Here's a killer stat: 71% of consumers who experience a quick and effective brand response on social media are likely to recommend that brand to others, according to NM Incite—compared to just 19% of customers who do not receive a response. 

Customers are bypassing the letter, fax, telephone, contact form, and even email in favor of Twitter and Facebook because it’s faster (and because they can). When customers don’t feel they’re being heard, they’ll either a) go to a competitor, or b) find a bigger, more public forum to get your attention. A polite tweet might evolve into an elaborate blog post warning others never to do business with you again.

Even though your company has an email address and a telephone number, social media gives customers a way to be heard now—regardless of whether you’re on the receiving end. They no longer have to wait on hold to say something. Customers can express their satisfaction or dissatisfaction however they want. Successful social brands run with the bulls; they understand that their brand is the sum of online conversation about them and that positive buzz is earned over time. They understand they can’t herd every opinion shared online, and that welcoming a balance of commentary—including the negative—can actually prevent them from getting trampled.

Take control of the conversation by incorporating social into your overall customer care strategies. Here are eight steps:

Step 1: Define Goals and Align with Business Objectives

To be most effective in serving your customer, whether online or on the phone, your business objectives need to be centered around the customer. The move to social customer service is bringing a new set of metrics that deliver a tangible advantage to today’s forward-thinking businesses. For example, if you are trying to increase the number of customer service interactions you have by social media, start by establishing a baseline for what that looks like now. Tie your metrics to your business goals, otherwise you’ll waste time pursuing numbers that don’t really matter.

Step 2: Develop a Social Media Strategy

You can't very well start engaging on social media until you develop a strategy! A response to a customer complaint needs to be thoughtfully planned in order to prevent the conversation from spiraling out of control.

Step 3: Start Listening Where Your Customers Are Talking

The intelligence you mine through listening becomes the foundation for your engagement strategy, and helps make the case for getting your entire organization involved—from customer service to marketing to technical support and sales.

Step 4: Monitor Industry Discussion

It's not just about listening to the customers engaging with you; you should also know what's being said within the industry. Monitor mentions of your brand, your competitors, and your industry as a whole to help identify key trends and engagement opportunities.

Step 5: Create an Engagement Playbook

A good playbook gives agents enough freedom to respond promptly to the range of different situations that arise daily, while protecting your public image, offering a consistent customer experience, and ensuring nothing falls between the cracks.

Step 6: Train Your Team to Engage

No matter how comprehensive your engagement playbook is, you'll still need to train your social team on the rules of engagement. Make sure each of your team members understands the playbook and how it affects their roles and responsibilities so nothing falls through the cracks. 

Step 7: Measure What Matters

Make sure you're monitoring the effectiveness of your social customer service strategies—not just the number of responses to complaints. Think of creative ways to measure your success, such as rewarding positive tweets about your customer service.

Step 8: Engage and Respond to Let Customers Know They've Been Heard

Brands that truly engage their customers use social media like a telephone, not a megaphone. They understand that Facebook, Twitter, and other channels should be used as more than just another platform to broadcast self-promotional messages to a passive audience. They’re listening, responding, and crafting content that serves their community’s needs and interests in ways that elicit continuous interaction.

Want more information and practical tips around these 8 steps? Download our e-book to help you create a more successful and engaging social customer service strategy.