There are many best practices for social media to take into consideration when managing responses. Here are some of the most important you can start utilizing:

  • Respond to questions and complaints, always. If someone posts a question or complaint to one of your social media pages, the best thing you can do is respond to it in a timely manner. Always handle negative comments with a neutral tone and remember to follow up on responses.
  • Speak as your brand, utilize talking points. You should always speak to your brand when responding to social media engagement. Responses should be unified to exemplify your brand’s messaging; refer to your company’s talking. If you do not have any, consider developing them.
  • Don’t feel compelled to respond to everything. Respond to the most crucial and defining social media comments, don’t feel like you need to respond to it all. Follow up on exceptional feedback, questions, those seeking advice, etc. Don’t get caught up in every “like”.
  • Interact and show your personality. Social media is about being social so don’t be afraid to show off your personality and the aspects that make your company unique. Interact with your audience on a more personal level and get them engaged in your company’s happenings.
  • Develop a social media policy. Having a policy in place to direct your employees on the right and wrong ways to interact on your company social media pages is a crucial part of your success. Everyone should be on the same page and understand the importance of response management.
  • Have a crisis management plan. Worst case scenario, you should have a crisis management plan in place should something go awry in the social media sphere or with your company as a whole. You should have a plan to reach out to your audiences and respond to a crisis in a positive way.

What are some of your best practices for managing social media responses?

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