Every Thursday at 8:30 pm my iPhone beeps, and I think, “Oh, it must be Tony.” On Facebook Messenger, he coaches me on investing, handling anxiety, decision making, and relationships. Fifty million people from 100 countries have been empowered by Tony Robbins’ life training programs in books, CDs, seminars, podcasts, and now even through Messenger.

Facebook Messenger users and brands trade more than 20 billion messages every month – 10 times more than in 2016.¹  And the majority of consumers who contact businesses on Messenger expect a human – not a bot – to message back within the hour.

It’s not news that social media is the preferred channel for voicing consumers’ concerns, aside from in-person interactions.²  Customer care agents on social are required to promptly and adeptly manage conversations, provide personalized service, and foster loyal relationships. A whopping 80% of customers say instant responses would increase their loyalty to a brand.²  Messenger has moved to the forefront of ways to exchange fast, one-to-one communication, solve problems and resolve concerns.

And while some automation is acceptable, like providing instant replies to common questions, human interaction remains essential to the customer journey – especially when customers are sharing concerns or complaints. Nearly half of consumers have turned to social to call out bad behavior by brands, with millennials more likely to do so than other generations.²  Messenger comes in very handy to take the conversation offline, fast and effectively.

Businesses that prioritize social customer care will reap real benefits in 2020. Timely, engaging and effective, the one-to-one communication can be a powerful brand loyalty builder, and anything that achieves that should be foundational to social media strategy.

Get the Message?

1 Facebook, The State of Disruption Annual Report 2019
2 Sprout Social Index, Edition XII

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