How To Move To Cross-Functional Social Media For Higher Customer Satisfaction
Think about the last time you called a customer service line. You wanted to speak with the right expert who could quickly resolve your issue. Did you expect to talk to someone in the marketing department? Hardly. Why then is it the norm that marketing departments often handle issues expressed over social media — and how can we as marketing and communications leaders change this?
Today, people turn to social media as a primary customer service tool — yet most brands aren’t prepared to keep up. There has been a direct and steady rise in social messages sent to brands each quarter, from 1,790 per social account in 2013 to 2,742 to date, according to research my company has conducted. Nearly half (43%) of these messages directly require a response. Brands, however, only answer about one in 10.
The disparity happens because even as brands make a substantial investment in social media, they also tend to mismanage their efforts. There is no doubt that social media is multidimensional, yet most marketing departments still have sole control over it.
Undoubtedly, your marketing team excels in creating promotional content, increasing brand awareness and attracting leads. Marketers, however, aren’t necessarily experts on every intricacy of your business, product or service — nor should they be. As Vice President of Marketing, I manage our social programs and I have discovered that support, product and sales team members are sometimes better equipped to guide social conversations and provide the most efficient solutions. We made adjustments at Sprout Social and achieved positive results. So how can you persuade organizational leaders to invest in a cross-functional social team, too? Consider these tips:
The Real Costs Of Single-Channel Social, And How To Move Away From It
Bottom line: It’s more costly to silo social. With a lacking multichannel experience, negative sentiment toward your brand increases dramatically. One in three customers will go to a competitor and 36% will take their grievances public if their issues go unaddressed on social media, according to research Sprout Social has conducted. These costs are even more significant when you realize that it costs as little as $1 to resolve an issue on social, compared to $6 to $8 by phone.
Cost effectiveness shouldn’t be the only factor, though. Before presenting your recommendations to leadership, use data to ensure you’re highlighting the business areas that will benefit most from multichannel social media. Be informed and research competitors within your industry to understand what types of social investments are commonly made.
From legal to HR, every function plays an integral role in becoming a truly social business. Yet most organizations aren’t ready to implement social across departments because they don’t have a system in place to manage these channels. Analyze your existing team structure, costs and approach to social marketing. This will provide you with a better understanding of how your organization can move toward multichannel social media.
Make no mistake, there will be hesitation to fully invest in a cross-functional approach. Leadership may worry about losing a consistent brand voice or fear that a misinformed employee will improperly use the platforms. Address these concerns head on and think about comprehensive social management by identifying the most practical and cost-effective starting point, developing training protocol, implementing shared responsibilities and creating a necessary feedback loop.
The Next Step: Aligning To Your Team’s Social Strengths
You’ve persuaded senior leadership. Your business is moving toward a cross-functional approach to social. What’s next? Align your priorities and begin sharing the responsibility of social engagement by playing into the strengths of your different teams.
Your marketing leaders and social media managers should have the clearest understanding of how to engage people with your brand. They’re well-versed in your brand’s voice and already know which pain points customers commonly complain about on social media. Your social managers should therefore act as the liaisons between marketing and other organizational functions.
At Sprout Social, we created a cross-functional social team to answer customer questions 24/7. Our social media managers worked as a marketing department to set benchmarks. They drafted a best practices document, which includes a cheat sheet on Sprout’s brand voice and style, as well as an FAQ section with proper responses and internal contacts. Combined with in-person training, these steps set a solid framework for the other teams, especially customer support, to become more involved and share the responsibility of social. As a result, we’ve sped up our average response time by 28 minutes, with responses issued in under 30 minutes.
The Result: Stronger Customer Relationships
Results will vary based on the objectives and goals set forth by your organization, but consider this: Bain estimates that customers spend 20 to 40% more money with companies that engage and respond to inquiries over social media. What’s more, a 2014 American Express study on global customer service found that 74% of people say they spent more money with a company that has a good history of customer service.
Building and maintaining customer relationships is dependent on a collective effort from many teams within your organization. Providing a united front and a singular brand experience, especially on social media, must be a common goal and shared responsibility.
Empowering other departments to co-own social media will require trust, time and organizational assent, but the impact for your customers and your brand will make the investment worthwhile.
Originally published at www.forbes.com on July 26, 2016.
