$180 Million Customer Service Foul-up

The Cost of Ignoring Customer Complaints – Social Media in Customer Service

It used to be that an angry customer would tell approx 8-16 people. What would the fallout be if an unhappy customer told 3 million? It happened for real when Dave Carroll got fed up because United Airlines broke his guitar in baggage and refused to replace it. He wrote a song, ‘United Breaks Guitars‘ and posted it on YouTube. Within 10 days the video had gone viral with over 3 million views. United’s share value dropped by $180 million! That’s an expensive guitar. Savvy managers recognize that they are expected to manage risk. It does indeed cost money to properly train employees on recovering customer goodwill after a mistake. That investment, however, is a proverbial drop-in-the-bucket compared to the risk of not training. With the explosion of social media, one disgruntled customer can do serious financial damage. When was the last time your team had a customer service tune-up?

Today’s chuckle:

The real art of diplomacy is not only to say the right thing at the right time. But also to leave the wrong thing unsaid at the most tempting moment.

Written By Jeff Mowatt (original content – not AI generated)

Was this helpful?   For additional information on this topic:  Customer Service Trends/Strategic Planning

You’ll find more of Jeff’s Trusted Advisor Customer Service tips or subscribe to receive a new Business Building Tip every two weeks.

Curious about Jeff’s training resources?  Click on Shop for details.  If you’re interested in a customized presentation for your organization, contact Jeff at [email protected]

Jeff Mowatt is a customer service speaker, customer service trainer, a business strategist, award-winning speaker, and best-selling author.