Power of Todays Social Media

Great article on the power of Social Media for customer service by marketwise.ca.  Let Expivia do this exact same service for your company!

If you follow me on social media, you may know that I’m a bit of an online shopaholic.
It saves time, it often saves money and let’s face it – it’s fun. With the click of a button, you can look forward to the delivery of a shiny new object. Which is always great.
And online shopping has changed dramatically. In recent years, online consumerism has converged with the emergence of social media platforms, and the power has landed squarely back in the hands of the customer.
We no longer have to beat our heads against a wall in frustration when the wrong item is delivered; when we have a question, or when we want to make a return. Even if the customer service department has been outsourced to a foreign country where the agents barely speak our language (literally)…we now have a voice.
And it is louder than ever.

Social Media as a Soapbox

We can herald our anger on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn for the whole world to hear. We can blog about it. And our communication can go viral and have dramatic impact on the brand in question.
The smartest brands understand this dynamic and are monitoring their reputation on social media platforms so that they can participate in conversations that relate to their business and jump in as needed.
They hire social media managers to track hashtags, host live chats and respond to complaints and feedback.
Beyond the Rack is one such brand. They are an online Canadian retailer, and this week, they knocked my socks off. And made me very happy.
I’m sharing this story because I think that all brands, even B2B brands, can learn from this real-life example of customer service done right.

Customer Service Mishap

It didn’t start out right.
I purchased a pair of Ugg boots from Beyond the Rack for my daughter’s birthday. Six weeks later (and more than a month after her birthday), we were still waiting for the boots to arrive.
When they finally came, my daughter was thrilled. She tore open the package, whipped out the left boot, tried it on and was giddy with excitement. But it was short lived.
When she pulled out the other boot, it became clear that BTR had shipped two left boots. Ugg indeed (ugh).
I was angry, but accidents happen. So I called the customer service department to see what they could do to make it better.
After sharing our story, I was told that:

• It was unlikely they had another pair of Uggs in stock
• It would take up to two weeks to determine if the right boot was even available
• I could receive a refund after I mailed back the two left feet
• They would credit me the shipping charge (that I had already paid)

I did not receive any apology and there was no real meaningful acknowledgment that I had been wronged. I was not happy.

I got busy tweeting

I thanked the customer service rep for her time, but I was far from satisfied.
After all, I am a pretty loyal Beyond the Rack customer. I’ve been buying from them since the business launched and I’ve spent a good sum of money.
So I took to social media.
I tweeted my frustration -





I also posted my experience on Facebook, and in both cases, I tagged Beyond the Rack  so that they could jump in on the conversation. if they were so inclined.
And then I waited.

Much to my surprise

Not ten minutes later, I heard back.
First an email, with an effusive apology from Beyond the Rack and a promise to make things right. I was reassured that their customer service team would look into the availability of another pair of Uggs and would get back to me within 24 hours.
And then I got this:





And then I waited again.
Sure enough, the next morning, I received a personal phone call from (a new) customer service representative who had tracked down a replacement pair of Uggs. They were being mailed immediately, at no charge (that’s right…free Uggs) and as soon as I returned the two left feet, my account would be credited.
Now that is customer service! I was happy.
So I tweeted this:






And BTR’s responsed:




And I felt very, very happy.

Social Media & Customer Service Lessons Learned

So what does this mean to you, and more importantly, the brand that you are trying to promote?
I think that there are a few important lessons to learn:

• Always monitor your brand on social media. Beyond the Rack would never have known about my frustration; I would have never shopped there again; their reputation would have been tarnished. But instead, they were able to fix the situation (for not too much of an investment of time and money), and here I am singing their praises on my very well trafficked blog.
• Understand that your customer now has a voice. And they are more inclined to use it than ever!
• Don’t wait for someone to complain. Get on social media platforms and start engaging your stakeholders meaningfully so that your entire social media presence won’t be limited to damage control.

Your Turn

Beyond the Rack emailed yesterday to let me know that my free Uggs have been shipped. And I sent back the two left feet.
So now I’m waiting. Obviously, I will keep you posted to confirm that indeed BTR has followed through on their promise. But I expect they will. They handled this properly and I was extremely happy to see that they care about their customers. Genuinely.


THIS IS EXPIVIA