American Airlines problemsHere’s the list of public relations tactics American Airlines adopted after canceling  more than 3,000 flights this month:

According to PRWeek, it:

—Enlisted its seven-person PR team, other staffers and Weber Shandwick, its PR firm, to inform the public about the reasons for the delay.

—Handed out press releases to customers at some of its largest hubs.

—Sent millions of emails to its AAdvantage members.

—Launched a corporate blog.  (And a crummy blog, at that. Why do companies launch corporate blogs when they’re in the middle of a crisis? Why don’t they launch them long before a crisis occurs, so they don’t have to waste precious time handling the crisis AND  learning how to blog?)

—Sent twice-daily press releases to reporters.

—Held three news conferences.

—Used bulletin boards and the Intranet to distribute updates and talking points to employees.  

To add to the airlines’ woes, disgruntled employees have launched a new website, “Tell Your AA Story,” which invites passengers and employees to share their nightmares about the airlines. 

OK, Publicity Hounds. What else should American Airlines have done?

Posted In: Blogs, Crisis Communications, PR Consultants/Publicists, Publicity on the Internet
posted On: 4/25/2008: 7:12 am: By Joan
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