Comments on: Calling Your Customers Names and Hoping To Succeed http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/calling-your-customers-names-and-hoping-to-succeed Small businesses are the economy's engine. Rev yours up by reading Big Thinking Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:43:33 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: mjfrombuffalo http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/calling-your-customers-names-and-hoping-to-succeed/comment-page-1#comment-72 mjfrombuffalo Fri, 27 Feb 2009 15:08:10 +0000 http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/?p=203#comment-72 And another thing! After thinking about this a while, the damage is not limited to "those crazy bloggers." I don't have to be a blogger or a twitter or a facebook denizen to read this and be offended - regardless of the format, the truth is someone who deals with your company is unhappy, and the company response should not be "That person is a jerk and I don't give a rat's ass what they think." It is very easy for me to extrapolate from their response that if I were their customer and I were unhappy, I could expect to be disrespected and ignored. Trying to carve out one group of customers and brand them as lunatics you won't waste time with is not effective since many of the larger group of All Customers will not recognize that separation. And another thing!

After thinking about this a while, the damage is not limited to "those crazy bloggers." I don't have to be a blogger or a twitter or a facebook denizen to read this and be offended – regardless of the format, the truth is someone who deals with your company is unhappy, and the company response should not be "That person is a jerk and I don't give a rat's ass what they think." It is very easy for me to extrapolate from their response that if I were their customer and I were unhappy, I could expect to be disrespected and ignored. Trying to carve out one group of customers and brand them as lunatics you won't waste time with is not effective since many of the larger group of All Customers will not recognize that separation.

]]> By: georgebounacos http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/calling-your-customers-names-and-hoping-to-succeed/comment-page-1#comment-70 georgebounacos Fri, 27 Feb 2009 14:47:03 +0000 http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/?p=203#comment-70 Oh, I think Nick and others would tell us that calling out the Blogging Army by criticizing them is much worse than ignoring them and listening to their complaints. :D Oh, I think Nick and others would tell us that calling out the Blogging Army by criticizing them is much worse than ignoring them and listening to their complaints. :D

]]> By: Robert Stinnett http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/calling-your-customers-names-and-hoping-to-succeed/comment-page-1#comment-66 Robert Stinnett Fri, 27 Feb 2009 03:46:43 +0000 http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/?p=203#comment-66 When you ignore the social media, or talk it down, you are just digging your own bankruptcy filing. I don't know what is worse -- talking negative about social media or ignoring it altogether. Heck, I wish the company I'm with would just embrace social media period. I keep preaching of the missed opportunity and how this is the new era of marketing but so far no takers. When you ignore the social media, or talk it down, you are just digging your own bankruptcy filing. I don't know what is worse — talking negative about social media or ignoring it altogether. Heck, I wish the company I'm with would just embrace social media period. I keep preaching of the missed opportunity and how this is the new era of marketing but so far no takers.

]]> By: georgebounacos http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/calling-your-customers-names-and-hoping-to-succeed/comment-page-1#comment-65 georgebounacos Thu, 26 Feb 2009 17:12:48 +0000 http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/?p=203#comment-65 See, I knew you would be here and drag JetBlue into the mix. The interesting thing was that JB was a result of not responding. This was an attack. And I remember Neeleman as a media and consumer darling whereas Ryanair has always had an ambivalent public attitude. I can't get over the boneheaded move of attacking bloggers. They're smart people who view themselves as the vanguard of new media. Can a company like Ryanair pull this out or do they get buried in a firestorm, Nick? See, I knew you would be here and drag JetBlue into the mix. The interesting thing was that JB was a result of not responding. This was an attack. And I remember Neeleman as a media and consumer darling whereas Ryanair has always had an ambivalent public attitude.

I can't get over the boneheaded move of attacking bloggers. They're smart people who view themselves as the vanguard of new media.

Can a company like Ryanair pull this out or do they get buried in a firestorm, Nick?

]]> By: georgebounacos http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/calling-your-customers-names-and-hoping-to-succeed/comment-page-1#comment-64 georgebounacos Thu, 26 Feb 2009 17:08:04 +0000 http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/?p=203#comment-64 Ah, but they're over in the old country. And whenever they end up truly selling to Virgin now because of gestures like this, don't boycott Virgin. Ah, but they're over in the old country. And whenever they end up truly selling to Virgin now because of gestures like this, don't boycott Virgin.

]]> By: MJ from Buffalo http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/calling-your-customers-names-and-hoping-to-succeed/comment-page-1#comment-63 MJ from Buffalo Thu, 26 Feb 2009 16:51:30 +0000 http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/?p=203#comment-63 Wow, where does Ryanair fly to and from? Because I want to go to some city where they operate so I can intentionally give my business to another airline there. Wow, where does Ryanair fly to and from? Because I want to go to some city where they operate so I can intentionally give my business to another airline there.

]]> By: Nick Peters http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/calling-your-customers-names-and-hoping-to-succeed/comment-page-1#comment-62 Nick Peters Thu, 26 Feb 2009 16:44:31 +0000 http://www.sbmteam.com/blog/?p=203#comment-62 The folks at RyanAir may want to think back to the "Valentine's Day Massacre" at JetBlue in 2007. The largely web-based airline company failed to respond quickly on its website and to bloggers to its disastrous V-Day cancellation of flights. That failure cost the founder and CEO David Neeleman his job. Saying afterwards that he was "mortified" wasn't enough. The communication training consultancy I work for counsels that you ignore the blogosphere at your peril. Maybe you respond in situations, maybe you don't. But you don't start an unnecessary blanket firestorm by implying online that bloggers are lunatics. The folks at RyanAir may want to think back to the "Valentine's Day Massacre" at JetBlue in 2007. The largely web-based airline company failed to respond quickly on its website and to bloggers to its disastrous V-Day cancellation of flights. That failure cost the founder and CEO David Neeleman his job. Saying afterwards that he was "mortified" wasn't enough. The communication training consultancy I work for counsels that you ignore the blogosphere at your peril. Maybe you respond in situations, maybe you don't. But you don't start an unnecessary blanket firestorm by implying online that bloggers are lunatics.

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