Ryan Eng
Social Media Monitoring Report
PURPOSE:
Lowe’s the popular home improvement chain store was founded in 1946 in
North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Lowe’s has grown from a small-‐town hardware store to the second largest home improvement retailer worldwide. In 1961, Lowe’s went public and began trading on the New York Stock Exchange in 1979. Shortly after 1982, the companies first billion-‐dollar sales year, Lowe’s announced they would now serve a new customer do-‐it-‐yourself homeowners. Today, the Lowe’s Home Improvement Company has annual revenue over $48 million and was ranked at 50 on the 2011 Fortune 500.
Lowe’s, who currently is ranked as the seventh largest retailer in the United States, should monitor and participate in the online conversation surrounding the company with a goal of engaging and maintaining current and potential customers. Through monitoring various social media outlets, Lowe’s will gain the knowledge from its consumers and can work its way towards the coveted spot as number one home improvement retailer worldwide.
METHODOLOGY:
To analyze Lowe’s social media I first analyzed what social media the company is currently using and how they are using it during the two-‐week period between the dates of April 2 to April 15, 2012. Analysis was done by breaking down the mediums into the following four categories:
• Facebook, Twitter, YouTube & Other (Pinterest, Wikipedia, etc)
Initially I looked at each of these channels and examined how the company was using them and how other people were talking about Lowe’s on social media. The platforms were examined by the following topics:
• Purpose, Use, Engagement & Integration RESULTS:
Facebook was analyzed both on how Lowe’s is using it and what other people are saying about the company on Facebook during the two-‐week period of April 2 till April 15, 2012.
What the Facebook page is for was determined by examining the type of content posted on Lowe’s Facebook page. Lowe’s uses their page to discuss home
improvement, contests, DIY projects and promotions offered through the company. How it is used was determined by the content and links used on the information tab and the posted content on the Facebook wall. The information tab provides the link to Lowe’s main website, while a separate tab is dedicated to the terms of wall participation. The information gives detailed guidelines of what can and cannot be posted on Lowe’s Facebook page. The Facebook wall content between the dates of April 2 and April 15, 2012 had nine links that connected the fans back to Lowe’s company websites and affiliated social media platforms.
Engagement was determined by the number of likes, wall posts and feedback. The page has 1,088,941 “likes” and 12,095 people “talking” about the company. Currently the Lowe’s logo and motto of “Never Stop Improving” is their profile picture with a landing page to encourage Facebook users to “like” their page.
In order to maintain engagement with customers and their complaints, Lowe’s has created a reference system, which allows quicker service while cross
communicating from Facebook to other outlets. Users are given a unique code that allows customer service representatives to respond to their claim more efficiently. An openbook search for Lowe’s was conducted and yielded positive results about Lowe’s through Facebook.
Integration was determined upon how well the page was linked to Lowe’s other social media assets. The page is linked to both the main website as well as its Pinterest account.
Twitter was analyzed both on how Lowe’s is using it and what other people are saying about the company on Twitter.
What it is for was determined by examining the type of tweets posted on Lowe’s Twitter account. During the two-‐week period from April 2 till April 15, 2012, the Twitter account had 106 Tweets which are broken down into seven categories: replies, retweets, mentions, service issues/apologies, hashtags, contests and links. Based on this information, the current use of the Twitter account is for replying to Twitter user’s comments and concerns surrounding do-‐it-‐yourself projects.
How it is used was determined by the conversation with their followers and by the links located within the tweets. The company bio section explains “Got a complaint, compliment or question? Let us know!” and provides a link to the
company main webpage. Of the 19 links provided through the tweets approximately
32 percent of them directed users to the Lowe’s webpage. It was determined that this Twitter handle is primarily used for information dissemination and client communication.
Engagement was determined by the number of tweets that were tweeted by Lowe’s and by the number of tweets in response to customers. There are currently 5,613 tweets with 38,820 followers. Analyzing the Twitter handle through Klout, Twitalyzer and Tweeteffect has provided insight as to how well Lowe’s is engaging with their followers.
• Currently the Twitter account stands with a Klout score of 60/100. The Klout score is a score that helps to measure the current standing and leverage within the social media platforms. Utilizing this Klout score allows you to grasp the idea of the trust other have in your company, what topics Lowe’s is most influential on and where the company stands compared to its competitors. After analyzing the Klout score data, it was recognized that Lowe’s Twitter influences 10,000 other users. The most influential topics include shopping, retail and branding.
• According to an analysis done on Twitalyzer, Lowe’s has an impact score of 20.5 percent placing them in the 98th percentile of all Twitter users. Twitalyzer has categorized the current Twitter handle as an everyday user, which means @Lowes has a small circle of influence but great potential.
• As of Wednesday April 17, 2012, running the handle through TweetEffect has provided the insight that of the last 196 updates,
@Lowes has lost followers nine times and gained new followers nine times, showing that there is a steady frequency of follower changes. Again integration was determined by how well the Twitter account was linked to Lowe’s other social media assets. The Twitter handle @Lowes is currently only linked to the Lowe’s webpage.
YOUTUBE
YouTube was analyzed on both how Lowe’s is using it and what other people are saying about the company during the two-‐week period of April 2 till April 15, 2012.
What it is for was determined by examining the type of videos posted on Lowe’s YouTube channel. It currently has 758 uploads which are a combination of commercials, educational videos, DIY videos and messages for executive staff. Based on this, the current use of the YouTube channel is for education and dissemination of pertinent information.
How it is used was determined by the links used on the channels “About Lowe’s Solution Center” tab and the actual information posted on the channel. The channel links to the company website as well as their other social media platforms. The about tab informs viewers that Lowe’s has the answers you need to help with all you home improvement projects. It was determined that the YouTube channel is used primarily for information dissemination.
Engagement was determined by the number of videos, views, content of videos, recent uploads, comments and response to comments. There are a total of 758 uploads with 30,511,619 combined views. The uploads are videos aimed at informing the public and helping DIY homeowners. The last video was uploaded April 13, 2012. Comments are welcome on the channel and on individual videos. It has been determined that Lowe’s YouTube channel has a high level of engagement. Integration was determined on how well the channel was linked to Lowe’s other social media assets. The channel is linked to the company’s website, Facebook and Twitter page; showing good integration between YouTube and Lowe’s other social media outlets.
OTHER
A search was conducted to find other social media platforms that Lowe’s may be participating in. It was found that Lowe’s currently has a Wikipedia page, a
Pinterest account, and is available as a check-‐in location on foursquare. The Lowe’s Wikipedia page is well kept and does not contain any content that is shocking or difficult for the public to understand. The most threatening information posted is the discussion of Lowe’s withdrawing its sponsorship of a TLC program All-‐
American Muslim. The Pinterest account serves as a place to educate customers on DIY projects. Although various Lowe’s locations are available for check-‐in on
foursquare, Lowe’s does not have its own designated foursquare channel. Rather the available locations are user generated.
CONCLUSION:
After evaluating Lowe’s social media presence over the two-‐week period of April 2 till April 15, 2012 it was determined that Lowe’s has an excellent
understanding of the use and execution of social media. While Lowe’s has a grasp of the social media, there are some areas where some improvements can be made. I would suggest that Lowe’s better integrate all of their social media platforms, because although they are reaping the benefits of the platforms on an individual basis, I believe that combining the efforts will help to get the company the biggest success. Another recommendation would be for Lowe’s to monitor what is being said through foursquare. Although it may be difficult to create an official Lowe’s foursquare channel, it would provide a lot of insight to customer experience and satisfaction.
