Combating the \u2018real-time\u2019 customer experience with some \u2018right now\u2019 expectations….<\/p>\n
As more and more brands move begin to employ social media channels as a customer service channel, consumers are beginning to believe and expect that they can get a response 24\/7, 365 days a year.<\/strong><\/p>\n There are no open and closing times to Twitter and Facebook like there are with call centres and stores. Tim Sanchez over at The Social Customer<\/a> blog raises this conundrum of customers ever increasing expectations of organisations customer experiences in 2010:<\/p>\n Isn\u2019t that what we\u2019ve trained them to expect? By attempting to deliver the best possible customer experience, we\u2019ve accelerated our response times to near-zero and shifted the expectations of our customers to levels that are nearly impossible to meet on a consistent basis. And the customers (that includes me and you) thrive on it. They want it, and the more they get it, the more they expect it.<\/em><\/p>\n How can you combat this? Sanchez suggests that:<\/p>\n Setting expectations and clearly communicating them up front is your greatest weapon against the Right Now Economy<\/em><\/p>\n I would also refer back to a recent blog post<\/a> which states \u201cin many instances, a positive experience supersedes the need for a positive resolution\u201d. It isn\u2019t always about solving the customers problems \u2013 some are unsolvable \u2013 its about providing a resolution that will please the customer, providing you with the customer retention and loyalty you seek and thus makes the time, effort and money you invest in your customer service channels worthwhile.<\/p>\n