Community Community Management

You know the companies.

The companies that don’t invest time or energy into interacting with their fanbase on social media.

It’s somehow instantly recognized on every post. You know when they are going to react, comment, etc. There are easy opportunities to amplify your brand in the comments section and treat your brand page as a ‘personal account’.

Why You Should

How do you feel about one way relationships?

Where your friend or family member only talks and you never get to have a dialogue?

You’ve been there. I’ve been there. We’ve all been there.

This seems pretty obvious, but you’d be surprised at the number of brands that don’t get it.

Sleep Number is a great example of that. They had tons of customers reach out about problems during 2020 and they didn’t respond to most of them. Some with serious issues. If Sleep Number decided to grace them with a response, it was usually generic and not helpful.

I don’t mean to pick on them, but it’s a clear example of a brand that doesn’t understand the importance of communication.

I’d also like to clarify something. As a brand, you are usually not a customer’s ‘friend’.

I mean that in the nicest way possible as there is still a power dynamic in the relationship. The audience members will always have the thought in the back of their mind that you are trying to sell them something.

As a brand you should be friendly, but not someone’s friend.

Wendy’s on Twitter, they are friendly while not being someone’s friend. They will even tear you to bits on Roast Day.

The real reason you need to start responding to comments today is trust.

Trust In Brands

People will trust a brand that knows how to communicate with their customers.

A large percentage of your customers will go to social media to complain about your service if they have an issue. They need to know that you will work with them in public.

It’s like a complicated order at a fast food joint. You’ve seen it happen where someone messes up an individual’s food and that individual blows up.

They know if they bring this issue up in front of a group, they will get what they want.

Don’t be scared of that. That fear will give them even more power over the situation.

Whether you want to make an exception for that customer or not is your business. Just know that everyone will see if you don’t handle it well or ignore it.

Then it blows up into something much larger than it needs to be.

Don’t Complicate It

You don’t need to draft the perfect response to every comment, but I recommend you respond to as many as you can. Find a rhythm and stick to your brand voice.

This takes practice, but it’s not as hard as you think.

Helpful tips:

• Use emojis — Everyone will respond with just emojis and that’s ok
• Be complimentary — Say thank you to as many people as possible to show your gratitude
• Use pop culture references — I have made Lion King jokes in the comment section as a brand and people eat that up
• Be a human — If you were at a dinner table and someone said that, how would you respond?

It can seem like a complicated and risky feat, but taking the time to learn and invest will pay huge dividends in your reputation.