Boots战略计划分析报告report

这份报告将分析如何根据当前形势来制定一个合适的战略计划。新的信息系统对公司的文化和生产力有着重大影响。本报告将充分利用案例研究以及通过网站、期刊、文章等途径获取的博姿公司对公众公开的信息。公司的战略地位是由SWOT and PEST analysis 分析法并参考法律和伦理方面规定基础上确立的。通过比较博姿公司的八大数据原则，我们可以看出博姿公司在行业确实是佼佼者，但至今他的潜力还没有完全被释放出来。
 

引言
 

博姿公司成立于19世纪中叶，由约翰创立，它原本只是一个小商店,向客户提供草药。他的生意做得非常成功，因为他立志于为穷人建立一个平台为他们提供廉价的草药服务，一些穷人付不起医药费。在他死后他的儿子很快接管了生意。
 

业务的持续成功和范围的不断扩大。博姿开始提供包括专利药品和家庭必需品。杰西开始批量购买比竞争对手更加便宜的产品，并且还打出了“为健康而活”因此大量的客户愿意购买他的产品，因为价格便宜，大众都付得起。因为这巨大的号召力让他的营业额大大增加，让他的信心大增，他还聘请了他的第一个合格的药剂师专门负责分配和分发药品和监督。大量的招聘新员工使公司名声大噪。
 

The Impact On The New Information System Marketing  report
 

This report will analyze the current position of Boots to determine a suitable strategic plan for the company as well as determine the impact that the new Information System had on the company’s culture and productivity. This report utilized information given from the case study as well as information about Boots that is available to the public via their website, journals, articles, etc. Some of the information found was used to structure this report. The company’s strategic position is determined by using a SWOT and PEST analysis and legal and ethical issues is determined by comparing the practices of Boots’ new IS to the 8 Data Protection Principles. Boots is indeed at the top I its market however the system still has potential that is not currently being used by Boots.

 

INTRODUCTION--引言
 

Boots was founded in the mid-19th century by John Boot. It was originally a small store that provided herbal medicine to customers. His business was very successful upon establishment and was particular popular with the poor members of society since many of these people could not afford medical services from doctors. After his death his son soon took over the business.

 

The business continued to be a success and broadened its wings by expanding the range in the products it offered to include proprietary medicines and household necessities. Jesse began buying products in bulk and selling goods cheaper than his competitors advertising under the slogan “Health for a Shilling”. This resulted in a mass amount of customers willing to buy his products due to the affordable prices. Because of this massive response his turnover increased greatly allowing him to open more branches and he also hired his first qualified pharmacist to allocate and distribute medicine and oversee recruitment of new staff which soon gave the company a greater professional reputation. Boots quickly became known for quality, value and service.

 

Jesse soon began to seek out to make Boots into a national chain of branches so he began to acquire new land and recruit chemists. The chain began to grow rapidly and the range of the products offered expanded to stationery, silverware and even new services such as cafes and bookstores. Boots soon began to develop products under its’ own name and began researching into new pharmaceuticals and chemicals.

 

The well being of the company’s employees were important to Jesse and His mother Florence and so they provided welfare, education, sports and social facilities for their growing retail and manufacturing workforce. They held social events for their staff members such as tea parties, trips to sea sides, musical concerts, etc.

 

After the First World War, Jesse soon retired and sold the company to the United Drug Company of America. Boots continued to prosper and grow and by 1933 the 1000th branch was opened. In the same year the UDC sold its holding in Boots to a group of British financers led by John Boot, Jesse’s son who continued to carry out his parents’ legacy.  John believed that Boots should offer good customer service and introduced new initiatives such as 24 hour opening times to serve the public better.  He also continued his parents' tradition of staff welfare - improving working conditions, reducing hours and introducing pensions for all employees.

 

Boots’ greatest competitor was Alliance UniChem; however in July 2006 there was a merger between these two companies hence making Boots the largest distributor in pharmaceutical and healthcare products. Since UniChem was one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in Europe, the merger resulted in Boots’ attaining continental recognition. With the merging of these two powerful companies, they soon became the largest pharmaceutical and cosmetic company in Europe.

 

This information makes it clear where the current culture and norms of Boots originated. Boots is concerned about the wellness of not only their customers but their staff as well. Boots usually carries out health assessment on their employees’ physical and mental health to ensure that their employees can perform comfortably and effectively. This has led to a great drop in the rate of absenteeism. Also, Boots also facilitates for recruiting new workers along with apprentice programs for the recruiting of staff who are enrolled a school and are studying which allows them to work for a salary while continuing with their studies. Boots also facilitates Career development practices to further enhance the performance of their employees so that they can perform well in each of the role(s) they are assigned to.

