A single negative tweet about a consumer’s unpleasant experience with a business in the modern day may quickly spread over the internet. Teams working on social media can’t discount the importance of a brand’s online reputation. Up to 70% of traffic and income may be lost if only four unfavourable results about a brand appeared on the first page of Google search results.

Maybe the most pressing question on your mind as a social media marketer is, “What can I do to safeguard my company’s online standing?” It would appear that the ability of social media to impact retail sales is increasing at an enormous speed in the modern day. Yet, it doesn’t imply your team can’t control the brand’s online story.

Yet, it’s difficult to keep things in perspective while reading a stream of very public, negative feedback on your company’s products. In the case of a crisis, there are a variety of strategies for dealing with client complaints that will enhance your brand’s online image and prevent further damage. In this post, we’ll look at each of those three components in more detail. Well, let’s check it out!

Quickly respond

There are around 55 percent of social media customer support queries that go unanswered, says ThinkJar CEO Ethan Kolsky.

The question is why customers feel the need to complain. Their complaints usually centre around instances where they felt their expectations were not met. Yet social media adds a new level of purpose to the procedure.

Something is frequently lacking in the customer service procedure if an irate customer takes their complaint to social media. They either didn’t hear back from the company in time, or they were unable to get their problem fixed. Because of this “escalation from irritation,” viral social complaints can be extremely harmful to a company’s online reputation. That’s why it’s crucial for all customer support teams to focus on monitoring social media for consumer complaints and responding quickly when they do.

Fast turnaround times are crucial in today’s business world. Integrating your social media accounts’ activity and statistics can help you provide better customer service across all of them.

Extraordinary effort

A simple response to a consumer complaint is not sufficient. As a team, you’ll need to provide something of real worth to make up for any misfortunes. According to Kolsky, keeping an existing client is up to seven times less expensive than finding a new one, thus the investment is well justified.

Your staff has to steer the topic away from the public eye to reduce the digital imprint of unhappy customers. Rather than risking an escalation of the issue in a public back-and-forth, a customer service staff can better hear the whole narrative and find a solution if they are able to switch the discussion to private channels like a direct message or email.

See the input of your customers as a chance

Social media customer service, like any other tactic, is a continual learning experience. A wealth of information about your brand’s clients and how their interactions effect your company’s online image is available to your team in this situation. 
Microsoft found that 52 percent of respondents from across the world agreed that businesses should act on consumer feedback. Also, 77% of customers have a more positive impression of firms that actively encourage and welcome customer input.

Accenture’s data also shows that the majority of consumers are open to giving businesses access to their private data in exchange for perks like special offers and social proof. Hence, studies have shown that consumers are responsive to firms that use customer feedback data in highly relevant, individualised ways.

There are several ways in which your social media team may use client feedback:

• Displaying testimonials and reviews as social proof on your website.
• Using client examples and quotes on your site and in your social media posts (e.g. infographic design or blog content)
• helping with both product planning and customer service efforts.
• Creating frequently asked questions sites or help desk responses to assist resolve typical customer care issues before they become more serious.

Customers will appreciate that you listened to them and made changes based on their input, whether your company utilises it to refine its strategy or to increase consumer trust through content marketing.

Conclusion

Because of the instantaneity and interconnectedness of social media, customer service has developed in response. Brands may connect with their target audiences in the places where they spend the most time by using social media. However companies who fail to provide a satisfying customer experience may witness a decline in their brand’s online reputation, which may have a significant financial impact.

Brands may differentiate themselves from the increasingly stiff competition by promptly responding to, investigating, and learning from consumer concerns. Their standing in the market, especially in regards to their customer service, will be an invaluable competitive advantage.