Groundswell: online questions and answers

Chapter 8 in “Groundswell” provided me with many examples and case studies of what different question and answer forums can do for companies, consumers, and even die-hard television show fans.

Recently I purchased an Apple iPhone, and I have had trouble setting up my university email on the phone. As the chapter states, sometimes people have questions that are too detailed to find answers online. This was my situation. I first went online to Auburn University’s Website and to AT&T’s Website to research how to set up my email. I found specific directions and followed them, but I still was unable to get my email working on my iPhone.

I reluctantly called Apple’s technical support hotline, and listened through the multitudes of recorded directions. Once again nothing answered my question, so I had to wait to speak with a representative. This is when I got extremely frustrated. I am not a super tech-savvy person, but I do know more than most people when it comes to computers and electronics. And although I had not had my iPhone for very long, I know how to do pretty much everything on the phone. The representatives must approach the people they are speaking with as if the know nothing about the device. The representative assisting me had me do a number of things with the phone that I had already tried, or that I knew would not help. This resulted in an hour of troubleshooting that was essentially a waste of time. My issue was never resolved, and I know now there is nothing more I can do besides bring my phone physically into an Apple store for maintenance.

What I am getting at with this story is that, although I didn’t find the answer to my question online, it was still easier and more time productive than listening to recordings on a hotline or troubleshooting via telephone. Online question and answer forums give the customers more control. If someone has a complex question, then that person knows what they have already done to try and solve it and what information to rule out in searching for the answer.

Besides question and answer forums for companies and consumers, another part of this chapter that caught my attention was “forums for supporting passions.” The television series “Jericho” on CBS had producers that were conscience of the groundswell. These producers not only set up a fan forum at and a wiki on cbs.com, but they also participated in the comments and answers. This is another case that, in my opinion, empowers fans, and as a result, makes the producers seem human and reachable. When the fans expressed their duress with the shows cancellation, they were granted more episodes. However, the fans were not the only people who benefited from the online communication. The relationship the producers had established with the fans allowed the producers to ask the fans to “rally around the show” and generate more viewers. Everyone wins. I particularly liked this story. Because I am interested in the marketing and advertising aspects of PR, I hope to work with an organization that has good two-way communication like these producers and fans. And if I don’t work for an organization that has this, maybe I can introduce it.