Hitting the new ‘Mayday’ button provides users with an almost instant connection to a member of Amazon’s support team, who pops up on the Kindle screen to lend a helping hand. According to Amazon, the service will bring clear benefits, including:

• Drastically reduced wait times compared to calling tech support teams
• Rapid resolution of user issues through step-by-step guidance
• Fixing of issues unresolved by the user through remote access to their device

As with any new technological development, the feature has been questioned, mainly in terms of security. For businesses, the main concern relates to BYOD and sensitive information. If a member of Amazon’s support team has access to a tablet’s screen then confidential documents may be viewed. Support staff, however, have access to exactly the same information as they would if the device had been brought into a shop to be fixed. In addition, the screen-share capability of the device can be switched off by the user, for increased peace of mind.

Amazon’s CEO, Jeff Bezos, has said that customers should not be afraid of the technology they use, and the Mayday function aims to ensure that this holds true for the everyday consumer as well as the more demanding business user. For the latter, customer service levels that promise to exceed expectations, improved productivity through connection to a corporate VPN and Microsoft Exchange support make the Kindle Fire HDX a compelling proposition.

If it proves successful, Mayday not only sets the bar high in respect of customer services, but it could provide a new model for B2B technology companies looking to provide much stronger support for their customers than that currently offered by Apple’s in-store support staff, or the support that Microsoft, Google or Samsung provides over the phone.

Certainly, analysts believe that this is possible, and suggest that if the feature was developed further, it could allow the Mayday button to link to tech support teams within a business. This would increase adoption of the device in the corporate domain, but may ignore its main purpose in that the internal tech support member will not be an Amazon expert.

Nevertheless, if B2B and consumer-focused companies look to keep pace with the standards set by Amazon, a customer service revolution could yield extensive PR opportunities, as well as boosting customer ratings and the bottom line.