Southwest Airlines

Problem

Gary Kelly, CEO of Southwest Airlines, was troubled with the idea that Southwest might have to eliminate open-seating. Some people loved it and some hated it. It seemed like a lose-lose situation. He felt he needed some honest feedback from Southwest customers before he made a final decision.

Social Media Solution

Kelly was just learning to use the company's "Nuts About Southwest" blog when he decided to try the blog to go directly to customers. When he posted his dilemma on the blog, 80-90% of the hundreds of customers who commented back didn't want Southwest to do away with the open-seating policy. Based on this feedback, and the emotional outpouring of customer sentiment, he decided to keep open seating, but with some small modifications. When Southwest posted its new approach on the blog, including a video explaining the changes, it received hundreds of favorable comments.

Success

Southwest took a difficult situation and turned it into a win-win. By utilizing a personal touch on the blog, Kelly got superior emotional feedback and far better insights than with impersonal market research. Today Southwest extensively uses its blog to engage it customers, for announce-ments on service changes, and evaluating new ideas.