Business and Consumer
I have had some difficulties in the past communicating with several businesses. Long wait times, voicemails and just overall unprofessional customer service. I feel as though social media is a hit or miss approach with getting in touch with a business. The internet is such a large place and its almost like shouting into a blackhole. Say if you had an issue with Target and went straight to twitter to try and resolve the issue the likelihood of you tweet being responded to is not that high and even still they might just refer you to their customer service department. On the flip side to this I have seen instances in which individuals will tweet large corporations and they will respond, not only are you heard but your complaint is in a public forum for others to see.
One instance in which I had a positive experience using social media to communicate with a business was about a year ago in L.A . I was hunting down a food truck that I love (Grilled Fraiche) and I was kind of bummed because by the time I got the address that they would be in and drove over there all of their eggrolls would be gone. On this particular day I DM'd the company via Instagram and expressed my grievances. They responded promptly and gave me an advance notice of where they would be and promised that if I came they would have some set aside for me, needless to say, I came, I ate, and I was delighted.
Handling positive comments should be in a good taste, one shouldn't come off as arrogant. I feel you should thank the customer for the positive recognition and encourage repeat business. As for negative comments the customer is always right and customer service/reputation is everything these days so I think before getting emotional the first thing that should happen is to try and resolve whatever issue the customer is having then understand how and why it happened as well as what can be done to prevent it from happening again.
One instance in which I had a positive experience using social media to communicate with a business was about a year ago in L.A . I was hunting down a food truck that I love (Grilled Fraiche) and I was kind of bummed because by the time I got the address that they would be in and drove over there all of their eggrolls would be gone. On this particular day I DM'd the company via Instagram and expressed my grievances. They responded promptly and gave me an advance notice of where they would be and promised that if I came they would have some set aside for me, needless to say, I came, I ate, and I was delighted.
Handling positive comments should be in a good taste, one shouldn't come off as arrogant. I feel you should thank the customer for the positive recognition and encourage repeat business. As for negative comments the customer is always right and customer service/reputation is everything these days so I think before getting emotional the first thing that should happen is to try and resolve whatever issue the customer is having then understand how and why it happened as well as what can be done to prevent it from happening again.
I agree with you that at times using Twitter to contact companies can be hit or miss. I have tried it before and not been responded to at all, as well but I have also seen companies such as Wendy's become successful with this method. Great insight!
ReplyDeleteI love that you shared your experience with Grilled Fraiche. It is apparent that they wanted to go the extra mile to make you happy.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that when you treat people with respect and patience, the result is more likely to be favorable, regardless of if you are the customer or the business.