A STUDY OF BOAT LIFESTYLE ON

MARKETING STRATEGIES AND

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Project Report submitted in partial
fulfillment for the award of the degree of

BACHELORS OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Submitted by

MADHAV AGARWAL
(19GSOB1010213) MANAS YADAV
(19GSOB1010202) MANIK RAINA
(18GSOB1010419)

IN
MARKETING
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Under the Supervision of

Dr. Sankar Mukherjee

April, 2022

1
 SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE

Certified that this project report “A study of Boat Lifestyle on consumer

satisfaction” is the bonafide work of Manas Yadav(19GSOB1010202), Madhav
Agarwal (19GSOB1010213), Manik Raina (18GSOB1010419)” who carried out the
project work under my supervision.

SIGNATURE SIGNATURE

Kavita Mathad Sankar Mukerjee

Dean of School SUPERVISOR
Assistant professor
School of Business School of Business
 Approval Sheet

This thesis/dissertation/report entitled (A study of boat lifestyle on customer

satisfaction) by Manas Yadav, Madhav Agarwal & Manik Raina is approved for
the degree of Bachelors of Business Administration.

Examiners

Supervisor (s)

Chairman

Date:

Place:
 Statement of Project Report Preparation
1. Thesis title: A study of Boat Lifestyle on consumer satisfaction

2. Degree for which the report is submitted: Bachelors of Business Administration.

3 Project Supervisor was referred to for preparing the report.

4. Specifications regarding thesis format have been closely followed.

5. The contents of the thesis have been organized based on the guidelines.
6. The report has been prepared without resorting to plagiarism.

7. All sources used have been cited appropriately.

8. The report has not been submitted elsewhere for a degree.

(Signature of the student)

Manas Yadav
(19GSOB1010202)

Madhav Agarwal
(19GSOB1010213)

Manik Raina
(18GSOB1010419
 Table of Contents

Serial Contents Page

No. No.
1 Introduction 6

2 Introduction to the topic 34

3 Research Methodology 35

4 Data Collection 36

5 Data Analysis and Interpretation 37

6 Findings 47

7 Suggestions 48

8 Limitations 49

9 Conclusion 5
0
10 Bibliography 51
 ABSTRACT

This study talks about various brands that offer audio devices with a focus on customers
preferences, needs, wants and what features and functions provides the most satisfaction to
the consumers. The factors that affect their decision while buying such products has also been
taken into consideration and promotional strategies have been discussed focusing on those
factors.

The study aims to determine how a company's efforts should be channeled and how they
should formulate their future strategies according to the consumer preferences. The study also
shows the impact of how a company's branding exercise and marketing strategies affects a
consumer’s purchasing decisions towards a brand, which was witnessed by the brand BoAt
lifestyle.

BoAt could penetrate into this already clustered market due to its promotion and
marketing strategies.
 INTRODUCTION

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Customer satisfaction is defined as a measurement that determines how happy customers

are with a company’s products, services, and capabilities. Customer satisfaction
information, including surveys and ratings, can help a company determine how to best
improve or changes its products and services.

An organization’s main focus must be to satisfy its customers. This applies to industrial
firms, retail and wholesale businesses, government bodies, service companies, nonprofit
organizations, and every subgroup within an organization.

It is necessarily required for an organization to interact and communicate with customers

on a regular basis to increase customer satisfaction. In these interactions and
communications it is required to learn and determine all individual customer needs and
respond accordingly. Even if the products are identical in competing markets,
satisfaction provides high retention rates.

Higher the satisfaction level, higher is the sentimental attachment of customers with the
specific brand of product and also with the supplier. This helps in making a strong and
healthy customer-supplier bonding. This bonding forces the customer to be tied up with
that particular supplier and chances of defection very less. Hence customer satisfaction is
very important panorama that every supplier should focus on to establish a renounced
position in the global market and enhance business and profit.
MARKETING STRATEGIES

Advertising is a type of marketing communication in which a product, service, or

concept is promoted or sold using an explicitly sponsored, non-personal message. In
other words, advertising refers to the strategies and practices used to bring products,
services, views, or causes to the public's attention with the goal of convincing the public
to respond in a specific way to what is promoted. Advertising is one of the oldest and
most trusted form of marketing.

Advertising's primary goal is to influence a consumer's purchasing decisions. Advertising

has a big influence on people's buying habits since it attracts their attention, helps to
stimulate their interest, and makes them want to buy the products. The majority of the
time, customers' buying behaviour is determined by the consumer's liking or disliking
towards the advertisement of a product or service. A high-quality advertisement is more
likely to persuade customers to buy the goods, but a low-quality advertisement will have
the reverse effect.

Music systems are not portable! Hence, as a matter of fact, we all want such devices that
can easily be carried with us while traveling. This is the idea that gave rise to headphones
and earphones as a portable alternative to the traditional music systems. These devices
can easily be carried from one place to another, thereby offering the same feel as the
speakers and music systems.

