There are a few who don’t have much interest in a Facebook page, a Twitter account, writing a blog, or hanging out in myspace. And then there’s everyone else. Many of whom can’t seem to exist without the new social media.
One concern for those who don’t participate in Web 2.0 is the awareness that the future will hold much more permanent, and public, information about each of us. And those who participate in the new social media will be forever searchable. The younger you are, the less likely you are to care, and the more interested you are in fame, popularity, and being connected 24/7.
For businesses it’s another story. This article on BusinessWeek.com starts out –
“When Jonathan Fields spotted William Shatner waiting to board a JetBlue flight at New York’s JFK in May, he did what any other self-respecting blogger would do. He popped open his Apple (AAPL) Mac, connected to the Web using the free Wi-Fi provided by JetBlue, and used Twitter to share the sighting with pals. “JetBlue terminal,” Fields wrote on the blog service that lets users send short messages of 140 characters with status updates to groups of friends. “William Shatner waiting in pinstripe suit and shades to board flight to Burbank. Why’s he flying JetBlue? Free, maybe?”
But he was caught off guard by what happened next. Within 10 seconds he got an e-mail informing him that JetBlue (JBLU) was following him on Twitter.
“It totally startled me,” says the 42-year-old author, who initially worried that JetBlue might be monitoring his use of the Wi-Fi connection. JetBlue employee Morgan Johnston quickly explained that wasn’t the case. JetBlue keeps tabs on what Twitter users say about it, using a scanning tool, to find customers who might need information, say, on flight delays or cancellations, Johnston said.”
Businesses can instantly respond to negative chat about their brands and correct any problem they perceive. The goal is to establish an ongoing positive relationship with their customers.
Those who use Twitter, and other social media, are more likely to view this as a positive, and not a creepy event. And businesses can benefit.
I don’t think this would bother me at all. I find the fact that companies have access to my actual home address through direct mail databases even more disturbing. At least the Comcast’s, JetBlue’s and H&R Block’s of this world are responding via Twitter to an actual customer problem or question, rather than merely soliciting. And were they to abuse the way they interact with me or others, they would hear the outcry soon enough in the blogosphere. We’ve only just begun to see how companies can use microblogs to benefit themselves and their customers. I’m sure the best is yet to come! On Twitter what bothers me are those who follow me for their own self-promotion, without asking me first, hoping I will follow them in return. Indeed I wrote a post about this entitled Twitter Use and Abuse on my own blog — http://socialmediasoapbox.wordpress.com/2008/08/03/twitter-use-and-abuse/. It’s easy enough to block them, I just don’t like the alerts from Twitter littering my email inbox.
Comment by Stephen Rothman — September 21, 2008 @ 11:39 am
Twitter (and other social media apps, but specifically Twitter) can get disruptive at times, but I find I get much more out of it than a typical networking event or a BNI meeting. I let TweetDeck (a 3rd party twitter app) run in the background while I’m at work, and check in from time to time on friends, acquaintances and industry leaders. The best description of Twitter I ever heard was that it’s a living rolodex that responds to you.
I’ve found that to be absolutely true.
Comment by Rich Brooks — December 3, 2008 @ 9:30 am