Is Social Media Necessary For Good Customer Service

I don't know how many times I've heard about a product or service and figured I'd "check them out online" as soon as I had a chance, only to find that they have no social media presence. This is always a bit shocking, considering how many people have Internet access and how many billions of people are online. It's literally free advertising and if you have a business, you should probably have some way for potential clients or customers to contact you. Of course, the good old phone numbers, billboards, TV ads, radio ads, and print will always come in handy. But, with so many people online, you're missing out on reaching virtually everybody in the world. 

Social Media Advertising

Of course, just simply having a Twitter or a Facebook page isn't going to be enough. Sure, people will be able to find you a little better but you're going to have to communicate with customers and try your best to reach new people. 

At the same time, there are a few companies I can think of right off of the top of my head who have a very large following on social media, regular posts, but they lack quality customer service. Typically, people will comment or message and ask questions, leave comments or reviews. If nobody answers them, they will go elsewhere. (I've done this many times.) It's unfortunate, but, if you can't respond within a few days or you just post and let everything sit while you ignore everybody, it could end up hurting you in the long run. 

Depending on the size of your business you may want to consider hiring a social media manager. They can post on your social networks for you and manage replies, reviews, complaints, questions, offer giveaways, promote, share, basically everything you need to have customer success. You should have an active social network where you can share everything there is about your brand, What do you do? How much does it cost? What makes you stand out? What do your customers think? Offer promotions, deals, coupons, and even post when you have positions available. If you're a small business, a few simple eBooks and maybe some online courses about social media marketing and you're set! 

There are more advanced opportunities out there but once you take this step in the right direction, you'll advance and learn quickly! 

Look For The Companies Who Are Doing It Right

There are so many brands out there. I'm trying to think of even just 1 brand that we use at our house for anything that I don't follow online somewhere. I feel like if you can't take the time to make sure I'm content, you're probably not worth it. If I have to Tweet for several weeks straight, asking for help regarding my ISP and the wishy-washy connection and you haven't responded, I'm going elsewhere. (and it's a good possibility that I'll take a few others with me. Or at least turn a few away when they research you and find my complaints.) 

There are thousands of makeup brands out there who all make some sort of lipstick. If I decide I would like to try 4 different brands of lipstick to find my absolute perfect match, I have criteria I follow. Highly pigmented, fair price, ingredients, availability, packaging, history, mission, do you donate to any charities? Do you offer any rewards programs for repeat customers? If I have a question, do I have a tiny 1800 number to call between the hours of 9AM EST and 4PM EST? OR if I Google search will I find a website with links to Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+ or any of the above? When I find these links, are you active? What are other customers saying? How do you respond? If any of the above does not look totally excellent, I'll be moving on. Am I the Queen of lipstick? Nope. Not at all. But, I'm a customer who could end up being devoted to your brand and I could be bringing my friends, family, followers, and possibly others who read my online reviews about your fabulous lipstick and phenomenal customer service! 

There are a LOT of brilliant social media accounts out there for brands! Of course, the bigger they are, the more they can spend. They may be online around the clock, manning the comments, tweets, and reviews. Or they might shut down at nighttime and are right back at it in the morning. 

I'm sure you have already seen something in the news or maybe your friends have brought up something funny they read or saw on Twitter. You may have heard about the Wendy's Twitter account once or twice. This is a brand who is doing it right. They are always there, always have clever comebacks, and they are consistent with replies to disgruntled customers. They will make you laugh, scour Twitter for people Tweeting about how hungry they are, they will go above and beyond just to attract and keep customers. I'm not sure who runs their Twitter account but whoever it may be, that person is a genius. This account has made national news more than once and will continue to in the future. 

Learning from others is essential when building your own network. You don't want to copy but take notes There are a lot of great accounts from great brands. Wendy's sells burgers, chicken sandwiches, french fries, and salads. So do quite a few other similar restaurants. But, they have managed to find their difference and they will be impossible to beat at the social media game.  

You wouldn't ignore thousands or possibly millions of customers banging on your door. Don't ignore them on the Internet. They could make or break you and you need them for customer success! 

Periscope Addiction

So, I have this new addiction and I can't even begin to imagine life without this new app.
I was only recently made aware of this app and immediately just had to grab a new Android, so I could grab it. Yes, I had an Android but it is a very old one. (Maybe 4 years or more.) It had a pull out keyboard and I tried to hang onto it as much as I could. I am just not that great at this new touchscreen stuff. Although, I guess I will be texting a lot less.

A couple of weeks ago, I received an invite for a webinar, all about Periscope. I was still a bit confused but figured I should try this out. You know, at least claim my blog name and try and make a few "Periscopes". So, I got this nifty, Sony Xperia, activated it, installed Periscope, and that's where I have been since.

I met a cool guy from New Zealand, who makes grilled cheese sandwiches on a George Foreman type grill, with butter, "American Style" mayo, cheese, and bread. He also drinks tea while he waits for his morning grilled cheese sandwiches and he says he is, "from the future" lol. (Once, he said it was Tuesday and somebody couldn't believe that, since it was still, Monday, in Vegas.)So, he very cleverly, explained that he is from the future and not to worry because the future looks bright :)

This morning I met, Isaac, a young gentleman from Ghana. He holds daily Periscopes, called, "Learn everything about Ghana". He told us that there are 24 million people in Ghana, they have 14 regions, (some countries call them, states.), and he has a cool, 2 bedroom apartment and for fun, he goes to the beach and likes to hang out with his friends.

When you install, Periscope, it will tie in with your Twitter if you have one, and takes your profile picture and description right from your Twitter account. From there, it will take you to a list of about 100 people that you already follow on Twitter. Hurry up because, after that, you will see a map of the world with little red circles all around. Some circles will have numbers which will show how many people are on, broadcasting live, right now. Some won't have a number. This just means that there is only 1 broadcaster on at the moment.

No worries if you miss a Periscope! You will be able to replay them. (Unless the broadcaster decided to delete the replay.) But, you can find recent broadcasts on their channels. You won't be able to "talk" and it won't be live, but you can still leave some hearts for the videos that you do like.

Usually, a common thing to do when you first connect with a live broadcast, is to say, hello and maybe let them know where you are from. The broadcaster can read your chat messages and will often reply and answer any questions you might have. The cool thing is that you get to see the world through other people's eyes.

I have always been very fascinated with The Netherlands, Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Russia. So, whenever I see a red circle pop up in any of these places, I click to see who's on. Periscope doesn't get to full just yet but I am figuring on this being a fairly big social network in the very near future. But, for now, it is easy to connect and you can chat unless the broadcaster limited the feature to only people they are following.

I have been putting Instagram as my favorite social network but Periscope is really climbing high up there and is quite possibly at a tie for first, next to Instagram. I love both networks for different reasons. I also believe that Periscope will end up helping a ton of brands and bloggers with their businesses. I would advise to at least claim your name and start a account if you can.

If you happen to get on Periscope, please come visit my page and follow me :) I will follow back and would love to chat with you!