Reading Response #3
According to the article I researched and read earlier this week, I think that JetBlue did handle the situation effectively. JetBlue compensated their customers starting at $25 to a full refund, which in my opinion was really good for the company since not many airlines offer refunds especially if the quantity of customers was really large. The company spent millions of dollars in this, which definitely improved their image. The formal bill of rights they made was also very good and improved the company's efficiency, which according to the article "defines crisis communication at a number of levels." The bill of rights also affirms JetBlue's customer-based brand, which is also very good for the image of the company.
I find a connection between the Luntz reading and the JetBlue crisis. First of all, the reading offers effective ways to communicate, which is what JetBlue did efficiently especially since their brand is customer related. The fact that they spent millions of dollars to make their customers happy also is very important since they reaffirmed that they are a customer related brand. Their business ethics is very high since they complied perfectly towards their obligations to their customers. Most customers that were stranded stated that they were "hostages" due to the lack of information they encountered. At this time JetBlue had not made a statement, and they were assuming that the company did not care at all about them. If this was the case, then the ethics of the company would have been destroyed along with the airline itself. They responded well and communicated efficiently with their customers.
Since we are making a press release for our next project, one of the things I am going to keep in mind the most is the efficient communication. In this press release, I am going to make sure that the information is transmitted flawlessly to prevent any damaging assumptions. This will also be important for our future since one day we could be a spokesman, and the most important thing is to transmit any message perfectly, so everyone understands what you are saying without a doubt.
Comments
Comment
I think you make a good point about Jet Blue spending millions of dollars to set things right. I do believe, however, they could have saved a lot of that money had they had some sort of plan in place. No one can predict the weather, but with their equipment they had to know a storm was coming. For a company that relies so much on customer satisfaction, leaving passengers on a plane for nine or more hours is unacceptable. I liked what you said about making sure everyone understands a press release. Luntz made this very clear in the reading, especially with his point about the number of people that have graduated from college.
RE: Comment
I think you bring up a good point about them not having a plan in advance, but I also think you should remember that Jet Blue was still a young company who hadn't really dealt with anything on this scale yet. True Jet Blue must have had some sort of indication that storms were coming, but to put together a plan in the amount of time between knowing about the storm and the grounding of the plans would have taken a miracle. I'm sure a full blown severe weather plan that grounds several planes, trapping passengers, takes more than a few hours to put together.
All that being said, I still feel that you are right. Even before knowing of these storms a plan should have been in place, and the breakdown that caused passengers to sit in planes for almost 11 hours is, as you said, unacceptable. To me it was a combination of inexperience and blind optimism. They didn't have a plan in place, but they also knew the weather could change, as weather often does, at any moment. But to wait as long as they did and to allow the communication meltdown that immediately followed was inexcusable.
I also believe that JetBlue
I also believe that JetBlue handled the situation, but there was a big miscommunication between the flight and its passengers. Creating the bill of rights was a smart move for the JetBlue to cover its tracks. I think their method of reparation is excellent by providing vouchers and refunds. I believe that the company will not only retain its customer based, but will also gain new customers because of their integrity has not been compromised. I also believe that the most important feature of a press release is the effective communication. it is very essential that the message is presented not thoroughly, but also sincerely. The tone and the content must be appealing to public.
comment
I agree that the followed actions made by JetBlue company were very smart and effective. On the other hand, I think an airline company can't be excused for their miscommunication and ineffective detention of customers for a long time even if the company is young and never faced the sitaution before. I think if a company wants to be the top and successful, they had to have the wisdom of treatment even in emergent and inevitable situation such as cruel weather condition. Of course, there will be some parts nobody can handle except the God, but if the company took those actions which were taken after the cirsis more earlier, the company could have lessen the disgruntled compalints on that day and could gain much higher admires from customers.
However, since the CEO's attitude was very sincere and promising, I think his ethical reaction could assuage the criticisms and made a smart start to be the truthful company for the future.
I also agree that the effectivess will be the most important part in the press release project. I think it is sometimes more difficult to be concise and effective than to be lengthy and explaining with enough descreption, and the Luntz reading helpd me in this aspect.