Brand Management of Boots UK: A Comprehensive Analysis

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BRAND MANAGEMENT
BOOTS

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................. 3
BRAND MANAGEMENT- CONCEPTS...............................................................................................4
Company background....................................................................................................................5
LO1.................................................................................................................................................6
P1 Importance of branding as marketing tool and its emergence in business practices...........6
P2 Key components of a successful brand strategy to build and manage brand equity............8
LO2............................................................................................................................................... 11
P3 Different strategies of portfolio management, brand hierarchy and brand equity
management............................................................................................................................11
LO3............................................................................................................................................... 16
P4 Evaluate the brand management through collaborations and partnership at domestic and
international level....................................................................................................................16
LO4............................................................................................................................................... 19
P5 Different types of techniques to measure and manage the brand value using the company
Boots........................................................................................................................................ 19
CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................... 21
REFERENCES.................................................................................................................................22
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Lists of Figures
Figure 1 CBBE Model..................................................................................................................... 8
Figure 2 branded house of Boots.................................................................................................12
Figure 3 House of brands.............................................................................................................13
Figure 4 hybrid strategy...............................................................................................................14
Figure 5 Ansoff Matrix................................................................................................................. 16
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INTRODUCTION
A lot of business organizations are present in the market who sells their products and services
to the customers. Since there are lot of organizations, it becomes difficult for and consumer to
select the most efficient product. Here brand allows the business organizations to differentiate
themselves in the market to ensure the visibility of their products and services (Keller et al.,
2011). Brand management is used by the organization to enhance their accessibility of a wide
range of products and services among the consumers.
This assignment is focused on generating understanding towards the use and significance of
brand management in modern and intense competitive business environment. It also includes
the key components of brand strategy to build and manage the brand equity. This assignment
also includes the strategies used by the brands in organising their portfolio and also evaluates
the development and management of brand hierarchies. It also assesses the ways though which
brands expand or leverage themselves at domestic or international level. At last, different
techniques and tools have been includes that are used by the brands to measure and manage
brand value.
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BRAND MANAGEMENT- CONCEPTS
Brand is generally a set of association that are linked to a range of product, division or an
organization. It represents the general experience of the customers towards the products or
services. Generally a brand is referred to a name, symbol, sign, term, design or its overall
combination to identify the products, services or organization (Hanna and Rowley, 2011). Brand
adds trust and emotions to the products and services in order to provide evidences to
customers and simplify their choice. It ensures customers loyalty to the brands.
Branding is referred to combine efforts of the organization that is focused to the consumers. It
is an effort made to provide unique identity to the products of the company and also develop
emotional connections with consumers (Hanna and Rowley, 2011).
Brand management provides the description, overall positioning, marketing, promotion,
advertising and distribution of products and services in order to develop its brand personality. It
is a perception created by the company in order to develop and maintain relationship with the
audiences and consumers (Walker and Jones, 2012). It is an analysis and planning to create and
understand the perception for brand in market.
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Company background
The first herbalist store was opened by John Boot in 1849 in Nottingham that offered an
affordable alternative to traditional medicines. It provided a practical approach thereby
enabling the poorest to assist them. An extensive advertising campaign using the slogan ‘health
for a shilling’ was launched by Jesse Boot to position itself as a store that offers traditional
medicines at greatly reduced price (Boots UK, 2019). Boot and company Ltd was formed in the
year 1883 which was later renamed as Company Boots Pure Drug Company Ltd in 1888.
The products of the company were first available to buy overseas in India in 1919 and later sold
to the United Drug Company in America. Today Company Boots is the largest pharmacy, health
and beauty chain in the UK. It is a global organization that has around 2485 stores, 618
Company Boots optician practices and 503 Company Boots hearingcare locations (Boots UK,
2019). The products and services sold by Company Boots are prescription medicines sold via its
pharmacies, retail medicines, photography services, wide range of health and beauty products
including electrical products, clothing, food and drinks, opticians and hearing care. Boot and
Walgreens was merged to form a new holding company that is Walgreens Company Boots
Alliances Inc. in 2014 (Boots UK, 2019). The revenue of Walgreens Company Boots alliances Inc.
is about 131.54 billion with 11 .27 per cent of growth in 2017-2018 (Boots UK, 2019).
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LO1
P1 Importance of branding as marketing tool and its emergence in business
practices
Brand management is creation of perception regarding the products, services or company itself
in the market. It develops the association among the consumers and brand. It has become a
vital tool for marketing in recent years as it comprises different techniques and tools to
enhance the value of the company (Anderson and Thornley, 2016). Branding compels the
management to express, plan and also manage their achieving through their brand over the
next 3 to 5 years in terms of customer growth, contribution to revenue and profits.
Brand is overall information about a product, services or the organization which is formed
through a series of experiences while marketing is active promotion of the products and
services of brand. There is a little dissimilarity in both as branding reinforces and marketing
promotes (Anderson and Thornley, 2016). Marketing results in leads and sales while branding
increase the company’s reputation and strengthens customer loyalty.
One of the most important features of marketing is that good brand management influence
conversions. Good brand work allows the company to persuade the potential consumers to
purchase their products and services. Branding allows the company to differentiate itself from
its competitors and also develop a close connection with the consumers. It compels the
consumer to buy their products and services and become loyal.