With the emergence of headphones, music lovers, listeners of music, and other
professionals can now listen to their favourite tracks, watch the movies of their choice,
and talk with their office colleagues, managers, and friends without disturbing others.
Though the headphones are being used for quite some time in India, just like they are
used in any other part of the world, only a handful of Indian manufacturers can be
spotted. Boat is one of the leading players among them, and the brand simply steals the
show!
Boat has got an astonishing collection of earphones, earbuds, headphones, and wireless
speakers that stands apart due to the quality, affordability, and world-class designs that
the company offers. Founded in 2016, boAt is hailed as India's no. 1 earwear audio
brand. The company allows users to experience both spirit and energy at the same time.
Boat has been dubbed as the 5th largest wearables brand globally since December 2020.
This study aims to establish the influence of advertising on consumer buying behaviour
by focusing on BOAT lifestyle.

BoAt (it's official name-"Imagine Marketing Services Pvt. Ltd.") is an India-based

company founded by Sameer Ashok Mehta and Aman Gupta in November 2013.
The founders of BoAt, Aman Gupta and Sameer Mehta, noticed that the consumers in
our country, in the Indian market, were looking for economical, durable, and super
trendy audio items to groove to, that’s when BoAt lifestyle set sail in 2014.
As a result, in 2014, they embarked on a fantastic journey in Indian consumer waters.
Despite the fact that headphones have been used in India for a long time, just as they
have been in other parts of the world, just a few Indian makers have been identified.
Among them, Boat is one of the most prominent, and the brand absolutely steals the
show.
BoAt provides an incredible assortment of earphones, earbuds, headphones, and wireless
speakers that stand out owing to the company's high quality, low prices, and world-class
designs. BoAt is widely regarded as India's leading earwear and audio brand. Since
December 2020, BoAt has been ranked as the world's fifth largest wearables brand.
The company's tagline is "plug into nirvana." Nirvana refers to achieving ultimate peace
and freedom, which the company aspires to bring to the country's audiophiles and other
consumers.
Wireless earbuds, wired headphones, wireless speakers, home audio equipment, smart
watches, and a variety of mobile phone accessories are among the many wide range of
products that BoAt designs and manufactures.

The company's 3 key market techniques for building a strong customer base -
• Consumer Needs,
• Consumer Preferences and desires,
• Patterns of Consumer Behaviour.

The founders put their studies into practice and created items that were inexpensive,
long-lasting, and trendy. focuses on developing a customer-brand relationship in which
purchasers are treated as members of the Boat family. They also put a lot of emphasis on
the Boat brand, portraying it as an Indian brand. Because Indians are huge fans of
cricket and Bollywood films, boAt decided to use cricketers and other celebrities as
brand ambassadors for the brand. With clever pricing and beautiful appearance, all of
these enabled the company build a significant consumer base and become a billion-
dollar corporation in India. Boat now claims of selling four products every passing
minute.
 COMPANY PROFILE

ABOUT

Boat is an Indian company that markets audio-focused electronic gadgets like wireless
speakers, earbuds (Airdopes), wired and wireless headphones and earphones, home audio
equipment, premium rugged cables, and a selection of other technological accessories.

START-UP STORY

The founders wanted to create a lifestyle brand, which would bring fashionable audio
products and accessories for the millennials. Boat is the brainchild of this idea. The
company began its journey as a cable manufacturer and seller, which had rapidly
expanded its categories to serve over 800,000 customers, as reported in 2020. Boat
started as a bootstrapped startup with a capital of around Rs 3000000 lacs that came from
the founders.

COMPANY PROFILE

COMPANY NAME BoAt

HEADQUARTERS New Delhi, India
SECTOR Electronics and Fashion
FOUNDERS Sameer Mehta and Aman
Gupta
FOUNDED 2016
FUNDING $116.3 mn (December
2021)
VALUATION $299.59 mn (INR 2200
Crore) as of April 2021
REVENUE $206.07 mn (INR 1531
crores in FY21)
WEBSITE boat-lifestyle.com

The founders of the Boat are Sameer Mehta and Aman Gupta.
Boat Founders - Sameer Mehta and Aman Gupta.
OWNERSHIP

The majority of the Boat stakes are held by Warburg Pincus, which boasts of holding
36.2% of the company's shares. The boat co-founders Aman Gupta and Sameer Mehta
come next in line with 28.1% shares each. Then, comes Fireside Ventures with 3.7% of
the shares, followed by Qualcomm Ventures, which has 2.6% stakes. The remaining
1.3% of the Boat stakes are held by Others.

NAME, TAGLINE, AND LOGO

The tagline of the company is, 'plug into nirvana'. Nirvana means attaining complete
peace and freedom, which the company aims to extend to the audiophiles of the country
and other users.
CONSUMER'S BEHAVIOUR PATTERN

The founders implemented their research on the products and made the products
affordable, durable, and fashionable. Boat focuses on building a customer-brand
relationship where it considers the buyers as a member of the Boat family. They also
focused a lot on the brand Boat and presented it as an Indian brand. For the marketing of
the brand, boat decided to appoint cricketers and other celebrities as the brand
ambassadors of Boat because the Indians are very fond of cricket and Bollywood Films.
All of these helped the company create a considerable consumer base and become a
billion-dollar company in India with smart pricing and attractive looks. Boat now claims
of selling four products every passing minute.

