How METRO uses social media monitoring

We discussed the details of how this process is organized for such a big brand with two agency representatives – Tetyana Malshakova, Client Service Director, and Iryna Kalnenko, Project Manager

Why does METRO need to monitor social networks?

The penetration of social media into our everyday lives is very deep: now the brand’s audience prefer to write a review on social media rather than contact a hotline or write an email. Nowadays, "buyer-brand" communication takes place according to the principle of "here and now", through social networks. 

We have been working with METRO since 2018, managing the company's social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. At a certain stage, it became clear that we couldn't solve all communication tasks with the available tools. For example, if the audience did not tag the METRO page in their posts, we couldn’t see these posts because the toolkit of social networks did not allow it. Therefore, we couldn’t respond quickly. 

Reputation management 

How often do customers not tag Metro in their reviews?

Around 40% of users do not tag the brand in posts, stories, comments, etc.

Have you experienced any serious problems because some reviews were missed?

In March 2021, before we started to use YouScan, METRO was tagged in a post about low-quality store-bought fish. We didn’t notice this post at first, because it was impossible to track all mentions manually. As a result, the feedback was ignored for 2 days. After seeing the complaint, it became clear that we needed a high-quality social media monitoring platform. 

We wanted to make sure we responded to all inquiries and provided feedback as quickly as possible. 

Do you only respond to negative reviews?

No, we process and respond to all brand mentions.

What is your main monitoring focus right now?

It’s well-known that after Russia started the invasion of Ukraine, METRO didn’t exit the Russian market and the Ukrainian headquarters couldn’t influence this decision. 

We repeatedly explained it on the brand’s local social media pages, trying to convey the situation to as many people as possible. 

METRO Ukraine supports complete economic and social isolation of the aggressor country, because this is the only way to stop its atrocities. METRO Ukraine constantly tries to convey this position to the management in Dusseldorf. 

So far no understanding has been reached, but it won't stop the Ukrainian team from trying to convince the company to cut ties with Russia. 

METRO Ukraine is steadfast in this matter and will stand its ground. Ukrainian employees don’t give up. At the same time, the supermarket chain in Ukraine continues working, provides people with food and basic things, and strives to support the economy of the country. 

In addition, METRO has many volunteer projects helping war victims with food. The company also joined the "Safe School" social project that provides video surveillance to protect students. 

At the same time, people still had questions about the public position of the company regarding the war. For about four months, we've been working with feedback on this situation. 

YouScan helps ust to detect and process all mentions and organize a high-quality response. 

How exactly does METRO respond to hate?

There is constructive criticism and then there is just hate like offensive statements toward the brand. We analyze every mention and after that, we use scripts that we adapt depending on the context of the feedback, and after that we respond.

Are there any other ways to use social media monitoring? 

We monitor the activity of competitors: what is new, what new projects have been launched, what changes in communication they’ve made, etc. 

Competitive analysis

Who does METRO consider as competitors?

All the main supermarket chains in Ukraine. METRO has been a digital trendsetter for a long time. We were the first who started to use macro photography, as well as levitation (when all objects seem to be floating in the air). It was interesting to see how other brands started to pick this up and implement it into their content. By the way, they still doing that ☺

We are used to the fact that the brand "Silpo" is associated with emotions, the brand ATB with affordable prices. How does METRO position itself?

As a store for wholesale purchases and rational shopping. We accustom clients to the fact that wholesale helps to save not only money, but also time.

What has METRO has changed after two years of social media monitoring?

We have changed the process of work with our contact center. Previously, we were not synchronized enough, sometimes we did not know if a request was being processed nor when to expect a response to it. Now the contact center has access to YouScan, we work together and issues are resolved much faster.

Which YouScan feature is most useful to you?

We check the ratio of negative, positive and neutral mentions. This helps us to understand the general picture of the audience's perception of the brand.

Why did you choose YouScan as your monitoring system?

We considered various options. Initially, we had demo access, so we were able to test the functionality and usability. We made sure that the quality corresponds to the price, and since then we have continued to use the system.