Monitoring use of social media and handling comments

For example, she says you can use analytics tools to identify which posts are most popular with your LinkedIn contacts or your followers - and you can track how many referrals were received via social media.

Jay Naylor, head of marketing at Personal Touch Financial Services, recommends Hootsuite as a social media management tool.

He says advisers should look for a tool that covers multiple social networks, including Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

Mr Naylor says: “The weekly analytics reports and team management facility (delegating tasks, sending private messages) can be very useful when there is more than one person handling the social media accounts.”

But ultimately Morrison & Foerster’s Ms McLean says you have to appreciate that social networking is very similar to traditional networking: results may not be immediate and the return on your investment may be difficult to measure.

When monitoring social media, remember it is not just about gazing at your own image, warns Richard Ardron, marketing director of SimplyBiz Group.

It is also important to look at wider social media trends and see if you can contribute to these discussions or come up with a different take on an issue and develop your own strand of the debate.

Wider monitoring of what is popular on social media will allow you to get a better feel for just what your intended audience are engaging with, what is interesting them and are there opportunities to engage.

Mr Ardron says: “The whole reason you are on social media is to engage and to get others to engage with you. If people are commenting then get involved, but be mindful.”

Dealing with negative comments

Personal Touch’s Mr Naylor warns when things go wrong – a substandard product, a service disruption, a mishandled customer - then social media can open up businesses to a world of criticism.

Sometimes he says the criticism isn’t even based on facts, just a consumer with a grudge - and, now, a voice.

Mr Naylor says advisers need to understand the reason many people post negative comments online, is because they don’t think they are being listened to in store, on the telephone or by email, so they lash out.

Some speak out on social media just to warn their friends off using what they believe to be a bad product, he adds, while others – the more social media savvy ones – will do it to hurt you and force you to pay attention.

Mr Naylor says: “For some companies on social media, “sorry” is indeed the hardest word. Often it is because they don’t want to take the blame. Or they don’t agree with the customer’s point of view.

“Some people just want to cause trouble. They troll across social media enjoying the notoriety this brings. If you’re sure that their claims are entirely without merit, the best long-term strategy may be to ignore them.

“However, as social media is a highly visible, public forum, commenting once to the effect that what they are saying is inaccurate and unfair (and providing the facts to support this), will at least give other viewers the true picture.”

If you see any posts that are negative towards you or your business, Helen Turner, distribution and development director of Tenet Group, recommends you act on it as soon as possible - within an hour, if possible.

She says you are not only dealing with the person in question but everyone else that sees it. Ms Turner recommends acknowledging the comment but taking the subsequent conversation away from the eyes of everyone else.

For example, she suggests a private message stating: “I’m sorry you had an issue. Please could you send me a private message providing further detail and will have a look at it for you. Alternatively, give me a call on XXXXXXXXX or email XXXXXXXX.”

General comments

Equally, Ms Turner says advisers should be careful about what they write in response to any other comments and remember that by replying to a Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter message, it will be seen by all the firm’s followers and those that follow the author of the message.

A response in itself could constitute a financial promotion and Ms Turner says therefore it may be more appropriate to acknowledge the message so everyone knows you have responded, but to deal with the actual response in a one-to-one manner, for example, a private message, email or telephone call.

Michael Ruck, senior associate for law firm Pinsent Masons, says if the relevant firm or person decides to make comments in response, then the firm becomes the originator and will have to comply with the FCA Principles and the financial promotion rules.

He says: “Firms will need to consider carefully that raising their social media profile is likely to lead to an increase in the number and variety of comments by others being posted on social media referring to the firm.

“Such comments are likely to include both positive and negative content. Firms will find it much harder to restrict or control comments made by others which are made via social media, however, there are some legal measures which can be taken by firms should inappropriate comments be posted but these are based in current legislation and case law, which are historically based upon written documentation.”

Morrison & Foerster’s Ms McLean says it is important to monitor social media for comments about you or your firm “not least because, even if you are not monitoring what is being said about you online, the FCA may be.”

In order to deal with the concerns raised Ms McLean agrees with Tenet and says it may be best to take the matter offline as soon as possible – i.e. follow-up via phone or email – not only to protect your reputation but also for reasons of confidentiality and regulatory compliance.

In particular, Ms McLean says advisers should bear in mind that negative comments made via social media could be considered a complaint and therefore caught by the FCA rules on complaint handling.