As part of my research internship with the eCommerce department of EDCO BV, branded as Maxecom and Maximondo, I will conduct an in-depth study into the potential of social media strategies to enhance online presence and drive web traffic. This research explores innovative approaches to leveraging social media platforms to increase engagement and optimize web traffic for the company.
INTERNSHIP - MAXIMONDO
INTERNSHIP - MAXIMONDO
Research Internship at EDCO BV – Maximondo (Semester 5)
About EDCO BV and Maxecom BV
EDCO BV is an import/export company specializing in the distribution of non-food products. With an inventory of over 40,000 items, EDCO serves various industries, offering both private-label products and well-known brands such as Alpina, Grundig, Kinzo, and Duracell. EDCO is committed to digital transformation to enhance its online presence.
As of 2023, the eCommerce division, previously integrated within EDCO, has been established as a separate entity under Maxecom BV. Maxecom is fully dedicated to online eCommerce, creating significant synergy between EDCO and Maxecom. This strategic move allows both companies to focus on their core strengths while leveraging each other's expertise to expand their market reach.
Research Setup and Internship Formalities
Before commencing my research at EDCO BV, several formal steps were required to ensure the project was well-structured and aligned with the company's objectives. This involved developing a comprehensive project plan, outlining the scope, goals, and research methodology. Additionally, a detailed timeline was created to guide the progress of the research, ensuring that key milestones were met on schedule.
To maintain a structured approach throughout the internship, I also implemented a logbook for tracking daily activities, insights, and reflections. This documentation not only helps in organizing the research process but also serves as a valuable tool for reviewing progress and making necessary adjustments along the way.
Social Media Marketing for eCommerce: Trust and Loyalty Strategies
As part of my academic and professional development, I chose to research “Waardecreatie door sociale media marketing, merkvertrouwen en merkloyaliteit: Social Media Marketingstrategieën voor eCommerce Bedrijven”. This study aims to explore how social media marketing can enhance brand awareness, foster customer trust, and build long-term loyalty, particularly for eCommerce businesses.
In my research, I utilized the library research method as outlined on ictresearchmethods.nl, combining competitor analysis and benchmarking with tools like SEMrush and NinjaLTIC to compare content strategies and performance. This analysis revealed key insights into how competitors manage their social media presence and which strategies generate the most engagement. My research also highlighted the importance of continuously experimenting with content types and optimizing strategies to meet evolving consumer demands.
I will refer back to this research later in my project, as it provides a critical foundation for developing effective viral marketing strategies and aligning brand identity with the specific needs of eCommerce companies.
Collecting data from social media
As part of my research into social media marketing strategies, I explored various methods for collecting data from social media platforms, focusing on API usage and web scraping. These methods offer unique advantages for gathering real-time insights into engagement metrics, user behavior, and content performance. Through APIs, data can be accessed directly from the platform in a structured manner, ensuring high accuracy and adherence to the platform’s guidelines. However, I also examined the potential of web scraping for platforms with limited API access, enabling the extraction of public data such as post frequency, likes, comments, and shares.
Automation using make.com, Apify and Airtable
I implemented an automated solution using Make.com, Airtable, and Apify to streamline the collection of data such as the number of views, likes, comments, and saves from TikTok profiles. This setup ensures efficient data gathering while minimizing manual effort and maximizing accuracy.
This end-to-end automation minimizes the need for manual intervention, allowing the system to operate efficiently and scale as needed while maintaining cost control during testing phases. The automation can easliy be replicated by making use of my make.com blueprints.
Social Media Strategy
For my internship at EDCO BV, I developed a targeted social media strategy aimed at increasing brand awareness and driving website traffic for their online webshop, MaxiMondo. By analyzing audience behavior on TikTok and Instagram, I crafted a strategy focused on short-form video content, particularly leveraging TikTok’s advertising potential and Instagram’s community engagement. I identified key performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of these efforts, including reach, engagement, and conversion rates and integrated these into a comprehensive social media dashboard. This approach provides MaxiMondo with actionable insights to refine their content and optimize their digital advertising, ultimately helping to build a stronger online presence and boost traffic to the webshop.
