Top Tips: Social Media Management

The good thing about social media is that brands have a chance to directly communicate with potential customers. The bad thing about social media is that brands have a chance to directly communicate with potential customers. Therefore good social media management is vital for businesses.

Sound strange? Think about it. As brand guardians, we may clap our hands with glee at lovely public comments about how awesome our products are, but brows will furrow when we see customers venting their frustration publicly about shoddy customer service. The issue is that social media is a very public forum, and knowing how to manage those all-important comments is critical. Here are a few tips we give to our social clients.

1) Don’t ignore it
Whatever you do, don’t ignore comments/tweets. You should always respond to both positive and negative interactions your company receives. When someone complains via social media, comments and tweets are visible to your whole community. It is therefore also visible if you do not respond and also may prompt the disgruntled party to vent even more. Always respond promptly.

2) Move it away from social.
Move the conversation off social as soon as possible. If you have a customer services team, direct the customer to an email or phone number where someone can help them with their problem. Always respond to the customer comment, letting the customer and your social followers know that you will direct message the customer to support them with their issue.

3) Be polite
An irate customer can be 10 times worse on social. Customers know they have an audience and can be very pushy to get what they want. Tone of voice can very easily be misinterpreted so no matter how rude someone is; it is important to remain calm with your response.

4) Hide it
Avoid deleting a Facebook post or removing a user, this often just makes the customer more upset. You can always hide the comment from the page by clicking the down arrow to the right of the comment. This hides to comment from view yet can still be seen by the person that wrote it.

5) Long term, be clear on how you use your channels
As your business and social following grows so will your social engagement, so start by having a clear social strategy in place from the outset. Customers may complain but ensure they’re pointed to the correct channel so that your beautiful Facebook feed full of tasty recipes is not dotted with complaints about mouldy potatoes. A good social media strategy from the outset will direct your customers to the right place for their feedback

If you’re not sure about how to create and develop a good social strategy, feel free to get in touch with the team on info@cherishpr.com or drop us a line +44 (0)203 626 0283.