when twitter talks back

8/7/2019 When Twitter Talks Back

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WHEN TWITTER TWEETS BACK IQ

HP Official News@hpnewsPalo Alto, CAOfficial news from HP, edited by Ethan Bauley and theCorporate Communications team. For support, pls contact@HPSupport. Press only: [email protected]

http://www.hp.com/go/datacentral

Using social media like Twitter is an easy way tocommunicate directly with customers, so why arentmore companies using it or this purpose?

To investigate, we ocused on the Fortune 50 list. We

started by sending @ messages to each one askinginnocuous questions that were tailored to theirproduct and/or service. We veered rom really toughquestions that might appear to be rhetorical. We werenot seeking some groundbreaking inormation: wesimply wanted to know.

Who would write back?

O course, there were other data points we collectedbesides this, such as the number o tweets theyvewritten, the number o people who ollow them and

the number o people they themselves ollow. But mostimportantly, we wanted to know whether we would fnda timely response and i it would be inormative? Orwould we be let hanging orever?

KEy TAKEAWAyS fRom THE ExpERImENT

Based on this experiment, fve takeaways suraced thatshould be considered to help create the most positivecustomer communication via Twitter:

1. Clearly label your purpose

Make it abundantly clear what your Twitter account isintended or. I you have multiple Twitter accounts ordierent purposes, clearly present them on all your Twitteraccount pages to eliminate customer error. Be sure toinclude other helpul inormation like support numbers,links, etc.

Most companies have at least one Twitteraccount (whether they be ofcial or mapped toany sort o strategic goals). But is it being used toinitiate a dialogue with customers? Or is it simplya one-sided conversation?

THE ExpERImENT


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James (^JC) George (^GM)

Customer Service

@ChrisAtUPS @EvanAtUPS@JeanAtUPS @JenniferAtUPS@TennilleAtUPS @TeriAtUPS

2. Make it abundantly clear who you arewhen you reply

Keeping a riendly tone is important, but you still needto maintain a particular level o proessionalism soyour customer will not be conused when a seeminglyrandom person replies to the question. Either stick withthe logo o your company or use a photo that clearlyhelps defne the Twitter team as representatives o thecompany. I you do use a photo o the people answer thequestion, make sure the name is rom the company (e.g.HPSupport, instead o Je):

Its also not a bad idea to make it simple and clear whoto contact when a customer has questions. While UPS,or example, has several dierent Twitter accounts alldevoted to customer service, it may be conusing toknow which account they should use:

Misdirected message sent to @GMblogs is sent to@GMCustomerSvc with me tagged:

Misdirected message sent to @WellsFargo is seamlesslyanswered by @Ask_WellsFargo.

Responses rom seemingly random peoplecould spark conusion:

Wells Fargo@mcfather Hi George here from@Ask_WellsFargo. Yes pls call our supportteam at (800 ) 869-3557 & inform them.Follow/msg us if u have ?s GM

Sarah McFather@wellsfargo Im travelling internationallysoon. Should I notify Wells Fargo in advanceso my credit card doesnt get denied?

Wells Fargo@mcfather Hi George here from@Ask_WellsFargo. Yes pls call our supportteam at (800) 869-3557 & inform them.Follow/msg us if u have ?s ^GM

GM Blog@GMCustomerSvc can most certainly help uRT @mcfather: @GMblogs How do I determineif my GM has a recall on it?

GM Customer Service@mcfather Hi Sarah! You can send me a DMwith your VIN and Ill check for you! ^JS

Sarah McFather@GMblogs How do I determine if my GM hasa recall on it?

Jeff@mcfather Hi Sarah. HP Tech support # is1-800-474-6836. Hope this helps.

I a tweet does come in that isnt appropriateor the account, have a process in place where

tweets can either be orwarded, or quickly let thecustomer know who will be able to help.

Responses rom a person clearly identifed as a company

team member is much clearer:

UPSs multiple Twitter accountsthat all do the same thing:

Wells Fargos Twitter accountwith multiple contributors:


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3. Keep the tone light and friendly

Simply tacking on an additional statement like, Is thiswhat you were looking or? or a Glad to help! atera question has been ulflled is a great way to make it

seem less like a Q&A and more like a chat with someonewho cares.

