Dear Customer: You’re Wrong

Version 2 Blog (Dec 8 2011)

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   The feud that has erupted on social media between Alec Baldwin and American Airlines has already claimed some victims – namely, Baldwin’s Twitter account, which he has decommissioned after a series of rants in response to being removed from an American Airlines flight for refusing to turn off his iPad before take-off.

    

   Not among the victims, apparently, is American Airlines’ sense of pride and righteousness: the company issued a public statement via Facebook to set the record straight, in which is cited FAA regulations that required Baldwin to turn off his electronic devices (he didn’t – apparently he was too engrossed in a word game) and listen to all crew member instructions (we’re pretty sure that insulting flight staff through expletives isn’t “listening”).

    

   Although a good celebrity mud-slinging session always catches our attention, we’ve been drawn to this story because AA has taken a tried-and-true PR approach by issuing a public statement and leaving it at that. Rather than positioning this as an opportunity to bring a disgruntled customer back on board, American seems to be standing behind its employees and backing their decision to kick Baldwin to the curb – or at least back into the airport security line. (Do celebrities get their own security line? We want to know.)

    

   American Airlines may be bankrupt, and its flights may leave some wanting. However, we have to respect the company for staying above the fray so far on this one. It’s a smart move, too, to deliver a traditional press statement through Facebook, not Twitter. This way, American’s “friends” can offer support, and it has fueled lots of supportive Tweets in response. American’s brand perception might be stung by the company’s financial straits, but this kind of statement may indicate a sort of inner brand strength that will help the culture transform and succeed.

    

   We can’t wait to see how this plays out in the media over the next few hours – meantime, however, it looks like Zynga, the maker of “Words with Friends,” Baldwin’s professed addiction, may steal the spotlight with its clever tweetpic of a pro-Alec Words with Friends gameboard . Of course, after the unflattering picture painted of that organization in the New York Times recently, we know they could use some positive coverage…

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