Thoughtful Thursdays - Social media and customer service

Do you know what is being said about you online? I had an experience last week that I felt needed to be addressed and did not know exactly how to reach the right person - the who would care and be in a position to take action.

I have heard and read of several instances where people have been at their wits end when it comes to customer service only to be rewarded by using social media a the venue to express their dissatisfaction.

I am not sure of the numbers,but am inclined to believe that most large firms are tracking what is being said about their companies online. It makes good sense to to do it and better sense to have a team in place to address the complaints as they come up. We all know how fast news of a bad experience can travel, but do we really understand the sheer volume of people it can reach so quickly.

I had the good fortune to attend the home opening game of the Toronto Maple Leafs last week. In past seasons there was a team of ushers in place at each entrance to the arena seats. In  many cases the teams had been in place for years and knew the regulars my face if not by name as well. Part of their function is to keep people from entering the arena area while play is going on and guiding them to their seats if they do not know where they are located. They would also know if people were in the incorrect seats and quickly rectify the situation.

For what ever reason, this particular evening, their did not seem to be anyone in charge of the entrance. There was an usher present, but the level of service offered was obviously lacking. It was only a matter if time before people were entering the seating area while play was going on and adding to the congestion, they did not know where they were going. The long and short of was that people had to stand while other were finding their seats and in on instance, seats were already occupied. The end result is that sight lines are blocked for unreasonable lengths of time, making for a less than enjoyable experience.

I decided to voice my disatisfaction on a social media venue using the appropriate has tags and wondered if anything wouldcome of it. Two days later I recevied an email asking for some clarificaiton about my experience.

Here is the end result:
"... The manager of event personnel will actually be sharing your case at our ushers’ pre-shift meeting on Saturday and it will be a teaching point for our entire team about maintaining a winning experience for our fans going forward..."

As a customer, I am pleased with the outcome. As a sales professional I am encouraged to know that responsive customer service remains important.

Social media is one way you might be able to access the people you need to, if you use the right approach.

Putting the show on the other foot, is also a way for your customers to access you.
Good selling
Richard

Thoughtful Thursdays - Building trust without making personal contact

One of the hottest subjects today is the use of social media as a business tool. I would agree that a social media strategy with a well executed tactical plan will increase awareness in a market place. When used in conjunction with other Internet communications services this increased awareness can translate into more prospects and eventually new customers.

Some traditional thoughts about selling tell us that:

• Relationships are crucial to the success of any business
• A key benefit of a good relationship is trust
• Trust is at the top of the list in making buying decisions

Enter social media, and the challenge of building trust with minimal or no personal contact. In my experience, customers now conduct significant research before making the decision to purchase. In many cases the decision is appears to be based more on price than relationship. All things being equal, how will you, without the opportunity of building a face to face relationship, build trust to a level that will result in an order in your favour?

Here are a few suggestions that may be useful in building a trustworthy online presence:

• Do not post or make inane comments
• Contribute to online forums and comment on articles that will benefit from your expertise
• Fully complete your online profiles
• If you like a post, tell the writer why
• Offer constructive criticism not personal shots
• Make it about them, not you
• Thank your readers
• Be consistent
• Assume that anything you post can be seen by anyone, anywhere at any time

I will always be a believer in the value of relationships built on personal communication. Social media presents a great opportunity to grow your list of prospects. When it comes to closing a deal, I prefer to do that in person, but that's just me.

Good selling,
Richard

A Social Media Story - Twitter

It will be one year in June 2010 since Toronto Business Development Centre entered the world of social media on Twitter.

During the first year we learned how to link tweets to our blog, facebook and Linkedin pages.

Recently we tweeted from the TBDC Awards Gala, learned why we should use hash tags, and that using a separate twitter page might not be the way to go - live and learn. We are neophytes to social media but are committed to these channels of communication.

Back to the story. It was not very long before we started to follow tweeters of information related to business, small business and entrepreneurship. We have followed, unfollowed and blocked.

One of the businesses we chose to follow was Distility Branding @1day1brand. Shortly thereafter we received a direct message thanking us for the follow. Follow up communication revealed that Axel Davids, CEO of Distility, graduated from Toronto Business Development Centre 10 years ago.

This led to the renewal of the business relationship that had been lost some time ago and Axel accepted an opportunity to be the featured speaker at our most recent TBDC Entrepreneur Forum.

Subsequently Distility Branding participated in the nomination process for the 2010 TBDC Awards and Axel Davids was announced as an award finalist. On May 5, 2010 at the Toronto Granite Club Axel was presented the Excellence in Innovation Award at the second annual TBDC Awards Gala.

None of these events would have likely unfolded if not for social media, Twitter in this case.

How has social media impacted your business?

Richard

Social Networking - Is It A Good Business Strategy?

MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, Second Life, GigPark, craigslist, Flickr, Meetup, Friendster, Twitter, YouTube, blogging...

You can certainly make an unlimited number of contacts, but is the time and effort required to make it happen justified by a corresponding increase in sales?

How many places do you need to be and how often? Word on the street tells me that unless you are blogging at least 3 times a week or more, people will begin to loose interest. Do you have the resources to sustain the level of communication needed to maintain and grow your audience.

I would really like to hear from business owners who have stepped into the social networking arena to relate their experiences, both positive and negative. We have all heard of the wild success of a few businesses, but overall is it a good strategy or is it industry or business specific?

I am not sure so I pose the question.

Richard