BRAND AUDIT PROJECT

BY DIYA SINGH

MBA IEVD

S223FIE05
Introduction

The Industry

Wearable technology, also commonly referred to as "wearables," is an electronics category that

can be used as daily accessories, have them embedded in clothes, or even implanted in the user's
body. These are intended to be hands-free gadgets with a variety of useful applications. They
have game-changing potential in medicine and other allied sectors. They derive their power
through microprocessors and have the capability of sending and receiving data through the
Internet. The expansion of mobile networks facilitated the development of wearable
technologies. Fitness activity trackers were the first significant wearable technology to gain
popularity with consumers. The wristwatch was then transformed into a screen, and more
complex mobile apps were added. Bluetooth headphones, wristbands, and web-enabled glasses
also receive data from Wi-Fi networks. With augmented reality and virtual reality headsets, the
gaming industry is introducing more accessories in wearable technology.

About Boat:

Aman Gupta and Sameer Mehta launched their direct-to-consumer electronics company, BoAt,
in2016. Moreover, in 2014, they established Boat's parent business, Imagine Marketing India,
with whom they are closely affiliated. BoAt was founded with a bootstrapped capital of INR 30
lakhs. The wide variety of products that the firm offers has attracted a large customer base. These
products range from speakers to wireless earbuds and earphones to smartwatches and home
audio devices and smartphone accessories. According to the company's own description, they are
a "lifestyle brand." Customers may obtain the latest and greatest products from them at a price
that won't break the bank. According to International Data Corporation (IDC), BoAt ranked fifth
in the wearables market by volume of deliveries and market share in Quarter 1 2022. Apple,
Samsung, Xiaomi, and Huawei took the first four spots. BoAt offers an incredible collection of
earphones, earbuds, headphones, and audio equipment that stand out for their great quality, low
costs, and world-class designs. Since its inception in2016, BoAt has been named India's leading
earwear audio brand. Through the company, users can experience both spirit and energy. Boat's
primary objective was to give people valuable, long- lasting, and well-known stylish products.
The narrative of a humble Indian startup's sudden journey to stardom is certainly endearing.
They met numerous conflicts throughout their travels. Despite the hardships, they never gave up
hope. They, too, had humble origins. It grew from its beginnings as a network of connection
producers and sellers. One of its creators, Aman Gupta, was familiar with the gadget sector.
Heled his small group of workers for several years (2007 to 2010). He worked for Citibank from
2003 to 2006after completing his CA degree. In 2010, he decided to pursue an MBA at ISB
Hyderabad. This was the beginning of his problems with the auditing firm KPMG. Despite the
fact that he was there for a little more than a half-year, it was long enough to leave an
impression. The same can be said of his interest in machinery and technology, which drove him
to apply at JBL. Sameer Mehta is Boat's principal financial backer and chief operations officer.
After graduating from college, Sameer Mehta created and maintained his own company,
Redwood Interactive.
Product Portfolio of BoAt

Category Products

Airdopes BoAt Airdopes 131

True Wireless Wireless Earbuds
BoAt Airdopes 121 PRO TRebal Airdopes 601 ANC
Rockerz Wireless BoAt Rockerz 235 V2
BoAt Rockerz 255 Pro
BassHeads Wired BoAt BassHeads 172
TRebal BassHeads 242
Smart Watches BoAt Wave Connect
BoAt Watch Flash BoAt Xtend
Stone Speakers BoAt Stone 650
BoAt Stone 1200F BoAt Stone 1010
BoAt Aavante Bar 1150
Home Theatre BoAt Aavante Bar 1500N
Systems & Soundbars
Mobile Accessories BoAt LTG 500
BoAt Micro USB 150 BoAt Micro USB 600
Trimmers MisFit TSO Trimmer MisFit T200
Immortal Gaming BoAt ImmortallOOOD
Headphones BoAt Immortal 1300
Car Accessories BoAt 3A Qualcomm 3.0
Turbo Car Charger
Objective:

To study the go-to market strategy of the company and understand the complexities connected
with expanding in a highly competitive market and how to maintain growth while maximizing
profitability. GTM strategies foresee the challenges of this competitive sector by correctly
identifying the target market, explaining the product's value proposition, building a marketing
plan, and developing a sales and distribution channel strategy.

