According to some, social media and their various digital networks are the best things that have happened to marketing in the last half-century – or… the worst thing to happen to marketing for companies that don’t know the new rules of social media etiquette.
According to a new report from Gartner, if a business doesn’t properly and promptly address consumer complaints levied on social media channels, Twitter can quickly dissolve into that business’ worst enemy.
“The dissatisfaction stemming from failure to respond via social channels can lead to up to a 15 percent increase in churn rate for existing customers,” says Carol Rozwell, vice president and leading analyst at Gartner. “It’s crucial that organizations implement approaches to handling social media now. The effort involved in addressing social media commentary is not good cause to ignore relevant comments or solvable issues.”
So how can businesses that market themselves on Twitter and Facebook avoid the social media smackdown?
“We urge organizations to do three things. Firstly, participate—it’s important that organizations don’t let a fear of someone saying something bad about them stop them from participating in social media,” Rozwell advises. “Secondly, don’t assume all comments require the same level of attention—develop an appropriate response for the different types of interaction your business faces. Thirdly, plan for an increase in social commentary and adapt communications practices to cope—this will require changes to job descriptions, performance metrics and business processes.”
“Generally the best practice is to acknowledge the issue on social media, but to move attempts to resolve the issue offline,” Rozwell adds.
Does the Gartner report ring true in your perspective and experience? Please weigh in with a thought or comment below.