Some other strategies that helped boat climb the ladder of success in the audio segment
of the Indian market are:

• Keeping the customers first - Boat has decided to term its users "boatheads",
thereby making them a part of their clan instead of keeping them anonymous.

• A range of improvisations - Boat is known for its innovations and improvisations.

The company carved out an indestructible cable for the Apple mobile users after
discovering the endless complaints of the Apple charging cables. As soon as it
sensed the urgency of sports and fall-proof headphones, boat immediately moved
out to build them, which are now available in a variety of colors.

• Posing as a lifestyle brand - Boat marked them as a lifestyle brand rather than
calling them as a consumer electronics brand.

• An ever-expanding catalog of products - Boat products are ever-increasing. From

cables to chargers to audio products, boat is simply bringing new products
powered by innovative technologies and awesome designs.

• Targeting their customers - The youth and millennials are the target customers of
the brand and the company is making sure to impress them at any cost. This is the
way the company is speedily steering forth.

• Digital marketing - The company has distinctively stayed away from the
traditional media, thereby choosing the digital way for marketing. Social media
platforms like Facebook and others have solely become the pillars of success for
Boat.

The revenues of Boat mainly come through the sale of its products and their delivery
charges.
STARTUP CHALLENGES

Boat started as a bootstrapped company in the initial years with a funding of around Rs 3
lacs from the founders and had to struggle initially for raising funds. Apart from this, the
company faces numerous challenges day in and day out when it comes to manufacturing
trendy products at affordable rates and bringing them to the market that is already packed
with equally able competitors.

ACQUISITIONS

Boat has acquired 2 companies - Tagg and Cove IoT. The latter is a recent acquisition
made by Boat on January 15, 2022. The acquisition of the Singapore-based smart
wearables IoT (internet-of-things) product development startup will help Boat enhance
the development of its wearables with the help of KaHa Pte Ltd's (Cove IoT) innovative
concepts and design.

Boat was set to acquire Delhi-based consumer electronics brand, Tagg Digital, according
to the latest reports. Though the talks regarding the same were going on for around two
months, recently the contours of the deal have been finalized. Furthermore, it has also
been confirmed as part of the deal that the co-founders of the company and the Tagg
Digital team would be joining boat after the completion of the deal. The brand finally
acquired Tagg on June 9, 2021.
Acquiree Name Date Price

Cove IoT January 15, 2022 -

TAGG June 9, 2021 -

AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS

Boat was awarded and recognized on numerous occasions by a list of organizations,

here's a look at some of the most prominent awards and recognition of the brand:
The company was declared as the "number 1 brand for truly wireless and earwear in
India in 2020"

• It was noted as the "5th largest wearable brand in the world in 2020"

• Boat boasts of being the official audio partner for 6 Indian Premier League (IPL)
teams in 2021.

• It has partnered with a wide range of celebrities and cricketers from Hardik
Pandya to Diljit Dosanjh and Jacqueline Fernandez.
COMPETITORS

The top competitors of the Boat are Gonoise, Mivi and Skullcandy.

Gonoise

Gonoise is the biggest rival of Boat. It is headquartered at Gurgaon, Haryana, India and
was founded in 2014. Gonoise competes in the electronic equipment industry.

Mivi

Mivi is one of the biggest rivals of Boat. It is headquartered in Telangana, Andhra

Pradesh, India and was founded in 2015. Mivi also operates in the electronic equipment
industry.

Skullcandy

Skullcandy is also one of the top competitors of Boat. It is headquartered in Park City,
Utah and was founded in 2003. Skullcandy also works in the electronics industry.

