After befriending children with no shoes in Argentina, Blake Mycoskie decided he wanted to help. He started TOMS Shoes in 2006 with a simple idea: With every pair you purchase, TOMS will give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. One for One.” The shoes were designed after the Argentine “alpargata” and 10,000 pairs were sold in the first year. The company has given away over 150,000 pairs of shoes to kids all over the world.

At the young age of 33, Blake has not only created an admirable brand, but he has also built a platform that allows anyone to provide a basic need to those that are often forgotten and ignored.

1. I love your quote: “I don’t want to be remembered for what I did, but what I gave away.” Have you always had this philosophy or did it develop over time?

As you grow and have different experiences, you learn what you want out of your life and what direction you will pursue. The things I have learned and people I have met over time have shaped my philosophy and have guided me to where I am now.

2. Designing a new type of shoe, starting a non-profit and building a brand that incorporates both seems like a lot to take on, did you ever consider partnering with a brand that already existed?

TOMS was such a unique model from the start, and we broke the mold in some respects of how most businesses operate, so we wanted to show others that this idea of incorporating giving could work on its own. It’s great now to be at a point where we can do some amazing collaborations with other brands like Ralph Lauren, Element Skateboards and even Dave Matthews Band. (more…)

As a follow-up on our recent video ‘Why I / You / We Tweet“, we thought we’d take one step further and do a survey to find out what Twitter is taking over the headlines, not to mention our lives.

Please take a few moments to share your thoughts.

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Frank Eliason is the Director of Digital Care at Comcast. His team is in charge of assisting customers on the web. Frank has done a good job of creating an important presence for Comcast in social media, particularly on Twitter. He told us about the importance of the customer experience, the current environment in which Comcast operates, and his personal life. Please send him a tweet after reading!

1. When I first joined Twitter I immediately saw pages for John Mayer, Oprah, and then… Comcast Cares. What caused Comcast to include Twitter as a line of communication for customer care?

As we are working to improve the Customer experience, one of our objectives has been to meet Customers where they already are. We do this in many ways throughout the internet, including blogs, forums, Facebook, and Twitter. This is just a great way to listen to Customers and assist when we can.

2. What internal/external feedback have you received thus far?

Feedback internally and externally has been overwhelmingly positive. Customers love to have a voice and we love the feedback.

3. Often times when a customer tweets @comcastcares with a question or issue they get a reply asking them to email customer care. What plans are in place to get closer to achieving “one-tweet resolution”?

LOL! I love the “one-tweet resolution!” This happens when the trouble that is being reported may require a little research or we may need more information beyond 140 characters. Our preference when possible is to keep it on Twitter. There may be other times, like the other day I was traveling without all my tools, so I asked people to email my team.

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