Welcome to episode #041 of The Crisis Intelligence Podcast, with Melissa Agnes and Dave Carroll.
In 2009, Canadian musician Dave Carroll published the first of three videos telling the story of how United Airlines carelessly broke his guitar. This video, as I’m sure you recall, was titled “United Breaks Guitars” – and it created a media frenzy that a) sent United Airlines’s reputation down a downward spiral, resulting in an estimated $1.8 million dollar loss that year; and b) jump-started Dave Carroll’s career as a consumer activist, speaker, musician and author.
Within this episode of The Crisis Intelligence Podcast, I chat with Dave about his experience with United Breaks Guitars, what it meant, new developments that it may have helped manifest (i.e.: the new US Department of Transportation’s decision that allows musicians to bring guitars onboard all US airplanes) – and a whole bunch more. There’s also some great messages in his story about being open and receptive to opportunities as they come to you – and yes, this also applies to your crisis and issues management!
This episode of The Crisis Intelligence Podcast discusses:
- The impact that one person’s voice can have on your organization – whether for the positive or negative.
- The dangers of allowing your organization to view any type of incident – or customer – as statistically insignificant.
- The power of story-telling in (and out of) crisis management.
- The importance of spotting opportunities and being prepared to proactively leverage them.
- Dave’s biggest crisis management advice he has to offer to organizations.
If you followed United Breaks Guitars in 2009 – and even if you didn’t – you’ll enjoy this listen!
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Running time: 52:01
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About host, Melissa Agnes
Learn more about Melissa Agnes
Follow Melissa on Twitter: @melissa_agnes
Connect with Melissa on LinkedIn
Email Melissa directly: melissa@melissaagnes.com
Learn more about Agnes + Day, Melissa’s crisis management firm.
About guest, Dave Carroll
Learn more about Dave Carroll, the musician, speaker and author: davecarrollmusic.com
Contact Dave directly: dave@davecarrollmusic.com
Follow Dave on Twitter: @davecarroll
Learn more about the United Breaks Guitars story and impact on United Airlines
More on Dave’s story-telling workshop
A warm thanks to Dave for taking the time to have this insightful discussion with me!
Author of Crisis Ready: Building an Invincible Brand in an Uncertain World, Melissa Agnes is a leading authority on crisis preparedness, reputation management, and brand protection. Agnes is a coveted keynote speaker, commentator, and advisor to some of today’s leading organizations faced with the greatest risks. Learn more about Melissa and her work here.
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