The disparity between customer and brand social expectations ...

When consumers connect with a brand on social sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Google+, what do they really want? It?s a question that many small business owners have asked themselves as they prepare their social media marketing campaigns. By understanding what consumers expect to receive for their social approval, entrepreneurs can improve experiences on these websites.

However, few companies are truly on the same level as their customers ? there is a disparity between what brands think consumers want and what they actually desire. According to a new report from the Chief Marketing Officer Council, nearly half (41 percent) of businesses believe their social fans just want to be heard. Additionally, four out of 10 (40 percent) think customers just want to stay abreast of news and information about their products.

Consumers don?t tend to agree with businesses. More than two-thirds of respondents (67 percent) said they wanted to be eligible for exclusive offers. Meanwhile, 60 percent said they fancied sharing their brand-related experiences with others and 65 percent desired access to games and contests.

The dichotomy between brand and customer wishes was most clearly evident when a scant one-third of companies (33 percent) said their followers wanted incentives and rewards, and when 27 percent indicated their customers yearned for exclusive savings or experiences for following them on social media.

?The social brand explosion has created a wave of loyalty among social consumers who are eager to show their support and share their experiences with others online, but this loyalty comes at a cost ? from savings to games ? that consumers see as their social currency,? said Liz Miller, vice president of marketing programs for the CMO Council.

Despite the fact that many companies aren?t delivering on what consumers want, few fans say their social interactions with brands have suffered as a result. Only 3 percent declared their engagement with businesses a ?total waste of time.? However, 40 percent did say they were interested in seeing brands provide more incentives for their social approval.

Social service

Another area consumers expect more from brands is in the realm of social customer service. When consumers air out grievances on Facebook and Twitter, they do so with the hope that brands will respond ? if not instantly, than perhaps within a day or so. Not assisting customers in a timely fashion could result in the erosion of customer loyalty.

Only 12 percent of respondents said they would be willing to wait a couple of days for a social response. The majority want a resolution within 24 hours and as many as 22 percent expected a customer service representative to assist them immediately.

However, most businesses have other social priorities and don?t even have systems in place to respond to these individuals. In fact, only 4 percent of marketing officers said
they leverage social media for customer care.

?There is a clear digital divide between marketers and what consumers expect from their brands,? said Katy Keim, Lithium chief marketing officer. ?Brands who provide their social customers with engaging online experiences, meaningful interactions with one another and rewards for doing so will clearly gain a decisive competitive advantage in 2012.?

The Assistly blog notes several ways businesses could improve social customer service. For example, support forums, discussion forums, peer-to-peer communities and customer-generated wikis all enable different levels of customer interaction.

Does your company currently tap social networks to assist with customer service? What strategies do you employ?

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Source: http://smallbusinessguide.know-what.com/the-disparity-between-customer-and-brand-social-expectations/

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