 

The company essentially still provides the same categories of products that were sold when the range of products sold were expanded by Jesse; however Boots has expanded in some areas of the products they sell but the main products offered still fit within the category of medicines and household necessities. These products are: -Health and beauty,Personal care

,Cosmetics and toiletries,Baby care,Bathroom toiletries,Dental care,Hair care,Men's toiletries,OTC medicines,Prescription medicines,Pharmacy services,Paper products,Perfumes,Skincare.

 

STRATEGIC ANALYSIS0--战略研究
 

SWOT ANALYSIS
 

STRENGTHS
 

Since UniChem was one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in Europe, the merger resulted in Boots’ attaining continental recognition. With the merging of these two powerful companies, Boots was soon recognized as the largest pharmaceutical and cosmetic company in Europe.

 

Boots spends time on training and developing their workers hence allowing them to perform better jobs and services as compared to other companies who do not spend time to train their employees.

 

The Customer Data Analysis System (CDAS) that is used for analyzing data such as customer behavior by using the advantage card system to obtain this data. Boots can analyze customer behavior, buying patterns, etc so that they can know exactly how to go about with promotions and influence specific groups of customers to shop more often. This also allows the company to quickly be able to identify changes in buying behavior and respond to them before any other company can.

 

The company is able to identify its’ most valuable customers and hence will know which customers they should focus on to bring in more revenue into the company and can also see if these customers are becoming less valuable and take measures to prevent this.

 

The company can also identify the type and mix of messages to send to a particular customer based on their life stage (e.g. sending messages advertising vitamins people over 35 who are beginning to be concerned about their health) to keep them purchasing from the company.

 

Customers are able to shop online via the Boots website and the customer can order prescription drugs online and have it delivered to them. This proves convenient for customers, particularly the old or disabled ones who may find it difficult to go to a pharmacy.

 

Boots’ campaign management system allows them to carry out effective marketing and advertising strategies as well as targeting specific groups of customers with each strategy. This gives the company having an upper hand in advertising and marketing strategies as compared to other companies.

 

Boots focus on the delivery of quality products and service to its customers is a great asset in terms of customer satisfaction.

 

The Advantage card point scheme encourages customers to carry out more purchases at the store and may also give the customer some form of satisfaction when they receive a reward item.

 

Boots’ No 7 and Soltan brands as well as products that are produced by the company itself is an asset in that the company does not have to depend on many outside suppliers for products to re-sell to customers which allows them to obtain greater profits since they can determine the price the products developed can be sold.

 

There is a wide range of products for customers to choose from while purchasing items which customers see as a convenience.

 

WEAKNESSES--缺点
 

Even though the company is greatly recognized in the UK, it has not yet attained global recognition which puts it at a disadvantage to competitors who have international recognition with branches over the world. E.g., although its brand is in the USA, the company acts only as a distributor that selling its products to pharmacies and department stores and does not have an actual store.

 

Boots does not facilitate international shopping via its website, hence customers from other countries may just purchase online from another supplier who may also be a competitor (since in terms of the age of e-business your competitor can now be just one ‘click’ away).

 

Because the company has no global recognition and does not facilitate international shopping, they are losing out on profit that can be achieved.

 

Although the CDAS analyses general customer behavior and buying patterns, it does not take into account the behavior of customers upon external influences. Simply meaning, the CDAS will analyze the buying patterns of customers, but does not analyze the data while considering things such as changes in the economical position (e.g. a period of recession) or the inflation of prices. Hence the system is lacking in proper analysis since that it may be targeting customers who had a particular buying pattern but the pattern has changed due to external factors and is not able to analyze the change in customer behavior before and after these changes.

 

The customer base is composed mostly of women and lacking in men.

 

The company is mostly known as a pharmaceutical and personal beauty and healthcare company which can make it difficult to be recognized for catering for other range of products as well.

 

OPPORTUNITIES--机会
 

Room for further expansion of the CDAS. Boots can expand the capabilities of the CDAS to facilitate and accommodate analysis of data based on external factors and influences (e.g. change in the economy, inflation, etc). By doing this they will be able to analyze changes customer behavior upon external changes allowing them to quickly identify the changes in trends and adapt to and deal with them. This can give them a great competitive advantage since they will know how to retain their customers upon change

 

America is one of the greatest prescription drug users in the world. If boots can merge with an American company and open actual outlets of their store they should be able to achieve great amounts of profit. This could be done not only in America but in other countries as well.

