Pax Prefer Posting Reviews Away From Airlines’ Social Media Pages
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APEX Insight: With customers now preferring to air their grievances publicly rather than going directly to an organization, social listening is key to managing airlines’ reputations, and can help them figure out where it’s best to engage with each demographic.
In addition to their reputation report on four Middle Eastern carriers, Toulouse Business School also worked with Talkwalker to produce a second report about how US airlines American, Delta and United are perceived both on and offline. The document provides insight into where and how airlines are being talked about.
Of nearly 6 million brand mentions, 79 percent were contributed from discussions on social networks
After analyzing eight months of historical data between November 2016 and June 2017 using Talkwalker software, the study found social media is a better source of publicity than more traditional forms of marketing. Of nearly 6 million brand mentions, 79 percent were contributed from discussions on social networks (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube). Articles from news websites, newspapers and magazines ranked second with an 8 percent contribution to the total data. Content from TV/radio and online forums had a 6 percent and 4 percent share respectively. Blog posts ranked fifth with 3 percent share and press releases contributed less than 1 percent to the sample, with just 3,504 posts.
This isn’t necessarily unwelcome news for airlines, though. The report states the highest percentage of negative posts appeared on TV and radio broadcasts (57 percent), forums (54 percent), newspapers (47 percent), Facebook (47 percent), and blogs (46 percent). On the other hand, Twitter and YouTube proved to be conduits for less negative content (36 percent and 33 percent, respectively). Instagram appeared to be the most brand-friendly of all communication channels, with the highest share of positive content (34 percent).
Age has an impact on sentiment.
The study found that age has an impact on sentiment. It claims authors aged 18-24 posted 17 percent positive and 57 percent negative content, while there’s an increased rate of neutral posts among older age groups. Nonetheless, the 65+ age category also posted only 8 percent positive and 45 percent negative content.
Unsurprisingly, reputations in the digital space were proven volatile, whereas offline reputations are much more stable. Online, negative content attracts more attention, with the study claiming that none of the top 10 most engaging posts contained positive content. The report also confirms that general news sites pander to the public’s short-term emotions, with only 3 percent of positive articles and 49 percent negative posts.
Overall, only 17 percent of the total posts studied were marked positive by Talkwalker’s software compared to 38 percent negative posts, but perhaps more importantly, the analysis showed many consumers prefer posting reviews away from a brand’s social media pages. Therefore, to combat negative sentiment, it seems imperative for airlines to engage in narratives outside of its own.