First Lesson From Amazon.com's PR Fail

Image used with permission from Southern Expressions

In case you missed out on the internet's top story yesterday, retain giant Amazon.com came under intense fire 
from thousands of twitter-users and mommy bloggers due to the sale of a apparent "how-to guide for ped*philes."

For a summary of the story from CNN.com and Anderson Cooper click here.

From the video you can see immediately where Amazon missed one key mark; apologize first. If you have offended a customer, whether you believe they are right or not, apologize.

Amazon has yet to issue a statement that actually addresses the issue of why customers are upset. As a business Amazon has the right to sell the products they deem appropriate. Complete listing of what is not allowed is available here.

Bloggers and facebook users are continuing the attack against the online retailer, with many asking for an apology or explanation regarding the situation.Will Amazon.com see a decline in sales? At this point it is hard to say, although with the holiday's around the corner and many internet users turning to online retailers it is likely that Amazon.com will miss out on some of the revenue they were likely to see.

Do you have a plan in place for responding to upset customers? A seemingly 'blanket statement' may not be appropriate (or enough) in all situations. Develop a plan before issues arise and you'll be ready to handle any situation.