Value Proposition

BoAt recognized the vast gaps in India's audio and wearable markets and launched BoAt with
the objective of bringing fashion and consumer electronics together. After five years, BoAt has
become an important part of cultural dialogues for the millennial population, social media
influencers, audiophiles, and many others. As a result, BoAt has become an outspoken supporter
of self-expression, adventure, and discovery. BoAt aspires to provide more than simply a product
to its community, driven by a strong love of music and an instinct for innovation.

What is Strategic Marketing Communication:

Strategic Marketing Communication is a communication strategy used by a company to convey

its message or market its product or service through various channels to reach its target
customer; this strategy enables this company to efficiently decide on what to be said, whom to be
said and how to say it, so it reaches target customer.

Multiple channels are present for this:

 online advertising on AdWords, Facebook, etc.,

 offline advertising on print media, billboards, or TV,
 direct marketing,
 personal selling,
 events,
 sponsorships,
 content marketing
 an annual sales promotion
Why did we choose this method to analyze the company:

We chose this strategy to learn how a start-up with limited capital chooses its communication
strategies to start communication because it builds your company image and awareness among
customers, eventually making your brand name. Being a start-up, you cannot spend like big
companies, hugely on campaigns, big brand ambassadors, etc. Start-ups need to align brand,
budget, and communication with customers.

Marketing Strategy

BoAt's marketing strategy:

“You are plugged into Nirvana”. When you take a boat, you leave everything behind, you plug
into a new zone, says co-founder Aman Gupta. Prior to the brand's revolution, earbuds and
headphones were merely accessories that came with mobile phones. In recent years, demand for
Boat's products has skyrocketed. In order to build a solid customer base, the firm prioritized the
following three market tactics:

 Customer’s Needs
 Customer’s Desires
 Customer’s Behavior Pattern

Target Audience:

From the start, BoAt has been focused on young people who are interested in fitness. All their
products are made with this audience in mind. They saw that the demand for products that can't
be broken was growing, so they started making them. Plus, they tried to get the attention of their
target audience with different ads. Product positioning boAt's marketing strategy has been to pay
closer attention to customer needs and build a relationship with them. The corporation dubbed its
loyal consumers ‘boAtheads’, and they had their own community. Any requests for changes to
existing items, as well as the introduction of new products, were met with enthusiastic responses
from these devoted boAthead communities. These customer approaches helped the company's
customer base grow.
BoAt Marketing strategy:

For many people, Boat's marketing technique is music to their ears. Earphones and headphones
were solely complimentary things that came with mobile phones before the brand revolutionized
itself. In recent years, Boat has seen a surge in demand for its products. Let's take a look at the
tactics that Boat has used to achieve its phenomenal success.

1) Selling Electronic Product as Accessories

Earphones and headphones were available in the market as electronic devices prior to 2014.

When acquiring such a product, the design components were unimportant. Customers began to
pay attention to design elements as time went on. Boat's work, however, extends much beyond
design. It markets its headphones as a fashion item.

Boat is cooperating with folks in the fashion sector as well as selling its product as a fashion
item. At Lakmé Fashion Week 2020, boAt worked with celebrity designer Masaba Gupta to
produce a limited-edition collection of edgy headphones. They've collaborated to create a line of
products aimed at millennials, reviving the disco look of the 1970s.

That is how the design approach of boats operates. Boat is not only an electronic device, but also
a trendy device. It has evolved into an accessory for its clients that enhances their appearance
while carrying them. One of its most popular earphone designs is the boat Bluetooth headphone
that goes around the neck. Who'd have guessed that earphones could be worn as a fashion
statement?

2) Premium Product at Affordable Price

Customers like it when they can get a decent product for a good price. For most people, high-
quality earphones and headphones are out of reach, but not for Boat. Boat uses one of its
marketing strategies to offer high-quality audio equipment at a cheap price.

Boat's strategy in competing with companies like JBL, Sony, and others is similar. As a result of
its low prices, Boat led its competitor JBL to decrease its prices.

The product's durability is one of the reasons behind Boat's enormous success. Furthermore, the
audio quality offered by Boat is comparable to that of only a few luxury manufacturers.
Customers are drawn to the brand because of its longevity and reasonable pricing.

3) Celebrity Endorsement

It takes a long time for a company to gain the support of well-known celebrities and
personalities. When a brand is performing well, though, it is only a question of time. A long list
of brand ambassadors may be found on the Boat website.

Shikhar Dhawan, Hardik Pandey, and KL Rahul, as well as actors Jacqueline Fernandez, Kiara
Advani, Kartik Aryan, and others, endorse the brand.

