The JetBlue Blues
As if JetBlue wasn’t having enough troubles. Flight cancellations and videos of customers stuck on planes stranded on runways have dominated the news for the past week.
But then I read Shel Holtz's post mortem and Todd Defren’s posting from Tuesday. Apparently, as Paul Kedrosky observed, JetBlue has an official blog bylined by Jet Blue CEO David Neeleman. It was just updated today. The last update was February 1 – weeks before the crisis began. Once more, the previous post was written in marketing speak with no opportunity to comment -- exhibits one, two and three on how not to blog.
While JetBlue failed to take advantage of its blog, the company at least learned its new media lesson. Mr. Neeleman outlined the company's Bill of Rights in a video posted on YouTube. The delivery was sincere and appears to represent a genuine effort at correcting mistakes.
I am not here to pick on JetBlue. They enjoy a terrific reputation. Aside from sharing passenger data a few years back, JetBlue has been a marketing marvel and a case study on how the troubled airline industry can do it right. Their innovative approach has earned them the admiration of competitors and the loyalty of customers.
In fact the blog is an unfortunate oversight in the company's handling of the crisis. A New York Times front page story recognizes their efforts to make amends for their failure to anticipate the impact of bad weather on service. Proactive and responsive, Mr. Neeleman has put a human face the company – expressing how “humiliated and mortified” he was. Their blog represents a huge lost opportunity to take advantage of the new medium. Of course, not all JetBlue passengers read blogs, but I am sure many fliers do. In the past 30 days, there has been a spike in the number of mentions about JetBlue in the blogosphere as this Technorati chart indicates.
What can blogs do for you in a crisis? A while back, I interviewed Erin Byrne, managing director of interactive at Burson-Marsteller who wrote:
The blogosphere and Internet communications in general have created a thirst for immediate information on a deeper level. A cursory response will not satisfy online information-seekers, and an unacceptable response can create chatter and questions about a company and their intentions. However, bloggers create an opportunity as well - for companies who are willing to engage in Internet conversations, they have a significant opportunity to deepen loyalty in their company and products…
I wish my JetBlue PR brethren the best as they work their way through this crisis. Anyone who thinks he or she is immune to a communications crisis is only deluding him or herself. I am also confident that JetBlue will rebound from this experience. I only hope they they learn their lessons. An updated blog wouldn't have solved their situation, but it certainly could not have hurt.
Let me get back to you.
Technorati Tags: JetBlue; Airline Industry; Erin Byrne; David Neeleman; Burson Marsteller; Blogging; Crisis Communications; PR;
