Social media has completely changed the way customers interact and communicate with the brands they love. In the search for shorter roads to the answers we are looking for, staying on hold until you reach a call-center has become as antiquated as waiting a day or two for a replay on an email. People just don’t have the time and patience anymore. But the tech behind social platforms means they don’t have to. By creating new opportunities to reach customers and prospects, social networks have also created a way for clients to reach out back.
When Facebook first introduced its business page features, many brands were happy to jump on and use this tool to reach customers faster and easier than ever before. But what they didn’t count on was the way people changed the rules of engagement and used shortcuts to get fast answers to any and all questions they might have.
A recent research shows that in the USA, in 2018, the daily average of time spent on messaging apps by adults is 10 minutes. And the number is rising. This in turn has made businesses listen to new trends on the market like:
- Reframing the traditional customer service – since the old customer services required long periods of time on hold for customers, brands have focused their attention to social media customer service, via 1-on-1 engagements. Apps provide instant access to self-service tools like chatbots (with pre-programed FAQ) or rapid access to real people willing to respond and drive long-term brand loyalty.
- Keeping the users data safe – with the new GDPR laws in Europe, everyone in the world is paying more attention to the way their information is kept and shared. It’s not about securing your website cart area via SSL anymore, but also about securing other data such as shopping history and preferences. Brands should look for apps that offer end-to-end encryption and focus more on the big picture when it comes to analyzing data. This is the only road to building long-term customer trust.
- Improving the website experience – by integrating social networks chat solutions directly into your website, you are giving users the possibility to ask questions without leaving the page. It will push for a faster shopping experience in online stores and will also change the bounce rates on company websites.
With each passing year, brands are figuring out new ways of tapping into social network and online resources in order to drive stronger customer engagements. And while social media is truly changing the way brands and clients interact, the old rule still applies: if you provide good services and respond in a timely manner, your customer will come back for more.
