Using Social CRM to influence Customer Service and Loyalty: A Perspective in the Airline Industry

Abstract: The purpose of the study was to investigate how companies can harness the power of social media by utilizing Social CRM. It was investigated how integrating social media channels into existing Client Relationship Management platforms can influence customer service and customer loyalty. A mixture of both qualitative and quantitative research methods with an abductive approach was used. The research method chosen was a single unique case study with interviews, netnographic observations and surveys as the data collection methods. The thesis used and built upon theoretical knowledge in the field of CRM, Social Media, Social CRM, customer service and loyalty in order to help the process of gathering empirical data and discussing the results to answer the research questions. There were two interviews conducted for JetBlue, 502 Tweets collected and analyzed for the netnographic research and 26 responses for the online surveys. It was found out that integrating social media in to CRM does influence customer service and customer loyalty. The main effects are increased opportunity to collect instant feedbacks from customers and insights into their preferences to improve the service offered even further. And customer engagement is the road that leads to collecting that feedback and insights. Customers tend to prefer to engage and communicate more with the company when they are entertained by the content or by the way the company approaches them – in a fun, witty and friendly way. This ultimately leads to customers who come back for more and recommend the services further.