Freeze To Death With Geared Up ScotRail: PR Disaster
SCOTRAIL has released an encouraging e-mail to every customer who ever bothered to check one of its on-line timetables. Most of the more sensible customers were probably reaching for razor blades to slit their wrists in a nice warm bath.
The opening shots in the “come and travel with us teaser” extols its services and starts with:
According to some forecasters, we’re set for another severe winter. That’s why at ScotRail, we are geared up this year to keep more trains running and stations clear, having invested more than £2 million in new equipment and engineering
The picture chosen to illustrate the monopoly supplier’s new two million quid improved service is to the left.
When travellers were trapped in sub-zero temperatures while ScotRail resorted to sweating line teams to try and dig the coach units free from drifting snow. Passengers were trapped for hours. A couple of times last winter trains could only be moved to spots where customers could eventually hoof it to nearby roads to reach warmth in waiting buses.
A right little winter warmer from a PR – Promotions team which wants a damn good roasting.
As a campaign to flog tickets it is about as helpful as:
The Lever Brothers soap ad for Lifebuoy ‘knocks out B.O.’ Vile smelling customers dashed to queue for the little red bars of shame.
The original ‘Body Odour’ beater campaign had been in 1905 and continued in various forms until the soap was withdrawn in 1987. No one wanted to buy the soap which cured personal hygiene problems.
Just as no one is likely this sub-Arctic time around to want to freeze to death courtesy of those very nice people at ScotRail.
Posted: 10th, November 2011 | In: The Consumer Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
