Conversocial recently commissioned a study with Forrester that reveals a lack of ownership and understanding of social media within organizations that could see brands fall behind in the overall customer service stakes. Over half (67%) of companies interviewed believe that social customer service is growing in importance and is the most pressing short-term priority for contact centers in the US and UK. However, only 33% of the social customer service solutions being used by those interviewed were actually selected by the customer service team, with the rest being obtained solely for marketing purposes.
Today's social media users are more demanding than ever of the brands they know and love when it comes to customer service over channels such as Facebook and Twitter. As the social landscape evolves, customers are moving away from traditional communications methods such as email and phone, and expecting more from the conversations they are having on social networks. However, the power struggle between the marketing and customer service departments means that there is currently a disconnect: businesses are failing to put the right technology in place to support the complex needs of social customer service.
Here's what the social customer landscape currently looks like:
- Between 2009 and 2012 the number of customers using Twitter for customer service has doubled to 22%
- However, people still rate their experiences via phone, websites, emails, IM/ SMS over using social channels such as Twitter and Facebook as a result of poor social media management
- People are more satisfied with their experiences on the phone, via email, or even going to the FAQ section of a brand's website than through Twitter or Facebook
- 35% of social customer service agents have to restart the conversation with a customer for every single interaction because they don't have a record of conversation history