Rational Interaction Study Finds 92.5 Percent of Brands are Failing at Social Customer Care

SEATTLE, Sept. 15, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Rational Interaction, an award-winning, full-service agency based in Seattle, today presented findings from a new study examining brand engagement on Twitter and social customer care. The term social customer care refers to the quick and personalized customer service brands are expected to provide through social media once a customer engages directly with them to resolve an issue. The agency's Social Customer Care Report highlights the rise of a new era of customer service by examining social customer care practices from brands such as Apple, Aetna and Nike in the technology, healthcare and retail verticals.

As unearthed in Rational Interaction's report, 92.5 percent of brands are failing to meet customers' social customer care expectations. With 310 million active users and over 500 million tweets a day, Twitter is an increasingly critical platform that companies must actively monitor and leverage to interact with customers directly. However, of the 67 percent of Twitter users who have tweeted at a brand seeking customer service, more than half (58 percent) never received a response from the brand.

"With millions of customers utilizing Twitter to engage with companies, it's crucial for brands to treat the platform as an extension of its customer support," said Selina Petosa, foundig principal and chief creative officer at Rational Interaction. "When executed correctly, social customer care reinforces customer engagement and loyalty. However, neglected or poorly managed social platforms can lead to dire consequences for a brand, including irreparable damage to its reputation and the loss of customers."

Instead of having a singular account to share branded content, manage brand engagement and handle customer care, the report recommends brands have a dedicated customer care handle. By troubleshooting customer service inquiries via a designated handle, brands are better able to track and respond to customer inquiries. In fact, the report found when a brand utilized a designated customer care handle:

• Only four percent of customer inquiries went unanswered
• 62 percent of brands were more likely to close the loop on conversations—ensuring that customers are satisfied and the problem is resolved
• 28 percent of brands were more likely to receive customer kudos once the issue was resolved

"Distinct handles enable brands to better track and respond to customer inquiries and isolate negative interactions," added Joseph Debons, principal and executive managing director at Rational Interaction. "Brands using only a main account to field customer service issues represent a missed opportunity to provide rapid personalized responses and alleviate high volume requests."  

Additionally, the Social Customer Care Report provides insights into social customer care utilization on Twitter across healthcare, retail and technology industries, including:

Healthcare

• 80 percent fail to provide any customer care via social
• 17 percent provide customer care from their single/main brand handle
• 3 percent provide customer care from a designated support handle

Retail

• 5 percent fail to provide any customer care via social
• 60 percent provide customer care from their single/main brand handle
• 35 percent provide customer care from a designated support handle

Technology

• 20 percent fail to provide any customer care via social
• 35 percent provide customer care from their single/main brand handle
• 45 percent provide customer care from a designated support handle

More on Rational Interaction and its Social Customer Care Report can be found at: http://bit.ly/2bye9iA

About Rational Interaction
Rational Interaction, an award-winning, full-service agency and business consultancy, based in Seattle, Washington, is a new kind of integrated agency with proven ability to deliver across digital, technical and consulting engagements throughout the enterprise. Rational's clients consist of some of the world's biggest brands including: Microsoft, Amazon, Acer, AT&T, Cisco, Expedia, Google, The Seattle Seahawks and more. For more information, please visit www.rationalagency.com.

About the Data
Rational Interaction's Social Customer Care Report analyzed 76 brands across the retail, healthcare and technology industries. Brand engagement and community activity were monitored over a seven-day period, using a 10 percent sample size of the data.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rational-interaction-study-finds-925-percent-of-brands-are-failing-at-social-customer-care-300328547.html

SOURCE Rational Interaction

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