Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Brand Architecture - Boston's
There seems to be consensus around better food quality as the differentiator for Boston's, paired with parity assurance of a casual 'bar/grill' setting that is lively and a relaxing place to meet friends or bring family. Pizza should be dropped from the name. Picking up on our conversation today about brand architecture, do you think Boston's (without the Pizza) would benefit from building equity in a 'distinguisher' brand? Distinguisher brands are also sometimes referred to as 'energizer' brands' or 'support' brands. They are not necessarily part of the name, but they offer a unique and BRANDED supporting reason why. Examples are the Northstar engine for Cadillac, or the Heavenly Bed for Westin, OnStar for GM vehicles. If yes, what element of the Boston's experience should be branded? A menu item? Some other aspect of the experience? If no, why not?
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The experience should be branded. The title of Wolfgang Puck's book succinctly describes the type of experience that would work well for Boston's: "Live. Love. Eat."
Maybe they could get away with "Live. Love. Feast."
The element of the Boston's experience that should be branded is the fact that the restaurant uses only fresh ingredients. It would not be beneficial for Boston's to brand one specific menu item. I think that this would have the consumer focus on only one food item, instead of the many food choices that Boston's offers. Therefore, focusing on using fresh ingredients is the way to go for Boston's.
Yeah I think there is room for a distinguishing brand, but I wouldn't make it the pizza. Because Boston and pizza just don't go together not matter how you frame it. I think Michelle has it right to brand the fact that they use only the freshest ingredients. Also, it would be wise to try and brand the experience. Sort of like Applebee's "eating good in the neighborhood." One idea is to have i around something like "a better sports bar and grill experience".
I believe that since Boston's Pizza believes that are in between two segments, they should definitely brand themselves to make this special identification. Since they are considered better than Chili's and Applebee's but not as high as PF Changs, it would help consumers idenitify with the product better with a branding strategy. I think they shouldn't play up their food because they don't offer any dishes different from other venues, but rather talk up the experience. Tap into their sense of emotion and discuss how dining at their restaurants are different. The Classy sports dining experience paints a specific picture in my mind as a consumer as i'm sure many others will as well.
No, I do not think so. I do not think that adding a distinguisher brand in an attempt to help differentiate and strengthen the Boston's brand will help create a resonance of Boston's with current and potential customers. I think that Boston's need to focus on the branding of their core business, and not confuse consumers with a distinguisher. They need to define who they are, and appeal to consumers in a clear and consistent way, which I believe will be by emphasizing their name and their core experience.
I don't believe that Boston's would benefit from a particular branded item, although I do think it's possible. I know the blooming onion became a signature item at Outback. If Boston's had one item that was significantly more popular than others, or an item that they learned customers came to Boston's for they may be able to leverage that.
I couldn't make any suggestions as I am not sure if Boston has that. I think it would need to be a natural transition and do not recommend creating a signature item just to brand it.
I do think that the experience of better food with a sports setting should be the focus, as this seems to differentiate Boston's more than anything else.
If Boston's wants to add a distinguisher I would recommend making it about the atmosphere. Boston's has a large variety of food options but so doesn't its competition (Fridays, Chili's, Cheesecake, etc). What many chains tend to lack is an atmosphere that people want to enjoy. A combination of good food and a fun atmosphere will differentiate Boston's from the competition.
I don't think Boston's should add a distinguisher to their name because it complicates their brand strategy and dilutes the attention from the brand. They should focus on conveying what Boston's mean and what type of emotional connection they want from customers.
I like the suggestion of describing the experience but not as distinguisher but as mantra to help communicate what Boston's stand for.
I do not believe Boston's should build equity in a distinguisher brand. The big difference for me between Boston's and the examples of companies that have used distinguisher brands is that those companies already have a certain level of recognition with consumers. It makes sense that Cadillac would brand an engine, Westin would brand a bed and for GM to brand an automotive consumer service. Consumers recognize the companies and can quickly relate the branded items to the core competencies of those companies. In my opinion, Boston's does not have that level of recognition (yet) and I do not believe it would be as impactful as the examples stated.
