How Delta is handling its Olympics campaign amid cancellation backlash

Delta is pressing forward with its Olympics campaign even as it deals with massive backlash following IT-related flight cancellations and delays. A multiyear sponsor of Team USA, the carrier is running several TV, out-of-home and digital ads highlighting athletic training and grit in getting to Paris 2024. Also read: Brands’ plans across NBCU for the Olympics That push has come under public scrutiny this week as some stranded travelers have criticized Delta for spending on an ad campaign when it has canceled more than 6,000 flights stemming from last week’s IT system failure. The global failure by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, which blamed a bug, impacted millions of Microsoft Windows users and caused flight delays and cancellations across the globe. Delta Air Lines was particularly hard-hit in recent days as the company also uses Windows software for its crew tracking. Delta’s issues, which have affected more than half a million passengers, prompted an investigation by U.S. regulators this week. You shouldn't be forced to sleep on the floor of an airport or stranded without access to customer service help.⁰⁰We are taking action to investigate Delta for its treatment of passengers.⁰https://t.co/x1rM4CZhyk— Secretary Pete Buttigieg (@SecretaryPete) July 24, 2024 A Delta spokeswoman confirmed today that the airline’s Team USA creative campaign, which was created with agency partner Wieden+Kennedy, will run as scheduled. This morning, a 30-second Olympic-themed spot called “You Get You There” ran on Universo, according to iSpot. The spokeswoman pointed to a Wednesday Delta news hub post from CEO Ed Bastian assuring customers of Delta’s efforts to resume normal operations, something he expects to occur by tomorrow. “Delta’s team of the best professionals in the business has been working around the clock to restore the reliable, on-time operation you’ve come to know and expect when you fly with us,” he wrote, adding that though early efforts to stabilize “were difficult and frustratingly slow and complex, we have made good progress this week and the worst impacts of the CrowdStrike-caused outage are clearly behind us.” Customers will see prompts to Bastian’s message and other updates through banner displays on Delta.com. The company is also notifying customers about delays and cancellations through app and text message, a spokeswoman said, noting that Delta’s ability to respond to messages on social media platforms is limited. While some consumers appear to sympathize with Delta’s position, others are not as patient. Some pointed to Bastian’s trip to Paris for the Games earlier this week as inappropriate. To all the terrific people at @DeltaCustBroma @Delta we know this wasn’t your mess. Sorry you’ve had to bear the brunt of it on the front lines. This loyal 30+ year customer is standing with you. Hang in there !— Bob Rendine (@BobRendine) July 24, 2024 Delta's Ed Bastian flew to Paris for the Olympics last night on DL84 ATL-CDG.For context, Delta inked a VERY expensive sponsorship agreement to be the official airline for Team USA for the next 10 years.He was supposed to fly Sunday night, then pushed to Monday, then pushed...— JonNYC (@xJonNYC) July 24, 2024 @delta is now below spirit airlines— T-Y (@Tyrand_dquan) July 24, 2024 remind me to never fly with @Delta ever again— bizzy (@foreignlilbizz) July 24, 2024 @Delta CEO Ed Bastian just landed in Paris for the Olympics while thousands of stranded passengers struggle to get home after Delta’s meltdown. Seams like the WRONG move! 🤯 https://t.co/CmnTL1J4F9— SpareFare (@Spare_Fare) July 24, 2024 Drew Kerr, head of crisis prevention advisory The Four Corners Group, compared Delta’s current troubles to Southwest’s holiday meltdown of 2022, which was triggered by snowstorms. Kerr noted that Delta is “ahead of the game” as Bastian has been communicative early on while Southwest’s president “took a week to appear on TV.” But Delta will need to address why its technology has been more affected by the CrowdStrike error than its rivals, Kerr wrote in an email. “Bastian really needs to explain that as soon as possible because at some point, apologies run their course and the narrative is left hanging,” he wrote, adding that trust in Delta has not yet been shaken. “They really have to tie the bow on that explanation about why they were grounded longer,” he noted. CrowdStrike is also still dealing with the fallout from its failures. According to a TechCrunch report, the company gave out $10 Uber Eats gift cards to customers as an apology. Yet many said the cards were not valid and led to an error message. lol Crowdstrike crashed millions of computers with a glitch and then sent an apology to partners in the form of a $10 Uber Eats gift card pic.twitter.com/6ZaYdf1TS6— Sheel Mohnot (@pitdesi) July 24, 2024 Latest CrowdStrike betrayal just dropped: The Uber Eats voucher in the email to partners stating 'your next cup of coffee or late night snack is on us' fails with 'We're sorry, this voucher has been cancelled by the issuing party and is no longer valid' (at least in Aus).— Chris Tappin (@ChrisTappin) July 24, 2024 40 under 40 entries are open The final deadline for nominations is Aug. 2 Enter here

How Delta is handling its Olympics campaign amid cancellation backlash

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