EMERGENCE OF BRANDING IN BUSINESS PRACTICES
The concept of brand is old for hundreds of years. The existence of brand is well before modern
era and remains same however the meaning of brand is evolved with time. In 13th century
proprietary marks was mandatory made by forming craft guilds and middle class people to
revive the crafts and control the trade. In 1500, brand meaning was changed and referred to a
mark to show ownership on cattle (Kornberger, 2010). In 19th century, again the brand mark
was evolved to represent the quality as opposed to ownership due to rise of mass production
and modern day consumerism.
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In 1930s, the book Propaganda was published by Edwards Bernays who illustrated that
associating products with ideas could influences large number of people and alter their
behaviour. In 1960, mass media was used by marketers to associate brands with emotional
advantages instead of functional roles (Kornberger, 2010). This was the beginning of today’s
meaning of branding. This trend continued and quantified in concept such as brand equity and
brand value in 1980s. branding in modern era has become a more complex as it focuses on
clear delivery of message, creation of consumer loyalty, motivation the consumer to purchase,
confirms the credibility and also emotionally connect the potential customers.
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P2 Key components of a successful brand strategy to build and manage brand
equity
Company Boots UK focuses on building and managing its brand so as to influences the decision
making of its consumers and persuades them to buy its products and services. The financial
worth of intangible and significant enterprise is determined through the concept of brand
equity. Transferability, meaningfulness, memorability, adaptability, protectability and appeal
are some of the distinct features which need to be consistently maintained for successful brand
strategy (Anderson and Thornley, 2014). The customer-based brand equity model is developed
by Keller to focus on the key component to build and manage the brand equity.
It also focuses on shaping the mind-set and emotions of the customers towards the products
and services of Company Boots. The key components for building and also managing the brand
equity of Company Boots as per the CBBE model are:
Figure 1 CBBE Model
Source: Keller et al., 2011
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BRAND IDENTITY: in this step, the management of Company Boots ensure the differentiation of
products and services to be easily recognised and aware by the customers by creating brand
salience or awareness (Moore, 2012). The popularity of products and services of Company
Boots is tremendous in the UK. The customers easily recognise the trademark and logo and
attract them to its stores. The most popular products of Company Boots include No7, Botanics,
Almus, YourGoodSkin, Sleek Makeup, Soap and Glory and Liz Earle and so on.
BRAND MEANING: brand performance and brand imagery are its two building blocks. Brand
imagery represents the effectiveness of brand in meeting the needs of the customers at social
and psychological level. Brand performance defines the effectiveness of the products in
meeting customers’ requirements in terms of services effectiveness, product reliability,
durability and serviceability, style and design and prices and primary characteristics and
features (Braun and Zenker, 2010). The products and services of Company Boots are innovative
and comprise superior quality. Different products comprise different remedial actions for the
beauty and health of its customers. The customers find the products of Company Boots
effective and fulfilling their needs at psychological and social level. Also, it fulfils all the five
categories of brand performance.
BRAND RESPONSES: brand response is the general feeling of the customers towards the brand
or the product purchased by them. The responses of the customers are categories into tow that
are judgment and feelings. Constant judgments are made by the customers regarding the brand
considering four categories that are quality, consideration, credibility and superiority (Ertimur
and Coskuner-Balli, 2015). The response of the customers regarding the brand is according to
the feeling generated for the brand. Brand feelings comprise warmth, security, fun,
excitement, self-respect and social approval. The company Boots offers its products and
services since 1849, this means that it products and services are judged by its customers and
have built positive emotional connection with the brand as it satisfies their brand feelings.
BRAND RELATIONSHIPS: brand relationship is a resonance. This step defines the level of
connection the brand has with tis customers. Brand resonance comprises 4 categories such as
behavioural loyalty, attitudinal attachment, sense of community and active engagement
(Ertimur and Coskuner-Balli, 2015). The products and services of brand Company Boots have
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developed a strong connection with tis customer however its products did not reach to the
most desirable level where the customers feel an in-depth and psychological connection with
the brand.
Hence the CBBE model was carried to develop and manage the brand equity of company Boots
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LO2
P3 Different strategies of portfolio management, brand hierarchy and brand
equity management
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
Brand portfolio management includes the strategies to effectively create, deploy and manage
the brand assets in favour of synchronized top as well as bottom line growth. It addresses that
key issues and decisions of strategic business instead of linkage of brands (Çifci et al., 2016).
The business strategy and brand intersect through brand portfolio strategy. The brand portfolio
strategy builds; leverages and protects the brands of Company Boots and optimises the value of
entire portfolio.
The strategies to manage the portfolio are:
BRANDED HOUSE: this is the normal branding option for the organizations. In this strategy the
firm itself is brand and its sub-brands do not undermine from primary brand. It is easy to
manage and is highly cost-effective as the entire marketing efforts are dedicated on one brand.
This strategy builds strong brand which are recognisable and memorable (Çifci et al., 2016). The
company Boots is a brand in itself which is highly popular and is the largest health and beauty
chain in the UK while its sub brands do not detract from primary brand that is Company Boots.
Other examples are apple, Google, Volkswagen, Royal Bank of Scotland and so on.
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