Unsuck DC Metro: Metro's Social Media Murder-Suicide Pact

Monday, October 1, 2012

Metro's Social Media Murder-Suicide Pact

UPDATE: Metro put Mind Mixer in the time out corner.

It has been an interesting few days on Twitter.

First, Metro's new, highly-paid social media consultants, "Mind Mixer," came out with a pedantic, lecturing tone toward DC riders and proved the Omaha, Nebraska-based company has absolutely no idea about all the constructive criticism offered to Metro via this blog by actual Metro riders over nearly four years.

Mind Mixer, which touts "optimal engagement," has 784 followers on Twitter and a skin as thin and you know who.

They also say they offer "#realengagement," but won't say how much Metro is paying for their services and did not respond to an invitation to guest blog here.

This was a distillation of the reaction to Mind Mixer's social media self immolation:

Fascinating to watch d-list comms group @mind_mixer try to turn tweeps against @unsuckdcmetro, experience backlash. Astroturf amateurs.
— Alexander Luthor (@LuthorCEO) September 28, 2012

Then, Metro proved you don't need to ride Metro to be on the receiving end of their infamous 'tude. It was some of the least professional behavior I've ever seen by an organization on social media. For example:

@itsterryble Didn't realize playful sarcasm was a one way street. Nevertheless on-time performance is >90% so...
— @wmata (@wmata) September 29, 2012

@metrorage being angry doesn't fix stuff. It's commentary and quarterbacking. But be angry... cool. Sorry if this "tone" is being real.
— @wmata (@wmata) September 29, 2012

Here's a little free constructive advice for Metro (cc: Mind Mixer): Even if you feel frustrated by a customer on Twitter, take a deep breath, and type something to the effect of "we're sorry you haven't found Metro is meeting your needs. We're trying to do better and thank you for your patronage."

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+13 Vote up Vote down

@FixWMATA · 651 weeks ago

The full exchange on Storify: http://storify.com/FixWMATA/wmata-gets-real-blunt

1 reply · active 651 weeks ago

+3 Vote up Vote down

@FixWMATA · 651 weeks ago

Clarification: the link above is the full exchange from Friday night involving @WMATA - not the one from Friday afternoon involving @Mind_Mixer. Sorry.

+14 Vote up Vote down

guest · 651 weeks ago

More proof Metro doesn't really view us as customers. WOW

+37 Vote up Vote down

@perkinsms · 651 weeks ago

How does on-time performance of 90% compare to other transit agencies?

Let's recall than 90% on-time allows trains to be up to 30 minutes apart later at night.

Let's recall that the way they measure on-time encourages Metro to express trains past stations and to hold full outbound trains to meet train spacing requirements rather than get people to their destination.

Let's recall that Metro recently had to reduce their on-time performance goal to meet the numbers.

Let's recall that Metro's trains break down much, much more frequently than other systems.

3 replies · active 651 weeks ago

+5 Vote up Vote down

BrianKal · 651 weeks ago

And I assume like LIRR if the trains arrive within 4:59 or 5:59 of scheduled (I forget), that is ontime.

Or if they are never dispatched that does not affect the numbers.

+12 Vote up Vote down

bmfc1 74p · 651 weeks ago

WMATA defines "on time" to mean up to 30 minutes late and then crows about meeting their own standard. Here's my standard: on time means within 3 minutes of the time the train is supposed to be there. How is WMATA doing by that standard?

+9 Vote up Vote down

@perkinsms · 651 weeks ago

30 minutes apart, not 30 minutes late.

30 minutes apart when the schedule is to be 20 minutes apart.

+62 Vote up Vote down

Beleagured commuter · 651 weeks ago

Metro spends more time and money defending itself than it does fixing the deep problems that make this system an embarrassment. They take NO responsibility for the mismanagement, rude and/or poorly trained employees, and downright poor service. How come the rest of the world seems to have figured out how to run a metro system and we can't? I wonder how much of my $10.10 daily fare goes towards paying Mind Mixer and others...

1 reply · active 651 weeks ago

+15 Vote up Vote down

@VeggieTart · 651 weeks ago

I wish I could give you more than just one thumbs-up. That is the problem in a nutshell: They would rather spend money telling us everything is okay and making us feel good about their performance--which they can't possibly gauge, as none of the people making decisions about Metro actually rides Metro--than spend money improving the system!

And I wish I could believe they had a 90-percent on-time record, but given all the delays and trains out of service I hear about, I have trouble believing it. Unless it's the new much lower standards they're talking about.

