It is obvious that the chief executive of Ryanair, Michael
O’Leary, has never heard the first rule of customer relations, that the customer
is always right. Or if he has, he has chosen to ignore it.
The outspoken boss allegedly delivered an ‘extraordinary
rant’ after a customer made a complaint about being forced to pay an extra fee
of £200 for failing to print off her boarding pass in advance. Mr O’Leary said
those who object to the penalty charge are ‘idiots’ and added that they should
‘b****r off’. Nice words – especially from a high-flying business leader who
could potentially act as role model to young entrepreneurs.
For spokespeople everywhere, there is an important lesson
here. Whatever the topic of the interview (or what kind of day you have had),
your message should always aim to reach out to and not alienate your customer
base.
Perhaps Mr O’Leary should take a lesson from Virgin
Atlantic’s general manager of airport operations, Joe Thompson, who has recently
described the airline’s customers as ‘kings and queens’ while publicising a
study about luggage choice.
If the message you are planning to communicate is unlikely to
appeal to your customers (or worse still cause offence) then you probably
shouldn’t be saying it.
Smarts PR
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