There is an increasing focus on customer service and citizen engagement in government. Many agencies are turning to social media as a way to extend and improve customer service.
Here are some ways to successfully leverage social platforms to deliver better customer service, and a few proven best practices to consider when engaging citizens on social media:
Engage citizens and create a community they want to be a part of.
The most valuable interactions on your social media platforms can be the conversation that happens among citizens. Develop content that engages and enables conversation for a variety of social media channels. Platforms like Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and even mobile applications can be utilized to share inspirational videos, eye-catching images that publicize your agency’s mission, and motivating calls to action that support current initiatives.
Embrace and manage negative feedback.
Having the right moderator in place and a social media policy is critical. There should be a clear plan of action and methodology for what comments to respond to, which to leave alone, and which to delete. Remember: transparency and two-way dialogue are important aspects of successful social media for government agencies. Take that into consideration before deleting or responding to any comments from citizens.
Collect data and gather insights.
Social media isn’t just about pushing your messages out. It’s also about pulling information in. If used properly, social media platforms can be an effective way to collect data, solicit feedback, and gather insights directly from your citizens. Any data that can be gathered through social media platforms can help you better understand your citizens and ultimately make adjustments to provide a better customer experience.
Maximize citizen awareness of agency goals and generate support.
Broadcast your message and mission where your citizens are spending their time: social media. Simply by nature of how people now consume information, social media is a successful way to deliver the information citizens want (and need), when they want it, and via the channel they prefer. Communicating efficiently through the use of social media avenues is an effective way to get your agency’s mission noticed and understood, but also to engage people in conversation about your initiatives and goals.
Interested in learning more? Join your peers at Government Social Media: Driving Results in Washington, D.C. on February 29-March 2, 2016.