Comments for the big business issue... http://cultivar.wordpress.com stimulating exhanges about challenges in the world of business Sun, 31 May 2009 17:55:32 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 Comment on Big businesses using social media to improve customer experience by cultivar http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/05/14/big-businesses-using-social-media-to-improve-customer-experience/#comment-247 cultivar Sun, 31 May 2009 17:55:32 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=125#comment-247 Jay, I absolutely agree with you. I hope that companies who listen via Twitter begin to realise that there is real value to customers in providing true customer service - and what's more, people will pay for it. The cheapest is not always right. See my earlier blog about Jamie Oliver and battery hens - supermarket customers voted for better quality at a higher price - not that I want to encourage Virgin to put up their prices of course! keep spreading the word... James Jay,

I absolutely agree with you.

I hope that companies who listen via Twitter begin to realise that there is real value to customers in providing true customer service – and what’s more, people will pay for it. The cheapest is not always right.

See my earlier blog about Jamie Oliver and battery hens – supermarket customers voted for better quality at a higher price – not that I want to encourage Virgin to put up their prices of course!

keep spreading the word…

James

]]> Comment on Big businesses using social media to improve customer experience by Jay Ehret http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/05/14/big-businesses-using-social-media-to-improve-customer-experience/#comment-246 Jay Ehret Sun, 31 May 2009 13:26:19 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=125#comment-246 James, I love the immediacy of Twitter. That's why it has such strong potential as customer service tool. But only if it's part of a total company commitment to service. Adding Twitter as a service channel is a great idea. However, if phone and website channels are unresponsive, it's likely that Twitter service would become unresponsive in the long term. James,
I love the immediacy of Twitter. That’s why it has such strong potential as customer service tool. But only if it’s part of a total company commitment to service. Adding Twitter as a service channel is a great idea. However, if phone and website channels are unresponsive, it’s likely that Twitter service would become unresponsive in the long term.

]]> Comment on Big businesses using social media to improve customer experience by cultivar http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/05/14/big-businesses-using-social-media-to-improve-customer-experience/#comment-245 cultivar Sun, 31 May 2009 12:06:44 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=125#comment-245 Hi Jay - you are right in what you say here. However, I think you fail to comment that it is the <strong>IMMEDIACY </strong>of Twitter that helps companies to respond when things do go wrong - unfortunately big company processes, including customer service, just aren't responsive - particularly those self-service web response pages that take about 48 hours to reach anyone. But I have also found Virgin Media's phone line service to be the best I have experienced too. Hi Jay – you are right in what you say here. However, I think you fail to comment that it is the IMMEDIACY of Twitter that helps companies to respond when things do go wrong – unfortunately big company processes, including customer service, just aren’t responsive – particularly those self-service web response pages that take about 48 hours to reach anyone. But I have also found Virgin Media’s phone line service to be the best I have experienced too.

]]> Comment on Big businesses using social media to improve customer experience by Jay Ehret http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/05/14/big-businesses-using-social-media-to-improve-customer-experience/#comment-244 Jay Ehret Thu, 28 May 2009 11:47:53 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=125#comment-244 I'm not pointing the finger particularly at Virgin here, but Twitter has become a stop-gap measure for real customer service. Companies use Twitter to give the appearance of customer service to cover for the lack of a real customer service solution. Let's face it, you got recovery service because you were on Twitter. Going through normal customer service channels, you might still be battling with Virgin. I’m not pointing the finger particularly at Virgin here, but Twitter has become a stop-gap measure for real customer service. Companies use Twitter to give the appearance of customer service to cover for the lack of a real customer service solution. Let’s face it, you got recovery service because you were on Twitter. Going through normal customer service channels, you might still be battling with Virgin.

]]> Comment on Big businesses using social media to improve customer experience by Alex Brown http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/05/14/big-businesses-using-social-media-to-improve-customer-experience/#comment-243 Alex Brown Fri, 15 May 2009 13:13:06 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=125#comment-243 Ben As per the tweets we're happy to look into your issues further if you want to drop us an e-mail or to direct message us via Twitter. We do generally ask people to contact technical support first where possible as they are there 24/7 and have access to tools such as account level details that the Twitter team doesn't. Many thanks Alex Alex Brown Internet Products, Virgin Media Ben

As per the tweets we’re happy to look into your issues further if you want to drop us an e-mail or to direct message us via Twitter.

We do generally ask people to contact technical support first where possible as they are there 24/7 and have access to tools such as account level details that the Twitter team doesn’t.

