Using Social Networks for Customer Feedback + List of Free Tools

Product Management Consortium held an educational event on January 22, 2010. The topic was “Using Social Networks for Customer Feedback.” I had the honor of being on the panel with Shauna Causey of Comcast, and Chris Lindstrom of Ceptera. Our audience was mostly product management professionals. It was an evening of great discussions with a very technical and analytical group, which was a fantastic learning experience for me! The session was moderated by Gwen Gyldenege and Dave Manningsmith, whom I’ve come to know through my work with Social Media Club Seattle. Gwen had sent me some questions before the event so I thought I’d share my responses in a post.

Q: What’s the one thing you want people to walk away knowing about your experience in listening to the customer?

You might be surprised by how surprised your (prospective and existing) customers are when they find out you’re proactively listening and searching. So far, the responses I’ve received have been very positive. So, the simple decision to put your ears out there is already a winning move, especially if you do it before your competition.

Q: How did you go about finding people to listen to?

I’m all about free tools. I have no budget, no resource other than my own time. I started by learning about the environment and culture of various social networks from a personal perspective before attempting to establish a brand presence. It turned out to be a very rewarding strategy, because I’ve made connections, earned trust, made friends who have been very supportive of my adventures as Ben Bridge Girl.  That is one of the reasons why I’m here tonight. I shared my story with Gwen over wine and appetizers one night, and she asked me to bring the story to you.

One of my first goals was to find other retail jewelers, industry professionals and organizations. I do keyword searches to find customers and service opportunities. I also make it a point to connect with related industries, such as fashion bloggers, wedding related vendors and planners, the hospitality industry, etc. There’s very little chatter about Ben Bridge out there, which is an issue that needs to be address, but also represents a huge opportunity. That is very exciting to me.

Q: You tout yourself as a listener.  Why is that important?  Does that make customers more likely to talk to you?

It’s so easy for customers to throw out a tweet when they’re upset about the goods or service they received. This is especially true when it comes to something as emotional as jewelry purchasing and gift giving. Most of the time, disenchanted customers vent on blogs or public forums without really expecting any result, and they simply take their business elsewhere. Many recipients of (less than desirable) jewelry gifts would just put the gifts away in their jewelry boxes and forget about them. Without active listening, we may never find out about these lost opportunities. Listen, respond when appropriate, and they’ll usually open up to tell me the rest of their story. The more information I get from the customer, the better I can help solve their problems.

Q: Why Facebook & Twitter?  Do you plan to extend?

FB because that’s where a lot of our target audience is, and I see several fun opportunities with existing games/apps on FB.  Twitter because it was like the wild wild west for jewelry retailers. As of today (1/21/2010), Blue Nile has 408 followers, Zales has 457 , Fred Meyer has 591, and Ben Bridge has 715. I’ve made it a point to reach out and interact with fellow retailers as well as manufacturers.

An extension, in my opinion, would mean a more official presence in the near future on popular sites such as The Knot, iVillage, etc. The important thing, I believe, is to go where the customers already are, not to funnel them into where the company wants them.

Q: What things are hard for you (e.g., watching TV shows to connect with your customer?)

I’ve had to watch TV shows such as Tool Academy, More To Love, the Bachelor, and various award shows. A glass of wine usually helps me through them. Haha! Theses aren’t programs that I normally choose to watch, but I think it’s important to at least see it once for myself. Turns out, it’s been fun to observe. Another big motivator: while watching award shows, I learn a lot from industry professionals such as Cindy Edelstein, Cheryl Kremkow, and Laura Parker, who have very sharp eyes for trend spotting and make it so much fun!

Q: Why did you decide to jump out and do it on your own? Would you do it again? Is it worth the pain? Has it helped you help your peers understand customer needs/wants better? Do you feel like you’re hanging out there in the wind?

I originally went out searching through social sites because I believe we needed more information to do better business analysis and projections. Would I go out and do it all over again? Absolutely! In fact, it’s a decision that I make every single day. I have learned more about existing and potential customers. In some ways, my interactions with them are not very different from what our sales associates already do very well, but they usually have to wait for customers to come in or call. I’m helping by strengthening existing relationships and building awareness. Yes, it’s frustrating at times, but one happy customer makes it all worthwhile. And if that happy customer comes with a great story, I’m over the moon!

Q: Did you learn from how your competition listened to or didn’t listen to the customer?

Most of Ben Bridge Jeweler’s competition were not listening very much last year. They’re listening more now. Independent jewelry stores are generally more advanced in their adoption of social media, and it makes sense. That has led me to think that perhaps every store in a chain should be empowered to act more like a boutique store and cater to the local culture, but that’s another discussion.

On Twitter, @BenBridgeGirl is all about listening and chatting. I very rarely push out sales messages. Most competitors do the exact opposite. Maybe they know something I don’t, but I believe my method of managing the @BenBridgeGirl Twitter account is appropriate for its (current) purpose. Every tweet is done by hand. I don’t use any tools to manage follower/following, and I don’t auto DM (direct message). When you talk to @BenBridgeGirl, you’re indeed talking to a person.

Q: Who did you emulate to get started?  Who are your mentors?

Elliott Pesut of Alaska Airlines. Brad Nelson of Starbucks Coffee. Michael Mschechter of Honora Pearls. Rod Brooks of PEMCO Insurance. They’ve all done a phenomenal job building “talkable brands,” hands on, everyday. More importantly, they’re always so great about sharing their experiences with others who are new to social media. One of the first welcoming tweet @BenBridgeGirl received was from @HonoraPearls, and I’ll never forget that.

I also prepared a brief handout for attendees, listing a few of my favorite free tools and resources for listening:

Google Alerts – I wake up to this every morning. So many possibilities here. Track to your heart’s content. Go crazy.

Twitter search – Set up a few basic searches, save them and revisit them throughout the day, or get them through RSS feed.

SocialMention – Real-time social media search and analysis; select 1 source or check them all. Provides some info on reach and sentiment.

HowSociable – Find out how a brand performs across the social web. It issues a “visibility score.” Good for comparing with competition.

Trendrr – Business intelligence for digital and social media; track 10 trends a month for free.

Addict-o-matic – Creates a custom page of the latest on any topic or brand

A wiki of social media monitoring solutions – A fantastic + growing list compiled by Ken Burbary, for whom I have tremendous respect.