“Customer service doesn’t have to suck.”
That’s the tagline for a web site/service/company called Get Satisfaction and it’s a great way to bring transparency to the customer service game. Any company with customers and any web site with readers should be using something like this.
Yes, it’s basically a message board on steroids. But it can be used as a commitment to authentic dialogue with your customers (and readers). (Here is the page for Twitter customer service.)
This is the 21st centruy version of the “reader representative” that many newspapers have had over the years. No, it probably won’t keep all the circulation calls away since a print newspaper’s demographic is not so web savvy in the first place. News web sites, from niche operations to mainstream portals, would benefit greatly from such a system, however.
How many times have you had a legitimate question or suggestion, only to be presented with a feedback form (aka “digital black hole”)?
If you’re serious about providing value for your customers, then you should do whatever it takes to build a bridge to them and solve their problems. And with this system, there is no web development. Just sign up for an account and add it to your site.
What are you waiting for?
Mark Briggs 
Posted in 
Word up, Mark. That’d mean news organizations would have to talk and interact with their users though!
I’ve seen Tribune sites using this occassionally. (Note the little feedback tab here on the left: http://chicago.metromix.com/)
Lee Enterprises is also using it in a limited capacity for some projects.
CoPress uses it!
http://www.copress.org
Get Satisfaction is definitely great for transparent and productive customer service.
I’m also a fan of Uservoice, which is similar, but is more of a suggestion box than a complaint department.