Chase sparks backlash over tweet mocking customers for spending money
Chase Bank deleted a tweet this week where it appeared that the bank was doing some personal finance shaming. The tweet mocked customers for spending too much money on eating out, taking cabs and drinking coffee.
The bank had posted a similar tweet in January that did not provoke the same ire. The tweet altered the lyrics of the Ariana Grande song Seven Rings: “You see it, you like it, you want it, don’t buy it! – Your Bank Account.”
But this more recent tweet enraged people who saw the advice proffered as tone-deaf and callous. They questioned why the bank felt the need to bully consumers to save, especially in an economy where 40% of Americans would not be able to afford an unexpected $400 expense. Others wondered why the bank that played a role in the 2008 financial crisis felt the need to opine on the financial habits of others. The Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren did her own version of the meme to make that very point.
This is the second time recently that Chase has made headlines in an unflattering way. During a congressional hearing, Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JP Morgan Chase, was unable to explain how one of his company’s tellers, a single mother, would be able to afford to live on the wages provided by the company. Congresswoman Katie Porter showed that with living expenses, a teller at Chase would be almost $600 short on living expenses each month.
Porter has also criticized Chase’s most recent tweet and wondered if this was the budget Dimon’s “crackerjack leadership team came up with”.
This may be a prime example of what can go wrong when a company attempts to become “relatable” on social media. Though Chase deleted the tweet, one can easily find others on the corporation’s feed that would infuriate any person who is struggling in this economy. These tweets link to articles that provide financial advice that’s seemingly unmoored from reality. Can one really pay college tuition by selling chocolates? With the average cost of college for in-state residents totaling almost $10,000 a year, it seems one would have to sell quite a lot of candy to realize this vision.
Chase was attempting to emulate the success other companies have had in using Twitter to engage customers, and they are not the only company to fail at it. Just yesterday, Uber apologized for a racist tweet that resulted from an exchange with a Twitter troll. Perhaps corporations should follow the folk wisdom of the internet and never tweet.