Improving Customer Relations with Social Listening: A Case Study of an American Academic Library

Strategic social media plays a crucial role in contemporary customer relationship management (CRM); however, the best practices for social CRM are still being discovered and established. The ever-changing nature of social media challenges the ability to establish benchmarks; nonetheless, this article captures and shares actions, insights, and experiences of using social media for CRM. This case study examines how an academic library at a mid-size American university located in northeast Florida uses social media to engage in social listening and to enhance CRM. In particular, the social listening practices of this library are highlighted in relation to how they influence and potentially improve CRM. By exploring the practices of this single institution, attempts are made to better understand how academic libraries engage with customers using social media as a CRM tool and ideas for future research in the realm of social media and CRM practices are discussed.