The five-person team that monitors Twitter for Sprint is based in the public relations department, so they'll often interact with the customers and take the issues to the customer care team so they can be resolved.
"Twitter is not going to replace basic customer care phone centers, but it does complement it and shows you can help, and that you're actually listening and making an effort," Justin Goldsborough, a communications manager at Sprint, says.
At the same time, responding to customer-related issues via Twitter is an easy way to show your customers that you care and potentially turn a negative experience into a very positive one.
"There are a couple of anecdotal stats I've heard," Goldsborough says. "The one I always use is if you get somebody who's upset about your service or your brand and you're able to turn that story around and make it positive, [the consumer] is 10 times more likely to be a brand advocate for you."
But customer service doesn't have to be all about solving major issues and complaints. Take S3's client, Eight O'Clock coffee. The company's Twitter page, @8OClockCoffee offers promotions and tips for brewing, but the brand also helps consumers find a store that carries the product in their area.
Give it a face
Twitter's most obvious attribute is that it is deeply personal, so while users spout about trivialities such as their lunch plans, they'll also write about what's bothering them. In this regard, brands looking to use Twitter for customer service should make their accounts easy to relate with by attaching a real name and face. Both Sprint and Comcast follow this credo and have their employees tweet from accounts that often include their first names and a photo.
"We had a lot of debate about that," Sprint's Goldsborough says. "Especially in our industry, where customer service is so important, and we're really trying to change our image in that field. We decided that people wanted to talk to a person and build a relationship, instead of just talking to a brand."
Goldsborough also points to the Edelman Trust Barometer, which indicates that trust in corporations is at a 20-year low. Closer to the top are actual employees who are talking about brands. If consumers are looking to connect with someone like them, it's best to put your real face forward and show the human side of your company.
Goldsborough tweets under the account @JGoldsborough, where he regularly engages with Sprint customers about issues they may have, but also shares his love of the Kansas City Royals and Bon Jovi. The other four members of the Sprint Twitter team use their real names as well, and often send their tweets through both their personal accounts and corporate accounts (more on that later).
"Whenever people are frustrated with their service and they're trying to find help or they're angry, I think it's easier to diffuse a situation when you're talking to an actual personality rather than a brand and a corporate logo," Sean Doherty, Sprint's manage of social media and interactive communications, says.
Comcast, the nation's largest cable provider, decided to give their main Twitter account, @comcastcares, a name and a face after receiving user feedback. When Eliason created the page, he simply ran a Comcast logo. It was only after receiving feedback from others on Twitter that Eliason decided to change his profile, and he's become synonymous with Comcast's customer service success. Now, the other 9 members of the team tweet with their names preceded by Comcast (ex. @ComcastBonnie, @ComcastBill), so consumers know exactly who they are addressing.
"There's a personal side to social media," Eliason says. "You can relate it to customer service calls. We're not going to answer a call and say 'Comcast, what do you want?'"
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