Skip to main content

Use Social Media to Shop Around for Service Providers

By
By Filipinayzd (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Hiring a third party for services for a small to mid-size business can be tricky and time-consuming. Payroll services are a good example of this. Even with an office manager or human resources point of contact on staff, there are a lot of intricacies surrounding with holdings, filings, and government regulations like the Defense of Marriage Act, Immigration and Health Care Reform that should probably be left to the professionals.
The first step in hiring third party services is knowing what you will remain responsible for in the eyes of the law when you outsource. Next, it is time to shop around. Here are a couple things to consider when shopping around:

What Do the Basic Fees Cover...Exactly?

Many providers offer a "free" trial for a few months. Unfortunately, these often end up costing a lot because of essential services that they only sell. Additionally, the conditions of the "free" service can make it difficult to get out of contracts without paying a hefty cancellation fee if you switch providers.

Social media allows you to see what customers have to say from various industries. On the Facebook Page for SurePayroll, one client writes
"This company rocks!! It makes it so easy to pay my mom's helpers who come almost five days a week, and they're happy to have all their taxes taken care of, couldn't do it without them."

How Easy is it to Speak with a Human Being?

Small businesses often have unique situations that need attending to. Looking at payroll service reviews on social media sites like Yelp, Linked In, and Facebook can give you an understanding of how responsive companies are to clients.

Many companies are using cloud systems and automated call centers. But, when it is comes to customer service for technical and billing issues, it is important to inquire what kind of method is in place for human interaction. Make sure to look for customer service complaints on your providers social media pages -especially LinkedIn and Facebook. To be fair, if the business has been around more than a couple years, there are bound to be some negative comments at some point. However, it is not just the complaint that is valuable in learning about the company; it is equally important to look at the response. How long did it take a company representative to respond to the complaint? What was the response? Was it elevator language or did the representative seem clued into the heart of the customer complaint with an option for remedy such as an alternative number or a personalized email or contact?

There is help - even good help - available. Why not use social media to explore who might be a good fit for your business?



Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How Monday Mornings Can Kill Business

By
Monday mornings come every week; they are just crazy like that. But, did you know that they can kill productivity for the entire week? I didn't know that either -- until I reached the end of my first year in business and realized much of my year had been just a string of bad Monday Mornings . Here are four things I learned over the course of my first year: It Was The Night Before Monday and All Through the House..  Whether you have 3 hours or 15 minutes, a little preparation on Sunday evening can help in big ways on Monday morning. For me, that is often just 15 minutes creating a to-do list or journaling. Laurita Thomas, who is the associate vice president and chief human resource officer at the University of Michigan, spent several hours each Sunday in her office, preparing for the week ahead for the first few years in her position. "I don't do that anymore" said Thomas, "but I do spend time each Sunday evening preparing for the week." Schedule
Post a Comment
Read more

3 Sweaty Lessons for the Entrepreneur

By
When the remake of the movie,  Sparkle , arrived to theaters, I had to watch the 1976 version just one more time. This has been a favorite since I first watched it as a teen almost 20 years after it was released. Every time I watch the movie something different stands out. This time that I watched it, I noticed how sweaty Stix, the character played by Philip Michael Thomas, was when he hugged the girls mom. It was at the point that I experienced an epiphany as to why this movie impacted me so much. Here are three sweaty business lessons that I learned from the movie: 1. Sweating is Natural  In Sparkle, when Stix came to Sparkle's debut and hugged her mom he was sweaty. She didn't turn him away. In fact, she gave him a full embrace while in her finest threads. He had made a mistake and she knew it, but he had survived it and she was encouraged.  As a entrepreneur, I have to put in my sweat equity to get my business off the ground. There aren't always casual or ladyl
1 comment
Read more

Media Release: Mom Genius Helps College Bound Students

By
Press Release _________________________________________________________________________ “Genius” Mom Launches New Campaign To Help College-Bound Students To ‘Up Your Game’ With Your Writing ANN ARBOR, MI / (May 11, 2017) – Essay Coaching is announcing the launch of Up Your Game With Your Writing – a tutoring, mentoring, and education campaign designed to help both students and parents reduce the family stress involved with the college admissions essay process. Because teenagers and young parents are so busy, the campaign includes numerous quick and free elements, including a new information and resource hub at www.essaycoaching.com , FREE original college essay quizzes as seen on WXYZ-TV , college essay readiness training for students and parents, private coaching packages, a new Twitter channel with weekly writing tips at @debmerion and new book due out in 2018. The first workshop is May 16, 2017, from 7-8:30 pm. in Saline. Students and/or parents will
Post a Comment
Read more