Building Trust through Social Media

Social media has changed the way that we market our products and our brands. Through all of its channels, it allows us to send ultra-targeted information to existing customers, potential customers and brand advocates. At some point, however, the “social” part of social media became lost.

You have seen hundreds of brands do it: They post some incredible content, get tons of feedback, and then never show back up to respond. This is a major no-no. If you want to ratchet your customer service skills up a notch, it is imperative to be social on social media.

Who Do I Answer? Many companies get hundreds of replies per post and use this as an excuse not to reply, which is taboo when it comes to social media etiquette. Simply using the 60/40 rule will help put it all into perspective; 60 percent of the comments will be friends tagging each other, so you do not need to answer these, which only leaves 40 percent of the comments to answer. For most of these replies you can use a blanket response like, “Thanks so much!” but the most important part is to answer everyone who says something. Once you’re used to doing this, this task should only take you about 20 minutes a day, which is absolutely doable.

What About the Haters? You may be wondering if you should answer, delete or ignore negative comments. The answer is — no. Instead, take the opportunity to turn a negative into a positive. You should never delete a comment on your page, unless it has profanity or is offensive to others. Most people simply want to be heard and post their complaint in the heat of the moment. Think about it: Even the most hateful comment can be answered with, “We are so sorry to hear that you had a bad experience. Please direct message us and we will be happy to look into this.” By answering this way, you have acknowledged this person’s experience and given yourself — and your customer — a way to find a solution. Win-win.

How Do We Make Answering Efficient? Most of the comments you get will be similar to each other, which will help you when coming up with responses. When you first start responding, take the time to copy your answers into a document you can refer back to. These answers will become a template for future responses, which will help cut back on the time it takes to respond. It is best to make responses personal, of course, so add in a name to all responses to camouflage the simple “copy and paste” method.

By following these steps, you will build trust in your community. These days, that’s worth its weight in gold.

Jana Dennison is the founder of Zettist. You can reach her at jana@zettist.com.