FUTURE PLANS

The company believes that there is always a trend of buying earphones along with the
new smartphones. Boat finds this concept to be a channel of success for them. According
to the reports, the major phone makers are in the process of stitching new relations with
audio companies. For example - Samsung has got JBL and Harman, Apple has Beats,
and so on. These manufacturers are attracting consumers with hot deals so that the users
don't buy earphones or headphones separately.
'That is where the market is moving', says Aman Gupta.
 Competitors
A Delhi-based firm has managed to break the Chinese monopoly in India’s personal audio
equipment space—by leveraging China’s manufacturing prowess.
boAt, a six-year-old firm that sells headphones, earbuds, and speakers, held a 37% share of
the personal audio products segment in India in 2020, according to data from market
intelligence firm Kalagato. Chinese brand realme was a very distant second at 8%.
And in the first three months of 2021, three of the top five audio wearable models sold in
India were boAt’s, according to Hong Kong-based Counterpoint Research.
Though international brands like Bose Corporation, Sony Corporation, and Bang & Olufsen
continue to dominate the premium headphone segment, the affordable category is key in
India, given the price-sensitive nature of consumers. In fact, before boAT was launched in
2015, there were very few branded headphone options for Indians in the low-cost segment. In
2019, boAt was selling a speaker every four minutes.
“Before boAt came along, it was difficult to find quality headphones between the price of
Rs600 to Rs2000 ($8 to $27),” Kalagato said. “They built a great product in this niche and
established a strong brand using an e-commerce led sales model.”
Besides their technical understanding, the duo has relied on a star-studded marketing strategy
to make boAt very popular very quickly.
In 2020, the brand was endorsed on social media by Bollywood actors Kartik Aaryan, Kiara
Advani, and Diljit Dosanjh. Beyond Bollywood, the brand also on-boarded several micro-
influencers in India’s music, dance, and sporting communities, and tapped into the country’s
cricket obsession, becoming the audio partner for six teams in the Indian Premier League
(IPL) and hiring cricketer Shreyas Iyer as a brand ambassador.
The company’s marketing has included some out-of-the-box thinking. For instance, in
February 2020, boAt launched a new line of headphones and speakers at the Lakmé Fashion
Week. Eight months later, the company partnered with fashion designer Masaba Gupta to
released speakers with vibrant patterns.
“Lakmé Fashion Week is the Mecca of fashion in India and as a lifestyle brand it became an
ideal platform for us to partner and showcase our authority when it comes to stylish consumer
electronic products,” boAt co-founder Aman Gupta told BWDisrupt, a platform for young
entrepreneurs.
This marketing strategy resulted in big gains for the company. As of November 2020, boAt
had two million customers and was selling 14,000-15,000 units daily.
Besides marketing, the company has also managed to attract investments that could help
expand its presence further.
At the start of this year, boAT raised $100 million from leading New York-based private
equity firm Warburg Pincus—a huge step up from its last $900,000 fundraising round led
by Fireside Ventures in 2018.
“Presumably that capital will go into doubling down on brand building, geographic
expansion, and extending their product portfolio,” Kalagato noted. The company is
expanding into newer product categories, including more affordable audio accessories
and even smartwatches.
In February, boAt appointed Vivek Gambhir, a former Godrej Consumer Products
executive, as its CEO.
The company is targetting a revenue of Rs1,000 crore ($137 million) by fiscal 2024 (April-
March), as compared to Rs500 crore ($69 million) it clocked in fiscal 2019.
There’s much reason for Indians to celebrate boAt’s success, after all, the company is doing
what many Indian brands failed to succeed at. But there’s a catch.
boAt made in China
The brand is Indian, but its products, not so much.
boAt’s products are made through contract manufacturing in China, which is a reason why
they are so affordable.
Amid a rising anti-China sentiment in India—which hasn’t really translated to any change in
consumer behaviour—boAt has said it is looking to move a majority of its manufacturing to
India. Especially since the government has chalked out a Production Linked Incentive (PLI)
scheme for wearables.
“That will bring in the whole ecosystem, and once the ecosystem is here, then it should
get easier for everyone,” Mehta told Moneycontrol in January. “The whole world is
looking to reduce risks related to China. So, a company of our size needs to look for
diversification.”

Boat makes moves to shift manufacturing from China to India

Image Marketing, the parent company of India's top earwear brand Boat, and contract
electronics manufacturer Dixon Technologies (India) are coming together through a 50:50
joint venture to manufacture Bluetooth-enabled audio devices here.
Boat, which hitherto had got majority of its manufacturing done from China, is now shifting
that to India in a phased manner. The new JV announced today is an important step in that
direction. The new company will churn out products from Dixon's manufacturing facility at
Noida, Delhi.
Boat is hoping to make the most out of the government's proposed product linked incentive
(PLI) scheme for wearable makers.
40% of Boat's products to be made in India by 2024
Boat had recently got a $100 million investment from US-based private equity major
Warburg Pincus. At that time itself, company sources had revealed that it would use the
money to move its manufacturing from China to India.

As of now, around 10% of Boat's products are manufactured in India. The remaining 90% is
churned out in China and Vietnam, with the latter contributing a measly 1%.

Boat's target is to manufacture close to 40% of its production volume in the home market by
2024. In a few years, it is expected that India and Vietnam will manufacture around 50% of
Boat’s products, while China will handle the remaining 50%.

Boat to focus on new IoT-enabled wearables

A joint statement from Boat and Dixon said that the JV would undertake design and
manufacturing of wireless audio solutions in India and will co-invest in the Indian mobile
accessory market. The two companies will have will have two board of directors each in the
new company.

It should be said that Dixon has already been manufacturing wearables for Boat since the
previous fiscal year. The new JV takes that relationship to the next level. This
partnership will help Boat to scale up its manufacturing in India rapidly.

Imagine Marketing had recently announced the acquisition of Singapore-based KaHa Pte, an
end-to-end smart IoT product development company. Through the takeover, Boat is
expected to make next-generation IoT enabled wearable products.

Founded in 1993, Dixon Technologies designs and manufactures consumer durables, home
appliances, lighting, mobile phones, security devices, set-top boxes, wearables and medical
equipment for other brands.

boAt’s income crossed Rs 704 cr in FY20 with 460%

growth in profits

Consumer electronics brand boAt had a stellar run during the fiscal ended March 2020,
becoming the joint fifth-largest seller of wearable electronics riding on the wave of its
popular series of wireless headsets and speakers, as per market intelligence and research firm
IDC.