+7 Vote up Vote down

BrianKal · 651 weeks ago

can anyone who's been in DC for a long time (talking WMATA opening) confirm the system used to be good? Or has it always been a shi*tshow

10 replies · active 651 weeks ago

+13 Vote up Vote down

@mhh2424 · 651 weeks ago

As a near native (first grade??) and frequent Orange Line rider, I do remember when the system worked well. The notion of frequent delays in the tunnels, holding at stations just did not exist. Moved to Ballston in 1999 and first noticed the system degrading. Moved to Falls Church in 2002 and now hate the idea of taking Metro to work (EFC to Union Station).

The Orange Line is going to be a disaster once the Silver Line is open. They do not have any slack in their system for when the frequent breakdowns occur. The slightest malfunction creates significant ripple effects.

+1 Vote up Vote down

Sorles · 651 weeks ago

@mhh2424 -- have you tried Rush+?

+6 Vote up Vote down

Ryan · 651 weeks ago

When I first came here in 2005, I genuinely thought the system was great. I rode from Crystal City transferred to the Red line at Gallery Place and then went to Silver Spring. Easy, convenient, I felt safe.. I would say that round about 2007, Metro really started shitting the proverbial bed.

+3 Vote up Vote down

NoNo · 651 weeks ago

I've been in DC for 2 years, and I can see a difference already... I can easily imagine that in the 80s, when the train and the station equipment were new, this metro was really great... However 35 years without any maintenance made it ... yes... a shi*tshow...

+6 Vote up Vote down

@NoPants_McGee · 651 weeks ago

I moved to DC in 2003 - pre-SmarTrip, when you had to use paper fares and bus tokens (and the base fare was $1.35 - ah memories). Some things have gotten better - at that time, they didn't have the current schedules like they do now, they would just flash 'Green Line - 15 minutes' and you'd have to wait for it to slowly countdown, with no idea when the next train would be or what line. One night I waited an hour for a yellow line train at Gallery Place. I also spent 45 minutes waiting for a 7 bus in January and it took me 4 hours to regain feeling in my feet. Next bus has been extremely helpful in figuring out if the 25A was going to be 5 minutes early or 15 minutes late.

I think they've gotten better at informing people when there are going to be delays and communicating a bit better about what issues were, but I wonder if it's because the internet era demands more transparency.

At the same time, I think delays have increased in frequency (ie - trains out of service). When they first announced the shutting down of specific lines over the weekend instead of frequently single tracking, I applauded the idea. Now, as someone who lives in Silver Spring, I can never take metro into town on the weekend for this same reason.

+9 Vote up Vote down

MDScot · 651 weeks ago

I starting working downtown last year after a break of roughly 18 years and looked forward to returning to Metro after commuting around the beltway for years. Metro is still a good option for me, but I certainly see the results of poor maintenance and mis-management. Back in the day I don't remember "off loading", and the escalators worked. I also remember that Metro was almost a TOURIST ATTRACTION, not a system that imposed a surcharge on the casual user.

+7 Vote up Vote down

guest · 651 weeks ago

been here since '84, riding the buses and trains the whole time except for a five year gap when i walked to work. yes, it used to be MUCH better. it's been within the last ten years that i've started telling people "when you absolutely positively have to be somewhere by a certain time--drive."

a colleague who needed to be in the office at oh-dark thirty every thursday for a meeting and conference call with Hong Kong took to driving in, because the *first train of the day* was so often late passing through bethesda. yes, he lives a five minute walk from the bethesda subway station, and had to drive in to be at work by a particular time.

+8 Vote up Vote down

NW_DC_Rider · 651 weeks ago

I hate to date myself in this way, but I moved here in 1991 and have been using Metro rail for (arrgh) 21 years now. In 1991, a one-way, in-DC fare was 85 cents. Station managers were helpful and courteous. Breakdowns in service were a rare occurrence. I'm not sure that I can pinpoint exactly when things started to go into freefall for WMATA, but I think the problems really started @2000 and have just continued to worsen.

There was a time, though, when the trains ran on time and encounters with employees were pleasant. Now it almost seems mythical. It would be interesting to know if there is an actual point of demarcation (a particular GM, a particular shift in management philosophy, etc.) that was the tipping point that caused the system meltdown.

+4 Vote up Vote down

DC Denizen · 651 weeks ago

I rode the Blue line on the day it opened in July of 1977, and have been using Metro since then. Back in the day, it was a marvel of modern transport. It was safe, ran dependably, and I never encountered the enormous chips that seem to reside on many station employee's shoulders. It was much preferrable to driving in the city Through the 80's and 90's, it aged as would be expected on any transit system as parts got older and systems needed repair. It got dirtier and dated. Elevators/escalators went downhill pretty fast in the 2000's. But I'd agree with most posters that around 2006 or 2007 I could no longer look to Metro as a reliable transit option. After the Red Line crash in 2009, all bets were off and I was better off driving. These days, I only take it if I have to. I wish I could rely on it again and that it was time and cost-competitive with driving.

