I had a problem with my cable service this week, and the first place I looked to see what was going on was Twitter, the second was the help section my providers website, the third was the services troubleshooting page of their website. There was no mention of any problem from the company. On Twitter however, there were a heap of mentions from people whose service had also stopped working.
So I tried turning it off and back on, which didn’t work. Then reluctantly, I rang the help desk. After being on hold for 30 minutes, the fix was as simple as turning it off at the power. Now, I do feel a bit sheepish and think that’s something I probably should have tried before calling them. However, there was no mention on the company website or on any of their social media statuses of a problem.
I can hear you asking “what’s my point?” My point is, that if something goes wrong or prevents you from providing your normal service to your clients, use your social media accounts to let people know.
If your computer dies and it’s not business as usual – put out a tweet, a Facebook status, a Google+ whatever-they’re-called and let people know that if they need something urgent to call rather than email. If your phone breaks or gets lost, a quick note on your social profiles to email rather than call will ensure your clients aren’t getting frustrated by leaving voicemail messages which continually go unanswered.
One of the most important things to remember in customer service is that people are far more forgiving when they feel valued. By letting your clients know what’s going on, you not only help to prevent communications problems, you let them know that you value them and consider them, even when your business is facing challenges. Not to mention, you may save them 30 minutes on hold listening to the same 30 second message over and over!
