Why United Airline's dress code for girls sparked PR disaster

On a flight from Denver, Colorado, to Minneapolis, Minnesota, early Sunday morning, Shannon Watts observed a United Airlines gate agent refuse to allow two young girls on the plane because they were wearing leggings.

Watts took to Twitter immediately to document the incident, decrying the apparent policing of girls’ clothing and regarding the dress code enforcement as “sexist and hypocritical.”

Watts objected to the policy, saying that it sexualizes young girls who were simply wearing comfortable clothing. She questioned if boys were subjected to the same sort of policy.
As the incident unfolded in real time on Twitter, United’s own social media account began to chime in. But the airline’s responses seemed to only stir the pot and trigger more anger. This kind of gaff is increasingly making the case for the engagement of social media account managers with a Public Relations background or appreciation.
Amid the reactions, chatter, questions, jokes, and the like - all to be expected when a social media PR disaster begins to unfold - one fact seemed to be getting lost in the shuffle: The family members flying on United, according to the airline’s social media account, were "United Pass Travellers" which refers to an employee standby status that is subject to a separate set of rules and guidelines, including the dress code.
Yet, Watts was quick to point out that the girls were traveling with their dad, who was allowed to fly in shorts.
As written by others who commented on Twitter (many of whom claim to have travelled for years under similar rules), perhaps it’s time for those long-held guidelines to be changed.
Regarding the United dress code, a website that reportedly lists dress code guideline for United employees travelling via the Pass programme states the following attire is unacceptable:
  •          Any attire that reveals a midriff
  •          Attire that reveals any type of undergarments
  •          Attire that is designated as sleepwear, underwear, or swim attire
  •          Miniskirts
  •          Shorts that do not meet three inches above the knee when in a standing              position
  •          Form-fitting lycra/spandex tops, pants, and dresses
  •          Attire that has offensive and/or derogatory terminology or graphics
  •          Attire that is excessively dirty or has holes/tears
  •          Any attire that is provocative, inappropriately revealing, or see-through             clothing
  •          Bare feet
  •              Beach-type, rubber flip-flops

Customer Service’s Judgment will prevail in all matters pertaining to the dress code.
Source: Flyzed.info
Still, other observers pointed out discrepancies, citing examples when United seemed perfectly happy to display women in leggings and yoga attire.
Importantly, addressing a dressing issue transcends dexterity at manipulating social media tools and platforms. It extends to the perception than is created in the minds of flyers, which might determine whether to continue flying with United or whether to consider other flying options where they will be welcome wearing apparels that make them comfortable, primarily.
A PR practitioner would have been able to predict and pre-address such issues than try trying to defend and rationalise what customers find offensive.
By Shannon Watts, an eye-witness to the incident. As reported on Yahoo!
Additional reports by ‘Dele Dele-Olukoju, Marketing Communication strategist and publisher of the online Marketing Communication Digest. He writes from Lagos, Nigeria. @deleolukoju +234 807 481 2389.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Six Pillars of Customer Service

Image
According to Belding , global leaders in Customer Service Training and Workplace Performance, the behaviour that creates outstanding Customer Service fall into six categories, referred to as the Six Pillars of Customer Service.    Attitude Being caring; solution-driven; having empathy; being positive; being friendly and cheerful; having energy; being on-stage are parts of the hallmark of attitude. Attitude is the cornerstone of outstanding customer service, and contrary to popular belief, you can influence it. Interest Being 100% customer-focused; asking questions; listening; and personalizing the relationship exhibit interest.  All of our actions need to convey to a customer that they are important to us. The research tells us that over 80% of service failures come from the perception that ‘you just don't care’. Action Action is about taking ownership, solving problems, being creative, following through, and following up. When c...
Read more

Understanding the buyer's journey

Image
Just stop interrupting! Now, would you ask someone to marry you on the first date? Nollywood romance stories sometime portray such successful ‘love at first sight’ scenarios. But we know it’s never that simple in real life. Reality normally requires building a relationship before popping the question; earning trust, learning to know one another, seeing that you are right for each other and taking the relationship to the next level when you're ready. If this makes sense to you so far, then why are you selling, or trying to sell to strangers on your first date with them? So what's the buyer's journey? Simply, “the buyer’s journey is the active research process a potential buyer goes through leading up to a purchase." There are three stages to the average buyer's journey : the Awareness stage; the Consideration Stage; and the Decision Stage. Awareness: The awareness stage represents the top of the marketing funnel (TOFU). For example, the ...
Read more

What is Marketing Automation?

Image
If you're not sure what marketing automation is, and you have been embarrassed to ask, this post is exactly what you need. In a nutshell, Marketing Automation (MA) is a software that enables marketers to automate many repetitive marketing activities like sending emails, classifying leads, scheduling social media messages, etc. The software also helps to collect marketing data across various marketing channels and turn the data into actionable insights when integrated with a CRM. And it's a big deal - over the past several years, Marketing Automation has seen a huge increase in usability all over the world. In fact, the adoption of Marketing Automation has increased ten fold just from 2011-2014. So what’s the reason behind this massive growth? Probably the most significant one is that data, as a resource, becomes more and more available to technically any business. Interpreting, understanding and implementing the data correctly are what now matter more. MA tools hav...
Read more