A new study has revealed that more than one-third (36 percent) of UK consumers are using social platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to interact with brands.

Incredibly, this statistic has doubled in the last eight months. Some 65 percent of those surveyed believe social media is a better way to communicate with companies than through call centers, and 68 percent believe it has allowed them to “find their voice”.

The study, conducted by Fishburn Hedges and Echo Research, polled 2,000 adult British customers, alongside digitally pioneering brands such as BT, Sainsbury’s, PepsiCo, O2, HSBC, Oasis, and Barclaycard. The data showed that while 64 percent of consumers are not proactively using social media to communicate with brands, two fifths (40 percent) of everyone that was surveyed believe that these tools improve customer service. Just 7 percent believe that social media will harm service levels.

These results, and more, are detailed in the following infographic.

(Source: Fishburn Hedges. Customer service image via Shutterstock.)