Many thanks

Alex

Alex Brown
Internet Products, Virgin Media

]]> Comment on Big businesses using social media to improve customer experience by cultivar http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/05/14/big-businesses-using-social-media-to-improve-customer-experience/#comment-242 cultivar Fri, 15 May 2009 11:13:57 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=125#comment-242 Ben, I'm sorry to hear that you didn't get the same experience that I did. Try leaving a message for Alex Brown above - he was the Virgin guy who helped me via Twitter... best of luck - James Ben, I’m sorry to hear that you didn’t get the same experience that I did. Try leaving a message for Alex Brown above – he was the Virgin guy who helped me via Twitter…

best of luck – James

]]> Comment on Big businesses using social media to improve customer experience by Ben Rose http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/05/14/big-businesses-using-social-media-to-improve-customer-experience/#comment-241 Ben Rose Fri, 15 May 2009 10:32:34 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=125#comment-241 I think you quite a rare example. Many Twitter users simply get told to contact customer services, dialling 151 from their Virgin phone. This puts them through to a call centre who do nothing but provide lipservice and misinformation. I've had an issue for 3 days now, I filled out the form on the Virgin website reporting my slow connection and have had no feedback. The online status page shows no current issues. The helpline I was told to dial to follow up progress of my problem reports that there are no issues in my area. speedtest.net thinks my link is located in Canada and repeatedly fails, along with any other speedtest I have found. All together, I have a bad taste in my mouth and nobody appears to care. It doesn't take many searches on Twitter to find I am not alone. I think you quite a rare example. Many Twitter users simply get told to contact customer services, dialling 151 from their Virgin phone. This puts them through to a call centre who do nothing but provide lipservice and misinformation. I’ve had an issue for 3 days now, I filled out the form on the Virgin website reporting my slow connection and have had no feedback. The online status page shows no current issues. The helpline I was told to dial to follow up progress of my problem reports that there are no issues in my area. speedtest.net thinks my link is located in Canada and repeatedly fails, along with any other speedtest I have found. All together, I have a bad taste in my mouth and nobody appears to care. It doesn’t take many searches on Twitter to find I am not alone.

]]> Comment on Big businesses using social media to improve customer experience by Alex Brown http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/05/14/big-businesses-using-social-media-to-improve-customer-experience/#comment-240 Alex Brown Thu, 14 May 2009 14:50:34 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=125#comment-240 Thanks for the feedback James, and as always let us know if we can help any further. Have a great weekend. Alex Alex Brown Internet Products, Virgin Media Thanks for the feedback James, and as always let us know if we can help any further.

Have a great weekend.

Alex

Alex Brown
Internet Products, Virgin Media

]]> Comment on Avoiding Mediocrity – An Exemplar of Sustainability… by Natalie Adcock http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/03/23/avoiding-mediocrity-an-exemplar-of-sustainability/#comment-234 Natalie Adcock Fri, 10 Apr 2009 09:19:16 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=118#comment-234 It's nice to see a company being true to it's customers, instead of manipulating them. Last week the government was even urged to tackle greenwash http://www.birminghamrecycled.co.uk/conservation/government-needs-to-tackle-greenwash-claims to make what companies say more trustworthy. I shall certaily be remembering the name Adnams. It’s nice to see a company being true to it’s customers, instead of manipulating them. Last week the government was even urged to tackle greenwash http://www.birminghamrecycled.co.uk/conservation/government-needs-to-tackle-greenwash-claims to make what companies say more trustworthy. I shall certaily be remembering the name Adnams.

]]> Comment on Change 2.0 – The power of Social Media in managing organisational change. by Heather Northey http://cultivar.wordpress.com/2009/02/24/change-20-the-power-of-social-media-in-managing-organisational-change/#comment-228 Heather Northey Tue, 24 Feb 2009 19:50:08 +0000 http://cultivar.wordpress.com/?p=86#comment-228 James I successfully introduced a discussion forum and chat room when running a change programme for the rail industry. The forum was independent of the client (Network Rail) and Regulator and was open to any industry participant. The forum took about 6 months to gain sufficient momentum to be self sustaining and initially it was supported by the change team to answer questions and provide resources, but ultimately became a peer to peer network with mentoring and training support. The site got the ultimate sanction when the most resistant workers, the signallers, started to participate, then there was no stopping it. This tool was launched in 2001 and closed by NR in 2003 to industry uproar because they thought it undermined their authority! The credibility of the change programme then faltered. James
I successfully introduced a discussion forum and chat room when running a change programme for the rail industry. The forum was independent of the client (Network Rail) and Regulator and was open to any industry participant.
The forum took about 6 months to gain sufficient momentum to be self sustaining and initially it was supported by the change team to answer questions and provide resources, but ultimately became a peer to peer network with mentoring and training support.
The site got the ultimate sanction when the most resistant workers, the signallers, started to participate, then there was no stopping it.
This tool was launched in 2001 and closed by NR in 2003 to industry uproar because they thought it undermined their authority! The credibility of the change programme then faltered.

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