Balance communication priorities on social media like Boots in 10 steps

Step 1: What was the business goal?

Boots is trading as an essential retailer offline. But it also has a whole line of beauty products to sell online and a captive audience looking to be inspired and engaged by the latest beauty trends and launches while locked down.

Track your own business goals in the Maybe* platform.

 

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A post shared by Boots UK (@bootsuk)

Step 2: Telling the Boots story

Boots' is open for business and as well as on hand for customers to get their medication, stores are also doubling as COVID vaccination centres. Boots does an awesome job of combining practical information, highlighting the essential services on offer, and inspiring customers with their non essential product proposition. The chain's story is balanced between what customers can expect from the essential in-store experience with much-needed lighter relief.

Step 3: What does Boots want its audience to do?

Boots want people to get the practical and essential health support they need through this challenging time. But the brand needs to inspire.

Health content is personal and introduces the people and faces of store colleagues customers can expect to meet. This is always important, but especially so now when customers are likely to be nervous about their shopping or vaccination experience. It's not just COVID that Boots is on hand to take care of, alongside the pandemic, Boots continues to support other health concerns and patients as part of its essential services.

You can mimic this approach yourself by making things personal and introducing your team members, especially if they are experts in their field or are able to provide useful advice. Help customers get to know the people behind your brand so they feel looked after and know what to expect.

The Maybe* What’s Being Said report for Boots showing the content created by Boots and the engagement with it

Step 4: How does Boots engage with customers?

Boots puts its efforts in the right places. It is very active on Twitter, handling customer service feedback, order enquiries, store and service opening times are the core message here. Boots even has a separate social media presence especially for customer care which is another way in which it manages its communication priorities.

Delivering great customer service online should be a top priority of your social media approach. If you are online engaging with other businesses and creating content about your business, then customers can see you are present. Sharing your own messages before responding to your customers' feedback looks bad. Make sure you are responding at the start and end of your day, and whenever you can in between. Being clear with customers on how long it will take you to come back to them is a great way to manage expectations up front.

Maybe* dedicates a whole section of the dashboard for you to respond to customer messages. You’ll find it on the right of your Maybe* dashboard.

If you ordered after the 2 December and it has not arrived, please track it with the courier, you will have received an email with the tracking number. Please do not contact us unless it is 72 hours after your delivery date.

— Boots Help (@BootsHelp) December 10, 2020

The Maybe* dashboard view showing Boots comments and mentions they need to respond to

Step 5: Who does Boots want to engage?

Boots' customers are likely to span many demographics, so their content has to reach a wide audience and be relevant.

The Maybe* Influencer Report shows Boots who is creating the most content about them so they can engage with those customers. Boots see the majority of its influencers in the beauty space, including other beauty brands they stock. Although they just continue to serve the needs of the public, the brand also needs to interact with influencers in the conversation about it, and create content that serves that beauty-loving audience.

You can replicate this by building relationships with the influencers in your conversation via Maybe*. Start by simply liking or sharing their comments, or be bold and dive straight into a conversation.

The Maybe* Who’s Got Influence report showing the conversation influencers creating the most content about Boots in January