Bob Hutchins
If you have a burning question for a company, don’t go to Twitter.
Go to Facebook, where odds are three out of four you get your question answered.
New Q2 2015 data on social media responsiveness (via Socialbakers) goes deep into the inner-workings of customer satisfaction and brands’ capacity for responding on social media.
Social Media Responsiveness on Facebook & Twitter
- Brands on Facebook hit a new milestone this quarter. Response rate to Facebook questions clocked in at 76 percent, which is up 8 percent from Q1 2015.
- Brands on Twitter, by stark contrast, only responded to 28 percent of consumer inquiries. (Granted, brands receive far more questions on Twitter than they do Facebook.)
Should You Invest In Ability to Respond on Social Media?
According to the findings in this research… absolutely. Page interactions are astoundingly higher on the Facebook pages that are run by “socially-devoted” brands, which Socialbakers quantifies as, “those that respond to at least 65 percent of questions on their Facebook pages or Twitter accounts.” These brands get four times as much engagement.
It’s no secret that social media responsiveness corresponds with great social media engagement. It simply makes sense that brands that look and act like humans – people who are engaged with their community – would be successful. But, in case your skeptical of the latest and greatest in marketing data, here are a few other key findings we reported in the BuzzPlant Blog over a year-and-a-half ago:
- The level of consumer engagement with companies on Facebook and Twitter increased by 178% between Q4 2012 and Q4 2013.
- Four out of five consumer inquires went unanswered.
- The banking and finance industry – which was, at the time, reported to be the top-performing engagement industry – could only respond to 28% of consumer requests on social media.
If you see a problem, you’d be right. But – even better – see an opportunity. This data shows us that consumers are desperate to be heard on social media, and most brands don’t have the time or interest in responding.
My Challenge To You…
Set a goal to increase your social media responsiveness for one month and see if you notice any results in your engagement. People love talking about great experiences. Responding quickly on social media in a personal and authentic way is one of the easiest and most rewarding ways to give your customers that great experience.
Have you had a great experience with a brand that responds quickly?
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