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Among frequent travellers it's an open secret that you will often get stuff actioned faster by contacting your travel provider via Twitter than you do by contac

Among frequent travellers it's an open secret that you will often get stuff actioned faster by contacting your travel provider via Twitter than you do by contacting the provider directly via phone/email/webform. ( https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/34726322-post1.html https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/34726322-post1.html is just one completely random example of the kind of thing I'm talking about. ) Elon or no Elon, this is wrong on several levels. Remember we're talking about private messaging a provider with your details and issue, so it's not like it's some sort of overt "public shaming" the customer services team into prompt action. Maybe there's a(n implied) threat of public shaming given it's Twitter?

chx 3y ago
I have been a flyertalk member for 15 years :) Yes you can contact airlines via twitter for sure but I don't think those are the same people who have access to the GDS.
- logifail 3y ago
  > I have been a flyertalk member for 15 years Excellent, that means you've been on there 3 years longer I have :) I only wish I'd found it sooner. > Yes you can contact airlines via twitter for sure but I don't think those are the same people who have access to the GDS The CS agents answering the phone when you call AA/UA/DL/BA/whoever may not have (direct) access to the GDS either, given the number of times I've been fobbed off with comments like "we have to send this to the ticketing team", "this won't price on my system so I'll have to send it to the back office" (when I have an itinerary in ITA Matrix, the availability in Expert Flyer, and have it priced on Google Flights too). Remember that - for example - BA no longer has any agents with direct ticketing training or capability physically present in the public areas at Heathrow Airport. I'll repeat: no ticket desks at their home airport. The mind boggles. However that's all academic, it's not about who has access to what system, it's about how well resourced and empowered any particular team is to resolve customers' problems, and how quickly results are achieved. If a team is able to reach out to other resources and get assistance, then customers probably don't notice, and certainly won't care. Twitter is definitely a channel that's more empowered and better resourced - at least relative to the number of customers using it - than the telephone, and certainly way more than email. Q: Why is that?

chx 3y ago

I have been a flyertalk member for 15 years :) Yes you can contact airlines via twitter for sure but I don't think those are the same people who have access to the GDS.

logifail 3y ago
> I have been a flyertalk member for 15 years Excellent, that means you've been on there 3 years longer I have :) I only wish I'd found it sooner. > Yes you can contact airlines via twitter for sure but I don't think those are the same people who have access to the GDS The CS agents answering the phone when you call AA/UA/DL/BA/whoever may not have (direct) access to the GDS either, given the number of times I've been fobbed off with comments like "we have to send this to the ticketing team", "this won't price on my system so I'll have to send it to the back office" (when I have an itinerary in ITA Matrix, the availability in Expert Flyer, and have it priced on Google Flights too). Remember that - for example - BA no longer has any agents with direct ticketing training or capability physically present in the public areas at Heathrow Airport. I'll repeat: no ticket desks at their home airport. The mind boggles. However that's all academic, it's not about who has access to what system, it's about how well resourced and empowered any particular team is to resolve customers' problems, and how quickly results are achieved. If a team is able to reach out to other resources and get assistance, then customers probably don't notice, and certainly won't care. Twitter is definitely a channel that's more empowered and better resourced - at least relative to the number of customers using it - than the telephone, and certainly way more than email. Q: Why is that?