The Department of Motar Vehicles. The bane of anyone’s existence. It’s awful. Long lines, disenchanted state workers, depressing interior decor, nothing about the DMV makes me happy. Every year I get my vehicle registration and every year I’d rather clasp shocks to my nipples. Up until this year, I’ve never had a DMV experience that made me remotely satisfied. That all changed when I sent a tweet out of frustration:

To my surprise, my tweet received a response…from the CA DMV Twitter account!

Wow. I was a bit stunned that the California DMV was savvy enough to start a Twitter account and use it for customer service. Still, they gave me an 800 number to call. Good, but not great service. I followed up that tweet with a more informational tweet:

That tweet was responded with a request for a direct message so they could contact me directly via phone.

Are. You. Kidding. Me? The DMV was going to give me a call?!?! I’ve spent hours being bounced from automated system to automated system trying to get a hold of someone, and the DMV was going to call me? I was shocked…and a little skeptical. Low and behold, later that afternoon I got a message regarding my tweet. I was told to call a specific person and given a DIRECT LINE! I was blown away.

The next day I made the call and instantly connected with the referred employee. She was sweet and extremely helpful. She looked up my case and gave me the information I needed. She even stayed on the line and walked me through changing my address (which I had to do before renewing my vehicle). I am still shocked by the service I received from the California Department of Motor Vehicles. I still have a few steps to go before I officially update my vehicle registration, but I have a much different taste in my mouth about the DMV after this experience.

This is a great example of the power of social media. By simply responding to a tweet and following up with me, the DMV changed a poor situation into a positive one. But their social response was only part of the experience, by actually following through, they helped me out greatly and provided value.  It’s a positive experience I won’t forget, and it’s a lesson companies should consider. If the DMV can properly use social media, than there is no excuse for any other brand not to be able to utilize social media to communicate with their customers and users.

Follow the California Department of Motor Vehicles on Twitter today!

I download a lot of apps on my iPhone. I download them for various reasons. Some because they’re the hot app, others on the recommendation of friends, and others I just like to study the UX/UI. I have hundreds of apps on my phone but I only use a handful of them on a daily basis. So what apps do I open on a daily basis and why?

[All links are to iTunes because I'm a die hard Apple fan boy. Sorry Android fans]

Multiple Opens “Just Because”

These apps are the social apps that I’ll open just because.

Facebook – It’s the stable social media site. Whenever I get an email notification, I have to check the app. I probably open it 3 times a day.

Twitter- My primary mobile use of Twitter is like an RSS feed. I use it to find content on the run and kill a quick 10 minutes. Sometimes I’ll tweet out an “OH” (overheard) but that’s about it (I’m more engaging on the web version). I’d estimate I open the app 2-3 times a day.

Instagram – I have fallen in love with Instagram. Uploading photos to the app is fun, but I’ve only uploaded 68 photos. I really just like to look at other people’s photos. It’s that simple. I open the app probably 3-4 times a day to see what’s new.

Foursquare - I’ve fallen into the “check-in” trap. I check in when I go to various places. While I only check in every few days, I open this app up 2-3 times a day to see what places my friends are going to.

Quora – Ever since this startup developed their mobile app my Quora usage has increased 100 fold. I rarely used their site unless I had a specific question. Now, I’ll open their app twice a day while laying in bed just to read what questions are popping up in my feed. I get lost in the web of random questions, sometimes related to my field, others that are just fascinating.

Pinterest – This network is primarily geared toward women. It’s one of the hottest startups around right now. I checked it out for a client, but it’s rather addicting. I prefer it to Tumblr because the discovery of content from people not in your network is much easier. That’s why I can get lost in the photos of fancy kitchens, dream homes, suave outfits, and funny memes. I open the app daily, but for longer periods than other social networks.

Path –  Ever since Path relaunched with a new UX/UI, I started using it again. I was dubious, but I’m actually enjoying it very much. The new UX brought me in, but the desire to share and be social with a very small, select group of friends has hooked me. Even with my new found enthusiasm for Path, I still only use it 1-2 times a day. I still need more connections to make me really want to use it.

High Utility Apps

I open these apps on a near daily basis because they serve a specific function in my life.

Yelp – Whenever I need to find where a local business is, get directions, or get the phone number, I open Yelp. I probably use Yelp 4-6 times a week.

Shazam – Ok, I don’t use Shazam daily, but I love it. I’m terrible at identifying songs so this is perfect. Often times I’ll buy the song after I identify it, good thing I only use this 2-3 times a month.

Bloomberg – I try to stay on top of the financial markets. Not a better app out there for this task. I’m still new to checking stocks, so I only open it about 2-3 times a week.

Stupid Fun (These often change)

I love to waste time on these apps. They’re easy, entertaining, and challenging. These are my current favorites.

6 Towers – The goal is to stack six towers in numerical order. Easier said than done. I’m down to 2-3 opens a week, due to my increased use of Heads Up w/ Cristiano Ronaldo.

Heads Up w/ Cristiano Ronaldo – A simple game that requires you to toss colored soccer balls in the air. Your balls clear when you connect three. I open this 2-4 times a day.