Scoot's witty SGAG maneuver

Earlier, Scoot put out a deal to fly from Singapore to Seoul for SG$188. Taking place at the unfortunate timing of political tension with neighboring North Korea, the brand fell prey to a bit of teasing on popular gag site SGAG.Shortly after, the brand once again faced criticism from SGAG with its promotion fares to Nanjing for SG$98, with the ongoing bird flu scares in China.Instead of keeping mum on the matter, Scoot speedily reacted by offering the SGAG administrators a free trip to Seoul and offering ScootProtect (travel insurance) to the first 10 SGAG fans who plan to fly to Nanjing. Scoot's representative even cheekily added that it would not sponsor flu masks, however, as these can be cheaply bought at local 7-11 stores.Scoot's reaction seems to have done it a good turn in terms of winning the social media crowd, with several fans commenting favorably on its approach.Agency executives are lauding its humorous take as well.Simon Kemp, managing director at We Are Social said that the move not only increases audience engagement, it also drives conversation away from the issues at the "heart of the initial SGAG post." The response by Scoot allows the brand to retain its humorous and fun brand image and genuine nature, he adds.Keith Timimi, chairman of VML agreed, saying that the move by Scoot is a refreshing one - seeing a brand join in the spirit of social media by enjoying the joke, and getting in a bit of banter.Ultimately he added, such camaraderie of spirit is needed in winning fans at the end of the day. Referring back to Scoot's parent company SIA's previous crisis, he said successful management of digital and social channels will separate the winners and losers of the 21st century.Earlier, at Marketing's Customer Loyalty 2013 conference, Scoot's head of commercial Steven Greenway said that social media was one of the company's biggest channels of communication and for conveying the fun side of the brand to the public.He added that mediums such as Facebook is a platform to gel with fans as well as cynics.