Twitter Proved Me Wrong

I was highly skeptical of Twitter when it was first introduced, thinking that it deserved no more merit than Facebook’s newfeed with few noticeable advantages other than its instantaneous updates and notifications. Other social websites already had this feature, however, with users linking their accounts to their phones in order to receive automatic updates. Therefore, I didn’t really understand what it was that Twitter could possibly offer that wasn’t already being done. Other than connecting and forming networks with others, I never deemed any of these social sites to be of any value from a practical standpoint. This was until I spoke with a friend of mine, Andrea, whose enthusiasm for the growing hype of social media helped me recognize the wealth of benefits these tools actually offer by considering how they’re being utilized in the business environment.

Andrea’s fascination for social media had led her to help found the UT Social Media organization on campus. After initially speaking with her about the club, I accepted her invitation to attend one of her meetings where they presented and discussed the various ways in which social media is becoming more prevalent in our society. From what I interpreted, social accounts like Facebook and Twitter have been successful because of how technology and socially-oriented our society has become. As such, businesses can take advantage of this culture by utilizing these tools to engage directly with and integrate their brand into the customers’ social lives (which seems to be a big part of their lives in this era). And in a world where people prefer texting and email over calling, companies would be smart to tap into that arena as soon as possible in order to establish a better line of communication with their clients.

By connecting with their customers on a more personal level, businesses can gain more truthful insights and increase the level of involvement with which the customer feels towards the company. Having brushed up on the issue, I’ve come to realize that Twitter illustrates this point very well. Although I don’t have a Twitter account of my own, I have visited a few of my friends' accounts as well as those of various businesses. As my friends and I are in the process of planning our post-graduation vacation and scoping out all deals that we can find, we actually stumbled onto JetBlue's Twitter account and started following them indirectly (without creating our own account). Whether it be sending out greeting messages to increase popularity or informing “followers” about current promotions, JetBlue is easily able to reach out to their customers through a more accessible outlet and in way that’s doesn’t seem forced (i.e. traditional advertisements). Sure their page has a handful of advertisement-like promotions that could potentially turn away followers, but it functions more like a Q&A and advice line that acknowledges and encourages comments from everyone.

When JetBlue “tweets”, they do it in such a casual manner that it essentially seems as though they're chatting with their “buddies”. This, again, makes customers feel more personally connected to the business and free to disclose their thoughts and attitudes on particular issues. For instance, when a customer tweeted about his negative experience with JetBlue, the company instantly responded with an apology and made up for it with a complimentary flight voucher. JetBlue openly encourages people to "pour [their] hearts out" and follows up on every individual comment, even if it's just to acknowledge customers who share their positive experiences. If this isn't the prime example of an open door policy, then I don't know what is! As I read through the recent tweets that JetBlue has sent out, I am fascinated at how much the company invests in to personalize each tweet and response. Tweets like these are common on the company's page: "We are excited to have you onboard Ted! Sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride :)". It is essentially as if the company is engaging in a line of dialogue with its friends. The level of personalization is astounding.

The greatest advantage that I see for businesses utilizing Twitter is the ability to spread information quickly, given the viral nature of Twitter’s audience. Once something interesting is tweeted, it can keep being re-tweeted within and between networks; companies can easily reach out to those outside their current network and tap into new demographics just by appeasing their loyal followers. When Starbucks Tweeted the message, "Idea coming soon: Mocha Coconut Frappuccino"., it was instantly retweeted by customers and others within the network until the word spread to almost everyone. For someone who doesn't indulge in Starbucks but once a month, I was surprised to have even gotten news of this new drink. By Tweeting this, Starbucks was not only trying to tap into people's cravings but also throwing out the idea in order to get comments and critiques. The process of gaining insight is greatly improved through the viral nature of "retweets" because companies like Starbucks are able to elicit responses from a variety of demographics.