 

The website can expand its range to facilitate international shopping and delivery so customers can purchase products from the company instead of other suppliers who may be competitors.

 

The advantage card point scheme can be enhanced to allow customers to treat themselves to a product of their choice.

 

THREATS--威胁

 

If there is an economic recession or inflation in prices the performance of Boots can experience a drop if they do not deal with these matters quickly.

 

Because Boots is one of the top in its market, it will be the target for many competitors who will drop the prices of their products as a form of competition. E.g. Superdrug does not have a wide range of products as Boots, but some of the products are cheaper. In the case as above that there is a recession, it is very likely that people may go to Superdrug instead of Boots to purchase, however the real threat lies within the question of whether the customers will return to Boots after the recession or stick to Superdrug.

 

Because of the use of technology by Boots, any increase or improvements on technology can affect them greatly in that they will have to continually be updating the technology that they have and will also have to be very careful if a competitor begins to use new technology as well since this can drastically affect Boots’ technological advantage.

 

Supermarkets are beginning participate in the medicine and beauty sector as well. If customers find it easier to purchase medicine while they are doing their basic shopping, Boots will experience a great drop in sales if appropriate counter-action in not taken.

 

Competitors increasing the amount of branches they have can result in customers preferring to go to their store if the location is more convenient.

 

PEST ANALYSIS
 

Political--政策
 

Changes in legislations that affect medicine and prices can affect the performance of Boots. Laws that removed the retail price maintenance on over the counter drugs basically resulted in manufactures not being able to determine the price(s) that resellers can sell these drugs. Plans to remove restrictions on how many pharmacies can serve a single area were also introduced by the government. This is a great opportunity for Boots however since they can have more room for expansion.

 

Economical--经济
 

The economical state of a country can greatly affect the company’s performance. Countries can be hit with recessions before even getting time to prepare. Such sudden changes can affect Boots badly if they cannot cope with these changes quickly.

 

Another aspect is inflation rates. The ONS shows that as of June 2012, Consumer Prices Index (CPI) annual inflation stood at 2.4% and Retail Prices Index (RPI) annual inflation stood at 2.8%. In July 2011 however CPI annual inflation stood at 4.4% and Retail Prices Index (RPI) annual inflation stood at 5.0%. The rapid change in these rates can greatly affect the total sales for Boots

 

Social--社会
 

It is more common for elderly people to need medicine as compared to younger ones. As people grow older they will have need for more medicines to treat their bodies against sicknesses any other ailments that pose a threat to their health. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that over the years, the total population of people over 50 will greatly increase as the years go by as compared to now. This will result in more elderly people who may have the need for medication for their health which can result in the overall sales of boots increasing.

 

Another area is norms and practices of society. Nowadays smoking and alcohol consumptions have greatly increased and the younger generation is more careless in the way the carry about and take care of themselves but are still more concerned about their appearance. The age group that is most popular with boots ranges from 25-34 years old. This shows the beauty sector of Boots attracts a younger generation. The effects of alcohol and smoking can pose health risks in the future which can result in the need for more medicinal treatments. The ONS projects that the age for the UK population within the 25-34 age groups to dramatically increase over the years.

 

The other aspect is with Boots’ participation in its own research and development of new products. However groups are campaigning against the use of animals for testing. If the use of animals for testing is banned, this can slow down production and research for boots until new alternatives are found.

 

Technological--科技
 

Nowadays technology is the key to success to any business. It is clear that Boots is no stranger to technology since this is what gives them a strong competitive advantage over its rivals. It is evident that they are utilizing the available aspects of technology as compared to the competitors which can be shown with the CDAS and the online website to allow online shopping. While the use of these technologies can still be improved, Boots is performing rather well as they are and one can only imagine what will occur if they were to utilize the full potential of these technologies.#p#分页标题#e#

 

IMPACT OF THE INFORMATION SYSTEM--信息系统的影响
 

The new IT/IS system implemented has affected Boots in many great ways. The use of the Advantage Card and new IT system has given it a great competitive advantage over its rivals in that Boots attained the power to analyze trends and changes in customer buying patterns and behavior as well as in the market and most important of all gain better understanding of their customers. This allowed Boots to identify areas where it was lacking in performance and allowed them to provide better customer service and achieve significant growth in sales by being able to target specific customer groups. By implementing the new system Boots was able to target individual customers and use different promotional techniques to give incentives to the customers that were most valuable to them, had a particular buying pattern or based on the life stage of a particular customer; this resulted on Boots being more able to live up to its goal of maintaining satisfied customers.

