How to turn bad customer service into a public relations disaster:
Step 1: Break folk singer Dave Carroll’s guitar.
Step 2: Give Dave the run around for 9 months before finally telling him to get stuffed.
Step 3: Leave Dave so frustrated that he writes song called “United Breaks Guitars”, records it and then produces a music video that he posts on YouTube on July 6, 2009:
1.4 million views and counting later United is apologizing and offering to make things right.
Background Dave’s story here and here (including United’s response).
Bottom line Dave Carroll’s story should be a lesson for every organization large and small… Social media is a game changer that can turn bad customer service into a PR disaster that can be far more costly than making things right in the first place.
I’d love to give United a hearty at-a-boy for offering to do the right thing but I don’t believe for a minute they’d be offering to make things right if they didn’t have a major PR disaster on their hands.
H/T: Alex Eckelberry.