By adaptive - August 20th, 2013

Social media and customer services now go hand-in-hand. However, brand owners still need to integrate their approaches to gain the most from this vital touch point.

According to the latest findings from eDigitalResearch corporations have vastly improved their response times when using social media for customer service delivery. About 80% of consumers that contacted a brand via social media for customer services queries got a response within 12 hours. However, over a third of consumers still prefer to use email, as only 2% of respondents to the survey had recently used social media as a customer services contact point.

The survey of 2,000 consumers found that how a customer contacts a brand is likely to have a large effect on their overall customer experience. Whilst social media is the quickest form of getting in touch, those who contact brands by letter, unsurprisingly, take the longest to receive a response – 62% had to wait over 48 hours for a reply.

Derek Eccleston, Commercial Director at eDigitalResearch, comments: “Whilst there are still a limited number of consumers using social media channels to contact brands (our survey showed that just 2% have recently their Facebook, Twitter or other social media accounts to get in touch with a brand), it is currently the only channel that ensures that all consumers receive a response following their contact.

“If a customer decides that they need to contact a company, their experiences should be the same no matter what channel they use. Obviously there are obstacles (such as the time delay with post) that some channels need to overcome or find a work around for. These results show that there are currently major disparities across customer touch points - measures should be taken to ensure that departments and teams work together to provide the best contact experience possible. Improving the customer experience should be a business wide operation.”

Social customer services

What is clear is that the level of engagement that is now possible via social media when used within the customer services channel is unprecedented. Brands are doing more to improve their customer services response via social media, as this is now a prerequisite of good business today in an environment dominated by social media activity.

Says the recent LivePerson survey: “For many businesses, the Internet is intended as a self-service environment, and offers a channel to reach new customers, a way to reduce costs and increase margins. However, some brands are recognizing that once product and price are taken out of the equation, customer service is one area that can truly differentiate one online brand from another.

“Currently, physical stores tend to outperform their online counterparts in satisfying customers. Some 77% say that they are generally satisfied with customer service in-store, compared to 67% online. This is a key opportunity for online brands to close the gap between the store and online customer experience, and consider ways to enhance their online strategy in order to secure shopper trust and loyalty.”

Key elements of a great online customer experience

There is now demand for emerging, real-time channels such as live chat (57%) to be available alongside the more established customer service channels such as call centres (61%) and email (60%). There is also emerging interest in more innovative channels, with 34% stating they’d like to use click-to-call (agent calls the customer once number is entered online), 12% would like to access recorded video demos, and 7% would like live video chat with an agent to access help.

The LivePerson report concludes: “Online customers have set the challenge. They want a customer experience that has speed and simplicity in every interaction. They are not willing to wait for an action and they are not prepared to expend energy trying to resolve a problem. Rather than letting this translate into website or shopping cart abandonment, or brand distrust, retailers must actively address their online customer service platform.”

For brand owners the shift to social media customer services continues apace. Consumers are building these networks into their daily lives, which includes contact with the brands they buy from. The experience they gain when using this touch point then colours their overall brand perception. Today, corporations and the brands they support are being defined by how well they manage their social media customer service.

Next Reads

The Social Media for Customer Service Summit 2013

October 2013, New York

How you can leverage social media for a more effective customer service function and better customer insight

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