Are negative posts on Twitter or Facebook keeping you down? Don’t worry – there are ways to turn these comments into positive interactions. In fact, acknowledging a customer or social media follower with a complaint can go a long way to rebuilding a relationship.
When a negative comment is posted on one of your social media channels, your first reaction might be to delete it. However, this is a frowned upon practice. Unless the post is highly profane or threatening, the best course of action is to address it with a reply. Responding quickly is imperative. In fact, within a 24-hour period is suggested.
Even if you don’t have a solution to the complaint or issue, replying appropriately to show the individual you care is important. Oftentimes, a quick public response on Twitter or Facebook can lead to a more detailed solution and conversation on another channel. Perhaps email or even telephone in some cases.
Yes, we know this type of social media monitoring can be daunting. How is it possible to have your eyes and ears open to social media conversations at all times? Luckily, robust reputation management tools like Radian6 or free services like HootSuite or TweetDeck exist and can help you depending on your needs.
Remember, there isn’t a company or brand that exists that has not dealt with negative feedback on social media channels. The important thing is that you properly respond, try your best to make customers happy and mitigate future criticism.