A friend sent me this a few days ago, and I’ve heard since that it’s been on the news. It’s a great example of how big business should be paying attention to how they are perceived by customers.

In today’s Social Networking environment, bad news travels at the click of a mouse to millions across the world. United Airlines learned this the hard way, and may have a tough time overcoming their latest customer-service snafu.

The short of it is that over-enthusiastic baggage handlers smashed a rather expensive Taylor guitar owned by Dave Carroll, a Canadian musician who was flying with them. Repeated attempts to get satisfaction from anyone at United were met with a “talk to the hand”  attitude.  That is,  until the musician fought back with a music video posted on YouTube that you just have to see.

This is a good lesson for any business–not just the big airlines. Use Social Media to monitor your reputation, expand customer service, build and protect your brand.  And mind your P’s and Q’s—cuz everyone’s watching.