At this point in time, let's call it phase 1, I think Boston's needs to change it's name, and truly uncover a core competency. In a chain, this has to be consistent among all locations.
Currently some Boston's are known as the local bar, while some are known for local family outings. In our discussion, the name schizophrenic came up when discussing the bar/family/pizza/no pizza/between segement business model. A distinguisher brand needs to add value to a solid brand, not add to the current confusion.
If Boston's began to 'distinguish' an inconsistent brand experience, based on the manager of the restaurant, it could continue to fragment the brand and may alienate its current customers.
During phase 2, once Boston's has a consistent restaurant experience, a true understanding of its target, its pricing (not being driven by the state of the suffering economy), and its brand message, there may be a possiblitiy of distinguishing Boston's based on its' experience. If I were to predict the timing, phase 2 would be 18 months out depending on the results.
What about not only branding the experience but branding some products in their menu as "Boston's Favorites"? This product category could include their most autentic/unique offerings like the fresh pizza or other. If products like these turn out to be best sellers then they could end up bringing a lot of value for the brand. Or what about branding a day like "Boston's Gateway Wednesday" or something that can easely stick in consumers minds and help them to relate the restaurant with that specific day. As far as I undertand, brand architecture can include all this sub-branding strategies.
I'm not sure there is a specific item I think would make a good distinguisher, but I do believe they should make their "better than average" food their point of difference. The problem with choosing a menu item is that they have already done that with the pizza, and it pigeonholes them in a category.
I think I would position them as being the place you can go no matter what you want that night. If you want a good place to eat with your kids, go to Boston's. If you want to watch the game, go to Boston's. That type of thing, with the distinguisher being the better than average food.
Adding to the brand at the current time wouldn't be worthwhile for Boston's, they should continue to go and build a solid initial identity, build a strong core user, and with this they may see that down the road adding to their name or adding an unofficial supporter may be more have a strong impact.
There may come a brand addition without an effort of Boston's, the consumer may create one that will be stronger in its impact than if Boston's created one themselves.
I can't figure out why I would want to go to Boston's. Therefore, I do think they need to find something that convinces me that they are a better choice for me than their competitors.
A distinguisher brand maybe helpful for this. It should be something that is a logical tie to the heritage in the Boston name. Perhaps it's a line of Boston beer. Something unique to the restaurant, that can be changed and updated, and is high margin.
I also believe that Boston's needs to take some time to work on its overall brand recognition.
Boston’s could further differentiate its classier bar/grill by focusing on the green component of the experience. We heard about their fresh ingredients and they could take one step further by using some organic products. This focus on green/healthier food can be a point of differentiation for its target.
As a city, I think one of Boston's biggest assets is their genuine and authentic bar atmosphere. I feel Boston's would be most successful leveraging this aspect of their business while reinforcing that this is a far classier (and a more fun) bar to take in a game or relax after work. Rather than simply brand a single menu item, I would try to enhance the larger overall experience by having several microbrews on tap from as many places as possible in New England. This would easily separate the bar from places like Applebees, which are not known for their beer selection, and validate Boston's as a unique and superior place to go for more upscale tastes.
The addition of a distringuisher to Boston's brand could help differentiate from the many other bar and grills. Perhaps they could develop a promotion around sport events. If a customer comes in wearing an article of clothing with a sports team that is playing during their visit, they will recieve a 10% discount. They could call it "Team Up at Boston's."
I do not think that it would be beneficial for Boston's to brand one specific menu item. I agree with Lindsey in the fact that I also believe Boston needs to change its name. The company is truly all over the place. Furthermore, when I think Boston I do not think pizza. So pizza should definitely be dropped from the name. I agree that fresh ingredients may be the right distinguisher brand.
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