Att försvara sin existens på sociala medier : En kvalitativ studie om hur Voi Technology kommunicerar externt för att uppfattas som en legitim aktör

Sammanfattning: In the past few years, the number of e-scooter rental services has rapidly increased in Sweden and across Europe. The increased usage of e-scooters has created problems, for example with accessibility on sidewalks and traffic safety. Consequently, the e-scooter industry has become a highly debated topic. This case study examined how Voi Technology communicate to profile themselves as legitimate, based on Max Weber’s principles of legitimation and Mark C. Suchman’s legitimation strategies. Three research questions were formulated to be able to fulfill the aim of the study: 1) Which of Suchman’s strategies to maintain legitimacy can be distinguished in Voi Technology’s external communication? 2) Which of Suchman’s strategies to repair legitimacy can be distinguished in Voi Technology’s external communication? 3) Which of Weber’s principles of legitimation can be distinguished in Voi Technology’s external communication? 30 posts from Voi’s social media accounts on Instagram, Facebook and Linkedin were analyzed with a qualitative content analysis and a semiotic analysis. The results showed that Voi are using the strategies “protect accomplishments” and “perceive change” to maintain legitimacy and the strategies “normalize” and “restructure” to repair legitimacy. The study did also find the legal-rational and charismatic principles of legitimation in Voi’s communication. The traditional principle of legitimation could not be found. Instead, Voi often presented themselves as non-traditional and innovative. This study contributes with more knowledge about how organizations can communicate to get legitimacy, when an organization or market is being questioned.