Contact Shep (314) 692-2200

social media response timeSocial Customer Service

I knew it was bad, but just didn’t know how bad. I’m talking about the average time it takes for a company to respond, via different social media channels. A recent study put out by Eptica evaluated 500 US retailers’ ability to respond, by asking ten routine questions. The average amount of time it takes for many of these companies to reply is staggeringly disappointing. Here are a few of the stats and facts: This is nuts! If I have a problem, and I contact the company, I don’t want to have to wait almost eight hours to get a response. Maybe all I have is a simple question, I’m not even upset or angry. But, due to the frustration of having to wait hours, or even a day or more, for a response; my simple question becomes a customer service debacle. Is it just me? As it turns out, most customers are a little more tolerant than I am, but they still experience frustration. The Eptica study also polled 1,000 consumers on how long they were willing to wait when they connected with the companies through these channels. While most people are more accepting of the longer wait times; their patience doesn’t last as long as the average company makes them wait.

In the case of Facebook and Twitter, they aren’t even close.

All this looks like gloom and doom in the world of customer service, but there is good news. Yes, there are some rock stars out there who put others to shame. Some of these great companies respond within a minute or less. But more importantly, this report is a wake-up call for all of us. Quick response matters! Look at this report and determine which industry you’re in. And, if you feel that B2B doesn’t apply, you’re wrong. Regardless of the industry and the numbers, the concept of quick response is universal. When your customer has a question, they want an answer. When your customer has a problem, they want it resolved. And most don’t want to wait a day or two for you to get back to them. My suggestion is to take some action. First, download the report, it’s free. Then, take a look at your response times. And consider this, while the response times focus on outside customers, how long do you take to respond to the people you work with, also known as your internal customers? Those are very important customers as well!   Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn. (Copyright © MMXV, Shep Hyken)

© 2024 Shepard Presentations, LLC.
All Rights Reserved.

Legal Information | Sitemap Legap

Site by: digitalONDA