Well, that escalated quickly. Despite other things in the news, including the crisis in Syria, United Airlines was the biggest trending topic on Monday.
The reason? As you’ve likely seen, security dragged a bloodied passenger Dr. David Dao off the plane. The Chicago-Louisville flight was overbooked and Dao refused to get off.
The simple reason this made the rounds in the news and social media is that there was video of the incident – a very vivid and disturbing one.
This was a major crisis for United, one the airline could have handled much better. Here are four ways:
- Show indignation that this occurred.
Though he was PR Week’s Communicator of the Year, United CEO Oscar Munoz displayed a tin ear by offering a conditional apology about “having to re-accommodate…customers.” What was missing from Munoz’s statement was anger. If he’s not upset that some United employees acted this way, then that means he condones it. That’s a losing position. Instead, Munoz should have said something like, “No matter the facts behind this incident, United did not live up to our high standards for customer service and we will take steps to make sure this never happens again.” - Apologize via video.
Sometimes a written statement is not enough. Words can’t counteract the power of video. When Domino’s faced its own crisis a few years ago, President Patrick Doyle apologized on YouTube. That not only advanced the story, it also gave news outlets a new piece of media. And, it replaced the old images with new ones. - Make amends with the passenger.
Though Munoz issued an apology on Tuesday – two days after the incident occurred – he needs to go further. A goodwill gesture like contributing to Dao’s favorite charity would help. - Issue a plan to make sure this won’t happen again.
Most people would choose another airline over United while this incident is fresh in their mind. United can address this concern by being proactive and outlining a plan on how overbooking will be handled in the future. By issuing a public promise to customers, United can begin to quickly move past this crisis.
Bottom Line
By making a bad situation worse, United has undone millions in advertising spending. However, the opportunity still exists for United to make a right out of this major wrong.