LinkedIn Connects

My questions for LinkedIn have all been answered, but it’s worth taking a moment to appreciate how LinkedIn went about it:

* I received three emails from someone in customer service, the first two from a standard customer service address, and the third from his own email. While he could have been a little more gracious and understanding, he did come around and explain what was going on.

* Then I received an email from LinkedIn’s Community Evangelist Mario Sundar, who I had met previously but who got in touch with me only from reading my blog and Twitter feed (which, right now, mainly publishes links to my blog since I’m still not sure how I want to use Twitter). He wrote me on his own, and then commented on this blog, and he also introduced me to someone who heads up LinkedIn’s customer service team.

* At the end of the workday Tuesday, I received a surprising call from the customer service chief who called to make sure everything was alright, and she admitted LinkedIn could update the verbiage on the site.

Throughout it all, some comments on the blog and one from a friend via IM helped add more color to my questions and then raise another question.

I’ve been writing letters to companies literally since I was old enough to write, and they were either one-sided or a very flat exchange (I write once, they write back once, case closed). This is something much more interactive, or Web-like if you will. It really is breaking down the barriers between companies and customers; it’s really feeling more like people dealing with people.