A new report from NM Incite, Nielsen’s social media arm, offers insight into how social media is affecting brands’ customer service operations. Among the key findings: -47% of all social media users actively seek customer service through social media. -30% of social media users prefer to reach out to a brand for customer service through a social channel compared to the phone. -71% of those who experience positive “social care” (i.e., a quick and effective brand response) would be likely to recommend that brand to others, compared to just 19% of customers that don't receive any response. -The majority of Twitter and Facebook users, 83% and 71% respectively, expect a response from a brand within the same day of posting. Half of Twitter users want a response within two hours. -51% of social care users actively engage with brands several times per month. The results were based on a July survey conducted with a representative sample of 2,000 social media users 18 and over.