@AmericanAir Twitter Team now available more hours and more days.
American’s Twitter team has really hit their groove. They started out about 20 months ago mostly to provide AA news but they’ve grown to be so much more than that.
They’ve helped defuse a bomb scare. They’ve become the go to source for information during bad weather and airport delays, they answer travel questions, track down lost luggage, help with travel plans gone awry, and take care of customers.
They give unhappy customers someplace to vent, and give happy customers a place to Tweet about their honeymoons, vacations, and travels.
And they do all of this with cheer, grace, and humor.
They’ve been very successful and their Twitter channel has proven to be quite popular with customers, so they’re expanding the number of hours that they’re available.
Previously they were online and helping people Monday through Friday, 8AM to 6PM, but you you can now reach them seven days a week from 6AM till midnight (Central time).
I’ve turned to them several times when I’ve had questions about a promotion or an offer, and they always find me an answer. I’m a big fan.
If you don’t already follow them, you can find them on Twitter @AmericanAir.
Interesting because I just read an article yesterday about how with most companies, their average response via Facebook or Twitter to a customer service complaint is 3 hours.
Not even being a big customer (just a status-matched elite) I’ve been surprised at how helpful and friendly they are. They realize if they’re going to be on Twitter as a major company, they need to put the resources of a major company behind it.
@ Heather B. – Wow, three hours isn’t any faster than leaving a voice mail! I think a lot of companies don’t have any real idea what they want to accomplish with Twitter and don’t put any work into it. Thanks for reading!
@ Scottrick – To AA’s credit, they experimented with it a few years ago, left it, and then came back with a plan and with resources. They have a whole team of people dedicated to it. Even before they expanded their hours, you’d see them working late and responding to customers after 6PM.
I met some of their team members at SXSW and they told me that they try to respond to every single Tweet. Even at 140 characters per response, that’s a lot of typing!
Thanks for the comment!
I never fly or have flown AA, but their Twitter team is top notch. I often make jokes about or make fun of them, but they always reply, often within minutes, with a lighthearted response.
United’s twitter is hit and miss, miss, miss, miss, miss, miss, and more miss. They do follow me, so I can DM them and usually get a response, but even that, which I do rarely, can take a while to get a response (if ever).
@ Kriz Ziel – I enjoy reading their tweets because they’re often having funny and interesting conversations with customers. They are a witty bunch. 🙂 Thanks for reading!
@ IP Brian – That’s great – I like happy endings. 😉 I always appreciate your comments!
They are pretty awesome…and have helped me out a time or two!