Social media is almost like having a storefront. While perusing through, customers naturally have questions and possibly some comments about your products/services. Reaching out on social channels is a quick way for your audience to get a response. It’s important to understand their concerns and provide them with effective solutions. This is a little something we like to call…social media customer service!

So, why do you need to implement this for your business? The simple answer – why not?

People want support from the brands they interact with on a regular basis. Additionally, this will allow you to consistently nurture both new and existing customers in a fluid way.

Here are a few tips for you to keep in mind when it comes to social media customer service:

1. Set up a separate handle for social media customer support

If your company receives a high amount of questions and direct messages, it might be a good idea to designate a unique handle to manage everything more strategically. For example, Apple has @AppleSupport on Twitter which is designed to filter out different types of issues and make sure customer concerns get directed to the right teams.

2. Be listening and look for conversations relevant to your brand

People don’t always directly tag a brand or handle when mentioning a company in a tweet, post or caption. That doesn’t mean it’s any less relevant and, in fact, some of them do require a response. Google Alerts allows you to monitor these conversations and know when your brand is gaining attention. Be on the lookout for these types of social posts and be prepared to provide a solution!

3. Be proactive

Many times, customers will have similar questions and continuously ask the same questions over and over again. Use this observation as an opportunity to create a special social post about it to help answer this question in the future. 

4. Show the potential in your products

Show your audience how to use your products and post helpful resources such as video tutorials or ways they can potentially recycle/upcycle them. For example, below is an orange peel being repurposed into a homemade candle. How cool!

5. Lead consumers back to your website

Anytime your website can provide a solution, include the link in your response to encourage the consumer to visit the website for more information. For instance, if someone asks where they can purchase your product, don’t just leave it at “Head to our website!” Assume that the consumer doesn’t know how to find you so be sure to guide them. By doing this, people are more likely to click rather than having to navigate themselves to the website.

Social media platforms have quickly evolved, and for some businesses, it’s even become their one-stop shop for connecting to buyers and consumers. By utilizing social media for customer support services, it allows us to reach a much wider group of our audience and address their questions, concerns and complements quickly.

For more ideas on how to manage your social media accounts, schedule a call with our social team!