4. RESEARCH RESULTS
5.5 Types of CER-Related Posts
Figure 8. Types of CER-related posts- all posts from all aviation entities.
Looking at the above Figure 8. on types of CER-related posts the airlines posted on their social media platforms, we can see that both Finnair and Air France-KLM Group posted mainly images with a text caption. Referring to appendix 10.-12., both aviation entities used mainly Twitter for these posts, however Finnair’s percentage for such posts on Facebook was over three times higher than that of Air France-KLM’s. Both aviation entities posted a similar percentage of videos, Finnair only on Twitter and Air France-KLM an equal amount on Twitter and Facebook. They both posted a single only-text post, on Twitter. Lufthansa Group posted an equal number of images with text captions and videos, all on Twitter. This demonstrates that all the studied airlines are using images and visual content to capture the attention of the reader and create visibility for CER-related matters. They are also using videos, however on a smaller scale, to visualize environmental issues in more depth. These kinds of content fit the modern social media feeds and can capture the attention of today’s audiences.
14
1
4 2
0
2 25
1
3 0
5 10 15 20 25 30
Image and text Only text Video
Number of Posts
Finnair Lufthansa Group Air France-KLM Group
6. CONCLUSION
It appears that all the studied aviation entities; Finnair, Lufthansa Group and Air France-KLM Group, are aware of environmental concerns caused by passenger aviation and dedicate substantial sectors of their sustainability reports to these concerns and their actions regarding them. These actions are rather similar between the airlines, and the common focus appears to be on the reduction of single use plastics and other excess material as well as CO₂ emissions by means such as fleet modernization, biofuel- and other compensation packages, weight reduction, route optimization and charity work to reduce the impact of these emissions. The CORSIA-agreement is also supported by the aviation entities. Hence, presenting the aviation industry in Europe, these three aviation groups seem to have invested time and resources to find out what they should do to improve the alarming situation and are taking action accordingly. Whether the main reason for their input lies in the favorable company image achieved through responsible CER-operations and marketing, or because they are genuinely worried about the effects of their operations on the climate, can be argued. In any case, they all seem to be making at least a minimal effort to communicate CER-related matters to the public on their social media platforms, increasing knowledge on the matter, and enhancing their company images.
The results suggest that there are differences in how the companies prioritize the responsibility of sharing CER-related knowledge and information on social media. While the aviation groups vary greatly in the amount of coverage they gave CER-related matters during this observation, there was also significant differences within the Air France-KLM group, KLM posting a large majority of the group’s CER-posts. Similarly to Lufthansa, Air France does not take advantage of the larger follower counts they have on Instagram and Facebook to spread information on CER-matters. While Twitter is the least followed social media platform for all the studied aviation groups, it is the platform where they all shared the most CER-posts. By posting more CER-content on Instagram and Facebook, the airlines could extend the reach of such content greatly, and further enhance their company image. Instagram’s young audiences are a significant target to reach as they are the ones traveling and flying in the future. Creating an environmentally friendly image in the eyes of such target can further improve the company reputation and future sales for the under 34 age group. Finnair is currently using Instagram the most for
posting CER-related matters, meaning they are accessing a valuable market to a greater extent compared to the other two airline groups.
Due to the visual nature of Instagram and Facebook as platforms, the airlines could benefit from posting more pictures and short videos with strong, important messages. To associate themselves with being environmentally friendly and responsible, they could post more general CER-posts, such as tips on how customers can cut down their everyday single-use plastics or energy consumption. Posts of this type do not necessarily need to be aviation related, as the main point is to spread awareness and to be seen as an environment-minded company. Another way to extent the scope of CER-related posts is to increase the amount of marketing communications in collaboration with charities and NGOs that the airlines are supporting or working with. This brings increased awareness to both the aviation company and the collaborating partner, as well as positively affects the company image and brings attention to the environmental issue in question.
Regarding CER-actions that aviation companies could consider in order to be more environmentally friendly, two cabin-related issues could be considered. As many airlines allow customers to purchase items prior to the flight and hand these items to them onboard, as well as offer in-flight tax-free shopping possibilities and lotteries, unnecessary weight is taken onboard. By removing tax-free shopping items from the plane, and instead handing the orders to customers at the arrival gate, airlines could reduce the weight of the aircraft to varying extents. The same procedure could be taken with lottery prize items. Another, a more drastic measure to reduce weight and excess material onboard could be to restrict the material service of business class and first class.
The more expensive classes typically get served more items, such as additional meals, snacks, slippers, pajamas and so on. By minimizing the amount of these often single-use items, more weight could be taken off the plane, consequently leading to reduction in CO₂ emissions. However, when altering the service of these classes and removing some of the complimentary items, the airlines might need to set the price point slightly lower.
In conclusion, while it appears that the three studied European aviation entities are taking similar actions to combat their negative impact on the environment, their sustainability reports suggest they have different priorities when it comes to these actions. The common issues of high importance for all studied aviation entities seem to be the
environment-orientated charities and NGOs. When it comes to the communication regarding CER-related matters, there are significant variations between the studied groups. Twitter appears to be the most common platform for CER-related posts, while the more popularly followed Instagram and Facebook are not used to promote these issues to a similar extent. Finnair and KLM were found to share and post about issues related to environmental responsibility on all three platforms, whereas Air France and Lufthansa kept it to Twitter, while only posting a fraction of what the other two airlines were publishing. All the airlines, especially Air France and Lufthansa, could benefit from increasing their social media CER-marketing communications and expanding them further on Instagram and Facebook, as those are the platforms where the airlines have the highest amounts of followers. Offering compact, visual content in the form of short videos and pictures, the airlines could attract attention to CER-related issues on these medias. This in turn would result in a more positive and environmentally friendly company image. All in all, the companies seem to be combating their impact on the environment, but they could improve the amount and reach of their CER-related marketing communications on social media.
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