Why didn’t you respond to my TXT?

As indirect communication steadily becomes the standard form of communication these days, it is imperative that businesses and advertisers adapt to remain relevant in the consumer’s mind.

A surefire way to lose a customer, in this new era of digital communication, is to overlook engaging in conversation–especially if the consumer has targeted you for discourse.

Twitter celebrated its 5th anniversary this week, and as its user base continues to expand, brands and businesses continue to proliferate its interface.

A mistake that is commonly made by these brand operated accounts, is the lack of response to user inquiries and ideas. This is a blunder that shouldn’t be overlooked. I believe that the reciprocation of a comment, question, or even a small suggestion has huge implications in shaping how the customer perceives the brand.

I call this The Twitter Trigger–and like a psychological trigger, it can work to a brand’s advantage.

If Bill sends a direct tweet to Starbucks saying: “Hey! What do you think of my avatar? It’s me holding a Starbucks cup lol” and Starbucks doesn’t respond, Bill is now left in a state of flux. On the extreme end of the spectrum he might think: “They don’t care about me. I’m just screaming into the wind.”

This doesn’t bode well for the brand.

If Starbucks does respond, they’ve triggered a euphoric sensation in the customer’s mind. It’s almost the same feeling Bill would get from receiving a text message back from a potential love interest. Starbucks can also take this small interaction and use it to their benefit. They can now ask other users to follow in Bill’s lead and send in pictures of themselves with the product. This creates a shared sense of community centered around the brand that will ultimately lead to increased business and an overall better experience for consumers.

– David Corbin (https://www.twitter.com/davecorbin)