I spend most of my days talking to line executives and leaders in health care, financial services, publishing, and other types of organizations about the impact of customer experience on their business. We talk a lot about how they are earning consideration from their customers. How they’re delivering on their brand promise. And how they’re anticipating customer needs as they evolve.
But, as I was roaming Twitter the other day, I couldn’t help but think how brands are using social media tools to not only raise awareness, gain share of voice, and generate leads, but how they are using tools like Facebook, Twitter, and Foursquare to fundamentally strengthen customer experiences.
This post isn’t meant to discuss whether your brand should play in social media at all or to what degree—that’s a different post for a different day. This post is more about understanding how each of these tools can strengthen your customer experience. They are all social media. But they are not the same.
As marketers, you know customer experience matters. It matters for satisfaction and advocacy. And our research found that organizations that have a well-understood definition of customer experience are twice as likely to beat their profit targets than those that do not.
So, it makes sense to know specifically how social media platforms can help strengthen your customers’ experience. Stop thinking about your competitors—just because they are using Foursquare or YouTube doesn’t mean you should, too. Instead, focus on tools and platforms that strengthen your existing customer’s experiences with your brand. Remember: The stronger your customers’ experience with your brand, the more they will reward you in terms of repeat business and referrals down the road.
Let’s take a look at four of the key platforms and what customer expectations might look like and a few things you can do, as marketers, to strengthen your customer’s experience within these tools:
What do customers expect? More and more customers are looking for deals, special offers, and coupons on Facebook (a full 25 percent “like” brands because they want coupons or deals). In essence, they want that deal they can’t get anywhere else. (Look at what Cirque du Soleil is doing with Facebook). But customers also expect responses and acknowledgment from brands—a simple reply in the comment stream can go a long way with a potential or existing customer.
What can brands do to strengthen customer experience? Because the vast majority of the fans who “like” you on Facebook are probably existing customers, you’ve probably already solved a need for them. So, use Facebook to create a stronger connection or anticipate their next need. This is strengthening the customer experience after the sale (or between sales) by giving them what they crave: VIP access. This VIP access can take the form of exclusive coupons or deals. It can also mean “behind-the-scenes” glimpses of your products, services, or company. Whatever the case, make sure you treat these folks for what they most likely are on Facebook: your biggest fans.
What do customers expect? Speed is of the essence on Twitter. Most customers expect a response from a company when tweeted within 24 hours or less. Of course, that presumes brands are listening on the platform. As the Dominos, Toyota, Chrysler, and other social media flare-ups have taught us, customers on Twitter assume you’re listening. That’s become table stakes for most brands now.
What can brands do to enhance customer experience? First and foremost, set up a “listening station” to ensure you catch those issues that can spiral into full-blown flare-ups online. Third-party applications like Tweetdeck should allow most brands to set up simple searches for keywords and brand mentions to detect issues early on. Then, meet—and exceed—customer expectations on speed by making sure you’re staffing appropriately. Remember, Twitter doesn’t recognize weekends or “office hours.” You need to be listening—and responding in some cases—24/7. And finally, think about your customers’ experience on Twitter and if it’s similar to what they’re experiencing offline. Sure, speed is important online, but your customers have a singular relationship with your brand and a perfectly reasonable expectation that interactions will feel consistent no matter how they find you.
Foursquare
What do customers expect? Customers typically use Foursquare for two reasons: to achieve “mayor” status and find deals. Sure, when customers check in on Foursquare, they’re letting “friends” know where they are and what they’re up to. But they’re also checking to see if their favorite companies, retail outlets, and restaurants are offering deals exclusively to people like them that use the geo-location tool.
What can brands do to enhance customer experience? If you’re going to use Foursquare as a marketing tool (and remember, it’s not a tool for every brand), keep in mind you’re reaching a very niche audience. (Foursquare has 7 million users currently.) But it’s an audience that’s typically highly engaged and connected online. So, it pays to exceed their expectations. (After all, they’re more apt to share than others.) So, think about an extraordinary offer for your mayor—remember, your mayor is already a huge fan and customer. So, don’t just offer a buy-one-get-one-free drink coupon. For these existing super-customers, think about what would really strengthen their affinity for the brand, and encourage them to share with other potential customers.
YouTube
What do customers expect? We know video consumption online is up—way up. (YouTube gets more than 2 billion views per day now.) But why are customers viewing so many videos? Because they need help. Or because they want to be entertained. And remember, some folks aren’t necessarily watching your videos on your YouTube channel—they’re viewing them in a widget on a blog somewhere across the Web. And they’re finding your videos by searching. (Did you know YouTube is the second largest search engine on the Web?)
