Social Crises
Every company knows, now, the importance of preparing for and having procedures in place for dealing with social media and any potential crisis. In a society, when information has the capability to be passed around instantaneously, every brand and organization must use social media carefully; as it can be your best friend or your worst enemy. I’ve studied United Airline’s social media crisis and failure to react. They missed very significant steps in assessing their situation; their error allows students to understand the reasoning behind certain precautionary measures.
First and foremost, I would like to explain the details of United Airlines Flight 3411 incident that occurred a few years ago. The incident began when a passenger, David Doa was removed from his flight to make room for other passengers and employees. After refusing to give up his seat, other passengers had to watch in horror as the doctor was being lifted from his seat by police officers. A few passengers video taped the incident and posted it to their social media websites. Obviously, the scenario did not look pleasant for any involved in the situation; David Dao, other passengers, the officers, and it most especially wasn’t boding well for United Airlines. Unfortunately, the crisis continues to grow.
Following David Dao’s forceful removal from United Airlines Flight 341, United Ceo Oscar Munoz and the company’s actions demonstrate their inability to respond to the ordeal in any manner that claimed company responsibility. Furthermore, Munoz’s initial response to the incident sparked outrage after going public, as it “reaffirmed his support for employees” rather than sympathizing with Dao. In a leaked memo to employees, the Ceo described Dao as “disruptive and belligerent”, and mentioned the employees on board responded correctly to Dao.
https://www.prweek.com/article/1435619/timeline-crisis-united-airlines
To United Airlines detriment, social media and the public took charge of the conversation. From solely a social media crisis management perspective, this move places United Airlines strictly at the receiving end of criticism and not in any offensive position. From celebrities and comedians to even the White House, the public made statements shaming the company and threatening to Boycott United. Even despite an interview following Munoz’s initial statements, wherein he claimed to feel shame for what happened, United Airlines became the defensive party in this incident. The company’s poor reaction is a testament to the necessity of taking control of the conversation during a social media crisis and claiming responsibility.
The United Airlines incident is a pivotal case as it altered the way companies perceived their social media brand image. The Crisis Management case study from above, focuses on the significant role that social media played in the public response to the altercation that took place on flight 3411. As Robin notes, “The days of a company getting away with such incidents are gone due to the smartphone and any incident has the potential to be seen by many, something companies need to be aware of.” David Dao’s experience was recorded by fellow passengers, and uploaded to public viewing sites. Masses of viewers saw, and therefore experienced, the horror and humiliation that took place on that flight.
As Maha Chaudry indicates in the above article, “Once the Internet got a hold of the news, witnesses gave “interviews” to media outlets through Twitter to describe exactly what had occurred. And so began the online outrage…” United Airlines became the target for much of the public’s anger as well and jokes. For a while, United Airlines was plastered over the news, and became a punching bag and laughing stock.
A hashtag featuring the company ensued a viral response; the hashtag was “#NewUnitedAirlinesMotto. The public, even other airline companies took to social media to take jabs at United Airlines. One example from the article was, “#NewUnited AirlinesMottos U can’t beat our prices, but we can sure beat our passengers!” The article accurately describes and summarizes how United Airlines’ misdeeds led to poor public perceptions.
The entire situation, of course, is disappointing as someone who used to consider themselves a frequent flyer. At one point in time, Dao’s experience could not have possibly had the reach that it ultimately did. Every interaction with guests should be of respect . With that said, as far as their social media blunders are concerned, they missed three key elements of crisis management.
In each of my readings about crisis management, each basically stated it is imperative to have a solid assessment of the what occurred prior to any initial responses. That is your first key step towards effective crisis management. This means monitoring the event itself, monitoring what information is being spread about your company, and monitoring the reach of the incident. For United, this would have avoided the CEO’s insensitive remarks about their victim.
Another key element, when dealing with a crisis, the information you’ve gathered should be placed in the hand of those in your company who are designated to handle this situation. As they will need to analyze the information, and determine the weight of the scenario. They are responsible for categorizing the issue and from there determining the plan. As stated in the Standing Point article above, your team should have a plan for each category and for each plan “know your risk” For United, this step wasn’t taken until after footage of the incident went viral, and after Munoz’s reponse.
Had I been the one overseeing this crisis, I wouldn’t have responded as definitively to my employees until I assessed the situation and determined the proper course of action. There were many factors working against the brand; social media, video footage, outdated procedure and policy. However, the only factor you are in control of is your response, and in learning from United I can see how I might do better.
