public.
Therefore, users are going to be very aware of how and in what way the company resolves the complaints or claims of other users. Because, let’s not fool ourselves, 99% of the contacts received through this means are complaints and claims.
Large companies, aware of this situation, the batteries have been put in this aspect. Some time ago I had the opportunity to teach a customer service course at a call center of one of the largest phone operators, and I was surprised to see that a significant percentage of the staff was dedicated exclusively to social customer support.
They are very, very aware of what is at stake in this regard. We are going to analyze some guidelines that must be followed if we want our customer service on social networks to be effective and help improve our online reputation.
Customer service in social networks: what to do…
1. Measure resources well
Serving the customer correctly implies that adequate resources must be available for the number of claims that reach us for each channel. Analyzing the average time it takes to resolve an incident and the daily number of incidents received, we can have a fairly precise idea of how many people we need for this.
I emphasize: ne-ce-si-ta-mos.
Customer service in social networks is a firewall that can avoid a fire with unforeseeable consequences for the brand’s reputation.
2. Properly train customer service staff on social media
A basic rule must be the adequate training of the people who are in charge of customer service in social networks. drive to a pissed off customer is complex and it is necessary to have specific training in this section, since The consequences of poor management in social networks are much worse than in telephone or personal attention.
An unresolved claim means a customer who he’s going to make us fall off a donkey, which can ruin an entire online reputation strategy. Therefore, the people who manage this issue must be able to resolve the complaints and have a direct line with the people with decision-making capacity. It is not a job for a community manager, unless it is properly formed, something that almost never happens.
3. Define a flexible protocol
While telephone customer service is governed by fairly tight protocols and the degree of freedom of action of the agent on duty is minimal, the same cannot happen in social networks. We can’t have canned responses to copy and pastewell, that “sings” more than María Callas playing rough.
But we must have answers for the most common cases. The protocols must have a degree of flexibility in the response, but above all they must be decisive. At a minimum, a basic protocol has these phases: Listen to the customer>Apologize>Offer alternatives>Resolve>Verify compliance with the solution.
We must always ask the client to give us their data privately and follow the conversation out of the spotlight, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t make the solution public if the client doesn’t do it (without mentioning it, yes).
4. Use the magic words
And those magic words are: I’m sorry (or sorry) or any other public formula of Sorry. Whether the customer is right or wrong, the first thing we have to do is regret that you are angry and offer you all our availability to resolve your issue (don’t use “problem”).
No business wants angry customers, so it’s only right to be sorry if you are. Cast should always be done publicly. The purpose of this preliminary apology is to calm the customer so that your eyes stop being bloodshot and leave the axe, the gas can and the kalashnikov (virtual) on the ground.
It is very difficult to reason when the other party is so angry that they don’t even listen to you. Therefore, asking him to tell us about his case and apologizing should always come first, without interrupting or questioning what he tells us, but asking questions that show interest in what he tells us.
5. Get ahead of problems: the crisis plan
How many times have we seen eCommerce websites that, when faced with a crash, do not say this mouth is mine and wait for the barrage of claims? In the event of a service failure, whether or not it is our fault, you have to put on crisis mode: make it public, apologize and inform, if possible, the causes of the situation, the measures that are being taken at all times and the solutions as they occur.
In real time, that’s what social networks are for. Paradigmatic case where they exist: that of Aena (now Enaire). Both their website and their phones were blocked, and only the social networks continued to work to provide information on what was happening. With remarkable success, by the way.
Lesson from this case: You have to have a crisis communication plan in case everything goes horribly wrong.
…and what not to do
6. Don’t put your dirty hands on my keyboard
In the face of a crisis of reputation, when things get out of hand, among company directors the nervousness (euphemism to refer to the most abject panic).
Many, aware of their responsibility and of what is at stake, make the mistake of setting themselves up to respond on social networks to the cry of “stay away kid, I’ll take care of it. They will find out.” And they mess it up. There are many cases in which a past manager has ruined customer service on social networks.
To avoid this, you must follow a golden rule: Anyone who communicates directly with a client, by whatever means, must be trained to do so. Obviously, in the face of a crisis, managers have a lot to say, but they must do so through the filter of a trained person, who will prevent them from committing blunders.
If they have their own social media profiles, silence or business as usual is not an option, but saying what they want there is not. Their profiles at that time will be considered as representatives of the company for all purposes, and they must act as such.
7. Do not downplay a claim
It may be bullshit to you, but complaining implies an effort, as we already told on this topic. A customer who feels poorly cared for undergoes a curious transformation: he increases in size, hair grows, his teeth lengthen and ends up being a troll.
If that happens, there is no choice but to handle it as such, (don’t feed the troll, you know), but in many cases the origin of a troll is in poorly managed social media customer service. All complaints are important and all should be, to the extent possible, resolved. At least taken care of. And if they cannot be solved, explained.
8. Do not contradict a client
A customer who complains publicly arouses a wave of sympathy on social networks. It’s David versus Goliath. We must never, ever forget that we are in a public conversation, and that even in private we have to be extremely careful, since nothing prevents the pissed off client from copying and pasting the private conversation in his profile.
In fact, it does.
Therefore, empathy from the first moment, don’t get defensive but trying to understand what is happening to you and showing a willingness to resolve it are key aspects to be successful in the event of a claim. “You are not right”, “that is not the case”, “you are wrong” (better of you, but it depends on the style of the company), are radically prohibited expressions in customer service on social networks.
9. Do not take too long to respond
The ideal is the immediate response. If you are not going to be able to have a 24-hour service, start with specify the opening hours in your profiles. Let the customer know when he can expect a response. And within that time, immediate response. Taking an hour to respond to a complaint on Twitter is an eternity. Take a day on Facebook, too.
Remember that Facebook specifies the average response time and the percentage of messages answered on company pages. An agile response is a vaccine against anger. And once answered, you have to follow the process without delaying it in time. If you have to consult something and you know that it will take hours to get an answer, tell the client, but let him know that his claim is in process and that you have not forgotten him or her.
10. Don’t forget to say thank you
Always thank the customer for their question. That helps us learn and improve. But don’t do it mechanically by sounding like you’re a telemarketer. We are in a different environment. Be thankful when it touchesIt’s not the first thing you should say. But thanks.
11. Not explaining a refusal
If the answer to a complaint is negative, things like “I’m not authorized”, “It’s not up to me” or “We can’t do that” are kryptonite. A refusal must always carry an explanation and the formulation of an alternative. A resounding “no” leads to a fire in the networks.
Conclusions about customer service in social networks
In conclusion: customer service on social networks is a very particular type of customer service. It has its own characteristics that must be taken into account and adequately included in the planning and execution of the service. Immediacy, closeness and face-to-face conversation are great allies. But we are in the public eye, which is a challenge, but also an incentive to do very, very well.
All these commandments are summed up in one: You will love your client above all things and come through the channel that comes.
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