One bad experience can go a long way. For those who participate in Social Media, which is 65% of internet users, the instinct to share is seemingly compulsive. And what do we share? Our experiences in every day life. So what do you think happens when a customer has an unfortunate experience with your business? Yup. Everyone knows.
Knowing how to react to hostile feedback leaves small business owners with yet another hat to wear: Social Media PR Specialist. As reported in The Drum, near half (46%) of consumers rely on Social Media when making purchasing decisions. So, it’s now important to put your customer service ethic on display both at your place of business and in Social Media. The Drum article emphasizes this point,
“Adam Cooke, creator of Sirportly, said ‘Not responding to customers effectively over social media platforms is reputation suicide. With the impact of word of mouth via social media getting stronger by the day, it’s getting more and more important to both avoid annoying customers in the first place and to be able to defend your brand when it’s being publicly bad-mouthed.’”
Customer complaints on Social Media can actually be an opportunity. It’s a chance for you to show how you deal with problems and respond to customer concerns. A prompt response can cull the mob-like mentality that happens with online bashing.
Of course it’s best to always give great customer service, and insist that those in your employ do the same. But when a customer isn’t satisfied, you can use that situation to tell the story of how you made it right, and if you do it well, that’s what everyone will know about via Social Media.
So, there I was spending a portion of 