 

The implementation of the website also was a great benefit since customers are able to shop online via the Boots website and the customer can order prescription drugs online and have it delivered to them. This proves convenient for customers, particularly the old or disabled ones who may find it difficult to go to a pharmacy.

 

The campaign management system allowed the company to carry out effective marketing and advertising strategies as well as targeting specific groups of customers with each strategy. This results in the company having an upper hand in advertising and marketing strategies as compared to other companies.

 

The IT/IS system has also led to a cultural change of Boots upon implementation. Some of the changes are:-

 

Promotional and marketing strategies used have changed and Boots has taken up a whole different approach in promoting products and services

 

Because the new IS has given Boots a great competitive advantage over its rivals, it no longer has to spend most of its time and income on advertising techniques to gain a better competitive advantage to compete with its rivals

 

The roles of staff members have been made easier since the system facilitates Customer Relationship Management. Staff members can now know how to approach a particular group or type of customer

 

The profits generated as a result of the implementing the new IS has allowed Boots to further expand and upgrade its internal infrastructure.

 

The way business is carried out has changed due to the implementation of the website. Simply meaning that Boots may have less customers actually coming into the store, but these customers are most likely at home doing their purchases via the website.

 

Less time can be spent on researching new promotional methods since the campaign management system allows the company to easily come up with new strategies by using the information from the CDAS

 

E-MARKETING STRATEGY
 

The situation analysis is done in the Strategic Analysis

 

Objective Statement
 

Expand, sustain and improve the existing customer base to increase and maintain profits from both existing and new customers within the next year while attaining and sustaining the ability to adapt to external changes from the economy and increasing the use and awareness of the website.

 

Strategy
 

The strategy will target Advantage Card holders as well as members of the general public who are not advantage card holders, prefer to conduct business with competitors or do not pose to be a great value to the company and are not fully aware of the Boots website.

 

The strategy will utilize Customer Loyalty Improvement, Customer Value Improvement and Content Marketing strategies as well as Search Engine Optimization and Trusted Feed promotional and advertising methods and improvement in the existing CDAS technology to cope with economical change to attract and keep customers which should result in an increase in profits. The whole idea is to deliver better customer service, satisfaction and convenience and raise the awareness of the Boots website.

 

Tactics
 

To obtain new customers, existing customers will be encouraged to recommend Boots to their friends and family as well as using Search Engine Optimization to expand the publicity and awareness of Boots’ website. In order to retain and satisfy existing customers and be able to cope with external changes in the economy, the CDAS can be improved to facilitate analysis of data based on changes in the economy and methods can be implemented in a way to cope with the changes in a way that it barely affects the customer and if it does it still gives the customers an incentive to stick with the company despite the change(s) in the economy. Trusted Feed promotional techniques will then be used to update the customers on the website with any changes that took place with the prices of products. Content Marketing strategies will be used to provide customers with a wider range of information for products and services online so they can easily make purchase decisions and may prove convenient since they can get more ideas on what exactly they are looking for and what they should use without having the trouble to figure out or lookup information based on the purchase they wish to carry out. Boots already uses E-mail Marketing to inform customers about promotions and recommended products for them based on life stage analysis. This can also be seen as a method of the retention of customers.

 

Products
 

The products and services the company offers will stay the same and it should be ensured that the customers receive the best quality products and services. The e-mail marketing strategy Boots uses informs customers about products they are most likely to use or should use based on a life stage analysis.

 

Price
 

The products and services offered to the customer should have prices that are reasonable and will encourage the customers to purchase them. However, the main issue with pricing will be to utilize. Trusted Feed techniques will be used to inform the customers of any changes in prices that occur due to changes in the economy. This way the customers can see any products where the price was affected due to the recession but Boots should set the prices in a way so that customers will see that the price of the product can still be reasonable in terms of the economical state as compared with competitors. This should encourage customers to stick with boots during times of economical changes.

 

Place
 

The customers should be able to purchase products online and when they do it should be delivered to them within a reasonable space of time. This type of e-Business is known as ‘Clicks and Mortar’ where there is one physical location where products are held and an online virtual location (in this case Boots’ website) where the customer can view products and purchase them via the web. When a customer makes a purchase, the products will be delivered to them or they can collect it at a desired location.

 

Promotion
 

This will be one of the major areas to focus on to achieve the objective. Search Engine Optimization will be used to expand the publicity and awareness of Boots’ website and Trusted Feed promotional techniques will then be used to update the customers on the website with any changes that took place with the prices of products. Advertising will also be done by encouraging existing customers to recommend Boots’ website to friends, family etc to help raise awareness. Boots already has great promotional and advertising techniques to retain customers and encourage them to purchase a particular item or group of items so the company will not have to do much work in this aspect again.

