The Social Playbook: Using Social Service Strategy To Engage Customers

Originally posted to Bluewolf.com

Many executives fear that the evolution of social media from controlled, one-way messaging to an interactive dialogue will invite customers to publicly air their grievances. But these conversations are already taking place, regardless of whether companies choose to ignore or address customer complaints.

Social media has put customers in charge of organizations’ brand image, according to Bob Furniss, Director of the Service Cloud Practice at Bluewolf. "The customer owns the brand more than they ever have before — especially when it comes to customer service, because they will tweet about their experience and post comments on Facebook," he says. "What's interesting is that, while the social channels have been owned in the marketing environment, the potential damage to or potential success of the brand oftentimes is tied to what is happening on the service side.”

As more organizations take the plunge into social media, the frequently overlooked piece of the puzzle is what Furniss refers to as "The Social Playbook," an organization-wide strategy for engaging customers via social endeavors. A typical playbook includes a plan for response, key roles and responsibilities, integration of social contacts into the contact center's workflow, an escalation process, as well as tools and processes for social media monitoring and reporting. Establishing a social strategy that addresses these key areas ensures that social engagement supports your customers and brand in a consistent manner — ultimately adding value to both.

Read the full interview with Bob and Contact Center Pipeline_ to learn how to build a strategy around Social Customer Service.