4. Be as quick as possible in your responses

Customers expect Twitter to be a quick and easy way tofnd inormation it should never be laborious. I youwait a couple days beore responding, particularly in thecase o an irked customer, you could lose them. There

are tools that you can use to automate this: Radian6 andLithium are examples o tools that can automaticallynotiy you when you get a negative tweet.

5. For goodness sake, respond!Nothing kills a good brand experience more than zeroeedback. Making this simple method o communicationavailable or your customers is an easy win in termso creating new relationships, fxing unortunateexperiences, and ostering uture customer satisaction.Get started by crating a social media policy, so thatpeople know how to respond and in a way that supportsthe voice o the brand.

Companies who didnt respond (11)

Couldnt fnd a twitter account (16)

Companies who responded (23)

To WHICH CompANIES dId I TWEET?O the sixteen companies we didnt tweet to, it wasbecause o one o the ollowing:

1. Couldnt fnd a Twitter account at all

2. Couldnt fnd a Twitter account that seemed credible, or

3. The Twitter accounts we did fnd were too specifc in their topics.

There were valid reasons why we could fnd no Twitter

accounts or some o the companies. In some cases, itwas due to the act that the company was a larger brandname, such as SuperValu or Proctor and Gamble, whichwould likely have Twitter accounts or the brands thatsit under the larger company umbrella. In other cases,Twitter doesnt make as much sense as a vehicle orconsumer conversation. An example o this is BerkshireHathaway, Warren Buetts holding company.

In a ew cases, there were simply too many specifcTwitter accounts or one brand, with not a single broadcategory or customer service. IBM was guilty o this.There is an @IBM twitter account, but it was passwordprotected with two ollowers, making it seem notcredible. There were many other IBM-related accounts

as well - @ibmvic, @ibmpw, @developerworks, @IBMWebSphereBPs, @ibmsaas, or @IBM_SOA_BP, just toname a ew - but not one seemed like it might be gearedspecifcally to consumers at large.

32%

22%

46%

Bank of America@BofA_helpWe are official Bank of America Twitter reps, here to help,listen & learn from our customers. Tweet with Bank of

America reps 8-8ET Mon-Fri and 9-1 ET on Sat

http://go.bofa.om/BofAHelp

To WHICH CompANIES dId WE TWEET?

Out of the Fortune 50 group, we sent questionsto 34 companies, of which 23 responded:

The best examples were the Twitter pages that clearlylabeled themselves as a customer service Twitteraccount. Bank o America does a great job o this:


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Speed

Most companies were relatively quick about responding all but our o the responders did so the same businessday. The top three astest respondents were:

1. General Motors, replying in 2 minutes2. UPS, replying in 3 minutes3. Best Buy, replying in 4 minutes

Redirection of misdirected messages

In a couple o cases, the Twitter accounts that we usedwerent the correct ones or customer service. Ratherthan simply leaving the question out there unanswered,these companies quickly redirected them so theappropriate individuals could answer them.

QuESTIoNS ASKEd

THE RESpoNdERS

For the companies that we did tweet, the questions were simple and could likely be answered with a little digging ontheir websites the point was less on asking tough questions that might not get answered, and more about whetherthey would engage in a conversation with us at all.

Sarah McFather

@GE_Reports Do you have any suggestionson ways to cut my energy bill each month?

Sarah McFather

@chevron Does Chevron fun any research foralternative energy?

Sarah McFather

@HPSupport I've got some troubles with myHP. What's the best number for tech support?

Sarah McFather

@KrogerDeals Can I print out coupons forkroger online?

Sarah McFather

@ATT When does the next iPhone come out?

Sarah McFather

@BofA_Help Im travelling internationallysoon. Should I notify BofA in advance so mycredit card doesnt get denied?

O the thirty-our companies we tweeted,twenty-three tweeted back.The responses varied based on the questions asked, and some were more helpulthan others and others were more conversational than others. Based on the data wegathered, there were a ew things happening worth highlighting:


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Varied styles of personalization

There were diering levels o personalization when itcame to the responses:

Autonomous responses:

Some spoke as the company in their responses, makingit eel like more o an autonomous response.