When a brand is associated with music, it should have music industry ambassadors. Neha Kakkar
and Diljeet Dosanjh, who are also Boat's brand ambassadors, are two of the biggest stars in the
music industry. Boat is a new brand in the market, but it has established itself in the same way
that many other electronics brands have.

A brand that is endorsed by a well-known figure, on the other hand, appears to be genuine and
gets client trust. And it's because of this that Boat's has such a large consumer base.

4) Event Marketing

a) IPL

The Chennai Super Kings, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kings XI Punjab, Kolkata Knight
Riders, Delhi Capitals, and Mumbai Indians are the six IPL clubs that boAt has announced its
official partnership with this season. To fully bring the stadium home for fans, boAt also
developed limited-edition earbuds, headphones, and speakers inspired by the teams' emblem and
design motif.
b) Sunburn

How can a brand overlook music events when the product is about music? Boat is a sponsor of
Sunburn, Asia's largest music festival.

c) Lakme Fashion Week

Boat is a component of the Lakme Fashion Weck, which is a fantastic event. The brand is being
presented as a stylish accessory during the fashion event. The models walk down the ramp
wearing Boat's merchandise.
Marketing Mix

4P Analysis

Product

When they saw that iPhone charging cords were easily broken owing to low quality, they set out
to solve this problem by manufacturing and marketing replacement cables that were
indestructible. They quickly grew to include a wide variety of earbuds and headphones designed
specifically for use while exercising. This was a very important way to reach young people,
especially since fitness is more important than ever. Making custom commercials or posters that
show people working out or running while wearing BoAt earbuds also helped show how useful
the products are.

Promotion

BoAt's products are only advertised and sold through digital marketing and social media. The
company has avoided advertising on TV and in newspapers. Instead, you might find BoAt ads
where all the young people hang out, like on Facebook and Google.

Pricing

BoAt is not as expensive as high-end brands but also not as cheap as Chinese brands. The
company is in the best place in the market. The price point of a product makes it easier for
people to buy it, and BoAt users can also get big discounts on products. It's popular with most
people. And by focusing on fashion, it attracts the group it wants to reach, which is young
people.

People

Getting the brand's target audience right is undoubtedly one of the most essential parts of making
the brand successful. Thanks to social media, fitness is getting more attention than ever before,
and for many people, audibles are becoming more of a must than a choice. People's habits did
start to change because of the trend. BoAt knew this, so they made things that young people
liked.
During the 2019 Lakme fashion week, BoAt teamed up with Masaba Gupta and quietly stopped
being an audio and electronics company to become a lifestyle brand. This makes it different from
other brands like JBL and Skullcandy. It could also help the company keep making products that
are meant to make people's lives easier. Along with earbuds, the company has made a number of
sound bars, speakers, and sound systems over time. Being called a lifestyle brand opens the door
for BoAt to make more of these kinds of things in the near future.
Business Model
Brand Mantra

Plug into Nirvana

"Music heals." Well, with this belief, the founders of BoAt, Aman Gupta and Sameer Mehta
were looking to create something that would connect music to a person's soul and transcend them
into stirring bliss. That's how they arrived at the tagline: "Plug into Nirvana."

BoAt offers a wide range of devices, from earbuds to smartwatches, from speakers to
headphones, and more. In the ear-wear market, BoAt lifestyle holds a 27.3% share, making it the
dominant brand.

In FY2021, it brought in 1,531 crores in sales and made a profit of about 127.1 crores. Revenue
increased by 61% from 48.85 crores in FY20 to 78.6 crores in FY21.BoAt is a company that
specializes in providing inexpensive wired earphones. Since no other company offers wired
headphones in this price range, their items are priced between 350 and550.The corporation has
never needed to sell its launched products because it has always made products that caused
demand-pull. Because of its high quality and affordable cost, it has quicklygained in popularity.

As an illustration, BoAt introduced a portable Bluetooth speaker called the "BoAt Stone," which
became an instant hit despite the fact that BoAt's competitors were selling similar products for
around £5,000.
SWOT Analysis

Strengths

 Profitability: The selling of customized boats provides boat manufacturers with healthy
profit margins. They can slow down their expansion at any moment, and there are
significant obstacles for new competitors to overcome in this market.
 Although there are few barriers to entry into the boat manufacturing sector, a successful
company venture requires a leader with extensive knowledge and expertise in the field.
 Those who are up to the challenge of boat manufacturing can reap the rewards of large
gross margins while working for themselves in a very complicated industry.
 In order to get various parts of a boat made, the firms that make boats have to keep good
ties with one another.

