Aplomb or a Bomb – You Decide!

By Craig Perrin It was Autumn. I was in Southern California on the Queen Mary for a marketing showcase with over 120 attendees. Our Product Development and Sales VPs were presenting in the ballroom – a daunting task that they handled with aplomb. I was to “spice up” the showcase and decided to include something on the impact of bad service – about six slides detailing the experience of two guys who went to an upscale hotel and had a less than stellar experience. This was a well-known story, at least for anyone in marketing. It was immensely popular – viral marketing at its best (or worst, if you work for that particular hotel chain). That part of the showcase was a hit, with over half the audience handing us their business cards so we could email the story I told.   Unfortunately, several individuals from that chain, our customers, were in the audience, and they were not pleased that we had shared the story about one of their brands. We had a significant amount of service recovery to do. This taught me a valuable lesson: Don’t comment, at least publicly, on the actions or response to the actions of any company with whom we may one day want to do business.   I would love to be neutral enough/big enough/not dependant enough, etc. that we as an organization could say what we wanted about any organization or individual in the news. Our choice, in this blog and elsewhere, is to hold our collective tongue. Have you had a similar experience? Do you agree or disagree with our approach? Please let us know!