Light-weight personalization:

Others added a touch more personalization by addinginitials to the end o the tweet, signiying an individual

presence behind the company name.

Heavy-weight personalization:

Several responses were much more individualized,making it seem like the tweets were coming rom aparticular person, rather than a brand name.

Blended personalization:

Finally, there were a ew who took a hybrid approach, sothat it was clear that it was an individual writing, but onthe behal o the company.

Varied tones in response

Most responses gave an air o riendliness. However,the riendliest o the bunch seemed to be the oneswho responded even ater we sent a thank you or the

inormation. In some cases, such as below, the fnal replywould be a simple note o well wishes:

Answers via Direct Message

A ew companies asked me to direct message (DM) them

with additional details, which was a nice touch, sincesome inormation is better made private. This happenedwith both Ford Motor and General Motors, when weasked how to determine whether or not my vehicle hasa recall:

Target@mcfather You can find our return policyhere: http://tgt.bz/6018u4Wj

Microsoft Customer Support@mcfather Sure thing. Support can bereached at 800-936-4900. Our forums areavailable at http://bit.ly/bcsACB. ^AA

Marc Monsignor@mcfather to answer your question, u canlearn more about J&J and the environment inour sustainability report http://bit.ly/e1l1ex

Wells Fargo

@mcfather Hi George here from@Ask_WellsFargo. Yes pls call our supportteam at (800) 869-3557 & inform them.Follow/msg us if u have ?s ^GM

dowchemical

@mcfatherAre you looking for anythingspecific that I can help you find? There r a lotof resources right on our site:http://bit.ly/dR1RFX

dowchemical

@mcfather great! enjoy :)

Sarah McFather

@dowchemical Where can I learn more aboutDow Chemical and the environment?

Sarah McFather

@dowchemical This is great! Thanks for thelink. Ill check it out. And thanks for the quickreply!

FMC Customer Support@mcfather Hi Sarah, I can check on that 4

you if ud like to DM VIN, or u may go to:http://www.flmowner.com - click on service -recall MM


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O the 34 companies we tweeted, eleven companiesnever wrote back. And surprisingly, several o thecompanies that didnt respond are very much consumer-acing brands. These companies included:

1. Boeing

2. Chevron

3. Costco Wholesale

4. Exxon Mobil

5. General Electric

6. Home Depot

7. Kroger8. Medco Health Solutions

9. Pfzer

10. Walgreens

11. Wal-Mart

The question remains: why not?

There are a myriad o reasons why not. The two thatstrike us as the most probable is that we are either nottweeting to a Twitter account meant or customer service

queries, or the company doesnt intend or Twitter to beused as a two-way conversation.

Whatever the case, these companies miss an easyopportunity to help a customer, simply by responding inless than 140 characters!

The dangers of not listening or responding

Not listening or providing no positive response canbe risky and downright lethal to a brand. There areexamples o this that certainly predate Twitter.

An early example is Kryptonite Locks, who respondedtoo slowly to orum posts that the companys bicycle

locks could be unlocked with the use o an ordinaryballpoint pen. Had the company been prepared or crisismanagement, they could have potentially handled theunortunate situation quietly and with ar less publicscrutiny and fnancial impact than it ended up being,when myriads o bloggers caught word o the situationand plastered the news on the Internet.

A more recent example is Nestles hostile responseson Facebook when customers expressed outrage anddissatisaction with the brand or its use o palm oil inits products, which contributes to deorestation and theendangerment o animals such as the orangutan.

THE NoN-RESpoNdERS

IN CoNCluSIoN

It is o the utmost importance to have a social mediaplan o action in place not only to handle badpublicity but to oster good customer relationshipsas well. By creating a dialogue with your customersand keeping that conversation personal, upbeat, andprompt, your company can make great strides in newand continued customer satisaction and loyalty, all in

140 characters or less.

For more inormationabout IQs Social Media

practice, contact:Diane Myer

[email protected]

678.449.2090

www.iqagency.com | 280 Interstate North Circle SE Suite 300 Atlanta, GA 30339 | P: 404.255.3550 | F: 770.956.8014Version 9.7.10 | Confdential and Proprietary Copyright IQ

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