I still have conversations regularly with people who don’t understand what the deal is with twitter. Most of the time people make a comment about why in the world someone would care what you’re having for lunch or where you’re at? Although that is a part of what happens on twitter, along with the help of complimentary services like brightkite, it’s not even close to all the benefits twitter can offer the “real world”.
A recent story in the Technology section of the New York Times talks about how Frank Eliason, a digital care manager, uses twitter and the web to take a pro-active assistance role for people who are having less than satisfactory results from Comcast.
Long before I got introduced to twitter, I had a personal interaction with Frank himself from recent comments on my own blog here.
After that contact and I began using twitter, I had a few more interactions with Frank where he took care of my questions, even after I was no longer a Comcast customer. I can tell you this, if for some reason I decide to leave AT&T U-verse, Frank has probably done enough for me to give Comcast another try. Plus, since I’ll be a new customer again I’ll be able to take advantage of their triple-play pricing again.
For anyone wondering, you should really read the NYTimes article, it may help you understand a little more what can be achieved with twitter and how other companies besides Comcast are making it work for them.
Comcast is not the only company trying to reach out to customers online. Using the social messaging service Twitter, Southwest Airlines answers customer questions about ticket prices and flight delays, Whole Foods Market posts details about discounts, and the chief executive of the online shoe store Zappos shares details of his life with 7,200 ?followers.? Many other companies also monitor online discussion groups.
Although I don’t follow Southwest Airlines and Whole Foods, I do follow Zappos, and another company called ChoiceShirts which is making twitter work for them as well.
Frank, if you’re listening (and I know you are) keep up the good work. You are making a difference and more companies should model their customer service meaning and methods after what you’ve achieved so far.