Dealing with others is rarely easy. Everyone has a different personality, and what is a big deal to one person is not to the next. As a community manager, how do you deal with an online community? It might sound like an open and shut case, but there are some things you should do to have effective community management.
1. Not Addressing Customers By Name
Today’s business world is fiercely competitive. For businesses to succeed, they must inject a personal touch into their customer service. Addressing a customer by name tops the personal touch agenda. Digitalisation means it’s easier for customers to move on to the next business that treats them better.
The personalisation of customer care boils down to building personal relationships with your customers. Remember, these are people with feelings, wants, and needs. Not addressing a customer by name tells them you view them as just a statistic and do not care much about their needs. Community management is all about managing a community of people who need to be treated as part of that community and fostering a sense of belonging.
2. Not Signing Off With Your Name
In community management, signing off with your name when you post or respond to a comment adds a personal touch. This way, the customers feel they are talking to a real-life person and not a bot. As mentioned, people like to feel taken seriously, and their needs are taken care of. Talking to bots takes away this feeling, and it will eventually make people lose interest in your community.
3. Not Checking Grammar and Spelling
As a community manager, you are the voice of your company. When you respond to a direct message, comment, or tweet, you should be extra careful. Always countercheck your work for grammar and spelling mistakes. Such mistakes come off as sloppiness and unprofessional.
You may choose to use informal language, including some well-known abbreviations like ‘Btw,’ ‘Tks,’ or ‘ASAP.’ However, that does not mean you can get sloppy and post grammatical errors. It can seriously damage your company’s reputation. A small punctuation error could distort your intended message.
4. Copy and Pasting Responses
Nobody wants their contact person to be a robot. Take your time and give personalised replies depending on the customer’s question or issue. A personalised reply adds a human touch to your brand. It would help if you had a Community Management Playbook with FAQs and information that supports your messages across various channels. This proves to customers how much you value them and care about their issues.
5. Lack of Fact-Checking
Giving users incorrect information is highly damaging to a company’s reputation. It gives the impression that they do not value their audience. Having the earlier mentioned Community Management Playbook will help you to have your facts right. Before you hit the send button, ensure you have counterchecked your facts.
However, community managers are not robots, and they can make mistakes. When you make a mistake, own up and apologise for it. If the wrong information you gave inconvenienced your users, have a solution and offer compensation if it is within company policy.
Avoid these mistakes
Today, businesses have to think outside the box to make it big. Customers have so many options, and they are not obligated to be loyal to a company that does not serve its purpose. Digitalisation means that opportunities abound, and customers, especially millennials, have no patience for companies that are not giving them what they need.
You can avoid these mistakes when you have a dedicated and experienced community manager looking after your brand. Contact us today to learn more about our plans.