British commercial property businesses getting to grips with social media are only dealing with the “tip of the iceberg” according to a study comparing brands and consumers’ digital contact.
The study, by Echo Research and Fishburn Hedges, found that more than a third of people have already interacted with commercial property companies through social media. This is almost double the amount that it was just eight months ago, (from 19 per cent to 36 per cent).
Head of innovation at Fishburn Hedges, Eva Keogan, said: “Many people are currently enjoying the VIP treatment from brands on social media. As millions more catch on to this great route into traditional customer service channels, the challenge for brands will be maintaining the same level of service.
“Over the coming years, will Twitter become the next call centre? We are urging brands to think about this now, as there are some clear and simple ways to use these new customer service channels to great effect.”
Sixty four per cent of British adult customers are digitally dormant when it comes to social media interaction with commercial property businesses. While it by no means suggests that commercial property call centres has had its day, it does indicate that the scales will tip towards millions more people accepting social sites as another channel of engagement, depending on their preferences. This will have huge implications for commercial properties reputation. Tools, training and organisational culture will need to be considered, as the mouth piece of a commercial property company becomes even more vital.
2,000 consumers took part in the study, alongside digitally innovative brands including commercial property Sainsbury’s, BT, PepsiCo, HSBC, Barclaycard and Oasis.
Echo Research conducted in- depth talks with senior executives in PR, marketing and customer services.
CEO of Echo Research, Sandra Macleod, said: “Our stakeholder studies show that customer service is a strategic differentiator in the market place. Social media is taking off as real people are responding, rather than callers being stuck behind automated call routing and messaging.
“The best companies are training and releasing their staff to manage this in a professional and responsible manner, to often great results. Welcome to a new and exciting world we call ‘social business’.”
