Erich Joachimsthaler, founder and CEO, Vivaldi Group:
“Boeing needs to realize that this crisis is not just about Boeing, not just about engineering. This crisis is much bigger. Boeing is the poster child of evil corporations today. Boeing needs to involve a larger ecosystem to respond, and it needs to engage in a broader dialogue [with] different parts of the fabric of consumers, like Gen Z.
Boeing needs to engage, not just communicate. As the saying goes: Never let a crisis go to waste. This is an opportunity for Boeing to create a platform, a place—whether on YouTube or its website—where it can continuously engage with consumers and explain how it solves the many challenges it faces and how it reestablishes its safety standards.
Boeing needs to establish what we call at Vivaldi a new operating system to manage the brand. Today, you can measure the brand in real time, daily or weekly, and understand where a brand stands.”
Nneka Etoniru, EVP of global brand strategy, Avenue Z:
“There’s never a good time for a crisis—but the best possible time is an election year. Boeing has a short reprieve from media attention at the moment, but the company can’t rely on presidential debates to overtake the news cycle forever. It must address this crisis head-on—internally first, by conducting an evaluation of its brand character and culture, then by promoting a narrative of transparency, quality and trust.
Travelers are often price conscious. As long as Boeing can work on establishing a new path built on consumer trust, traveler confidence will follow. Consider all the influential channels that take part in the traveler purchase journey—that’s exactly where Boeing needs to be.
To get there, Boeing can’t rely on advertising or PR alone. To rebuild brand reputation, first, it has to think across all influential channels, PR and digital combined. Anything less would let the narrative spin further out of control.”
