Tech Ability and Access: How YoPros Have An Edge and Why We Need to Give Back

In my New Media and PR class last week we touched on the corporate trend of establishing highly responsive customer service teams on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Several classmates shared examples of how they tweeted to various companies like JetBlue about flight delays or booking issues and were responded to within minutes; they even occasionally received additional perks and touchpoints from those customer service reps. It's an amazing innovation in customer service, and as someone who has used Twitter to praise and bring up issues with companies like Zappos, Comcast, Peter Pan and Greyhound Bus lines, and HootSuite, it is refreshingly satisfying to receive a direct response (even if it isn't a solution) from an identifiable person. But when I think about the hours I have wasted on the phone to get someone at Sprint to pick up the phone and then get transferred to eight different departments, I began to wonder if other people are still forced to endure that lack of customer service because of the mediums they utilize? Does (unintentional) discrimination exist for communities that either don't have the tech literacy (e.g. the elderly) or access (e.g. low-income families) to use social media?

After working for an organization that worked hands-on with low-income individuals and families and the issues they were facing, I have been bothered by the digital divide. The world went digital--from doctor's appointments and public benefits applications to emailing kids' teachers and the DMV-- but did not ensure that all people had the education, training, and access necessary to keep up. I have been thinking that a) I need to get my ass in gear and back in the saddle about volunteering, and b) I want to volunteer either teaching computer classes or organizing computer classes for seniors or low-income individuals to provide instruction and an opportunity to practice those tech skills. A lot of computer courses or community centers do not let users access Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube because they consider them wastes of time and unnecessary pursuits, but I do think that structured lessons about the utility of these tools and their application online and on mobile devices could be worthwhile and empowering. Because YoPros have grown up with technology and have an innate sensibility about how to use it and adapt to innovation, they can offer a lot of valuable help to a lot of people. I also hope that if I could provide training and support to younger students, it might inspire them to become interested in the tech or communications industries, give them a hobby or professional pursuit to work toward, and eventually increase socioeconomic, ethnic, and gender diversity in those fields.

Here is the response from a few friends from the Facebook post I put up.

My new media class prompted a question: If you don't have Twitter or Facebook, are you treated equally or fairly by customer service reps at places like airlines, phone companies, etc? Seems to be a difference in experience between those who Tweet and those who call. What about the digital divide (ie seniors, low-income) who don't have tech literacy or access?

• CW likes this.
• • AC Very interesting . . .

    April 5 at 10:52am · 
  • AK its not really about fairness, it's a simple case of the squeeky wheel getting the grease - it may be easier to be persistent when all you have to do is type a bit and not be forced to wait on hold but I don't see any unfairness

    April 5 at 10:55am · 
  • ME But if you don't have those tools or know how to use them, should you not be responded to as quickly? It seems like companies are investing more in social media customer service tools for brand protection, not just customer service, because they're public platforms and their brand is at stake if they don't respond immediately when you make a scene across your network. But investment isn't made as much on phone lines, esp if you have to wait 40 minutes to reach a person and its a behind-closed-doors convo.

    April 5 at 11:04am · 
  • EP I agree with you Colleen. I typically prefer to call because I like to actually talk to a person but I've gotten better service online recently. Also, if you try to find contact information on a site of a brand it's usually a heck of a lot easier to find their links to twitter and Facebook than a #

    April 5 at 11:12am · 
  • AK I totally agree as to the direction of where its heading and its because social media and technology are leaps and bounds more popular, and clearly more powerful, than any other form of communication. More emphasis is placed on electronic communications as opposed to using your phone or paper and pen. Is it unfortunate for people who don't know what to do? yes. is it unfair? no. There are libraries, senior centers, town-city-and village programs to spread electronic literacy and if people chose not to take advantage of it isn't society's fault or something that needs to weigh on society's collective conscience. Though local, state and federal taxes programs are constantly being funded and expanded we can't force people to realize that there's a better option out there and use it.

    April 5 at 11:13am · 
  • AK more people are using libraries and programs like "seniornet" than ever before specifically for this purpose and job searching

    April 5 at 11:15am · 
  • ME I'm with you on the fact that people need to turn with the tide, but just because those programs exist doesn't mean they are solutions. Public dollars are often highly restricted and don't go totally toward programmatic expenses. We get into a much more complicated issue about low-income issues and living wage in terms of independent access, but libraries and centers are often not staffed for training, so if you don't know what to do with the technology and no instruction, its going to be difficult to learn. And libraries and centers often have time restrictions for use, as well as restrictions for what you're able to do while online (including banning social media because its not considered a legitimate use). We're lucky that we've had computer instruction since kindergarten, have had computers in our homes, and have jobs that require Internet skills (versus manual laborers, retirees). Stilted, limited ability to access the Internet inhibits tech literacy and adoption and the total turnover to digital won't happen for awhile, so I just don't think people should be left out to dry in the interim if they need to use other channels

    April 5 at 8:25pm ·