I want to understand how social media can benefit my own business, which is why I am taking this class. Up to this point, I have felt like I was too busy to be updating my Instagram page with daily posts, let alone listening in to what customers are saying. However, as I dive into this course and I begin reading I'm gaining an understanding, not only of how important it is to gain attention for my business, but also just how beneficial it is to me personally to be able to know exactly what customers want.
Over the years, communication between businesses and customers has changed dramatically. Years ago, as a customer you would have to search in a phone book or a newspaper for a specific company, only then to have to call them on the phone, receive whatever product or service you were seeking, and then if there was ever an issue, you would have to call a customer service line in order to complain.
Of course today, you can still call a customer service line if you have issues, however you're most often directed via an automated voice recording system, which we all know is never an easy feat. It seems the days of getting an actual human on the phone are far and few between. Because of this, many people prefer to report their complaints through a web chat or directly in a post on the business' social media page. This tends to get you better and quicker results, while also holding the business accountable.
By posting your issue publicly on a company's Instagram or Facebook account where they have thousands or perhaps millions of followers, you're sure to get a response. For example, my girlfriend purchased teeth aligners through a company called Smile Direct Club. They ship to you clear braces similar to Invisalign in order to straighten your teeth over a designated period of time. Each month they ship you new trays that will fit your shifting teeth. Well, at one point during the treatment they sent her trays that did not fit her mouth. She called to get a replacement, but it was difficult to get anyone on the phone and by the time they ended up sending new trays, her teeth were already shifting back. This threw off the entire process.
Eventually, months had gone by without any resolution over the phone. That is when she decided to write an angry and very public complaint on their Instagram page. Within a couple hours she received a call and was given a full refund for the entire treatment including the correct replacements and the remainder of the trays for the treatment. This shows just how powerful social media can be and it holds businesses accountable for poor customer service.
You may have never been able to get this type of resolution years ago before the days of Instagram, Facebook or Yelp. Companies will do their best to avoid having a slew of low star ratings and negative comments because it is so easy now for customers to simply choose another company with a better rating. And they will. Everything is now at our fingertips and choosing the competition instead when we were treated poorly is no issue for us.
Personally, I don't tend to leave reviews, good or bad. Unless I have an issue that was unresolved and I need to get some assistance, then I would post on a business' page. Such as the case with my girlfriend and her teeth aligners.
If it was my own business receiving a complaint like that, I would of course respond immediately and I would resolve the issue. Especially since the error was within my company's doing and not the customer. Although, I would not resolve every issue in that manner because I not every issue calls for a full refund. I would, however, always respond to a complaint to see if we could come to some sort of resolution and hope to have the customer leave feeling as though they were heard and hope they will return.
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