Social media makes your business accessible, so staying that way is important. Here’s how to keep the connection in the face of criticism.
Don’t Ignore or Delete
The worst thing you can do when someone has left a negative post on your social media page is delete it. If they realize you deleted it, they might get even more upset with your company. To lash out once more, they may decide to repost it and call you out for deleting it, or then post something in another location that you aren’t able to delete. Deleting comments can also make it look like you don’t care, are wrong in the situation, or have something to hide.
Don’t Make False Promises
Many customers rush to social media with their complaints because it’s sometimes the quickest way to get a response. Whatever you do, don’t make promises you can’t keep. Putting a customer in contact with someone who can actually resolve the issue will not only make your life easier, but it’ll also delight the upset customer. At the end of the day, they’re just looking for someone to talk to. If you can’t help, don’t waste their time.
Respond to Everything
Your team should develop a process for how to respond to every social engagement on every social channel. It can be as simple as following a guide or giving one person the responsibility for handling social media customer service. Once you receive a comment, it’s important to respond, keep it short and respond back in two hours or less. When users voice their concerns online, they want to be acknowledged and offered a plan of action for resolution. https://www.1440.io/blog/why-you-need-to-respond-to-negative-reviews-and-how-to-do-it/
Respond Quickly
Establish your response time, and know: speed matters. Common service-level agreements (SLAs) can vary from mere minutes to hours, depending on a variety of factors including your industry and your team, and are likely to fluctuate based on peak times, specific events, or campaigns. But one thing is consistent across the board: rapid replies are expected. In fact, 37% of customers expect a response within 30 minutes. With sensitive issues like an emotionally charged complaint, a slow response can leave a customer feeling ignored and stoke the flames of further discontent.
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