Customer Service: Is Social Media Worth It?

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Image: master isolated images/freedigitalphotos.net

Since the advent of sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and others, customer service has seen rapid transformation and made it easier for companies to engage with end users.

But social media has also made it easier for customers to spread negative publicity, often via the company’s social media pages.

This week, Burger King Norway took the drastic step of asking “fake fans” to leave their Facebook page, offering them a Big Mac voucher to “sellout”. The move reduced the restaurant’s fan base from 38,000 to 8,000 loyal fans. However, Burger King Norway reports that those who stayed are five times more engaged. (See: Burger King culls social media herd)

Jamaican companies, as with anywhere else in the world, are also vulnerable to negative PR on social media with the real possibility of it going viral.  Just from observation, complaints on Facebook and Twitter tend to get noticed and at the very least elicits a personal response from the company.

Of course this is not why these companies are on social media. They’re there to promote their brands, and do this as much as possible in a positive light. To that extent, some local companies ignore negative comments altogether.

What is the right approach? Should companies ignore customers who make negative comments on social media, or take a drastic step to ‘unfriend’ fake fans? Or should these companies use social media as an avenue to improve their customer service processes to hopefully increase satisfaction and brand loyalty?

Share your thoughts below.

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