Twitter Shifting Balance Of Power From Corporations To Consumers

We take a look at how microblogging platform Twitter is empowering consumers to voice their concerns and is compelling companies to quickly and effectively respond to user complaints

Did you just come out of a restaurant having experienced the worst customer service of your life? Was the cinema seat allocated to you so horrible that it completely ruined your movie experience? Every day, countless consumers around the world perceive themselves to be on the receiving end of poor customer service. A decade ago, their response to such experiences ranged from sending a strongly-worded email addressing the company’s management to altogether boycotting their products/services. The only success to come of this debacle was if the aggrieved customer convinced a handful of his friends and family to join him in the boycott, which of course barely affected the company.

Fast-forward ten years: the adage “customer is king” has never been truer than in present times. Empowered by the phenomenon that is social media, customers are increasingly turning to the likes of Facebook (FB) and Twitter (TWTR) to ensure their negative experience at a restaurant, cinema, or with an airline is not just communicated to the responsible management but also shared with over a billion people through the click of a button.