Delta’s ScottEVest Ad Rejection Turns into PR Blunder
The interwebs are abuzz withpeople condemning Delta(DAL) for rejecting an ad from ScottEVest, which sells coats and vests that lets you stash all kinds of junk in them instead of requiring a carry-on. Now long after the story broke, Delta is releasing its own version of events, but really that doesn’t matter. Because Delta failed to address this quickly, this non-story has become a story.
Let’s start by looking at the ad in question. Here it is:
Apparently, there was some objection to the content and it went back to ScottEVest. The ad never ended up getting published. What was the objection? According to Delta, it was around the implication that Delta had carry-on fees. Here’s the statement from the airline.
Our discrepancy with this particular vendor was strictly based on creative standards. The submitted advertisement implied this product could help passengers avoid baggage fees, particularly for carry-on items. Delta Air Lines has no fees for any carry-on baggage, therefore this could be potentially misleading to our customers. Delta Sky Magazine staff did not receive a revised ad as has been suggested. SCOTTeVEST is welcome to advertise in Sky Magazine with an ad that meets our creative standards, including accurately representing our policies.
That makes some sense, but I’m sure this relatively tersely worded statement isn’t telling the whole story. But does it really matter? No. What matters is who wins the social media battle for public perception, and that’s not Delta.
So far, Delta’s story isn’t getting out there, and many more are following ScottEVest’s suggestion that Delta is out to protect its bag fees and that’s why this wasn’t allowed. That in itself doesn’t make much sense to me.
The argument goes that Delta wants to protect bag fees, so it doesn’t want to advertise a vest that helps avoid them. That seems unlikely. First of all, this vest simply let’s you stuff a few things inside so that you either don’t need a carry-on or you can stuff enough in your carry-on to avoid having to check a bag. If it’s just helping you avoid a carry-on, Delta loses no money, as pointed out in the statement above. And I find it hard to believe that a lot of people are going to be able to avoid checking a bag because of this vest.
The vest doesn’t help people get around the liquid ban or anything like that. So for most people who were going to check a bag, they’re still going to have to check a bag. Is there really a huge goldmine of revenue that Delta is preventing from leaking here? I mean, how many people are going to travel with these vests just to avoid checking a bag? I can’t imagine it’s a big number at all, so why would Delta even care? They really wouldn’t. And even if they did, so what? If you ran a company, wouldn’t you block an ad from someone that’s competing with your offerings?
So to me, this shouldn’t be a story, but it is. ScottEVest has managed to convince a lot of people that Delta is the big bad Goliath and ScottEVest is the underdog fighting the good fight against bag fees. I find that to be laughable, but it’s gaining traction and the only winner here is ScottEVest which gets a ton of free PR. Delta’s slow and limited PR response did not do the job here. This thing went viral quickly. And what has Delta done about it? Very little. The airline just offered that statement late in the game and that’s about it.
ScottEVest gets a ton of positive media coverage and Delta gets a very small black eye. Even though it’s small, with the coverage that this issue has received, Delta should have been out there talking about it. By the time the airline gets to that point, it will be too late.
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