When two major carriers combine, it’s a cultural reckoning, a customer identity shift and a brand comms challenge that plays out on the most public stage possible. For social teams, the merger between Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines hasn’t meant “wait and see.” It meant adapting in real time to an audience full of questions, a workforce full of uncertainty and two brand voices that need to converge without alienating loyalists. This case study breaks down how the combined team is navigating one of the biggest aviation mergers in years — online, in public and under pressure.
- Balance two voices: Manage tone, cadence and personality across separate channels while building toward a unified presence that earns trust from both audiences.
- Control the message: Respond to backlash, surface accurate information and maintain composure when narratives spiral faster than approvals.
- Align internally: Coordinate across social, PR, internal comms and leadership to ensure consistency without creating a bottleneck.
- Consolidate with care: Decide which content archives live on, which legacy posts get repurposed, and how to preserve cultural value while building a new identity.
