Not all bricks-and-mortars turned their hands at e-tail with great
success. But by using he high street to direct people to its
website, Boots is doing well with Wellbeing, writes Rachel
Jackson
Few would dispute that we like to feel good about ourselves, and
that we can often be tempted to make a purchase, be it a lipstick
or a car, to boost this sense of esteem. But the experience is far
more than the five-minute point-of-sale purchase; it starts with
the initial marketing seduction and leads through to packaging
temptations before coming to an end with the actual transaction.
Health and beauty products play a key part in female retail
therapy, but when so much rests on physical selection how could a
high street retailer such as Boots recreate this experience online?
Boots hoped that trust in the brand would be sufficient that it
would encourage people to shop for its products online.
The company took its first steps into e-tail some five years ago
with bootsphoto.com. Fast-forward to January 2000 and the site had
already seen a number of modifications and upgrades. As the dotcom
boom cast its Midas touch across the UK, Boots recognised the
potential of the online channel and Wellbeing was launched soon
after, offering health and beauty products and advice.
"Our target audience is women online who are shopping for health
and beauty products," says Richard Holmes, managing director of
Wellbeing.
Although dotcom confidence tailed off when the US market crashed in
spectacular fashion, Boots was not tempted to stray from its path
toward digital growth. The Boots Company wanted Wellbeing to evolve
beyond a basic website, so it partnered with Granada to launch an
online shopping and interactive television channel. The website
provides a range of information about personal wellbeing and offers
some 10,000 products. As you'd expect, the TV channel - available
daily on ONDigital and Sky Digital - broadcasts advice and
entertainment features, but it also supports the sale of goods from
the site.
Boots is striving to raise awareness of both its iTV and online
channels, but, perhaps surprisingly, more customers are coming to
the site via the high street than by any other means.
In March this year interactive kiosks were installed in many
stores. The kiosks - designed initially so customers could check
their loyalty scheme (Advantage) points - also point clearly to the
website. Boots believes this high street presence has been integral
to Wellbeing's success. "The kiosks have attracted the most
customers to the Wellbeing site, and Boots magazine has also shown
a good response," says Holmes.
As Boots hoped, trust and loyalty have played a key part in
promoting the brand. "Our target audience is women online who are
shopping for health and beauty products. this is a massive,
clued-up audience who are very interested in the product and are
not scared of the [online] channel."
Boots knew that simply attracting customers to Wellbeing was not
enough. For the channel to be a success, it had to court its
audience, give them a reason to stay on the site - and
return.
"We have spent a huge amount of time on the very fundamental,
boring things, such as navigation, order tracking, good pictures
and letting the customer know when something is out of stock," says
Holmes.
Boots has taken the approach that its cyber customers are as
entitled to good service as those using the high street. And while
the technology behind the product is not evident from visiting the
site, it is the behind-the-scenes technology that enables it to
deliver on its commitment to customer service.
Boots realised that to sustain its customer base, orders would have
to be dispatched promptly, and that customers would prefer to know
stock availability immediately rather than at the point of sale, or
even delivery.
From the outset Wellbeing approached stock holding in a different
way to other bricks-and-mortars breaking into e-tail. Rather than
use additional warehouses to meet online demand the Wellbeing arm
does not hold much unique stock. Orders are met using an existing
Boots warehouse, literally by staff hand-picking items to make up
orders. "That's where the e-tailers got it wrong, because they were
trying to hold too much stock," says Holmes.
Fundamentally, Wellbeing sees the Boots brand as its chief asset.
"We're not blowing a dotcom game and we're not spending millions.
Because [we are a trusted high street brand and] we expect to
dominate in this area. We spent our money on building a very robust
online shopping experience. It's not about getting customers to
come [to the site]. It's about getting them to stay," says
Holmes.
Like many UK e-tailers, key issues for Wellbeing are online payment
systems, encryption and speed. And it is well positioned to use new
media channels and offer increasing interactivity. Plans are afoot
to offer TV shopping and send information direct to mobile phones
and PDAs. The issue that looms large, however, is countering the
negative attitude about the safety of online shopping that the
media generates. "But our biggest issue is the media itself. The
media lumps all Internet stuff together. It's a lot safer than they
let on - and that's incredibly frustrating for us," he says.
Wellbeing is concentrating its growth strategy on enhancing the
online brand by promoting and using its largest brand - Boots high
street stores. The kiosks will continue to direct people to the
site and the Wellbeing URL will be displayed on more promotional
literature and own-brand products. "All the Boots show material
will show the Wellbeing brand," says Holmes.
And with sales of health and beauty products in the UK amounting to
£11bn a year, Wellbeing will likely continue to be a healthy online
shopping experience.
www.wellbeing.co.ukCompany cv
Born: 1996, Boots launches first website; reviews company's
digital assets January 2000; Wellbeing launched March 2001
Managing director: David Holmes
Staff: More than 200
jobs have been created as a result of The Wellbeing Network
Funding: From IT budget
Elevator Pitch: 'We are
offering a useful online service to all with Wellbeing. It's not
just about beauty or health - it's about having a fantastic online
hub. Wellbeing is the digital arm of Boots.'