The stupendous growth of boAt was also reflected in its income that crossed the Rs 704 crore
mark during FY20, its regulatory filing shows. The five-year-old brand managed to almost
triple its earnings from sales to Rs 700.44 crore in FY20 from Rs 239.4 crore in FY19.

The Mumbai based company earned another Rs 3.4 crore through financial instruments
during FY20.
With most smartphone manufacturers deciding to do away with the 3.5 mm jack, sale of
wireless earphones and headphones accounted for the largest chunk of its sales. boAt sold
wireless headsets worth Rs 375.7 crore in FY20, making up 53.6% of its total sales.

Sale of wired earphones and Bluetooth speakers made up 18.8% and 16.1% of sales
respectively.

Other electronic accessories including smartwatches, cables, data banks and chargers
accounted for the rest 11.5% of its collections during the last fiscal.

Purchase of merchandise from manufacturers made up 78% of its expenses amounting to Rs

500.2 crore in FY20. The amount spent surged 2.5X from Rs 202.03 crore in FY1.

While most of its stock was sourced from China up until FY20, the company is working
towards localising its production in India. It raised $100 million last month from PE major
Warnus Pincus to fund the transition and has already announced a partnership with Indian
manufacturer Dixon to produce a line of wireless speakers.

During FY20, the company reduced its employee benefit costs by 53% to Rs 6.3 crore from
Rs 13.46 crore paid in FY20 and paid an additional Rs 2.43 crore to contract labour in the last
fiscal.

On the other hand, boAt spent heavily on its sales and distribution channels across India,
paying Rs 60.74 crore for the same in FY20. These costs went up by 500% from FY19 when
it had spent Rs 10.2 crore on selling and distribution expenses.
Along with the rise in sales, expenses incurred to provide warranty on its products also shot
up. boAt paid Rs 27.3 crore in FY20 for honouring warranty, surging 5.6X from Rs 4.88
crore spent on the same during FY19.

The company also gave discounts costing it Rs 1.8 crore in FY20. Unlike traditional
companies, boAt doesn’t have its own service centres and works with third-party vendors.

Advertising and promotional expenses grew by 3.4X to nearly Rs 51 crore in FY20 as the
company deployed celebrity-centred advertisements during the last fiscal.

Further, boAt spent Rs 12.52 crore in FY20 on freight and transportation expenses, a jump
of 4.4X from FY19 as the number of orders processed also shot up.

Another Rs 1.23 crore were paid for rentals, pushing the total expenses to Rs 637.6 crore
in FY20, growing 2.8X from expenses of Rs 228.35 crore in FY19.

boAt spent Rs 0.91 to earn a single rupee of operating revenue in FY20 and its EBITDA
margins improved by 471 BPS to 10.71 during the same period.

As a result of ballooning sales and improved operational margins, boAt registered an

impressive 460% growth in profit during the last fiscal, generating a profit of Rs 48.85 crore
in FY20 as compared to a profit of Rs 8.73 crore in FY19.

The numbers above show how good the going has been for boAt in FY20. A 5.6X jump in
profit with three-fold growth in operating revenue sets it apart from startups of its age. Unlike
aggregation and asset-light models, D2C brands across niche segments appear scalable with
sound unit economics.

Fashion apparel brand Bewakoof, cosmetic brands Nykaa, Sugar Cosmetics, Purple
and MamaEarth have posted superb growth with improvement in their unit economics. With
the Make in India sentiment at an all-time high, boAt appears set to grow its top line and
profits in FY21 as well.
boAt revenue crosses Rs 1,500 Cr in FY21; spent only Rs
14 Cr on salaries

in FY21, its annual financial statement with the MCA shows. Consumer electronic startup
boAt has been one of the leading sellers of wearables and audio accessories in India for the
last couple of years. The company, which is also planning to launch its initial public offering
at a valuation of over $1.4 billion, has been profitable and crossed Rs 1,500 crore revenue
mark in FY21.

boAt registered a 2.2X surge in operating revenues which grew from Rs 700.44 crore in
FY20 to Rs 1,511.7 crore

boAt sold earphones and headphones worth Rs 1,120 Cr in FY21

Wireless earphones and headphones formed the largest product line in terms of sales,
accounting for 62.7% of its operating revenue during FY21. These sales grew by 2.5X to Rs
947.4 crore in FY21 from Rs 375.7 crore in FY20

The sale of boAt’s wireless speakers grew the

most during the last fiscal—up 2.6X from Rs
113.2 crore in FY20 to Rs 297.4 crore during FY21. At nearly 20%, the wireless speaker
product line was the second largest contributor to the company’s revenue in the last
fiscal year.

