PPB September 2018

by Jen Alexander WATER COOLER I Can See Clearly Now Being transparent with customers helps manage their expectations. Do you bend over backward to deliver what customers ask for, even if it spreads you thin? Or, do you say ‘no’ to offering above and beyond what you feel are your core products and services? Either scenario begs for a reevaluation of how you manage customer expectations. The issue isn’t really that customers know what to expect and yet try to get more for less, says Robert Johnson, CEO of TeamSupport, a B2B customer support software provider. The issue is that customers don’t know your rules, policies and practices, or limitations—they don’t know what to ask for. But there are ways to bridge this knowledge gap, says Johnson. Consider whether any or all of these five options can help you improve customer relations. 1 Equip front-line customer service personnel to deliver more solutions. If what the customer wants can’t be delivered, your team will be ready with an alternative solution. 2 Rethink how you communicate your policies and practices to customers. Look at your collateral, your website and your social media pages. If the way you do business and work with clients isn’t clear, revise your content. 3 Be honest about the wrenches that get thrown in the works. When orders or processes are held up by glitches or bugs, communicate with customers about how the timeline will be affected, and provide timely updates. 4 Be optimistic, but realistic. Not all solutions are ideal, but it’s important to deliver realistic expectations. Customers should know any caveats or possible issues related to their requests, so they aren’t blindsided by upsets in the process. MARKET SHARE Measuring Up How do you know if your social media marketing efforts are working? Whether social media platforms are an integral part of your marketing mix or the sole platform for marketing efforts, it can be tough to measure ROI. MDG Advertising reports that 44 percent of businesses are unable to measure the impact of social media, and only 20 percent can quantify the success of their efforts. Oddly enough, more than a third believe they can see the qualitative impact despite not having solid figures to illustrate it. Some of the reasons for poor ROI measurement, according to the survey, include a lack of analytics resources, poor measurement tools and platforms, and unreliable or poor data. The social media metrics that are most frequently tracked by marketers are engagement (shares, views, likes)—55 percent; conversions (goal conversion, revenue)—21 percent; amplification (share of voice)—16 percent; and customer service (response times)—two percent. While the numbers are hazy, the success of marketing campaigns is not—at least not for chief marketing officers who participated in The CMO Survey. More than half of the respondents said social media has helped them increase exposure and traffic, develop fans, generate leads, grow partnerships and increase sales. These businesses are spending 12 percent of their marketing budgets on social media, a figure that’s expected to rise to more than 20 percent in the next five years. 76 | SEPTEMBER 2018 | THINK