1. Social Media Monitoring for Customer Service
July 2012
A BRANDWATCH PRESENTATION
am@brandwatch.com | Tel: +44 (0)1273 234 290

2. Introduction
Brandwatch has nearly 400 clients – a mixture of agency and direct customers – running more
than 30,000 continuous web searches across a vast range of topics
It’s this exposure to a multitude of industries and the customer service obligations of each of our
clients that has helped us to further understand just how crucial this sphere is online
Further to this, Brandwatch recently analysed the views of online users towards the customer
service performance of large brands - published as the Customer Service Index 2012
The message from this study was clear – brands are regularly perceived in a negative context by
social media users in terms of customer service
Whilst the reasons for this downbeat sentiment are vast, the situation remains and needs to be
managed by large brands
© 2012 Brandwatch | www.brandwatch.com 2

3. Why is monitoring customer service discussion
online important?
Negative customer service experiences, in the wider context of our interaction with goods and
services providers, remain anomalous and therefore more worthy of comment by social media
users than regular or even good practice
The chart below covers the 40 brands shortlisted within the recent Brandwatch Customer Service
Index 2012:
Brands that buck this trend stand out from the pack and appeal significantly to customers.
A reputation for good customer service snowballs on online platforms at the same rate as a
complaint and is often cited as reason for choosing a brand
© 2012 Brandwatch | www.brandwatch.com 3

4. Monitoring conversation in real time allows a brand to
react to customer service updates as they are posted
• Customer service enquiries are frequently posted by social media users – monitoring these
using an SMM tool means that responses can be given much sooner
• Monitoring this content helps to quickly deal with difficult situations in the form of complaints
(left) as well as encourage and escalate complimentary content posted by social media
users (right)
• Fast monitoring allows for responses to be sent to users by dedicated staff rather than a simple
automated message acknowledging receipt of a tweet
• Listening to social media conversation has taught us that users by far prefer good quality,
personal responses over speed alone
© 2012 Brandwatch | www.brandwatch.com 4

5. SMM also allows data to be analysed over time to
gain more insight to what works
• Data can be categorised in a multitude of ways to ensure that specific areas of customer service can
be reviewed and scrutinised. Rather than simply question the sentiment of brand conversation, we can
ask questions such as: Why are complaints about our mobile phone division often negative on
Facebook but not on Twitter?
• Bespoke metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) can be used to give a snapshot of whether
strategies are working over time
• Data can be visualised using charts and other graphics to combine and contrast findings from various
places
• Sales or NPS data can be overlaid to identify the more tangible impact of good (or bad) customer
service
© 2012 Brandwatch | www.brandwatch.com 5

6. Social media strategies can be implemented to provide
great customer service before complaints are received
Adidas uses similar approaches on both Twitter and Facebook. The brand
engages with social media users proactively by segmenting output by sport,
retail product and customer type to build a loyal community of fans
© 2012 Brandwatch | www.brandwatch.com 6

7. Key findings
Monitoring social media activity improves a brand’s customer service output both on and offline
By listening to both existing and potential customers, companies can design strategies that
improve their reputation in the future as well as managing situations in real-time
Situations that create PR challenges in the short-term provide vital information about both how to
manage similar situations in the future as well as how to avoid them entirely
© 2012 Brandwatch | www.brandwatch.com 7

8. CONTACT
EMAIL: contact@brandwatch.com
WEB: http://www.brandwatch.com
TWITTER: @brandwatch
PHONE:
UK: +44 (0)1273 234 290
US: +1 212 229 2240
Germany: +49 (0)711 912 442 04
FAX:
UK: +44 (0)1273 234 291
DOCUMENT LIMITATION
The information given in this document has been checked for accuracy and completeness however Brandwatch
shall not be liable for any errors or omissions.
Brandwatch is a trading name of Runtime Collective Limited. Registered in England & Wales: 3898053
4th Floor, International House, Queens Road, Brighton, BN1 3XE, United Kingdom
© 2012 Brandwatch | www.brandwatch.com 8