Comparatively, the year-on-year growth of wired earphones and other related accessories
(including cables and chargers) was relatively timid, growing 30.4% and 19.3% respectively,
during FY21.

boAt imports goods worth Rs 1,316 Cr in FY21, mostly from China

The Mumbai-headquartered firm designs its products in India while its manufacturing and
assembling take place in China. The expense of procuring its stock in trade is the single
largest cost incurred by the company, accounting for nearly 73% of the annual expenditure.
These expenses grew 2.3X from Rs 452.5 crore in FY20 to Rs 1,034.03 crore in FY21. The
cost of freight and distribution made up 8.1% of the annual costs and grew by 57.6% YoY to
Rs 115.53 crore during FY21.

boAt outsources its warranty claim and after-sale services to third party contractors and its
warranty claim related expenses grew by 93% to Rs 52.7 crore in FY21 from Rs 27.3
crore spent in FY20.

Plans to move production to India, leverage GOI’s PLI Scheme

The company had raised $100 million in a round led by Warburg Pincus at the start of Q4
FY21 with plans of shifting its manufacturing to India. The consumer electronics brand is
looking to tap into the Indian government’s production linked incentive(PLI) scheme.

The seven-year-old brand focuses on marketing its products heavily online and its advertising
promotion cost was the second largest cost centre for the company, accounting for 10.3%
of boAt’s annual expenses. These costs nearly tripled to Rs 147 crore during FY21 from Rs
51 crore in FY20.

Perks of lean team with mean margins, profits up 61% in FY21

With major operation functions such as production and after-sales outsourced, boAt operates
with a lean team of employees with staff expenses accounting for a mere 1% of its annual
costs. Employee benefit expenses grew by 125.7% YoY to Rs 14.31 crore (including
director remuneration of around Rs 2 crore).

The Qualcomm-backed company also had a stock buyback during the fiscal ending in March
2021 which amounted to Rs 140 crore. Both co-founders Aman Gupta and Sameer Mehta
were the biggest beneficiaries of this event, pocketing a little over 81% (i.e. Rs 113.6 crore or
Rs 56.8 crore each) of the buyback amount.
Overall, the company’s total annual expenditure grew 2.2X from Rs 637.6 crore in FY20
to Rs 1,420.1 crore during FY21. On a unit level, boAt spent Rs 0.94 to earn a single rupee
of revenue during FY21.

Profitable since inception, the wearable brand’s annual profits surged nearly 61% to Rs 78.6
crore during FY21 from Rs 48.8 crore during FY20. However, its EBITDA margins actually
dropped by 237 BPS to 8.34% during FY21 from the margin of 10.71% in FY20.

boAt has demonstrated a robust financial performance in FY21 and became the first
consumer electronic direct to consumer (D2C) startup to cross the Rs 1,500 crore revenue
mark. Despite the pandemic, the company has been able to scale at a rapid clip with a 61%
increase in its profit. Unlike most growth and late-stage companies, boAt has achieved this
revenue at very little expense on employee’s salaries and other benefits — Rs 14.31 crore.

Boat Marketing Strategy

How boAt is Ruling the World of Sound

boAt is a leading consumer electronics brand founded by Sameer Mehta and Aman Gupta.
With keeping in mind these three goals, the brand to bring: affordable, durable and
fashionable audio products and accessories to the millennials.
These two understood the need and the gap in the Indian market and decided to find a
solution to the problem in an effective way. They found that consumers in the Indian market
needed long-lasting and tangle-free earphones which were of good quality as well as
affordable. boAt is one of the leading brands in the earwear category in India. Let's look at
marketing strategies employed by boAt.
BoAt - You are now plugged into Nirvana
boAt was founded by Sameer Mehta and Aman Gupta. Sameer Mehta owns Redwood
Interactive, which computer gaming peripherals under the brand RedGear. Aman Gupta,
being the CMO who was fascinated by electronics and gadgets, has also worked at JBL for
two years. He has completed his MBA (Masters in Business) from the Indian School of
Business (ISB).
boAt began its journey with being a cable manufacturer and now it has leveraged its brand
into also selling men's grooming products, too. boAt has a wide range of product categories
which includes speakers, wireless earphones, earphones, smartwatches, home audio devices,
mobile accessories, and more.
boAt is creating a strong position in the market from being the homegrown product
established since 2016. boAt has become a well-known brand now. It is globally the fifth
largest wearable brand and India's number one earwear brand.
The brand has headquarters in Delhi India and offices across Delhi and Mumbai. The size of
the company is now 201-500. Falls under the Industry of manufacturing computers and
electronics. Competitors of boAt include JBL, Realme, OnePlus, Noise, and Mivi.

Marketing Strategy of BoAt

Influencer marketing
boAt left no stone left unturned regarding influencing people with influencer marketing.
boAt has not struck the deal only with influencers but also with celebrity endorsements,
cricketers, content creators, and even, stylists.

Celebs like Jacqueline Fernandes, Kartik Aryan, Kiara Advani, as well as content creators
like Prajakta Koli, Harsh Beniwal, and Bhuvan Bam are on board to promote the products of
boAt.

