Source: karadipommai.blogspot.sg
It's always annoying when online services fail.
It's also inevitable. I can accept that, in theory. Of course, in practice keeping it cool is a whole other story.
I could speak in the abstract, keep my head down, and wait it out - or I could list a couple of services from my own experience…
So, no. 1: Independent Fashion Bloggers
Independent Fashion Bloggers (IFB) "cultivates a community for fashion bloggers to share their experiences and create a resource so everyone can build a better blog."
Founded by Jennine Tamm of The Coveted in 2007, IFB's community site boasts almost 40,000 members. It has over 28,000 likes on Facebook and over 27,000 followers on Twitter.
A few weeks ago, they also re-launched their community site. Mazel.
I hear it's nice.
Of course, I haven't seen it because my login no longer works, and neither does the password reset.
I've written in, tweeted them, posted on their Facebook page. Any response? Nada.
Of course, I'm not the only one.
Here's a snippet of the comments on their contact page!
Thanks IFB for cultivating that community! It's all happening on your contact page. 16 comments. 0 response.
No. 2: Strawberryj.am
Strawberryj.am "trend[s] the links in your social timelines" by "extract[ing] the links, ignor[ing] the chatter and show[ing] you whatever is shared the most."
Oh, I could use that! It's been in beta, but I'm glad I got that invite in September 2011.
Now, if only I could log in.
That's right. Seems they've been "chasing bees" for 10 months now. Did someone die of anaphylactic shock?
I tweeted them in September…
And October…
Well, at least they replied, if only to express how they've got no idea what's going on.
In all fairness, they seem pretty small-time with only 125 Facebook likes and over 1,700 Twitter followers.
No. 3: Right Inbox
Right Inbox is an email scheduling and tracking extension that integrates with Gmail - in theory.
Now, I really like this service, but the scheduling feature hasn't been working for a few weeks now.
I emailed them a while ago about this. If only they checked their inbox.
The founder Daniel Larsson was kind enough to email us about the new reminder feature five days ago.
It was also nice of him to add this:
"I hope you like the service and if you come across any bugs, have any questions or simply want to chat, just reply to this email and we'll get back to you. Also feel free to help us spread the word. Tweet us or share us on Facebook!"
So, I did…
Twice.
Of course, I used his tracking tool, and it seems like Daniel didn't so much as open the email. Well, that's nice.
I tweeted him and at least got a reply and an apology.
No. 4: Tout App
Tout App's similar to Right Inbox, but taken to another level with batch emailing and deeper analytics.
They're basically enterprise level (at least I pay for it) and come recommended by the likes of GigaOM, Business Insider, and AppSumo.
I use this extensively for my work - in fact, it's almost essential in my line.
Right now, it seems like they're going through a major DNS DDOS attack at their provider level - all this on the eve of my sending out my largest batch of prospect emails.
The site's now down and the links sent in the emails (wrapped in their code) don't work.
FML.
I tweeted them, and promptly received a) an apology and b) an explanation. So far, a paramount example in the bunch.
Last Words
I will admit, there are a few differences in the kinds of services we're talking about here.
IFB is a free social network.
Strawberryj.am is a social media tool that's free and in beta.
Right Inbox is a paid app, and so is Tout App.
I'd give the big fail award to IFB. They offer advice on the business of blogging - I'd say they're in the marketing/PR and social media game. So, you'd think they'd practice what they preach and be a) a bit more responsive and b) a bit more accountable.
So, should we hold free services to a different standard? Millions of people build their businesses on free services such as Gmail, Facebook, Twitter.
(Well, technically, they're not free: we pay with our attention and user data.)
Does the argument hold that they're actually giving us this magical gift of free functionality so how dare we expect some deal of accountability and responsiveness as users?
I don't know the answer.
What do you do to get a company's attention?
For me, it's usually, first, support form; second, email; and when all else fails, Twitter and Facebook.
Thoughts?