Making online friends
Today sees the publication of Datamonitor’s new report ‘The Rise of Social Networking and Emerging Channels in Customer Service,’ it says that while many companies of all different sizes are adopting social media, many are not.
Ian Jacobs, senior analyst for customer interaction technologies at Datamonitor and the report’s author believes that if companies ignore this trend they will be seen to be out of touch and outdated.
It seems that social media is playing a larger part in all our lives, not just PR practitioners and this no longer new medium is replacing more traditional methods. In just the same way that email and texting is more common practice than phone calls and faxing, it seems Facebook is beginning to fill the gap of personal email.
Companies are beginning to improve their customer service by using social networking and Dell is a great example of this. The computer giant has a dedicated online team who monitor and respond to comments made about the brand online, positive or negative.
Some organisations have set-up social media-driven customer contact centres to help bridge the gap between consumer and brand, their role is not just to encourage positive chatter online but to offer online contests, coupons and discount offers.
In the current economic climate, discounts and freebies are king and online channels are a great way to publicise them with no need to spend on expensive advertising campaigns. Martin’s Money Saving Tips and Travel Zoo’s weekly emails are sent to thousands of people every week, all waiting for the latest bargains.
Market Research firm Millward Brown has also released a new report which found that digital consumers have stronger relationships with brands than non-digital consumers.
There are quick and easy ways to start online relationships with customers, but that relationship like any other must be sustained through frequent and meaningful tweets, posts or updates.
Millward Brown’s report also highlights the IT hardware and software, credit card and fragrance industry as having stronger relationships with their online audiences than their offline counterparts.
What struck me immediately is that the above three industries are not ‘personal’ brands as such, I can’t imagine forging a relationship with a credit card company or equally even my favourite perfume in the same way I can with my favourite restaurant.
But on the other hand, maybe that’s why it works so well because people find it hard to forge relationships with objects and this offers a way for the employees behind them to live the brand.
These reports show that social media is just that and people enjoy conversations. Online media allows companies (or rather the people behind them) to listen and respond to their needs and this is becoming ever more important.