Musicians like Harry Sandhu, Neha Kakkar and Diljit Dosanjh also endorse their products.
Apart from that cricketers like Shikhar Dhawan, Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer
have long been endorsing their products.

Digital Marketing
Digital marketing is a big player in the marketing strategy of the company. All the marketing
strategies employed by boAt are listed below:
Mobile marketing
Using this multichannel online marketing technique. boAt reaches out to its consumers
through its mobile application, emails, and SMS marketing.

Email marketing
boAt sends personalized messages to its existing and potential customers who agree to share
their email to receive updates from them. They send quirky, catchy, and crisp emails.
Whether it is updating the audience about a new product, offers and discounts, or
communicating their message across.
Social media marketing (SMM)

boAt sails swiftly navigating the digital realm and is an expert at social media marketing. The
company has a presence on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn.

Hashtag Marketing with Unique hashtags

-#whatfloatsyourboat

-#boatheads

-#trebelwithboat

-#levelupwithboat
-#raisethebar

These are just some of the hashtags that have made the rounds on social media platforms.
Making the audience chime in on the conversation.
Digital campaigns have helped connect the right type of content with the right people in real-
time.

Moment marketing and Collaborations

IPL
This is a big shot for boAt. Their exclusive collections include earbuds. Made available in all
different colours and for the teams of the IPL cricket team. The company seized the moment
to grab the attention of cricket fans and persuade them to get the product fit for their
favourite teams.

The Marvel collection

The most recent collection was launched by them or for the Marvel fanbase. Collections for
characters like Iron man, Captain America and Black Panther. Which features a special
collection of earbuds, headphones, and speakers for Marvel fans.

Independence day

They seized the perfect moment to announce the launch of the following products which are
Bassheads 100, Bassheads 152 and Rockerz 255 Pro starting from 27th January 2021. To
fulfil the vision of 'make in India' and manufacture other mobile accessories as well in the
country itself. Focusing on the mission of Atma Nirbhar Bharat.

The Masaba collection

When the web series Masaba Masaba was rolling out, they were quick to grab the opportunity
and release an exclusive collection. This included their signature sound with the vibrant style
of Masaba Gupta. Also integrating the theme of fashion from the web series.

Experiential marketing

boAt gives an experience to the people that they can't forget through concerts. Engaging the
audiences in two-way communication, the most common elements found in all these
partnerships, concerts, and tours were photo booths, nirvana zones. All where the audience
was encouraged to participate. The brand shared the stories of their audiences on their official
page on Instagram, making an emotional connection and building a loyal fan base. Through
which they generated buzz and gained media coverage.

The takeover tour - 2020

Concerts are with musicians like AP Dillon, with the takeover tour. It has so far completed 5
chapters in different cities around India including Mumbai, Chandigarh, Goa, Gurugram, and
Hyderabad.
The sunburn festival in Goa - 2019
Tyga, Yellow Claw, DJ Snake, and Wiz Khalifa were some artists performing at the festival.
boAt has also collaborated with T-Series, the Lakme Fashion Week show, Dolby, teams
from IPL like Kings XI Punjab, Delhi Capitals and Brut, which is surprising and odd, given
the aim to transcend beyond music.
Community-based marketing with the #Amboathead
Engaging the community on social media platforms like Instagram and sharing the pictures
clicked by them for their boAt products on their stories is a great way of building a sense of
community; it also has its own hashtag, #Amboathead

They also have giveaways for their products and contests to keep the audience in the
conversation. The hashtag #IAmboAthead has more than 500 posts. The brand is surely
building its own tribe. Not only this, the brand has established its own lingo for the
community from A-Z to give the clan a sense of belongingness and being a part of it.
Leveraging the brand using Consumer Insights
The brand started with the category of sound devices which includes wireless earbuds,
Wireless Headphones, wired headphones, wireless speakers. Now the brand is expanding its
empire, aiming at men's personal grooming - misfit, audio wear for fierce women and girls -
with TRebel. Which sounds like a fashion item as well, and the most recently launched
collections of smartwatches.

The brand has now launched a smartwatch, trimmers and continues to innovate its products
by launching many limited edition collections. The brand is not what it is today without
funding.
Navi technologies, Fireside Ventures Warburg Pincus investing a hundred million, InnoVen
Capital invested 16 crores in 2019, Sachin Bansal's BAC acquisitions also pledged 20 crores.
boAt is now the fifth-largest wearable brand globally and the most recent news on funding
involves Qualcomm investing in boAt.

Personalized marketing
boAt sends out targeted emails, makes short videos that resonate with the consumers and
interacts with their customers on their social media platforms consistently, which increases
the consumer's satisfaction and loyalty towards the brand. They keep track of consumers
behaviour, purchasing habits, preferences, email open rates, and more tactics.

Print and offline marketing

Though digital plays a substantial role in the marketing strategy of boAt. Using print
mediums is not dead for them. Print ads for different newspapers are still used by boAt and
also up with retailing with distributors like Croma. But now the paradigm is shifting towards
business to consumers.
Targeting the Right Audience
Affordable yet with great product quality that enhances the user experience, listens to the
feedback from their customers. They are also tech disruptors. Constant innovation of products
and understanding their audiences is a great advantage that boAt has. It has something for
everyone from millennials, the misfits, Gen-Z, skaters to gamers.

