HOT TOPIC
Timbuk2 Travel: Want to help us design our new travel line?
A few weeks ago Timbuk2 started soliciting ideas for their new travel line from their community on Satisfaction. They’ve received over 70 replies so far and the ideas are still rolling in. Their design phase ends October 31 so if you’ve got that brilliant idea that they need to hear, jump into the conversation now! So far the “People’s Pick” is from user, Jahue: “I would love to see a tough laptop compartment that could handel [sic] having another persons carry-on on top of it. I would also love to see lots of external pockets for those items that need to be gotten to quickly, such as ( camera, phone, ipod, psp, passport, tickets, earphones, pen/pencil, etc ) I currently travel with my commute and it works well, exept I am always worried about the amount of padding in the laptop compartment, and not having enough room for a complete change of clothes. Thanks”. Timbuk2 just doesn’t cease to impress us with their transparency and eagerness to embrace their community.
NEW COMPANIES ON SATISFACTION
photophlow is real-time communication with Flickr photos.
photophlow is doing a private beta right now so you have to enter your email address and hope for an invitation, but the guys from photophlow are already really active in their Satisfaction site which to me indicates that they are excited about interacting with their user community. So if you’re lucky enough to have been invited in, you can get all your questions answered and share beta feedback with them there. And if you’re not in the beta yet and wondering what the heck it is? They say it’s “a fun way to share flickr photos in real time. invite your friends, search together, chat and comment all at once.” Sounds promising. I signed up for an invite. Fingers crossed!
COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT TIP
Don’t be afraid to say you’re sorry. A Google customer was pretty pee’d off earlier this week about a losing two hours of work using Google Docs on Opera because, as it turned out, the two weren’t compatible but there was no warning that saving the work wouldn’t be possible. I was so inspired by how the Google rep handled the situation. Words like “We have confirmed this bug. And you are right, it’s a bad one. Thank you very much for being the first person to report it” — And the topper: “I’m very sorry for your earlier data loss. It was entirely our fault” put a smile on my face and send a chill up my spine — in a good way. Historically, I think companies have been afraid to admit when they’re wrong for fear of some kind of liability. IMHO, admitting you’re wrong mitigates risk rather than increasing it. It can also turn an angry customer into a loyal and grateful one, potentially making them a great source for the network effects of word of mouth marketing. Plus, it’s just the right thing to do.
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