What can brands do to enhance customer experience? Because people find video on YouTube by searching, we can’t really call it a community—it’s a search play for brands. So, you’re likely reaching customers early in their experience as they are looking for options or late in the experience as their needs are evolving. They’re likely not in the heart of choosing, buying, or putting a product or service to work. Consider that when creating video content. Is it clear what your company offers and what you’re all about in the video? Does your video content offer up answers quickly and efficiently? (No one wants to spend 10 minutes viewing a brand video.) Do you offer up contact information in your video or a place to go for more information or to buy your products and services? These are all basic questions you’ll want to address given the kinds of customers viewing this video content.
What’s been your experience with some of these key social media tools? How have you strengthened your customers’ experience online?
A lot of customers are using the Facebook and Twitters and having a company account will surely be an instant access to them. The sites you have enumerated will surely increase customer interaction and customer participation. Thanks for sharing!
Great intro article on the top 4 social media tools and how we can leverage each one appropriately. As you mentioned in your article, some companies rush into all these new fads just because their competitors (or “everyone else”) is doing something there – but execution often is done poorly because they don’t understand the different ways each tool is used by individuals/customers (and thus what their expectations are when it comes to the company/brand/product’s communications). Oftentimes I see companies using all these different forms of social media as an extension of offline efforts: as a one-way communication tool.
BTW, I believe Facebook isn’t necessarily just about giving VIP treatment to people who “like” you (i.e., providing exclusive deals & promos or behind-the-scenes look into the company/product/brand). As you say, those who “like” you are your biggest fans – and they’re also probably your heaviest and/or most frequent users. You could also use Facebook as a sounding board and platform for product enhancement and/or development (through discussion boards, status updates & succeeding comments, etc) by listening to them talk about the joys – and frustrations – of using your product. A provocative status update or question on the discussion board may pave the way for an interesting discussion.
Still, great post and very helpful!
Steve and Jennifer- thanks both for your comments and ideas here.
Jennifer I think you make a terrific point about customer goals on Facebook. Using FB as a way to bring customers into the product evaluation and development process is powerful idea – another kind of ‘behind the scenes’ interaction for these customer-fans. My experience is that even if fans don’t actually engage withe the invitation or provocative question, they appreciate and remember that you asked.
Thanks for pushing theses ideas forward. LCI
I greatly enjoyed this article. I believe in the impact of customer experience. Thanks for a very insightful read!
Thanks for the insightful and very helpful article. I think sometimes as marketers we sometimes focus entirely on either “spenders” or “senders.” We need to continue to reach out to both by catering to individual customers’ needs and being mindful of where they are engaging with us.
I think you’re right, Kelly. Focusing on “spenders” and “senders” is hardly the same as a focusing on an experience that solves the need that triggered a customer to act – or anticipates their next needs as they change over time.
Knowing WHEN a customer is – that’s just as important as knowing WHERE they interact. Thanks for stopping by. LCI
I would have to agree with this post on many of the points. There has undoubtably been a shift of social media turning into a more prevalent tool not only for businesses, but consumers as well. This shift is leading many companies to jump into the unfamiliar world of social media and for some, all too soon. On the other hand, when used correctly, these outlets can be outstanding especially for customer relationships to certain companies or brands. The open communication it has created is strengthening consumer individualism and freedom of speech as well as giving insightful feedback to companies that can then tailor their message or products to better serve their customers.
All in all, it comes down to how well the social media is understood by the company which leads to its correct or incorrect use. This post would be great for any company to reference before jumping into one of these examples of the types of social media available today.
This is a really insightful and useful post. I would like to say that it’s important for consistency if a company is active on all of these platforms. There’s no use being terrific at customer service on Twitter and then ignoring Facebook completely.
It’s also important in this digital age to remember the customers who complain offline too.
Thanks, Joann. Looking before leaping is wise indeed. Glad you find the examples useful. LCI
Jamie,
What your comment underscores for me is that we must be able to answer the question: “How does social media strengthen our customer experience?” and NOT “How should we show up on Facebook?” From the customers point of view it’s not a social media question or a marketing question or a support question. For them its about how I get to know you, make choices, connect with others…. thinking about the WHOLE experience is key.
LCI
[...] we’re in the “customer experience” era. In their recent posts here, for instance, Paul Barsch and Linda Ireland offered insights on how leaders are transforming their businesses with bold [...]
Linda,
I love how you have organized this discussion. Too often I see marketers adopting a one-size fits all approach to using these tools where one communication becomes the solution for all platforms often via an automated tool. Usually, it’s because they are so comfortable with blasting messages [e.g., traditional communication tools], that they haven’t stopped to appreciate that the audiences for each platform differ. Not only have customers connected for distinct reasons, but they also have unique expectations as you have detailed. Talk about opportunities for strengthening a customer’s experience!
Thanks for this discussion.
Best,
CB