Social Media - That'll Cost You $180 million

17 replies
Musician Dave Carroll, fed up with the 'customer service' he was getting, decided to use his talents and write a song about it...

3 million hits later on YouTube (in 2 weeks) and the company's stock is down $180M - with 2 more videos to go.

I actually flew internationally with these guys (the airline, that is) recently and they were fine - except for $6 a beer.

Dave's take on the story:

United Breaks Guitars | Dave Carroll Music

Hat tip to:
Long Island Exchange - Dave Carroll Tweaks the Stock Market

Interesting how this one's gone viral - and the corp's response to 'spinning' the story is classic.
#$180 #cost #media #million #social #thatll
  • Profile picture of the author LilBlackDress
    Wow! They picked the wrong guitar to break...and as for Dave I bet his career gets a huge boost out of this one. Talk about turning lemons into lemonade. Brilliant!
    Signature

    Pen Name + 8 eBooks + social media sites 4 SALE - PM me (evergreen beauty niche)

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011400].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author yourreviewer
    Thanks Mark for sharing this. It was a very interesting read. There was an instance when Comcast received bad PR for a single lousy act by their technician.

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011411].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Shana_Adam
    i loved this - great video. Its really funny tooo
    Signature

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011428].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author sevenish
    Whoa! What a great story. That video is hilarious too.
    Signature

    100% atrocity-free! No annihilations, assasinations, explosions, killers, crushers, massacres, bombs, skyrockets or nukes.

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011449].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Ron Killian
    These kinds of stories are great, I love them. Getting big, often faceless corporations attention. Sad it has to go to those lengths.

    Sure shows the power of social media!
    Signature
    PLR Affiliate Program Has Launched! Easily Promote Over 5,000 PLR and MRR Products.

    Largest Selection of PLR Articles on the Planet! PLR Ebooks, PLR Video, PLR Websites and more with Private Label Rights
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011546].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author charlesburke
    I wonder - anybody tracking Taylor Guitar's stock this past 2 weeks?

    Cheers, Charles
    Signature
    MisterEbook.com
    Special offer for all Warrior authors... MisterEbook.com/warriorsonly.html
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011587].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Ron Killian
      Originally Posted by charlesburke View Post

      I wonder - anybody tracking Taylor Guitar's stock this past 2 weeks?

      Cheers, Charles
      Great idea, that could be very interesting!
      Signature
      PLR Affiliate Program Has Launched! Easily Promote Over 5,000 PLR and MRR Products.

      Largest Selection of PLR Articles on the Planet! PLR Ebooks, PLR Video, PLR Websites and more with Private Label Rights
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011594].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author sevenish
        Originally Posted by Ron Killian View Post

        Great idea, that could be very interesting!
        Only if it's a public company with a liquid security. It's not. Taylor is a privately held company.

        That said, I do hope they're enjoying the PR. I really love this story.
        Signature

        100% atrocity-free! No annihilations, assasinations, explosions, killers, crushers, massacres, bombs, skyrockets or nukes.

        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011626].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Kirahster
    There was also the video that was released with Dominos pizza employees picking their nose with pieces of cheese and then putting it on the pizza.
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011894].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Vikuna2009+
      And THIS is just the beginning... lol......
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1011990].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author MeCanX
    Just goes to show what happens when you get to big for your own support...Geez...nobody seems to care anymore about customer service.
    Signature

    I teach people how to create a steady/stable income on the internet without all the hype. $19.95 a month get's you 24/7 Access to training videos + more that will teach you the same as the big guys. Niche Marketing Zorro - www.nichemarketingzorro.com

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1012093].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author TheRichLife
      It's a great story, and I'm sure the video going viral will create a nice bump on the singer's career.

      However, the stock price drop is completely unrelated to this video. The idea of bringing them down to the tune of $180mil may sound great, but it's lack of passenger seats being full, and fuel prices going higher, that have brought down not just UAL's stock, but the airlines in general.
      Signature

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1012191].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author greenovni
    Good for him! Fight the power with a youtube video... Only in America
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1012989].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author stevenbrandon411
    That is a great story. It really makes you think on how much one person can do.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1013261].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author rlpruitt
    Loved it!

    Thanks,

    Ralph
    Signature
    Tell me if I'm dumb, stupid, or just feakin' out of my mind!
    The Marketing Power Pak - FANTASTIC! marketing plugins for WordPress
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1013429].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Collette
      This is what can happen when you tap into a common emotion in the marketplace.

      The day after the video posted on YouTube, Carroll got over 500,000 views. He was also mentioned on CNN and MSNBC.

      Second day: over 1.5 mil views. Gazillion comments.

      Third day: 3.5 mil views, and rising. On YouTube ALONE.

      Plus, at least 30 seconds of primetime coverage on CNN, NBC, Fox, CBS, ABC, and NPR. And those are just the ones I caught.

      That's not counting the bloggers, tweeters, email forwards, tv viewers, and straight word-of-mouth.

      On Day Four - yes FOUR! - United contacted the guy and offered to pay the $3,700 for his guitar repair bill.

      Now, understand, when this all began, Carroll wasn't even asking United to replace the guitar. He asked them to pay for the repair bill. And, as you know, they refused.

      So, for a measly $3,700, United bought themselves all the bad publicity they could handle.

      To put this in perspective, a half-page ad in any of the major dailys will run you @$15,000 or more for a single day. A 10 - 15 sec tv ad spot will run you $10,000 or more, depending on when and where it runs.

      The lesson: Don't f%$^ with viral. The next time someone asks you to honor your guarantee for your $17 (or $97) ebook - just pay 'em and be done with it.

      Because fallout's a beyotch.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1013522].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Rus Sells
    I'd fall asleep on some ones couch if I had to spend an hour on hold with any one! LOL
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1013531].message }}

Trending Topics