A Quick and Dirty Guide to Internet Replies

So you have control of your business’s social media accounts. It’s a big responsibility in a tiny screen, especially now that everything can be screenshotted and documented. Not only do you need to produce original posts, you also need to engage in a dialogue with your customers. You need to diplomatically apologize for missteps. And you need to do it all with as few words as possible.

There are three main ways to interact with your followers and customers: comments, quote tweets, and DMs. Once you know how to effectively use each of these, you can more effectively engage your followers.

Comments/Replies

First, familiarize yourself with the capabilities and limitations of each platform you’re using. For instance, Twitter has a character limit of 280, but you can insert pictures and gifs in comments. Instagram has a much higher character limit of 2,200, but you cannot include pictures or gifs in comments.

Facebook has a higher still character limit of 8,000 for comments, but that doesn’t mean it’s wise to use all that space. According to one study, posts on Facebook with only 40 characters receive 86% more engagement than its higher-character counterparts. If that’s the stat on main posts, think about how short your replies should be in order to be engaging and effective.

Quote tweet

Pro: All the info is in one spot. Your followers can see the original tweet and your response in one snapshot.

Con: It doesn’t give the original poster the notes.

Any “like” you get on the tweet only goes to your stats, not the original poster’s stats. For this reason, many content creators don’t care for the “quote tweet” option on Twitter (and it goes without saying this only applies to Twitter). 

Use quote tweets sparingly, if at all. If you do use this one, only use it in a friendly or joking manner. Quote tweeting a complaint will look like you’re calling a customer out. You will not come out on top with this one.

DMs

DMs (or Direct Messages) and PMs (Private Messages) can be a good way to address specific issues by individual customers. Say someone takes to Instagram to complain that the items they recently bought are five weeks overdue and no one in your customer service department has been willing to help them. Okay, they’re upset. They feel like they’re not being listened to. On top of that, they’re now broadcasting to all of your followers as well as their followers. That’s not a good look for your company.

By saying something along the lines of, “Hey! We just sent you a DM. Can you give us ____ information so we can look into this for you?” It shows everyone you’re willing to help fix the problem without airing the customer’s information. Important note: you actually need to follow through on the private message and offer a solution. Whether that’s expediting shipping, giving a timeline for delivery, sending a refund, etc. is your call. The important thing is that you stand by your offer.  

Keep it short and sweet. People don’t want to read big blocks of text online, and they definitely don’t want to read long, rambling paragraphs in comments. State your thoughts concisely, and stick by them. Trust me, your audience will thank you.