I think Dell is more complex than just advertising sales. There are people with a specific product category focus that watch and respond to customer feedback. Another good example is Griffin.
The value of social media is as a two-way communication channel. With search.twitter.com it is easier than ever to hear what customers are saying and interact with them when they are struggling with your product/services.
If you provide a great customer experience you keep customers as long as your provide a great experience. If you screw up and fix it beyond their expectations you have a customer for life. (or something like that)
I'm not sure what Griffin is - tried googling it, but a mess of results with no common theme came up.
I hear the "Instant awareness" thing. I should probably look up an example of this before I go in though. I think I read an article about that here a while back (how Twitter is a potential competitor to Google because of its faster reaction to changes in public mood)
I don't think the customer service angle will work in the context of the company I'm dealing with. The company has certification programs and its main product is in use with banks and other large companies - I don't think the president of Citibank is going to twit about how XYZ screwed up big time. (That said, I wonder if I can explain how it might be a good way to reach out to hacker-types)
Griffin Technology. The make iPod accessories and such.
Wait, I am not sure the President would want to be on Twitter at all. However, Citibank runs ads and marketing campaigns, they have customer service, they run PR campaigns. Twitter is a tool that those departments can use to actively listen and respond to their customers.
The value of social media is as a two-way communication channel. With search.twitter.com it is easier than ever to hear what customers are saying and interact with them when they are struggling with your product/services.
If you provide a great customer experience you keep customers as long as your provide a great experience. If you screw up and fix it beyond their expectations you have a customer for life. (or something like that)