British Airways: No longer Flying High?

""When crisis messages on social network sites are managed correctly with straightforward directness rather than coming across as insincere, thanks to the democratic nature of social networking a company's stance can be appreciated. Everyone has said that the great saviour of brands in a bit of a pickle is social networking, in order to get across your message. It is true that you can use it to communicate with people but it's about how you communicate and the structure of communications.""

"Gaby can see parallels with the recent Toyota crisis which saw the Japanese car brand, eventually, recall cars with faults after an extended period of negative publicity following serious and fatal accidents. Toyota yesterday began a press advertising campaign claiming that its cars were now safer than ever before. "We are living in and era, when it comes to brands, where people are cynical. People won't just accept what a brand says. What they want to see is what the brand does next,"

The British Airways strike has forced passengers to decide whether to fly, directly affecting seat sales and commercial outcomes. The disruption risks reputational damage and opens opportunities for competing airlines to capture displaced demand. Customer cynicism toward brand claims requires demonstrable actions rather than polished messaging. Use of pre-produced YouTube videos for crisis communication can appear overly polished and insincere. Social networks offer a democratic channel for crisis messaging, but effective use depends on straightforward, direct communications that convey meaningful actions customers can understand and believe.

Read at The Drum