Persistence in social media

Sometimes I often wonder if people (brands and organizations) really listen to what customers have to say about them on the various social media platforms. How persistent do you really have to be to be heard, and when do you cross the line to “the crazy lady who keeps asking us/complaining about X”?

Since social media is meant to be instant, do you keep hounding an organization until they respond? And if they do respond, do you keep bugging them if you don’t get an answer you like?

I’ve been on both sides of the fence on this one – the customer and the organization. I love it that some brands are so helpful online (WestJet is a great example), and I get frustrated when I feel like my complaints are not heard (hello, company who runs the transit system where I live). But, when I have my work hat on, and someone is reaching out to us about the same thing over and over again, even though we have already provided an answer to their question, I start to wonder when we can just ignore them…

Yes, I know, play the devil’s advocate and put myself in the customer’s shoes. But really, if you’ve asked something, and gotten a response, why keep asking the same question? To me, it just starts to sound like the five-year-old kid asking “Why?”

(sorry for no photo with this post, I wrote it on my BlackBerry)

January 25, 2012 | Categories: Communication, Social Media | Tags: complaints, customer, listening, social media, WestJet | Leave A Comment »