According to Zendesk's new infographic, 62% of customers are looking for more support through social media. Compare that to research by MarketTools at the end of 2011 which shows only 23% of US companies provide customer service via Facebook and 12% provide support via Twitter.
This highlights the continued divide between what customers are expecting and companies are giving.
Brand reputation and promotions still tops the list of how brands are using social media. The good news is once companies begin to engage in this arena, the more they find the importance in engaging in social channels.
The stats compiled by Zendesk aren't surprising on their own. It's only when you compare them to what brands are actually doing, there seems to be a discrepancy. If you are working with a brand that just doesn't get it, this infographic may be a key tool to showing what needs to happen to satisfy its customers.
23% of our time is spent online so it's imperative brands be there.
Recommended reports
State of Social Report 2011
Econsultancy's State of Social Report, produced in partnership with LBi and bigmouthmedia, is the most comprehensive study of its kind around the strategies, tactics and websites companies are using to harness social media for marketing, sales, customer service and other business objectives. The research, based on a survey of more than 1,000 companies, benchmarks budgets, resourcing, measurement and barriers to success ... plus much more.
Social Media & Online PR Business Case
Need to convince your boss that social media is right for your company? Do you need to make an investment in Online PR but want to make sure you spend your budget in the best possible way? Our Business Case can help by providing research, tips and information from the experts.
11:58PM on 7th February 2012
I love that companies are taking to twitter to add another layer of customer support. Just today I actually received excellent support from MyEmma (@emmaemail) about some issues I was having. The funny thing was that I didn't contact them - they are diligently searching for mentions of the brand and react in a timely manner. I guess you could call that Reactive Customer Support.
8:07AM on 8th February 2012
Love infographics, but what shows is worrying to me. As a small business owner, I am concerned about unwarranted negative comments going viral. When it all boils down to it, we all make mistakes and cannot get every right 100% of the time. The internet and social media can be very unforgiving.
6:04PM on 8th February 2012
Amanda,
You are not alone in your concerns. Especially for small business owners, it is extremely challenging finding the time to manage your brand online, like responding to and managing negative comments and/or unhappy customers.
While that is critical, the bottom line is that focusing on delivering a consistent and delightful customer experience is still paramount--Small businesses that are successful in doing that generally find that their most loyal customers will in fact often advocate for their businesses in social media forums--Or at least, the positive comments and reviews will far outpace any negative ones.
3:37AM on 13th February 2012
Yes, we also noticed the same trend. Social media is becoming ubiquitous, and every online tool'd better integrate it.
11:06AM on 4th March 2012
Having good customer service to begin with is no replacement for social media to cover and back track. I run a business in London and we simply see social media as a extension of our service offering.