Gaining a Social Media Presence

Meghan Boyer

Shoppers who interact with a company on a social media website, such as Facebook or Twitter, are more satisfied, more committed to the brand and more likely to make future purchases, according to a recent study from customer-satisfaction measurement firm ForeSee Results Inc. Despite this, a quarter of the top 100 retailers have no formal Facebook presence and another quarter have fewer than 10,000 fans. The bottom line is many retailers are missing opportunities to engage with consumers, according to the study.

Nearly one-half of study respondents, 49%, who became a fan or follower of a retailer do so to learn about special deals and options, 45% want to learn about products and 5% for customer service. A retailer’s best customers likely are the ones who will follow the company online, so it is important for the retailer to provide a rewarding social-media experience to ensure customer satisfaction.

Garden centers that have social media pages need to find the right mix of promotional, product and how-to information to include on the sites in order to meet customer expectations. GP