Weaknesses

 Political and economic instability: these companies are more vulnerable to downturns in
the economy.
  Therefore, it is crucial that the entrepreneur find strategies to keep all fixed and
underlying costs under control to maintain a profit margin through economic downturns.

Opportunities

 Companies may grow rapidly by creating standardized templates for their most common
processes.
 Some boat builders may sell licenses to other businesses so that they can produce boats
based on their blueprints and designs.
 Expansion: Moreover, by expanding the basic facilities, additional orders may be
processed at any given moment.
 Danger The possibility of a monetary downturn, which would reduce consumers’
spending power.

Threat:

 Boat faces a significant challenge due to the unbalanced nature of the market caused by
the breadth of its competitors' product offerings.

Threat from Similar Products:

Price match is another thing that BoAt has done to make customers choose them. JBL is a good
alternative to BoAt, but BoAt is still growing in the Indian market even though other brands are
showing up.
Challenges/ bottlenecks

 Constant Innovation: The company faces a challenge to constantly innovate to be able to

retain its millennial customer base while providing quality products at affordable prices.
 Highly Competitive market: There are many new firms in this field, and even established
traditional companies are moving ahead in this category creating even more competition
in the market.
 No Warranty Service: Even if a consumer is willing to pay the extra money if a product
has problems after the warranty period has expired, BoAt presently does not provide
post-warranty servicing.
 Imported products: The majority of BoAt products are manufactured in China by third-
party manufacturers, but this has become a problem due to the India-China dispute
andCovid-19. The firms may have significant challenges in importing products from
China since 2020.
The way forward

The majority of boAt's business was conducted online, accounting for 60 to 70% of total
revenues. The majority of boAt's offline sales came from the top ten to twenty cities, and the
company wanted to focus on smaller towns and rural areas. Through agreements with retail
chains such as Croma, the company hopes to reach more offline customers.

The company also intended to expand into the international market and extend its range to
include gaming-related devices such as keyboards, mice, and headphones. With the trend of
purchasing headphones along with smartphones on the rise, most smartphone firms have
partnered with audio providers to offer combination bargains on phones and earphones.

Apple has partnered with Beats, while Samsung has partnered with Harman and JBL. Boat has
also been looking for a partnership with smartphone manufacturers to help sell its audio
equipment. In the future, it hopes to supply Indian clients with audio items that use cutting-edge
technology, eliminating the need for them to rely on imported goods.

 To address the issue of importing from China, they have formed a 50:50 joint venture
with Dixon Technologies under a plan to manufacture some boAt products in India. As
the 'Make in India' campaign gains strength in the country, the company is enabled to
launch more items quickly and at an affordable cost.
 It is expected that Imagine Marketing will IPO before the end of this year.
Competitor Analysis

Porter's 5 forces Analysis

Competition Rivalry:

BoAt's main competitor in the speakers and other accessories market is JBL, which has the
largest share of the Indian market. BoAt and JBL's competition is fought with supply chains,
data, business analytics, and an internet front.

Potential for new companies to join the market:

BoAt is a new company, so there is a lot of room for new companies to join the market. Even
though BoAt just came out, companies like MiVi, Noise, etc. are already taking its market share.
After BoAt came along, these companies started to get a bigger share of the Indian market, but
they still have a big piece of it.

Power of Suppliers:

BoAt has been able to fight against the power of suppliers. Most of the BoAt suppliers, people
say, are from China. We all know that China brags about making things at low cost. So, we can
say that BoAt's products come at a low price.

Power of Customers:

BoAt still can't stand up to customer pressure, which could hurt their ability to make money.
Still, compared to competitors like JBL, BoAt's price is very low. BoAt has improved its supply
chain so that its products are available in most places, whether they are in the country or in the
city. This gives customers even more options.
BRAND EXPORATORY

We can assess brand associations of Boat lifestyle by looking at the company's core values and
missions and how the consumers perceive them. We'll use the Brand Resonance model to
analyse the brand knowledge of the consumers about the company. The basic concept behind
Brand Resonance Model is to make the brands understand how their consumers perceive the
brand and consequently map a customer journey in a way that leads to positive experiences.

1. Brand Salience:

The brand is one of the most widely known audio brands in India. It is famously known among
its customers for its affordable prices, premium and stylish looks, quality, and durability. It is an
Indian brand, and the products are designed based on the customer preferences and styles.

