With 17 million registered users in the U.S., Twitter is the latest social media tool to be used for strengthening one’s career, building better brands and more.  Many companies are now leveraging it as an extension of their customer service line.   Comcast and JetBlue, for example, have gotten a lot of publicity from their tweets.  But, do consumers just have to complain via Twitter to get a response? 

Ben Par from Mashable posted some great tips on how companies can go beyond this and find that the road to success can be paved with tweets.  Some highlights:

• First, figure out if Twitter is the right customer service platform for your company and audience.  Weigh the pros and cons; the social media tool can help reduce costs, but will staff remain active and continue to engage customers?
• Manage not just the complaints but all of the conversations about your company / product / service.  Make your customers aware that you are available on Twitter (and other social networking sites); put your account name(s) next to the phone hotline. 
• Don’t forget the speed and quality of your responses.  Also keep your customers up-to-date on company news, success stories, etc.

Also check out these other posts from ReadWriteWeb, ClickZ and C.G. Lynch from IDG.  What do you think–is good, old-fashioned customer service dead?