In customer service, is social media the new email?

Organizations across the United Kingdom are increasing their customer service reach through social media.

Recent data from Eptica show that in 2016, brand managers answered customer inquiries more efficiently on Facebook (44 percent) and Twitter (48 percent) than by using email (38 percent).

Although email plays an important role in many organizations’ marketing initiatives, lagging response times have led customer service reps to use Facebook and Twitter more frequently.

Research by Forrester found that 41 percent of UK consumers would prefer a response to their email within six hours—a level of rapidity that only 14 percent of brands in the study achieved.

Here’s more from the study:

The email channel has become slower, less accurate and less available. Just 64 percent of companies (10 percent fewer than in 2015) made email available, and the average time to answer emails increased by nearly five hours.

The study revealed major differences in response times among discrete industries and channels. Close to 85 percent of brands were active on Facebook, well below the 95 percent with a Twitter presence.