10. Social Media and Customers

The chapter 'Social Media and Customers' delves into the transformative impact of social media on customer service expectations. Traditional customer relationship management (CRM) has evolved into customer managed relationship (CMR), where customers dictate how and where they want to be contacted. The chapter explores various models of customer service, including customer-to-customer help, integrated service into existing social media activities, reactive service, and proactive service. It offers insights into best practices from industries such as automotive, consumer goods, and pharmaceuticals. Notable examples include General Motors' focus on customer experience and Nestlé's use of social media for real-time customer engagement. The chapter also provides practical recommendations for making service areas social media-ready, emphasizing the importance of governance models, training, knowledge management, and the use of appropriate tools. Additionally, it discusses the concept of social CRM, which integrates social media data with traditional CRM to enhance customer understanding and communication. The chapter concludes with a detailed example of Lufthansa's successful implementation of social CRM, highlighting the benefits of combining CRM data with social media insights.