We really hope anyone reading this blog post about social media customer service is at least familiar with Vanilla Ice, if not, you will first want to reference the below music video. In fact, even if you are familiar with Vanilla Ice, you should watch the Ice, Ice, Baby music video.

Within the first five words of his hit song, Vanilla Ice lays out three simple rules to remember when it comes to social media customer service. We will do you the favor of elaborating and explaining exactly what he’s not actually talking about.

  1. Stop
    Don’t jump to conclusions, or try to rush a response. Your first response, while quick, may not be well-thought-out and could do more harm than good. This rule of social media customer service segues perfectly into rule number two…
  2. Collaborate
    Seek out other customer service team members to get some background on this customer. Maybe this isn’t the first time they are reaching out to you for customer service (even if it is the first time they’ve engaged in social media customer service). If this customer has called or emailed to request customer service, familiarize yourself with the details.
  3. Listen
    We’ll repeat the third rule of social media customer service. Listen. Customers want to be heard and they sincerely dislike repeating themselves, which is why rule #2 is also vital. Practice empathic listening and really understand what they customer is telling you.

Pretty simple right? Well, if you haven’t figured it out, there is actually a fourth rule to social media customer service, and it is potentially the most important.

  1. Respond.
    If a customer reaches out to you via any medium, not only with regard to social media customer service, don’t ignore them. Too many company’s already do, and on social media, your competitor is only a click away!

So, the next time you engage with customers and want to provide an awesome social media customer service experience, bob your head to the beat and repeat these three four rules.

  1. Stop
  2. Collaborate
  3. Listen
  4. Respond

Thank you for your time. If you have a moment more, please check out Comnio – Your 24/7 customer service concierge.