Customers like it when you hear what they have to say. They like it when you favorably respond to a call, chat or email into your call center, and they really like it when hear what they're saying on social media. Why? A couple of reasons: first, social media is new and not every company is participating in it. That makes any response via social media an unexpected surprise. Second, social media is largely a passive means of communication. You have to go out and search for what people are saying in most cases. When you respond to a social media post, it shows you cared enough to find it. USA Today recently wrote about a few companies that are taking social media customer service to heart.
I had the fortune recently of chatting with Kirk McNesby about what Activision is doing to care for its customers through social media. You may not know the Activision name very well, but, especially if you're a gamer, you've definitely heard of their products, which include Call of Duty, Guitar Hero and Doom, to name a few.
Activision actively seeks out comments on Twitter about their most popular games (Modern Warfare 2 is a big one now) and respond to customers where needed. For example, if a customer bemoans that they broke a CD, an Activision rep might chime in and tell them that they can exchange the disc for a new one at a discounted rate, a little-known policy the company has had for years.
And the reaction? Customers love it. Activision is getting great reviews from its fans who appreciate the support, and elevating the overall company brand as a result.
Activision is applying one of the best rules you can use with social media - experiment, experiment, experiment. Where they find things that work, they keep doing them, and they're always looking out for the next way to use the channel.
