I run the social media program for a nonprofit in St. Paul. This has been a rewarding experience and I have learned much. But there is one thing I am struggling with and would like some advice on.
My nonprofit deals with some technical and political issues. And because I have been engaging our followers on Twitter, this means I have recently had to provide answers to some questions that are over my head for both technical and political reasons. I'm not going to leave questions unanswered (that's horrible practice), but I'm not going to BS someone. So I go to the appropriate expert staff member for the answer. I've been able to get appropriate responses within about 24 hours, which, when at-replying someone, is fine.
But now that it's the holidays, and now that we are taking some stances on some sensitive issues, I find myself frustrated. Hard questions are being asked (which is exciting!), but I have no expert staff around to help me answer them, because they are taking some much deserved paid time off. Meanwhile, hard questions go unanswered. What is a social media practitioner to do?
My instinct has been to email the appropriate staff with the question (as per usual) and to make a note to myself to follow up later. But I imagine a time will come when the person asking the question simply doesn't care any more.
Friday, December 11, 2009
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I've run into this problem, too. What I do is reply to the person via e-mail and copy the person who can give them the good answer. Be really friendly, and just say, "Here's my answer to the extent of my knowledge. I don't want to give you the wrong information, so I'm copying NAME, who is our in-house blah-blah-blah. They're on vacation right now, but I know they'll be happy to get in touch with you when they're back." And just keep a reminder of the e-mail and needle the person a bit if you have to when they're back. Then you've been responsive and covered all your bases.
ReplyDeleteAlso, save all of your responses from coworkers if they're frequently asked ones and have them on hand for later.
ReplyDeleteStephanie-- but I also like to respond to questions publicly. If one person is asking the question, ten people might want to know the same thing. What then?
ReplyDeleteA preemtive way to do it might be to have an FAQ (if you don't already) on your site and regularly update it with questions people have asked. Then you can link to the answers when they come up again.
ReplyDeleteCould you post a link so that I might be able to analyze the situation?
ReplyDeleteIf these hard questions go unanswered, you're right the person might simply stop caring, but that's one less person that you have engaged. And who knows how many people are listening to hear what your responce is to the one person who is voicing their thoughts
Art: Maybe a section on your site or company blog where you can post e-mails and their responses? Or if you respond on Twitter, say "@soandso is out of office, but try this link..." or something. It all depends on what makes you feel like you're doing your job and being attentive.
ReplyDeleteEmily-- these are very specific questions, at times that were actually answered in part by already published materials (which is to say, questions on clarifying positions, etc). An FAQ would not be an effective way to handle that.
ReplyDeleteTommy-- The situation is that we posted a blog entry explaining why we endorsed a controversial position and we're getting some very specific questions about different points. It would be too messy to link to. But you hit the nail on the head--a person who stops caring is a supporter or a potential supporter lost.
Art, This is not a situation unique to you. Those of us in community management (that is monitoring and participating in online conversations) have to face this frequently. There are times when weighing in is paramount and others when it isn't worth responding at all. I use the Air Force's blog assessment chart (http://www.boingboing.net/2009/01/09/the-air-forces-rules.html) to explain our decision tree to administrators.
ReplyDeleteIs it possible to find a way to elevate the priority of responses from those who have answers?
This is a sticky rock and a hard place kind of question. One thing I would suggest is once you get the answer, turn the answer into a new blog post, link to it on Twitter and be sure to flag the questioner's attention that his question is being addressed.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I think I know what the specific question is and could give you a thought or two on that, but I'm not sure if that would be helpful as it would not be an official position for you. I think the issue might boil down to the original blog post not being specific enough on the point that the questioner is interested in.
I think it's appropriate to let them know that the person who knows the answer to the question is out. You could ask the person asking the question to send you their email address, and have the appropriate person respond to the question when they return. You could also tell them you will respond to them publicly once the appropriate person has given you the answer, if the venue for the question makes that appropriate.
ReplyDeletePeople may stop caring for a bit, but if you communicate with them why you can't answer their question immediatly, most people will start caring again once they receive a response. Most people are willing to forgive delays if you keep them informed.
Meg, Chris, Conner-- all of this is incredibly helpful. You are all heroes to me.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like as the community manager you'll have to really double up on your research on the postion and put it out there, and clarify later if your client says "that's not exactly it..."
ReplyDeletewe know that you don't want to leave it unanswered, and a pointing someone in the direction of an FAQ is just likely to piss someone off... In this situation, I'd say it's better to ask for forgiveness than to ask permission.
Not much more I can add here. Honesty and transparency is the way to go. Your attempt to get an answer will be recognized and appreciated.
ReplyDeleteThis is all great advice. Just the fact that you are answering supporters' questions puts you way ahead of a lot of organizations. I think, generally, suppoerters will appreciate that you respond to the best of your ability and let them know the appropriate staff person will get back to them.
ReplyDeleteFollowing up with that staff person is a great idea and providing the supporter with more resources in the meantime can be helpful, too. When I managed online communications at a nonprofit, I always included in my response something along the lines of "Just let me know if you have any other questions in the meantime." Generally, people didn't, but it kept the line of communication open.
If you're getting a lot of emails/comments/tweets about a specific topic (like the candidate endorsement), something I've done before is compile the questions, interview the staff expert who can answer them, create a Q&A-style blog post or YouTube video, and send it to the email list.
Good luck!
What about letting the question asker know that you heard their question and are seeking out answers, and to please allow some time for that? That way you've acknowledged them as well as have created some time for you to get the best answer.
ReplyDelete