Between 2013 and 2014, customer interactions with brands have seen a phenomenal growth of 70%. And as per McKinsey, a staggering 30% of these prefer a tweet response to a phone call. In an ever demanding world, waiting for a call back is passe. Even aggravated customers switch to social media for prompt resolutions.
Now the question is not about how to use social media for resolutions but how brands can dig deeper into customers’ choices and preferences to strengthen their relationships further?
CRM should go Social
The strongest reason for a CRM to slide into social media is to get a slice of your customer’s social presence. Then why do you want to stay away from them? Get closer. Get social.
To harness this immense potential social media has in store, companies have to deliberate on syncing their CRM with social media. An easy approach to this scenario is to adopt a CRM that comes with social plugins like Zoho, Salesforce and Agile CRM. This helps in building everlasting relationships and also increasing your revenue.
Managing Customer Expectations
Research says that one is four social media users wants a quick reply from the brands. In this sphere of instant communication, to reach customers on social media you have play it by their rules.
A little prep work is essential or else this may lead to mismanagement and also kills your reputation. A small mistake can live for a long time on the internet.
Customers expect quality content and they are more inclined to news and information and less tilted to promotions. So, you have to craft a strategy that accommodates both.
Above all, the trick lies in engaging your customer and keeping your voice genuine.
Using Social Media for CRM in three great ways
1) Managing complaints
Use social media for managing problems and finding quick fix solutions.
A two-step approach is needed here. Firstly, reply to their messages on social forums so that other customers will also build their trust in you. They feel that your company listens to their problems and is responsive. Secondly, try moving the conversation to a private sphere through direct messaging.
2) Reward loyal customers
Let us explore another realm of social media – rewarding loyal customers. Those who regularly visit your pages or sharing your posts are propagating brand value and advocating your business. So, tie them to your brand with rewards and incentives.
3) Create more value in your products
Lastly, you can use social channels to the optimum by looking for avenues to cross-sell and upsell your products.
Upselling is all about leveraging right opportunities. So, keeping a close look on your customers will create tons opportunities.
So, make the most of your online customers, engage with them and build deeper relationships. Brand proliferation can be possible only through proper communications and there can’t be any better brand campaigners than your customers.
Authors Bio: Raja Satish is a Tech blogger who writes primarily on CRM, Marketing Automation and covers the entire gamut of Marketing. When he is not writing, he is found reading articles and blogs written by others. An avid technophile and app lover, Raja is fascinated by all the latest trends, innovations and happenings in technology.