The Personal Approach: CRM Through Social Media

Today, the growth of social media has paved the way to fresh and amiable marketing strategies for companies. Social media platforms have been great tools in creating and enhancing the customer relations management of companies. Companies now realize that CRM has solidified its place in the marketing world, and social media tools like Twitter have brought on a new age in both public relations and CRM. The formula is a no-brainer: excellent CRM + personal approach PR = increased revenues. How is this possible?

Mike Brice, a 40-year old communications consultant, has skipped the queue at the Delta Air Lines, Inc. ticket counter. Brice missed his Atlanta connection en route home to Utah from South Carolina. He then posted a twit after knowing such. Minutes later, Brice was rebooked for a flight in the morning by an agent on the Delta team which uses Twitter to address numerous complaints like changing flights, finding lost luggage, or sharing details on weather delays.

Delta’s Twitter account is run by customer-service employees who use the direct-message function to privately swap information and view passengers’ itineraries. With Twitter, Delta’s approach is instant and personal.

So why does Delta use social media? Delta learned from its competitors that felt the wrath of irate flashmobs through social media. In July 2009, musician Dave Carroll of the band Sons of Maxwell posted a video on YouTube called “United Breaks Guitars” chronicling his efforts to get United Airlines to pay for repairs to a guitar he says was broken by baggage handlers in Chicago. The video has been viewed 9 million times. United Airlines’ image together with its logo, slogan, ads, and whatnot has been tainted. Delta wants prevent a similar scenario by apt social media monitoring. Social media is the new mass media. Each person has a voice. Companies can crumble into dust with a single tweet.

Most companies like Delta and Gatorade have leveraged CRM together with social media and have turned PR into “personal relations” instead of public relations. The result was a glut of favorable feedbacks and responses from its customers. When this happens, customers tell their friends, families, and acquaintances how good your product is. Customers can now be your walking ads and brand ambassadors. By utilizing social media, people and brands now have an opportunity to work together to increase customer satisfaction. When brands are improved by the very consumer base who buys it, revenues will catapult. Customers are satisfied. Companies are smiling. It’s a win-win situation.

Tags: Companies Using Social Media, Customer Relations Management, social media, Twitter Campaigns

This entry was posted on Friday, September 3rd, 2010 at 10:23 pm and is filed under Platforms, digital marketing, social media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.