2. Brand Meaning:

There are two subcategories to this phase, Brand imagery and Brand performance. Brand
Imagery focuses on emotional factors and Brand performance focuses on the rational factors of
customer satisfaction. The image boat lifestyle wants its customers to associate themselves with
terms like Go-getters, Trend setters, Slayers, Young,

Ever-loving, Rule breakers, Wild, Optimistic, and Free spirits. The brand creates emotions of
being free and disconnected from the world, being in a state of Nirvana. The brand's performance
has also always been excellent with not even one failed product in the market. It is the biggest
TWS brand in India and it fulfills its promise to provide fashionable and aspirational products at
affordable prices.

3. Brand response:

This phase also has two categories, Judgement and Feelings. It shows the consumers' reactions
towards the brand. The consumers judge the brand to be stylish and a trend setter. The products
are perceived as affordable, innovative, and durable. The consumers of this brand get a sense of
being free and disconnected from the world, being in a state of Nirvana from its products.

4.Brand Resonance:

The brand is immensely popular among the generation of millennials and Gen Z. The company
has a cult following of about 3 million and they play a crucial part in brand growth. These
members, or 'boAtheads', get early access to limited-edition products and discounts, among other
benefits. The brand gets most of its repeat customers from this user community. The boAtheads
also function as beta users and provide early feedback on products before these are publicly
launched.

The brand has a strong hold on its customers. It understands the behaviors and needs of its target
segment and creates products based on their needs. It has realized the product gap in the market
and appropriately provided products in that category. The brand's Salience is strong and
dominant as it has become immensely popular in a short period of time. Their target segment and
product offerings are unique from other brands. The consumer's feelings of it being an
affordable, durable, and yet aspirational brand are unique and this is what differentiates it from
its competitions. Its target customers are Gen Z. and millennials and for these communities’
fashion is a lifestyle. The Brand image of having aspirational and stylish products resonates with
its target segments.

Boat lifestyle has a customer community that is loyal to the company. They are named as
boAtheads. We can consider them as extreme users of this brand. Some basic characteristics of
this segment are:

1. Most of the community is either from the millennial generation or from Gen Z.
2. These people see fashion as a lifestyle choice and want to keep updated with current trends
and innovations while also seeking style and affordability.

3. The customers mostly lie in the 18-24 age group and belong to the middle class.

4. ⁠They are generally fun loving and wild and seek thrill and entertainment in life.

5. They associate themselves with words like rebel, trend-setter, go-getter, bold, optimistic, and
free spirits.

Consumers get a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction while buying a Boat lifestyle product. They
like the product quality and find its features attractive. They find it joyful and exciting to add a
boat product to their lifestyle. The consumers like the sound quality the brand provides on
consumption of their products. They also accept it as a fashionable wearable and feel like they're
up to the modern trends. They feel as if the products) has added value to their life and as if the
product is made to keep in mind their problems. The products enhance their lifestyle.
Reflection & Recommendations

We floated a survey form to understand the brand perception of boAt among a sample of the
population. Following were the questions asked in the survey:

1. Age group?

2. Your city?

3. What type of wearable technology do you use?

4. Which of these brands do you recognize? (Showed logos for determining brand recall)

5. Which of the brands below do you prefer the most?

6. Which of the following brands do you think are reliable?

7. Have you ever used any boat products?

8. On a scale of 1 to 5 how much will you rate boat products?

9. From where did you buy boat products?

As per the responses received to the above questions, we could make the following
interpretations:

 8 of every 10 surveyed people have used a boAt product.

 90% of the population is young (15 to 35 Yrs. of Age).
 Demographic Distribution of Surveyed Population includes maximum people from Tierl
and Tier2 cities, while least 3.1% from rural areas.
 Wired earphones are the most used wearable technology used by the sample population.
 boAt and OnePlus are the most preferred brand in wearable technology.
 boAt has brand recall of 65.7% with Xiaomi leading with 84.4% and Fitbit with least
brand recall at 15%.
 boAt is perceived to have good reliability as per the survey organic responses.
 Most preferred channels for boAt products are Amazon.com, followed by Flipkart.com.
Inferences

• boAt is a popular brand among young and middle-aged people

• The brand has well penetrated the market of major cities but lacks rural exposure

• boAt is one of the top brands for wearable technology, where earphones or TWS category is
highly competitive

• boAt has excellent brand recall which is at par with most Indian tech-wearable brands and
comparable to smartphone giants like Oneplus & Xiaomi

• The brand, boAt is perceived most reliable in its segment and enjoys maximum product flow
through online distribution channels, specifically Amazon.com
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