+2 Vote up Vote down

SammyDC · 651 weeks ago

I've been riding Metro for most of the last 28 years. It was once a clean, reliable, safe system. If trains malfunctioned or were off-loaded once in every three months, it was big news. Steep decline in past 5 or 6 years.

+19 Vote up Vote down

Matt · 651 weeks ago

So WMATA has undoubtably payed a hundred thousand or more for this PR company. And their job is apparently to insult their customers? And I don't mean the usual WMATA insulting, where they just lie and treat us like fools. This company literally comes out and insults us dirtectly.

Really?? This is like a twilight zone episode.

+5 Vote up Vote down

john · 651 weeks ago

I'd like to complete that last thought Unsuck:

And then resign your post as a shill/consultant so Metro can use that money to actually fix something that's broken!

GAH!

+11 Vote up Vote down

Metro Ryder · 651 weeks ago

I sent a written complaint to metro about their terrible twitter account. Theoretically it's on the record that they offended at least 1 rider, but I doubt my complaint makes it further than the trash bin.

+11 Vote up Vote down

@MegE_N · 651 weeks ago

Clearly we should all just go out on Friday and Saturday nights and take the 'alternative' option - drive home drunk.

3 replies · active 651 weeks ago

-11 Vote up Vote down

Dezlboy · 651 weeks ago

Please don't joke about drunk driving.

+13 Vote up Vote down

Metro is awful · 651 weeks ago

oh stop. let him joke. it's just a joke and is completely harmless. the MegE_N is just making a statement, no need to get all ridiculous about it. it's not like the poster is endorsing it.

please don't ruin someone else's ability to enjoy laughter in the world.

+6 Vote up Vote down

thefunnyguy · 651 weeks ago

It's not a joke. Driving drunk is safer than riding the Metro.

+25 Vote up Vote down

SME · 651 weeks ago

Social Media Advice for @wmata

1) Write out your tweet to a customer
2)STOP
3)Rewrite it as the exact opposite of what you wrote

+14 Vote up Vote down

anon · 651 weeks ago

I work in social media, and my feeling about mind mixer is that it's one of these feel goody, do goody scammers that have appeared by the million in the past few years. i watched a video touting them, and was immediately turned off.

1 reply · active 651 weeks ago

+26 Vote up Vote down

Eirene · 651 weeks ago

I used to work in social media, and if I'd written replies like that to my customers, my ass would have been fired pronto.

+8 Vote up Vote down

NoNo · 651 weeks ago

Glad to see that you can receive real personalized answer from Metro on Twitter... Because I'm done with their automatic key-words-based replies by mail... And when you dare sending them another email asking for a real answer, you receive another email saying they forward it to the "appropriate service"... and then nothing... At Metro, the complain forms go directly to the trash...

+30 Vote up Vote down

@NoPants_McGee · 651 weeks ago

Being defensive and unapologetic to unhappy customers is a great PR strategy, said no one ever. (Except Mind Mixer. I feel bad for whatever intern they have running that feed)

+24 Vote up Vote down

megan · 651 weeks ago

Holy sh*t! The surly station manager from Judiciary Sq. was promoted and is now running the Metro Twitter feed!

0 Vote up Vote down

hrh king friday 13 · 651 weeks ago

These guys also run the GOP 2012 campaign site.
http://www.siliconprairienews.com/2012/07/mindmix...

3 replies · active 651 weeks ago

-1 Vote up Vote down

@VeggieTart · 651 weeks ago

That explains a lot.

+3 Vote up Vote down

hrh king friday 13 · 651 weeks ago

"There are 47 percent of the people who will ride Metro no matter what. Metro's job is not to worry about those people. We'll never be convinced that Metro should take personal responsibility and care for their lives."
Sarles/Jeter 2012

0 Vote up Vote down

hrh king friday 13 · 651 weeks ago

+18 Vote up Vote down

Ryan · 651 weeks ago

In summary, Metro hired an outside consultant to do a poor job of community outreach -which is something that Metro already does. I'd ask what kind of clowns are responsible for this shit, but that would be an insult to the capability and judgment of clowns.

+5 Vote up Vote down

Danny S · 651 weeks ago

You got to work today didn't you? You should be happy we even have trains with most of their wheels attached. You're welcome.

+2 Vote up Vote down

geekgrrl · 651 weeks ago

Completely unconscionable. That tweeter should be fired instantly. Exhibit A in every PR "what not to do" case study. One of the goals of customer relations should be to take disgruntled customers and TURN them into fans, or at the very least, make them feel heard! Giant #FAIL @wmata.

Meanwhile, have you seen this petition? http://www.change.org/suggested?petition_id=75863...