http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo
Social media has completely transformed how companies deal with customer service. This video was made by a band after they saw United Airlines baggage handlers throwing their guitars, only to find out that the guitars were broken in the process.
They spoke to three employees after they saw their guitars being thrown, and were dismissed by all three. Over the next few weeks, United was extremely difficult to work with and Dave Carroll, lead singer of the band was directed to places all over the North America, including Halifax, Canada; Omaha; Chicago; and New York. United Airlines did virtually everything possible to not deal with Carroll. Even nine months later, they still refused to take any responsibility for the broken guitar.
He posted a total of 3 music videos regarding his bad experience with United Airlines. After just one day, the first video had 150,000 views. Rob Bradford, United's managing director of customer solutions, apologized to Carroll and United mentioned it hoped to learn from the incident, and to change its customer service policy as a result of the incident. Bob Taylor, owner of Taylor Guitars offered Carroll two guitars and other props for his second video.
"United has demonstrated they know how to keep their airline in the forefront of their customer’s minds and I wanted this project to expand upon that satirically. I’ve been done being angry for quite some time and, if anything, I should thank United. They’ve given me a creative outlet that has brought people together from around the world. We had a pile of laughs making the recording and the video while the images are spinning on how to make “United: Song 2” even better than the first. So, thanks United! If my guitar had to be smashed due to extreme negligence I’m glad it was you that did it. Now sit back and enjoy the show." -Dave Carroll
This story proves how big of an impact social media can make and how quickly things can spread on the Internet. This incident was a disaster for United Airlines, and they would have been better off responding to Carroll's complaint's right off the bat. The great part about social media is that when consumers post negative things about your business, you can quickly respond to complaints to soothe their negative feelings and ultimately transform their opinion of your company.
I remember seeing this video a few years ago. This was one of the first viral videos I came in contact with. This is a great example of how fast bad news can spread online. This was definitely an eye opener for United Airlines. This also goes hand in hand with the conversation we had in class about Twitter and Delta Airlines. They have jumped on the Twitter bandwagon with their customer service efforts.
ReplyDeleteIt is crazy how one customer service incident can cause so much noise in the media. I have never personally flown with any airline except for Southwest but I have heard a lot of negative comment and experiences with Delta and United Airlines.
ReplyDeleteIn the airport on my way to spring break we met some friends that were flying Delta to Ft. Lauderdale. They were suppose to board the plan at 8am that day and by the time we got there at 2pm, they had still not left. In the course of their 7 hour wait, they had received over 200 in Delta airline credit. Delta lost those seven customers that day because their poor service. The group of friends didn't make it on a plan until five that day. They switched plan tickets to another airline after six hours of delay time. All seven customers are addicting twitters and they all complained to their follower of the incident. I know for myself never to fly Delta airlines.