 

People
 

The customers are the main focus of the objective so it should be ensured that they are well taken care of and provided the best services possible. A method of improving customer service is using the Trusted Feed techniques will be used to inform the customers of any changes in prices and products that occur due to changes in the economy. By doing this, customers will be updated with these changes and this should be convenient in that they do not have to manually identify which products were affected and how they are to change their shopping methods. Content Marketing strategies will be a great asset to have in this factor as it can be used to provide customers with a wider range of information for products and services online so they can easily make purchase decisions and may prove convenient since they can get more ideas on what exactly they are looking for and what they should use without having the trouble to figure out or lookup information based on the purchase they wish to carry out or go to a store to get advice on what they should purchase and how.

 

Process
 

Boots should ensure that the information being updated during economical changes are accurate and efficient. Also, when using Content Marketing strategies, the information being displayed to the customer should be enough to allow the customer to make an easy decision and give a basic understanding of what they are to do and how. The information should be good enough to display to all categories of customers. Boots already utilizes the power of identifying trends and life stages to determine the mix of messages to send to customers so the company will not have to do much work in this aspect again.

 

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Physical Evidence
 

The website already facilitates things such as product images but by using Content Marketing, customers can have a better online experience in that they are being provided with information as they browse or go about doing purchases. The website should however facilitate better methods to allow the customers to communicate with a member of staff or a sales representative.

 

Proposed Online Value Proposition
 

Delivering quality service and products to satisfy your needs while providing easy decision making assistance: - Easily get information to help you decide what best suits you while you browse and purchase.

 

Key Performance Indicators
 

Significant increase in the overall customer base within the next year

 

Significant increase in profits and sales within the next financial year

 

Very little or no impact on profits and sales during changes in the economy

 

Significant increase in the amount of users of the website

 

This advantage of this strategy is that Boots will achieve a greater competitive advantage in the aspect that there will be a bigger customer base and they will be provided with information to make their decision making processes easier. Customers will be attracted to Boots’ website not only as a portal for purchasing but also as a source of information as well. If customers come to the site for information on what to purchase or how or any other information, they will also see advertisements and promotions that are on the website and can encourage them to purchase the items advertised. Also, if the strategy is carried out correctly, Boots will be able to cope with changes and retain its customers during times of economical change.

 

LEGAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES
 

The issues Boots should consider in terms of gathering, processing and distribution of user information on the Internet is analyzed using the 8 Data Protection Principles, these state that data should be:-

 

Fairly and lawfully processed

 

Customer data is lawfully processed for the sole purpose of analysis and marketing research. Customer data is not misused or used in any other irrelevant way.

 

Processed for limited purposes and not in any manner incompatible with those purposes

 

Customer information in Boots are used mainly for analytical purposes in analyzing customer behavior and marketing research

 

Adequate, relevant and not excessive

 

The only information that is used from the customers are basic personal details and buying patterns. No unnecessary information is used from the customers unless it is specified

 

Accurate and where necessary, up to date

 

Customer data is kept up to date not only to adhere to this principle but to deliver accurate analytical results.

 

Not kept for longer than is necessary

 

Customer data is kept as long as there is use for it. Meaning, that as long as Boots has a need for the existing customer data for analysis, it will be kept.

 

Processed in line with the data subject's rights

 

Data is gathered and used by Boots to conform to a person’s rights. The customer is made aware of the purpose(s) for which their data will be used.

 

Secure

 

The use of customer data is restricted for any unauthorized access. The only people who have access to this data are market researchers and CDAS analysts.

 

Personal information shall not be transferred to countries outside the EEA without adequate protection

 

Customer data is not transferred and is not made available to other countries. The only place it can be accessed it within the restrictions of the CDAS and nowhere else.

 

It can hence be determined that Boots conforms to the 8 Data Protection Principles

 

CONCLUSION
 

Based on the information found, it can easily be said that Boots is the top competitor in its market despite the fact that it has rivals who may have a few advantages over Boots. It is clear that the implementation of the new IT/IS system has put Boots at the top of its market and given it the ability to carry on its legacy of quality customer service. The system has proven itself to be a powerful tool since it gave Boots the power to analyze the market and quickly respond to any changes. This does not however, mean that the company will always be as powerful as it is. New technology is coming out every day and it is only a matter of time before competitors decide to use them. Also, there is always room for improvements no matter how great a company is and the system has room for further potential that is yet to be harnessed by the company. Hence although the company is at the top of its market, by properly using the full potential of the system and continuing to be open to using improvements in technology, the company should be able to keep its position and even get better in the many years to come.