Posts from the ‘Alaska Airlines’ Category
Gulliver, writing for The Economist, touching on the Alaska Airlines bungle last week (and summarising it well in his post).
And he concludes:
“Companies in industries like air travel that involve high levels of direct interaction with customers have to take negative social-media attention extremely seriously. In this case, Alaska/Horizon’s official response was too slow (a day is an eternity in social media) and took a tone that backfired on the company. Getting the right response up quickly is hard, but in cases like these, it’s also necessary.”
I pretty much agree with the above statement — but with the exception of how the “official response was too slow”.
Yes, a day in social media, or even the Internet, can seem like a very long time. Yet, in cases where a sufficient level of information is required to make a sustainable determination is still a must, and can only be done at a real-world pace.
The opportunity cost of possibly jumping the gun, for the sake of providing the awaiting social media audience with a timely response, can have a far-worser effect than the offending party seemingly dragging their feet (relative to Internet time) and providing the best-possible response.
I believe Alaska Airlines has done what was needed to alleviate the given situation — enough said.
UPDATE: Apparently, the company is now looking for a solution to the problem:
“@ghimlay: .@AlaskaAir is hiring a director of corp comms, based in SEA if anyone is keen! http://www.journalismjobs.com/Job_Listing.cfm?Media=Other&JobID=1406203”
Unfortunately, yes — according to this CNBC article:
“Alaska Airlines quietly adjusted their checked baggage fee policy for first class travelers. Beginning July 10, some passengers who upgraded to first class will be charged a $20 fee for their first and second checked bag — something they previously got for free.
Full-fare first class customers still get the first two bags free, as do elite frequent flyers of Alaska’s “Mileage Plan” program — plus certain elites from Delta and American Airlines — but this marks the first time a U.S. airline has levied a checked bag fee to a passenger riding in the front cabin, upgrade or otherwise.”
No matter how this seems, it simply doesn’t sit right.
This train of thought pretty much nails it:
“It’s the mileage upgrade aspect that is more alarming to me. If I’ve earned enough miles to redeem them for a first class upgrade, I would expect all the benefits entitled to me as a first class passenger.”
So much for all that loyalty towards your airline…
