CorpComms Magazine

It is no longer enough for brands to be visible online. With the rise of social media, consumers now believe it is their right to be heard, with the result being that customer grievances can quickly go viral and destroy reputations. The brands that are likely to boost their reputation are those that pre-empt such situations, using platforms such as Twitter to listen, surprising their customers with a personalised response, building loyalty, and ensuring positive sentiment is spread far and wide.

In search of a new mobile phone, I recently polled my Twitter followers to suggest some options. I like Samsung's technology and my service provider is O2, I told them. A few people responded with suggestions, which I noted down, planning to investigate further. To my surprise, later that day I received a tweet from @O2, despite the fact that I had not addressed them directly. Hi Sheli, we saw you were looking for ideas for a new phone. This video we made you may just help, it said.

I thanked them for great customer service, presuming that they had linked me to a video about various Samsung phones. It was only when I watched the video that I realised O2 had gone the extra mile. There was the O2 Guru addressing me by name and responding to my exact query.

The real deal

Despite my incorrect assumption that the film was a pre-recorded template with my name added in at the beginning, I discovered that in fact, this approach was far from a gimmick. As part of its ongoing campaign to provide technology tips and useful advice, O2 has been filming hundreds of individual clips per week responding to genuine customer queries.

Complemented by a traditional television advertising campaign created with VCCP, the O2GuruTV YouTube channel has already racked up thousands of views per clip. Advice includes anything from how to use complex applications on individual phones, to 'How to dry out a wet iPhone'.

'O2 Guru was first introduced about 18 months ago into our stores,' explains Alex Pearmain, head of social media for O2 in the UK. 'Gurus are trained to be the experts on everything relating to tech and gadgets. They don't have a sales role - they are there to give all round help rather than anything else.'

The role of the 'guru' advisor as an alternative to the salesperson in the store was created by O2 in response to what they saw as a growing customer need. 'It's more and more what people want,' affirms Pearmain. 'They buy these amazing gadgets but they need help with how to use them, which apps to buy, and so on.'

The gurus are trained in-house and they now cover more than 300 O2 outlets. The television campaign and YouTube channel were simply an extension of what O2 was already doing in-store, upholding a genuine commitment to provide high level customer service.

Pearmain believes that adverts need to become more integrated into how people actually communicate. 'It's made them more relevant and has shown how we can help people through different channels.'

The customer support team also uses the videos to supplement advice by email. 'If you're having trouble setting up email on your BlackBerry, the team will send back a video if there's a relevant clip,' explains Pearmain.

The approach seems to be working, with O2 providing video clips for anyone from a housewife in Blackburn, to England rugby player James Haskell. 'Customers are surprised and impressed. People are saying that this is what help should be like,' says Pearmain. Let's hope other brands catch on.

www.youtube.com/user/O2GuruTV

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