Social Media and Your Ecommerce Business
Using social media as a marketing tool is a great way to get brand awareness (have a look at Amazon and eBay as examples).
However making it work for you it takes more than just signing up.
Listening skills are important when having a conversation in real life, and they are just as important for your eCommerce business.
The way you listen and engage with your social media customers will have an effect on how successful you will be.
Listening sounds easy, however it may not be so easy when the comments and feedback from them is negative. Instinctively you will want to delete their comment, but don’t.
What would be more beneficial is to address the problem and resolve it, all online and in front of your customers.
It makes great business sense for them to see that you respect their opinions, even though they may not be happy with an aspect of your business. It’s good for them to see that you are willing to try your very best to solve any issues.
Knowing how to use social media to turn customers into loyal customers will definitely serve your business well in the short and long term.
People like to know they are speaking to person, not just another company looking after their brand.
One way you can achieve this is to ensure that there is continuous dialogue. You should be responding to customers if not straight away, then within hours.
Don’t leave it for days, weeks, or worse – months. Social media is all about instant communication – you really need to commit to responding promptly.
It can be really hard to know how to handle problems and complaints from customers. It’s best to have a set strategy to help you deal with situations like these in a professional and polite manner.
Your response may change according to which social media application the issue presents itself on.
You have to skillfully gage which comments need a reply, as not all will. Some more complicated problems may need to be dealt with offline via a phone call or email.
The majority of issues should be handled on the same social media platform where they first appeared.
When you do respond, always start with an apology and then try to find a resolution that the customer is satisfied with.
Don’t be tempted to edit out any negativity – it will agitate the customer even more than they already are.
The way you deal with customer complaints can make or break your online business. And there’s nothing better than turning an irate customer into a happy and loyal one.
When monitoring your social media channels, make note of what gets customers talking. If there are particular conversations or topics that acquire more comments than others, focus on them and start more of the same.
If you see that some types of social media aren’t working for you even after trying, get rid of them and focus on the ones that do.
A stagnant social media channel makes your company look like it doesn’t know what its doing. Your aim should be to create a lively and dynamic environment around your brand.