How new jobs will make (and keep) customers happy.

I'm about to wrap up my series on the emerging careers of 2009, but I'd be remiss if I didn't spend a little time talking to Mack Collier. A fellow Alabamian, Mack is one of the country's most respected voices when it comes to corporate outreach via blogging and other social media tools.

Here are his two picks:

I'm not sure if these are so much the jobs that I think WILL emerge this year as much as they are the jobs that I'd LIKE to see employers start to fill.

Community Catalyst: In this position, the person would actively seek out a company's existing customer evangelists (their most devoted fans) and create ways to bring them together so that they can connect with each other.

These are people that have a vested interest in seeing the company that they evangelize succeed, so it only makes sense for companies to embrace and empower these customers.

This isn't about reaching out to customers, it's about reaching out to a specific, and very passionate, subset of customers, and giving them the motivation and tools to do what they are already doing, and to connect with each other.

Digital Customer Service Specialist: This would someone who would utilize emerging social and digital tools such as Twitter and texting to provide customer service.

This would especially benefit companies that have younger, tech-savvy customers that are already fluent in using these tools. 

To read a lot more from Mack, check out his blog, The Viral Garden. He recently tackled modern career issues with his post "Is the Community Evangelist making a comeback?"

Today's photo credit: Matt Dickman via Flickr.

Also in this series:
• Will '09 be the year of the strategist?
• How coding and culture will shape the jobs of '09.
• Want to be a Conversation Auditor when you grow up?
• The emerging careers of '09: Advergirl's predictions.