One of the main reasons businesses give me for not wanting to jump into social media is because they are afraid of being flamed. Putting yourself out there involves a certain amount of risk: what if someone says something negative about you?

Here’s the truth: people are going to talk about you. Either positively or negatively. But they will talk about you. Isn’t it better to know?? At least, if you know, you can take steps to repair the damage, and perhaps turn that customer around.

1. You need to monitor your feeds. You need to check in with your Facebook Page your Twitter account, and your blog comments at least once a day. Social media tools are rapidly becoming the latest and best customer service tools, rapidly replacing the telephone and even email.

2. Don’t assume that you are getting the whole picture. People may be talking about you, but may not be aware that you have a Facebook Page or a Twitter account. They could be talking about you on other blogs. So, you need some additional tools: Google Alerts (which will scan the interwebz for blog posts that mention your business’ name), a running Twitter search (also scanning for your name, and easy enough to set up if you are using a program like Hootsuite), and every once in a while, type your business’ name into the search feature on Facebook.

3. Making it right. This is a tough one, partly because we live in a “the customer is always right” world. And let’s face it: the customer isn’t always right. But the squeaky wheel gets the grease, so it may be better to err on the side of caution. If something genuinely has gone wrong, your first step is to acknowledge that. Simply acknowledging that there is a problem will allay most of the negative feelings. Then, do what you can to make it right. Also, know when to address comments in public (usually at first, so that anyone who visits your site afterwards can see that it was dealt with) and when to address in private (negotiating a deal). I do not recommend you delete negative comments.

Check out this article on AllFacebook.