Gillette and their Community Management – the best a customer can get

The Heavy Chef Project

Practical Learning About Digital Marketing

Gillette and their Community Management – the best a customer can get Posted in Community Management, Social Media, Concocted by Lauren Potgieter, 2 comments
Published on 22 October 2010

When we think of good examples of community management, our minds automatically wander to

brands such as Coca Cola and Apple, of which the public cannot help but sing their praises. There are

however, quite a few companies that have stood on the sideline and slowly created a community

that is engaging and responsive, whilst not being overly zealous with their brand approach.

One brand that is getting their community speaking is Gillette. Unlike other brands that are all

about the show, Gillette has the perfect combination of engagement – not too scarce and not too

over-active. They have taken an activity that men dread doing on a daily basis and have created

conversation around this chore.

We know that community management cannot simply focus on one area and Gillette spread

their community activities across all their resources. On their Facebook page, they have created

conversations around the “art” of shaving and recently got Daryl “Moose” Johnston to answer

questions from Gillette Facebook fans. On the Facebook fanpage, they ask questions, post quirky

did-you-know facts and generally interact with whoever is willing to talk. Their Twitter page sings the

same tune as they encourage their followers to be creative and send in videos and pictures of their

experiences. This approach gives a light hearted and creative feel to the fanpage and encourages

the public to submit content and converse about content submitted – perfect for encouraging

community.

Their website lets you choose the type of beard you have and then shows you the best way to shave

with their razors. They have also created the Gillette Success Lab, where you create a profile that will

give you additional advice on how to obtain a smooth shave and what products to use.

Even though Gillette’s Facebook might not compare to the number of likes of other big brands, with

only 312,042 in comparison to Coca Cola’s 10 million and nearly 6 000 followers on Twitter, they are

definitely doing something right and getting their target market (which are males aged 14 and up) to

share their experiences and open the channels of communication between brand and customer.

When we think of good examples of community management, our minds automatically wander off to brands such as Coca Cola and Lady Gaga, of which the public cannot help but sing their praises. There are however, quite a few companies that have stood on the sideline and slowly created a community that is engaging and responsive, whilst not being overly zealous with their brand approach.

One brand that is getting their community talking is Gillette. Unlike other brands that are all about the show, Gillette has the perfect combination of engagement – not too scarce and not too over-active. They have taken an activity that men dread doing on a daily basis and have created conversation around this chore.

We know that community management cannot simply focus on one area and Gillette spread their community activities across all their resources. On their Facebook page, they have created conversations around the “art” of shaving and recently got Daryl “Moose” Johnston to answer questions from Gillette Facebook fans. On the Facebook fanpage, they ask questions, post quirky did-you-know facts and generally interact with whoever is willing to talk. Their Twitter page sings the same tune as they encourage their followers to be creative and send in videos and pictures of their experiences. This approach gives a light hearted and creative feel to the fanpage and encourages the public to submit content and converse about content submitted – perfect for encouraging community.

Their website lets you choose the type of beard you have and then shows you the best way to shave with their razors. They have also created the Gillette Success Lab, where you create a profile that will give you additional advice on how to obtain a smooth shave and what products to use.

Even though Gillette’s Facebook might not compare to the number of likes of other big brands, with only 312,042 in comparison to Coca Cola’s 15 million and nearly 6 000 followers on Twitter, they are definitely doing something right and getting their target market (which are males aged 14 and up) to share their experiences and open the channels of communication between brand and customer.