Social Media Dashboard
As part of my internship at EDCO BV, I developed a custom social media dashboard designed to provide clear and instant insights into TikTok performance metrics. This project aimed to centralize and simplify the analysis of TikTok data, enabling the marketing team to make informed decisions more efficiently.
The dashboard leverages a combination of tools and automation:
Apify was used to scrape data from specific TikTok profiles, focusing on metrics such as views and likes for the latest videos.
Airtable served as the central database for storing and managing the scraped data.
Make.com automated the workflow between Apify and Airtable, ensuring the data remains up-to-date without manual input.
API Integration allowed the Airtable data to be seamlessly displayed on the dashboard, built with modern web technologies.
The flowchart illustrates the entire workflow, starting with inputting TikTok usernames in Airtable, passing through Apify for scraping, Make.com for automation, and finally displaying the processed data in a user-friendly dashboard interface. This visual representation simplifies understanding the data flow and demonstrates the integration between the tools used.
The result is a user-friendly interface where the marketing team can access all relevant TikTok metrics at a glance. This not only saves time but also provides actionable insights for optimizing social media strategies.
This project has been an integral part of my internship experience, offering me the opportunity to enhance my skills in data integration, API usage, and dashboard development while contributing to EDCO BV's social media efforts.
Advisory Report
During my internship at EDCO BV, I wrote a comprehensive advisory report to ensure that Maximondo can continue building on the progress made during my research internship. This report includes actionable recommendations and a clear roadmap for implementing the strategies and insights I developed. It serves as a guide for sustaining and expanding the social media efforts I initiated, ensuring that the results of my research contribute to long-term success.
Collaborative work
During my time at EDCO BV, I contributed by designing product visuals for various online marketplaces. This involved creating high-quality usp images and graphics that effectively showcased the products, tailored to the specific guidelines and aesthetic requirements of platforms like Amazon, Bol.com, and others. These visuals play a crucial role in enhancing product visibility and driving customer engagement, ultimately supporting the company's e-commerce sales strategy.
MAXECOM website
(Not online yet)
For MAXECOM, I assisted in designing a Shopify website focused on presenting the brand’s identity and company information during my internship. Starting with a pre-built template, I customized the foundational elements to highlight MAXECOM’s mission, values, and commitment to quality. The site provides a smooth, user-friendly experience that combines brand storytelling with essential company details, offering visitors a comprehensive view of what MAXECOM stands for.
What I learned during my internship at Maximondo
Through my internship with EDCO BV’s eCommerce department, Maxecom and Maximondo, I’ve gained hands-on experience in researching and implementing social media strategies designed to enhance online presence and drive web traffic. I delved into social media marketing techniques tailored to boost brand awareness, focusing on audience engagement and growth on platforms like TikTok and Instagram. I also developed a comprehensive social media dashboard to measure campaign performance with key metrics such as reach, engagement, and conversion rates.
My project work included using automation tools like Make.com, Airtable, and Apify to streamline data collection from TikTok, gathering insights into audience engagement with high efficiency. Additionally, I explored data collection methods, comparing API usage and web scraping for platforms where direct access is limited, ensuring a robust approach to real-time analysis.
In supporting EDCO's digital presence, I also contributed to the design of product visuals for online marketplaces and assisted with foundational design for MAXECOM’s Shopify website. This involved customizing a template to reflect brand values, providing an engaging site experience that reinforces MAXECOM’s mission and company story.
As part of my professional development, I took the initiative to write a self-evaluation based on my experiences and progress during the past six months. In this reflection, I assessed the skills I have developed, such as social media strategy, data analysis, automation, and eCommerce content creation, and evaluated my contributions to EDCO’s eCommerce goals. This exercise provided valuable insights into my growth as an IT professional and helped me identify areas for further improvement, ensuring that I continue to build on the foundations laid during my internship.
Meet the Team
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Ric de Greef
Project Owner - Intern
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Sanne Michiels
Company Mentor
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Rudi Haryono
Digital Designer Mentor
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Maud Stubbe
Project & Content Coördinator