Orange and Vodafone: Getting Personal Online

Have you checked out Vodafone UK’s Help Centre on Youtube? I came across it the other day and was thoroughly impressed. The first video I came across was Josh from the eForum showing off the company’s latest piece of news — QIK. Josh published a thoroughly useful step-by-step guide for consumers demonstrating how to install and use real-time video service, QIK.

I then came across the Vodafone Hints and Tips video competition that they’re running. The delightful Amy Cope — who deserves a substantial amount of credit for managing the Vodafone eForum team online presence — introduces the competition. Have a watch here:

This kind of direct-to-camera approach has been missing from most of the mobile operators. Although I pay my money to a company or brand, I want to feel like there are humans at the other-end. Humans that care about delivering me a good service. Seeing Amy and her colleagues talking directly to camera is simply fantastic. Is Vodafone (like Nokia) finally learning that it’s ok to be human? I think so. Vodafone UK at least, anyway.

Orange has been experimenting with this kind of thing for a long time — Conor’s been pushing their Newsroom service out to really show off the handsets before they’re available in store, something I think is a fantastic idea. Who better to show off the new handsets than the folk actually selling them? Some of Conor’s videos have been amongst the first videos that consumers (and the media) glimpse of the handsets prior to their launch into the market.

The one thing I’d like to see Orange do is install an ‘Amy Cope’ customer champion — whilst Conor would, I’m sure, be ready to help with queries and issues from end-users, I don’t believe it’s his primary role. I really, really do like it when I get emails from crazed Vodafone customers because I can just forward the email to Amy and her team — and I know that they’ll get a calm hearing and do their best to help. But you don’t need to go through me, or Mobile Industry Review, you can get them direct at the eForum.

I think we’re still waiting on o2, T-Mobile and 3 though (although the latter does have 3MobileBuzz managed by a third-party agency).

I’ll eat my hat if T-Mobile UK ever gets ‘social media’ (i.e. helping people). I’m still getting screwed by their stupid billing system each month. My mistake for having two accounts with them.