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From Ashes to Ads: How Companies Transform Tragedy into Strategy

Agardh, Siri LU and Fredriksdottir, Freyja (2025) SKOK11 20251
Department of Strategic Communication
Abstract
In an era of increasing global disruption, organizations are no longer passive observers of external crises but utilize them as strategic positioning opportunities. Departing from traditional crisis theories focused on internal incidents where companies are directly involved or bear responsibility, this study investigates the leverage of external crises where companies’
direct involvement is minimal or none. To address this phenomenon, this study examines how two global platform-based companies, Airbnb and Uber, leverage external societal,
environmental, and political crises in their Instagram publications, published between 2020 and 2025. These years were characterized by high crisis frequency and shifting public expectations regarding... (More)
In an era of increasing global disruption, organizations are no longer passive observers of external crises but utilize them as strategic positioning opportunities. Departing from traditional crisis theories focused on internal incidents where companies are directly involved or bear responsibility, this study investigates the leverage of external crises where companies’
direct involvement is minimal or none. To address this phenomenon, this study examines how two global platform-based companies, Airbnb and Uber, leverage external societal,
environmental, and political crises in their Instagram publications, published between 2020 and 2025. These years were characterized by high crisis frequency and shifting public expectations regarding corporate responsibility. Drawing on Situational Crisis Communication Theory and Framing Theory, a qualitative content analysis was conducted involving categorizing crises according to their nature and analyzing companies’ communicative strategies through attributional relevance and framing dimensions. The findings show that while companies are not directly responsible for the crises they reference, they strategically construct narratives around them to generate emotional engagement, legitimacy, and trust for their efforts. Additionally, three novel positioning strategies were identifed, defined as opportunism, piggybacking, and exploitation. These indicate an emerging pattern where external crises are tactically integrated into company narratives, shaping their image and reputation. The study provides a deeper understanding of how crisis contexts are leveraged with strategic communication within corporate social media. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
I en tid av ökande globala utmaningar är organisationer inte längre passiva åskådare till externa kriser, utan använder dem som strategiska möjligheter för positionering. Genom att avvika från traditionella kristeorier som fokuserar på interna händelser där företag är direkt involverade eller bär ansvar, undersöker denna studie hur externa kriser utnyttjas när företagens direkta inblandning är minimal eller obefintlig. För att undersöka detta fenomen granskar studien hur två globala plattformsbaserade företag, Airbnb och Uber, använder externa samhälleliga, miljömässiga och politiska kriser i sina Instagram-publiceringar för positioneringssyften, publicerade mellan 2020 och 2025. Dessa år kännetecknades av en hög frekvens av kriser och... (More)
I en tid av ökande globala utmaningar är organisationer inte längre passiva åskådare till externa kriser, utan använder dem som strategiska möjligheter för positionering. Genom att avvika från traditionella kristeorier som fokuserar på interna händelser där företag är direkt involverade eller bär ansvar, undersöker denna studie hur externa kriser utnyttjas när företagens direkta inblandning är minimal eller obefintlig. För att undersöka detta fenomen granskar studien hur två globala plattformsbaserade företag, Airbnb och Uber, använder externa samhälleliga, miljömässiga och politiska kriser i sina Instagram-publiceringar för positioneringssyften, publicerade mellan 2020 och 2025. Dessa år kännetecknades av en hög frekvens av kriser och förändrade offentliga förväntningar gällande företagsansvar. Med utgångspunkt i Situational Crisis Communication Theory och Framing Theory genomfördes en kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Detta innebar kategorisering av kriser utifrån deras karaktär samt analys av företagens kommunikationsstrategier genom attribut, relevans och olika inramningsdimensioner. Resultaten visar att även om företagen inte är direkt ansvariga för de kriser de refererar till, så konstruerar de strategiska narrativ kring dem för att skapa emotionellt engagemang, legitimitet och förtroende för sina handlingar. Dessutom identifieras tre nya positioneringsstrategier, vilka definieras som opportunism, piggybacking och exploatering. Dessa indikerar ett framväxande mönster där externa kriser taktiskt integreras i organisationskommunikation, vilket påverkar image och anseende. Studien bidrar med en djupare förståelse för hur externa krissituationer utnyttjas med hjälp av strategisk kommunikation inom företags sociala medier. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Agardh, Siri LU and Fredriksdottir, Freyja
supervisor
organization
alternative title
Strategic Positioning through External Crisis Communication: A Qualitative Case Study
course
SKOK11 20251
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Crisis communication, crises, opportunity, social media, situational crisis communication theory, framing theory, coding, positioning, communication strategies
language
English
id
9192418
date added to LUP
2025-06-30 11:14:58
date last changed
2025-06-30 11:14:58
@misc{9192418,
  abstract     = {{In an era of increasing global disruption, organizations are no longer passive observers of external crises but utilize them as strategic positioning opportunities. Departing from traditional crisis theories focused on internal incidents where companies are directly involved or bear responsibility, this study investigates the leverage of external crises where companies’
direct involvement is minimal or none. To address this phenomenon, this study examines how two global platform-based companies, Airbnb and Uber, leverage external societal,
environmental, and political crises in their Instagram publications, published between 2020 and 2025. These years were characterized by high crisis frequency and shifting public expectations regarding corporate responsibility. Drawing on Situational Crisis Communication Theory and Framing Theory, a qualitative content analysis was conducted involving categorizing crises according to their nature and analyzing companies’ communicative strategies through attributional relevance and framing dimensions. The findings show that while companies are not directly responsible for the crises they reference, they strategically construct narratives around them to generate emotional engagement, legitimacy, and trust for their efforts. Additionally, three novel positioning strategies were identifed, defined as opportunism, piggybacking, and exploitation. These indicate an emerging pattern where external crises are tactically integrated into company narratives, shaping their image and reputation. The study provides a deeper understanding of how crisis contexts are leveraged with strategic communication within corporate social media.}},
  author       = {{Agardh, Siri and Fredriksdottir, Freyja}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{From Ashes to Ads: How Companies Transform Tragedy into Strategy}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}