Keep Calm and Gather User Feedback From Social Media

The social media revolution provides product managers with numerous ways to cooperate with people who use their products.

The author of the article on Ptoductmanagementtoday blog states: in order to stay in touch with target audiences, product managers need to learn the power of this direct line of communication to the benefit of their product. Letting clients know that you care about their opinion makes them feel appreciated and opens the door for conversation. Even negative reviews can be surprising sources of wisdom.

Here we share the list of recommended steps from the article towards utilizing social media as a way to always staying up to date with your users’ needs:

Step 1. Listen

It’s very important to learn how to properly listen to what’s being said. There are many ways to do this that range from the most rudimentary to the complex.

The first step is simply jumping in there and staying up to date.

Of course, product managers join the social conversation in their field: they read blog posts, join groups, follow relevant hashtags, connect with opinion leaders, and so on. Then they should dive deeper to find what their actual customers are saying.

Step 2. Connect

Today any business needs social media channels that act as the front window, through which consumers can peek in and asses the produce.

However, it’s easy to forget the vital role these channels have in gathering user feedback. Your social media strategy should be closely tied to your user feedback management. Any social network is a great place to ask users what are they thinking and start a real conversation about their needs. Another important function is monitoring comments and private messages received through the networks, as it’s often the first place users turn to when they are not happy with a product.

Step 3. Engage

After creating appropriate media channels, it’s a high time to focus on finding brand advocates and opinion leaders for your product.

Creating a community around your product may take a lot of effort, but its an immensely powerful method of gaining social proof.

Step 4. Research

Systematic tracking of social media that allows for further research is crucial here. Analyzing your social channels’ performance over time is vital in order to get a sense of the quality of your connection with followers.

Many of social networks have an analytics feature built in. It allows getting an idea of its performance and deeper insights into what type of customer you engage.

Collecting it in a single database, for streamlined access, analysis and action will help avoid customer data getting lost, while facilitating collaboration between product managers on customer-related tasks and projects.