How Leroy Merlin exploded on TikTok – La Réclame

Centenarian, but not bedridden.

An essential platform with a billion users, TikTok is nonetheless a question mark for many brands, both attracted by the virality it allows and cooled by an unpredictable algorithm and mysterious uses.

Leroy Merlin has been able to take advantage of this social network to stay in the “top of mind” of the French and win over the consumers of tomorrow seduced by the subject of housing (confinement has been there). By testing several types of content on TikTok, the brand was able to deploy an innovative, flexible and responsive strategy, with an editorial line combining DIY, influence, trends and employer branding.

What lessons can be learned from such a success story in a sector where authenticity and adaptability are more than ever key issues? Anna Faurehead of Social Media, PR/Influence and Communities at Leroy Merlin, and Mary Sancaleconsulting director at Brainsonic, opens the doors to the TikTok account of the now century-old brand.

The genesis

Leroy Merlin wants to remain in the “top of mind” of the French, particularly with tomorrow’s targets. Centennial this year, the brand intends to strengthen its community and improve its image. Already present on other social platforms, Leroy Merlin sees TikTok as an essential media (1 billion users), far from what the network was before 2020.

“When I arrived, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Leroy Merlin’s TikTok account was already launchedremembers Anna FaureHead of Social Networks, PR/Influence and Communities at Leroy Merlin. It is true that TikTok is a platform that can destabilize teams, because it imposes content different from other social networks, requiring a certain letting go of control of the brand image. However, the conviction phase had already been passed.”

This test and learn phase made it possible to demonstrate the potential for growth of the platform’s audience and to subsequently adapt a more assertive strategy. “We quickly developed a strategy that valued a set of spokespersons, including collaborators, store employees, and internal people (…) We adopted an experimental approach by testing numerous ideas, while taking into account recommendations of TikTok, which encouraged us to embrace a wide range of content. This allowed us to gradually rationalize our strategy thereafter.”, continues Mary Sancaleconsulting director at Brainsonic.

Formerly focused on beauty and fashion, the platform offers real opportunities across the entire home vertical. Searches and queries on TikTok show that the French are very interested in this subject. “We wanted to work on our brand image by addressing our strategic issues such as strategic renovation (with common thread content), pedagogy (DIY), price image and energy sobriety (at least one message on water).”

“On TikTok, these subjects are much easier to address than on other media, because the content and questions are already present there, making it easier to adapt our communication“, explain Anna Faure.

Leroy Merlin’s TikTok

– Active monitoring of trends through an editorial committee to be able to respond to current topics, such as Taylor Swift and The Bridgerton Chronicles.

– Integrated management to be responsive and close to bounce back efficiently.

– Responsiveness in the validation processes: “Leroy Merlin strives to respond within a day, knowing that a trend often lasts 24 hours, with short loops to validate content via Workchat”, specifies the agency.

– An editorial line specific to TikTok and distinct from other social networks, with original content using less polished and less standard codes. “We wanted to maintain our expertise while adopting a closer and more complicit approach, because an overly serious tone does not work on TikTok“, explain Anna Faure.

– A presence across the entire DIY value chain. Brainsonic thus proposes to work “inspiration by evoking trends and ideas for decoration and layout, but also the dimension “ how to » with numerous DIYs, pedagogy with numerous contents which cover sometimes complex subjects such as energy renovation, and of course the whole aspect of complicity and proximity thanks to the adequacy between our contents and the trends in force on the network.”

– Regularity in publications with a frequency of 4 posts per week, including content relating to TikTok trends, news, employer image and influence, also relying on content creators and influencers.

“An influencer program was implemented this year. Influencer ambassadors of our brand create content that is then regularly relayed on TikTok. This allows us to support our different product categories, while addressing our strategic challenges.”

The results

– An average of 1.34 million views/video;

– + 5.4 million views on this video created by a store, which we are competing in the TikTok Awards (galvanized steel);

– 97 million cumulative views since the start of the year against an initial target of 58 million: “The emphasis was placed on reach and engagement (likes, comments, shares)specifies Anna Faure. Although TikTok’s algorithm remains difficult to predict, the company has found that content can perform very well if it follows the platform’s codes, with some content even generating millions of views.”

– KPIs achieved on all aspects to be completed: “The contents that work best are those that respect trends and those that are more “dirty” and incarnate.”

The keys to success

– Responsiveness
“Fast and efficient production capacity to keep up with trends is key. This involves strong collaboration between the agency and the client, which allows us to be in tight flow and exploit trends before they disappear. (…) Hot content, based on trends or current events, also generates a lot of engagement when used well. Whether produced by us or by the stores themselves, when done well, they can explode in terms of reach“, underlines Mary Sancale (Brainsonic).

– Plural incarnation
“The diversity of faces who speak, offering varied and authentic content, is also essential.” “This incarnation of TikTok content and this humanization, by highlighting store employees for example, works very well, because it creates proximity and reinforces attachment to the brand, recalling the experience that one can have with a local seller.”

– A “raw” approach like TikTok
“You have to adopt an authentic, natural, and “raw” approach, which corresponds perfectly to the codes of TikTok. This mix of topic identification, responsiveness, and authenticity allows us to fully embrace the spirit of the platform.”