Wednesday, July 19, 2017

4 crisis lessons from Ann Coulter’s tweetstorm against Delta

Pop quiz: How should you respond to receiving a tweet tirade from a disgruntled customer?

Delta raised that question when it responded to a series of angry tweets from conservative political voice Ann Coulter.

Coulter took to Twitter over the weekend to complain about being moved from a seat she had rebooked.

Salon reported:

What followed was a barrage of over 30 tweets that included public insults to Delta, the flight attendants on her plane, the Wifi and the woman who was given Coulter’s original seat, in a tirade that has even poured late into Sunday night.

Here’s a sampling of Coulter’s angry tweets:

The tweets attracted attention from other Twitter users (including Coulter’s 1.6 million followers), along with journalists.

On Sunday, Delta tweeted this response:

Though the snarky tweets drew mixed reactions, the airline doubled down on its tweet with a longer statement:

We are sorry that the customer did not receive the seat she reserved and paid for. More importantly, we are disappointed that the customer has chosen to publicly attack our employees and other customers by posting derogatory and slanderous comments and photos in social media. Her actions are unnecessary and unacceptable.

Each of our employees is charged with treating each other as well as our customers with dignity and respect. And we hold each other accountable when that does not happen.

Delta expects mutual civility throughout the entire travel experience.

We will refund Ms. Coulter's $30 for the preferred seat on the exit row that she purchased.

[FREE GUIDE: Keep your cool in a crisis with these 13 tips.]

The statement was also posted on Delta’s News Hub, alongside the story behind the incident:

The airline said that Coulter originally booked seat 15F, which is located by the window in an exit row, however; within 24 hours of the flight’s departure, the customer changed to seat 15D, which is by the aisle. At the time of boarding, Delta inadvertently moved Coulter to 15A, a window seat, when working to accommodate several passengers with seating requests.

When there was some confusion with seating assignments during boarding, a flight attendant stepped in and asked that all of the passengers move to the seats noted on their respective tickets. All customers complied and the flight departed without incident. Following the flight, crew members reported that there were no problems or concerns escalated.

Delta first became aware of the issue with Coulter’s seat assignment when she began tweeting on July 15 after the flight’s arrival. The airline’s social media and customer care teams made several attempts to connect with her to apologize for the seat mix-up; however, they did not hear back from Coulter until Sunday evening.

Here are four crisis communications lessons you can take from the incident:

1. Silence is not always golden.

Delta said it was trying to respond to Coulter offline but eventually replied with tweets of its own.

The time it took the airline to respond on the medium in which the original complaint took place gave Coulter more ammunition for her rage:

The silence online also enabled the Twitter fire to grow.

Not all tweets were against Delta, however. Plenty, such as the tweet below, lashed out at Coulter:

However, by responding in a timely manner, you increase your chances of stifling a crisis before it becomes full-blown.

2. Remember your brand’s voice.

Did Delta do the right thing, especially considering its brand voice?

Larry Parnell, an associate professor and the director of the George Washington University Master’s in Strategic PR Program, says it did:

Delta handled this relatively well. There was a mix up and they acknowledged their mistake and sought to accommodate the passenger. The fact that she is a "celebrity" raises the stakes, but does not change the game or the rules.

 

However, not everyone agrees with Parnell.

USA Today reported:

When customers tweet their complaints at most companies, chances are they will get an apology and a request for more information — unless of course they’re tweeting at Wendy’s, in which case they’ll get roasted.

Chains like Wendy's and Denny's have mastered building relationships and responding to customers, even complaints, in a lighthearted way. Smirnoff and Reebok have both taken the opportunity to poke fun at the Trump administration, much to the delight of social media.

Delta's clapback, however, was met with a mixed response.

Remember your brand’s voice when responding to an irate customer or someone who might be trolling your organization.

At best, you might win props from other consumers who don’t agree with the angry person—but at worse, you risk seeing the incident blow up into a news story that lasts several days.

Corporate communicators must also balance customer service messages with support for its employees.

“High-profile political figures—or entertainers for that matter—do require special handling sometimes, but the company has to stand up for itself and its employees,” Parnell says.

3. Ditch the corporate speak.

Coulter called out the airline for the wording it used when first responding to her:

Similar corporate-speak is what dug United Airlines into a PR hole after it airport security dragged a passenger off one of the airline’s flights.

Apologies and responses to consumers’ questions and concerns might call for careful responses, but forget the jargon. Instead, address the issue and speak in language that fits your brand’s voice but is still approachable.

4. Know that your response might be deemed political.

Reporters also pointed out that picking a fight with a political firebrand put the airline in the middle of an especially heated argument.

USA Today reported:

By shutting down a polarizing figure like conservative commentator Ann Coulter, Delta Air Lines' response became a political statement, whether that was the intention or not. The airline pushed back at Coulter after she berated it Saturday on Twitter over getting her seat changed.

On Tuesday, Coulter tweeted the following screenshot, which appears to show a text from a flight message admitting Coulter was targeted for political reasons:

Whether or not the screenshot is correct, many have lashed out at the airline for its perceived political stance.

With today’s consumers growing increasingly more passionate—and divided—over political and social issues, it’s crucial for PR pros to consider consumers’ potential responses before issuing statements or responding to an online crisis.

Whether on purpose or inadvertent, once you take a stand on a political or social issue, you can’t take it back. Consumers will not so easily forget.

What other lessons can you take away from this incident, PR Daily readers?

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