This week the Inbox Insiders, an email marketing discussion group, had a lot to say about the Kevin Smith vs Southwest Airlines debacle. 

Here's what DJ Waldow of Blue Sky Factory, an eec Silver Sponsor, shared with us: 

I'm more interested in how Southwest handled the situation from a social media perspective. I can't speak to all channels, but I'll start with one of the most visible - Twitter. It started with a tweet from Kevin on Feb 13th at 6:52PM:

Dear @SouthwestAir - I know I'm fat, but was Captain Leysath really justified in throwing me off a flight for which I was already seated?

@SouthwestAir replied 16 minutes later with this: @ThatKevinSmith hey Kevin! I'm so sorry for your experience tonight! Hopefully we can make things right, please follow so we may DM!

I personally think SWA's reply on Twitter was really good. Without knowing the full situation, they did a nice job in replying by acknowledging the issue, apologizing and offering to carry on the conversation privately (via DM).  From there it started to get ugly as Kevin Smith began to tweet like a madman using a ton of profanities.

The one issue I do have with how SWA handled this situation is that they may have jumped the gun a bit with their initial blog post.  It seems as though they might not have gotten all of their facts straight.

Takeaways, Lessons Learned, etc. (just my opinion here):

• Social Media is alive and well.
• People tend to use social media to either sing praises (We love you!) or complain (I was wronged. I hate you!).
• While it is important to reply promptly, be sure to have all of your facts straight.
• Remember that people will be quick to form their own opinions, take sides, and are not afraid to voice their thoughts publicly.
• Twitter is not always the answer; it often takes real humans.
• Sometimes it makes sense to "take it private" (as outlined by Amber Naslund).
• Responding to customer service via social media channels is not really that different than how it "used to be done."

A few resources:

• CNN
• Initial SWA blog post
• 2nd SWA blog post
• Kevin Smith's Side

For more details, check out DJ's blog post.

eec'ers - What do you think?

Did Southwest handle the situation properly? 
Is this all a publicity stunt for Smith's new movie?
Do you think companies should publically respond to customer service issues?

Leave a comment below with your thoughts.

Email done quite well
Is loved by ISPs
And subscribers too

Okay, so I'm not the Shakespeare of the haiku world yet. If you can do better, your creativity could win you a one-year membership in the Email Experience Council, a $399 value and a great way to connect with your fellow email marketers, download resources and improve your email skills.

To say nothing, of course, of the thrill of seeing your content entry displayed on the eec site for the world to appreciate and envy (more on that later).

It all started when a group of self-described "email snobs" started talking via Twitter and blog posts/comments about the language we use to talk about email marketing. Some of the conversation was inspired in part by my latest Email Insider column, "Warning: Blasting May Be Harmful to 'Our' Health."

On an email discussion list, someone posted a response to the conversation about language in the form of a haiku, which begat more haikus and eventually drew the eec into the fray. Now the eec is sponsoring the (sort of) official 2009 Haiku Slam, with eec members voting on the winners.

We're still working out the details, including the page at the eec site where you can view other entries. In the meantime, you can track various fun and serious discussions on email marketing via the hashtag #emailsnob - or Twitter search. Follow me - @LorenMcDonald – and @Silverpop and other participants, and we'll pass on the particulars as they become available. Feel free to contribute to the discussion, too.

Once you have crafted your contest entries, send them to Ali at the eec - aswerdlow at the-dma.org. Post 'em in the comments section here, too, if you're especially proud of them.

Here is another of my planned entries that might inspire your own creativity or your competitive spirit:

Blasts are from the past
And relevance they will kill
ROI, think not

Now, put down that coffee cup and start haiku-ing!


- Loren McDonald, Silverpop, an eec Silver Sponsor