A recent USA Today report noted that social media can be useful as a customer service aid, but a qualified support team is a necessary asset to put those tools to their strongest use. While sites like Twitter and Facebook allow consumers to immediately react and comment on product effectiveness, if we make the connection between PR and customer relations, trained PR pros can help back up those queries posted on social media outlets.
From USA Today:
"Companies go in with expectations too high, and they risk disappointing customers who don't get prompt replies," says Lloyd Trufelman, president of Trylon SMR, a public relations firm for media companies.
Twitter should augment customer service, not be some magic bullet, he says. "If a company's DNA is not truly dedicated to listening and responding to customers in a genuine and timely manner, no technology will provide a solution."