The think (here) Blog

One thing I love about the interwebz is how it has completely redefined how businesses "connect" with customers.  Tt(h)B will highlight two unique examples over the next two days of exactly how companies are using social media sites like twitter as a "customer service opportunity tool" as opposed to a "damage control tool".

The first example starts with a short story I heard from Porter Gale (VP of Marketing for @VirginAmerica) while attending BizTech Day. The story may seem trivial on the surface, but as you will see the implications are astounding. 

Basically, while in flight, a customer used twitter (not to mention Virgin America's complimentary Wifi) to voice a complaint about the airline. Nothing too out of the ordinary, right? However, someone monitoring twitter for @VirginAmerica saw the complaint, was able to get in contact with a flight attendant on the flight who found the customer and was able to resolve the issue before the plane reached its intended destination.  Are you freaking kidding me?!  

When I tell this story I am almost always confronted with the same response, "Why didn't the customer just press the button to request the flight attendant?"  My response is always the same. The "why" is insignificant.  What is significant is that in that moment the customer (probably without thinking about it) voiced his opinion, placed his "vote" (so to speak), and painted a negative picture of Virgin America to every one of his twitter followers, as well as anyone following @VirginAmerica on Twitter. 

Virgin America's response time is unheard of compared to traditional customer service standards.  In the old model this customer might have contacted Virgin America through an email, a phone call, or similar mode of communication after the fact (read: not instant), and most likely would have told many people about his bad experience before any resolution was presented.  Even more likely, Virgin America would have permanently lost that customer.  Instead, they greatly extended the "lifetime" of that customer.  They turned a bad experience into a great one.

Here is what companies like Virgin America understand about the new model of Customer Service.  Follow along, and in the long run your company will be sure to retain more customers, improve customer experiences and utilize customer service as an "opportunity tool" instead of a damage control tool:

• The Conversation is happening with or without you

• Get involved in it (and stay there)

• It is far more important to use twitter to listen than to talk

• Social Media Amplifies the Customers Voice, both positive and (especially) negative

• Respond Instantly- Can you fix the problem? Do something about it.

This collection of tools we like to call social media is only beginning to be correctly utilized by businesses.  Twitter is not a megaphone, it is not a press release platform and even Fortune 100 companies still don't get that. Social media is nothing more than a tool, but it is a damn powerful one.  Follow the points above, use the tool correctly, and you too can break free of the tired customer service of yesteryear.

Tomorrow I will wrap up this topic by highlighting exactly how the consumer has changed by using my recent experience with Twubs.com. 

What do you t(h)ink?  Is this the future of customer service?  Leave a comment below and get in on the discussion.