As you already know, customers are engaging with companies through social media more than ever. In class, I have learned the social media “triage” which helps marketers to make decision when monitoring social media. Also, customers find that automated messages are annoying and lacking in personalization aspect. Not every message needs to be responded and the diagram assists marketers in making this decision. Below is the diagram:

Moreover, there are some key elements that need to be maintained in responding to complaints in social media. These elements are responsiveness, company’s separate handle, and knowledge appropriateness.

First, consumers expect that companies would respond quicker. 42% of consumers expect 60 minute response time. This will improve customer experience, increasing overall satisfaction. Responsiveness will show that you care, respect, and value customers.

Second, a huge company should have separate accounts to deal with different issues. In class, I learned that depending on the nature of the business, separate accounts may be either good or bad for the company. Having a separate customer service account would be helpful. However, having different account for each different city might not always be beneficial and effective unless that there are specific events or promotions in that is targeted for a particular city.

Last, providing useful and relevant knowledge to solve technical issues, especially, is crucial. Some companies often reply with irrelevant knowledge that does not add any value for the customers. The person responding should have a certain level of expertise in a particular area.

Source: http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/exceptional-customer-service-on-twitter/ and http://www.convinceandconvert.com/social-media-research/42-percent-of-consumers-complaining-in-social-media-expect-60-minute-response-time/