Gone are the days when people would call up a company and complain. Now, people are more likely to head to their smartphones or computers to tell the world how terrible a product or service is.That’s why customer service is becoming increasingly important on social media platforms like Twitter.
A study done by Simply Measured showed that 99% of brands are on Twitter, and 30% of them have a dedicated customer service handle. The average response time was 5.1 hours with 10% of companies answering within an hour, and 93% of companies answering within 48 hours.
Here are 4 companies with exceptional customer service on Twitter and key takeaways to help you improve how your customers perceive your company on Twitter.
1. JetBlue Excels in Responsiveness
Airline delays are one of the most common causes of customer frustration. Not only do delays happen often, but also people are pretty vocal about their feelings when their flight is delayed.
Acknowledging this, @JetBlue ensures they’re responsive to their customers because they understand it’s important for continued customer loyalty. Not only do they engage with happy customers, but they also respond to and help frustrated customers as quickly as possible.

2. Nike’s Separate Handle
@NikeSupport is a prime example of customer service done well. They constantly respond to followers on Twitter, whether it’s about their apparel, Fuel Band or other products. Every few minutes, you can watch them respond to someone new.
What makes this remarkable? Nike is a huge company. They have many different types of sports equipment and lines of apparel that make up their brand. While Nike manages a number of Twitter handles to accommodate followers interested in specific sports or store locations, @NikeSupport is dedicated solely to responding to customers who need help.

3. Seamless Around-the-Clock Customer Service
It is no longer a 9-5 world—especially when it comes to social media—and some companies need to be available at all hours.
Seamless is an online food ordering service that serves customers in several time zones across the United States and in London. There’s always someone ordering food and eating, right?
In addition to engaging customers through trivia questions with prizes of free food, they also provide customer service around the clock.

4. Comcast’s Quality Assistance
While speed of response is important, many companies underestimate the importance of quality assistance. A quick response that isn’t helpful can be as good as no response at all. In the case of Comcast, their customers are looking for specific help to fix their problems. If their wireless Internet isn’t working, they want to know how to fix it. If their television connection is out, they want to know how to repair whatever is broken.
To provide each customer with a timely and helpful response, Comcast’s Twitter account is managed by a team of people who can quickly offer technical support and troubleshooting tactics for a variety of issues.

These examples show how to use Twitter to cultivate loyalty by providing timely and helpful responses to customers.
Adopt similar tactics to improve your customers’ experience of your company on Twitter. Consider dedicating one person, even part time, to addressing customers’ questions on Twitter. Track the outcome to see whether you should expand the program.