Social Media Customer Service Best Practices

Check out our complete best practices guide.

Does your company use social media? Chances are, by now, that you do. But does your company use social media for customer service? If not, you’re leaving a lot to chance: customer satisfaction, engagement, and brand reputation.

The good news is that it’s not too late. Implement these social media customer service best practices to not only get in the game, but to win. And if you already use social media, this guide is a great way to double check that you’re using it for customer service the right way.

#1: Time Is of The Essence in Social Customer Care

timely customer service

If a customer tweets a complaint about your company, they expect a fast response. According to SocialMediaToday, 72% of consumers who complain on Twitter expect a response in an hour or less.

It’s not just what you say that matters – it’s how fast you say it. Other social media networks might offer more patience, but as a general rule, you should answer all complaints or messages in 24 hours or less.

Positive Engagement: When you respond to social media posts in a timely manner, you make a good reputation for yourself as a company that cares about people and relationships.

#2: Answer Every Single Complaint

What happens if you receive a complaint you don’t know how to respond to? What happens if you receive a complaint that’s rude or false? Is it okay to delete the post?

Never. Absolutely not. Deleting a customer’s post will only make them more irate, whereas dealing with the issue shows that your company takes customer service seriously and behaves in a transparent manner.

When in doubt, deal, don’t delete.

Positive Engagement: We’re talking about complaints here, but the fact is that you want to answer all incoming feedback on social media. Engage with the positive for positive engagement!

#3: Tone and Severity of Complaints

While you want to answer every complaint, and quickly, answering without taking the time to analyze the tone and severity of a complaint can cost you.

Remember that when communicating via text instead of face-to-face or on the phone, it’s easy for both tone and severity to be misunderstood—in both directions.

Take a few minutes to consider both of these, and then respond with a respectful tone that honors what your customer is trying to express. In other words, be empathic.

Positive Engagement: When people see you treat their words with empathy and the appropriate tone, they can trust your company more. This can turn even the most dire situations into positive ones.

#4: Moving Complaints to Other Channels

Handling social customer service in public can be stressful. It’s easy to feel more comfortable exchanging one-on-one emails or chatting on the phone with a distressed customer.

In most cases, moving a complaint to a different channel is a mistake that can alienate both potential and future customers because it can make them feel like you’re not being transparent.

AdWeek reported that about 40% of complaints are made in public. You’re not alone if you’re receiving public complaints—but don’t be afraid to address them there.

There are two caveats to this advice:

If you’re on a social media platform that limits the length of your messages and you have to write at length to address the complaint.
If you need to discuss confidential information with the complainant.

In both of these cases, it’s okay to move to a different channel—as long as you explain why. A simple message can do the trick: “I’d love to help you, but I need to review some confidential info with you; can we talk on the phone?”

Positive Engagement: Drumming this up is all about creating trust; if people feel that they can trust your company to be transparent and accountable, that can boost your positive engagement.

#5: Follow Up for Customer Engagement

Setting a reminder to follow up with complaints is easy, but there’s more you can do to follow up with customers that will make your company shine like a beacon of social customer service.

Those companies that positively astound customers and potential customers can enjoy a 30-50% increase in recommendations and repeat purchases, according to Forbes.

Become that beacon by:

Following up with customers who have just purchased goods or services.
Following up with customers to ensure satisfaction after a complaint.
Following up to congratulate customers on their life events.

Following up can set you apart from your competition. But like all things, you’ve got to strike a balance. Don’t annoy your customers by sending them messages too frequently.

Positive Engagement: Following up can create positive interactions that leave a pleasant afterthought about your company.

#6: Social Media Customer Service Best Practices: It’s Okay to Apologize

Responding to complaints as part of your social customer service isn’t like getting into a car accident. Saying “Sorry” isn’t akin to admitting fault.

You can apologize for a customer’s frustration without stating that your company is in the wrong with a statement like this one:

I’m so sorry to hear that you’re having trouble with ___. I’m happy to help you resolve this.

When the Problem Is Your Fault

Sometimes companies mess up. They’re run by humans, and we humans tend to make mistakes from time to time. If the error lies with you, apologizing can double a customer’s satisfaction and improve customer engagement, according to GrooveHQ.

Positive Engagement: It might not seem positive to have to apologize, but this is a great way to show that you’re human and willing to improve your company’s policies for the benefit of your customers.

#7: Get the Resources You Need

A crucial part of customer care is making sure you have the staff and resources for adequate social media monitoring. According to Salesforce, use of social media monitoring technology is going to double in the next year to year-and-a-half.

Responding to customer complaints and other opportunities for social customer service requires that you keep your fingers on the pulse of what your customers and potential customers are posting on social media. Don’t get left in the dust.

Positive Engagement: The best intentions aren’t enough to engage with customers through social care; you need to be able to commit the hours and technology to take action on those intentions.

#8: Consistency Is Key

Whether it comes down to the hours you’re available for customer service (which should be clearly displayed on your social profiles), or the way you handle customer concerns on social media, be consistent.

Not only does this help current and future customers know what to expect from you, but it also:

Communicates that you have a social customer care plan in place.
Prevents customers from feeling like they’ve received unfair treatment.
Boosts your brand’s reliability.

Positive Engagement: Meltwater reported that 90% of consumers expect consistency on social media. Provide that consistency, and you can boost your brand’s online reputation and customer engagement.

#9: Be Proactive

Other than resolving customer complaints on social media, what can you do with them? Tracking and analyzing what people complain about can inform you of weaknesses and pain points in your offerings.

Producing educational content to prevent those pain points not only increases your authority in your field; it enhances trust with readers, engaging them and solving problems before they occur.

There are a few ways you can share educational content via social media:

Create a blog, video, slide deck, infographic, ebook, or other resource and market it via social media.
Share posts or a series of posts to educate current and potential customers in small doses.
Post customer success stories (with permission from the customer involved).

If you don’t want to wait for customers to post complaints, you can be even more proactive by:

Posting polls to hunt down pain points.
Holding forum sessions or live videos to answer customer questions.
Asking customers to fill out a short survey.

Positive Engagement: Proactive social media use is a great way to balance what’s coming in with what you’re sending out into the world, and if you invite your community to participate, that can create positive engagement.

Final Thoughts

We’d love to hear from you about any questions you may have about social media customer services best practices. Contact us to chat more about how you can monitor and respond to your customers’ needs.