On: Drawbacks of engaging with customer complaints on Twitter

[DHPersonal]

I prefer to use Twitter over email for customer support inquiries because it creates a public record for others to discover similar to the Q&A section of product detail pages on e-commerce sites. I may not need to ask a support question at all if the answer is already provided via a Twitter search.

[zeruch → DHPersonal]

Oddly, this works for most things...except Twitter support itself, which is so opaque it leaves every user feeling like Helen Keller.

[adhesive_wombat → DHPersonal]

I still don't understand why you can't see the "@s" from a Twitter accounts page.

It feels like you're shouting into the void unless you're Twitter famous. Why should I have to get a second job growing an online fanbase just to not get screwed over?

[DHPersonal → adhesive_wombat]

I think you can see mentions in the search; it’s how I have sought out complaint posts.

[cuteboy19 → DHPersonal]

Is there a niche for a website like stackoverflow but for customer complaints? If not then I call dibs

[lbotos → cuteboy19]

BBB.org in the US. IIRC, businesses need to pay to respond on the platform, so it sort of feels like extortion.

[lotsofpulp → lbotos]

BBB has not been relevant for at least a couple decades, certainly not since the internet came around.

[munk-a → lotsofpulp]

Have you tried contacting the BBB and been underwhelmed at the impact that had? Or have you never filed a complaint with them?

[lotsofpulp → munk-a]

I do not know anyone that would consider contacting them for anything, nor do I know any business owners that would care if someone did contact them. Google reviews/yelp/TripAdvisor/twitter/etc reviews seem much more impactful. Or a chargeback with payment card company is the problem is really serious.

[munk-a → lotsofpulp]

I mean - there are billions of tools out there and you can't be expected to personally vet all of them - but if my experience in leveraging the BBB has been quite fruitful and your experience is just a lack of any interactions then doesn't it make sense that you might be clinging to ignorance in this instance?

[mparnisari → cuteboy19]

how would people use it? if i have a complaint i would search for other people making the same complaint? even if it's something like "my burger was cold"?

[munk-a → mparnisari]

The other customer would know it wasn't a one-off issue and feel more justified airing their grievances in a public forum since it may be a systemic issue. If a burger king location served a burger cold once in thirty years of operations yea I still want a replacement burger but it's no biggie - if it does that dozens of times a day their corporate image deserves to be dragged through the mud.

When it's a restaurant we regularly patronize we can offer the feedback directly with confidence about the severity, when it's something we use once in a blue moon (like an airline for most of us) we don't know if that poor service was basically par for the course.