Meme Marketing - Keeping it relevant with memes and language

Having a very deep understanding of its audience, boat has tagged its products to the internet
language of lifestyle choices like sports, travel, WFH (work from home) and fashion.

Portrayal as a lifestyle product

Right from the start, boat as a brand has been portrayed as a lifestyle brand. In fact, so much
so that the word "lifestyle" is followed on their website. And not as a brand that manufactures
computers and electronics that which it really is. So as to occupy the space in the consumer's
mindset that the products of boat are something that we use daily and also that makes a
fashion statement. The models at the Lakme Fashion Week walked on the ramp wearing boat
products when boat collaborated with them.
Covid-19 Marketing Strategy of BoAt
The following changes were seen in the marketing strategy of the brand during the pandemic:

Fixing the core of SEO:

The brand focused on SEO to stand out from the clutter, using this tactic for better reach in
the digital space.
Giving value to the consumer:

They not only focus on the brand but also what the consumers look for in a product. For. e.g.,
There is always some quality that the consumer is looking for while using a product to satisfy
their need or want. boat makes it a priority to identify that.
Data and research:
Keeping a close eye on customer feedback and tracking repetitive patterns, if any, were
found to evaluate the overall effectiveness of their products.
Using YouTube:

They created short videos on YouTube with display ads that were short, crisp, and on point.
Which also included video sequencing with display ads.
Fulfilling the promise of the product:
Their products deliver the value that the consumer is looking for.

Data-oriented approach:
Building personas of their target audience and narrowing it down to every trait helps them
know who exactly they are targeting
Storytelling:

Showing the brand as part of the story gets their audience emotionally invested and feel like
a part of their growing tribe.
Keeping a check on KPIs:
Keeping the brand alive in the consumer's mind and retaining them. And leveraging the brand
and using consumer insights.

Storytelling through social media campaigns:

Illustrations have been made and shared on Instagram stories under the name boAt
adventures to charm and get the attention of comic lovers and the audience.
In a video from the most recent campaign you always do what floats your boat run by the
name and hashtag do what makes your boat float.

The most recent one that is derived from the idiom, do what floats your boat caters to the
gen-z the most and is getting a niche audience of its own to integrate the product with
the culture and lives of skaters, street artists, and more.
Another campaign features Kiana Advani, Bani J, Raja Kumari and other strong women with
an upbeat music video with the title "I am a rebel" The range of TRebel has a direct link to
the campaign.
 LITERATURE OF REVIEW

Since Cardozo's (1965) inaugural study of customer effort, expectations, and satisfaction, customer
satisfaction has been a popular issue in marketing practice and academic research. Despite several
attempts to quantify and explain customer happiness, there appears to be no consensus on its definition
(Giese and Cote, 2000). Customer satisfaction is often characterized as an assessment of a product or
service after it has been consumed (Gundersen, Heide and Olsson, 1996). It is the result of an evaluative
process that compares prepurchase expectations to performance perceptions during and after the
consumption experience (Oliver, 1980). The expectancy disconfirmation theory is the most widely
accepted model of customer satisfaction (McQuitty, Finn and Wiley, 2000).
 Research Methodology
Research methodology is a way to systematically solve the research problem. It may be
understood as a science of studying how research is done scientifically. Abraham Kaplan
defines research methodology in this way. Research methodology is "the description,
explanation & Justification of various methods of conducting research"

Research design
A research design is a step-by-step approach used by a researcher to conduct a scientific
study. It includes various methods and techniques to conduct research so that a research
problem can be handled efficiently. A researcher has a series of questions that he needs to
find answers by conducting research. Type of this research is descriptive in nature

Descriptive Research
Descriptive research is defined as a research method that describes the characteristics of the
population or phenomenon studied. This methodology focuses more on the “what” of the
research subject than the “why” of the research subject. The descriptive research method
primarily focuses on describing the nature of a demographic segment, without focusing on
“why” a particular phenomenon occurs. In other words, it “describes” the subject of the
research, without covering “why” it happens.

Sampling Design
The following factors have been decided within the scope of sample design:
Universal Study – The study was conducted to find out the difference of
costumer behavior. The population for this research is students, user of boat
product.
Sample Size – Study has been conducted in Lucknow area. The sample size is 50
respondents.
Sample Unit – This research consisted of various individuals who are the costumer of Boat
Lifestyle.
Sample Technique – Convenient sampling technique has been used.
 Objectives of Research

❖ Research is an organized investigation of a problem where an

investigator attempts to gain solution to a problem.

❖ To identify how customer satisfaction are influencing business practices.

❖ To investigate the satisfaction of costumers in this dynamic environment.

❖ To discuss the implications of costumer expectations

and make recommendations to government and
business.

❖ Objectives of research is a concrete statement describing what the research

is trying to achieve.
 Data Collection

Primary Data - Primary data is the data that is collected for the first time through
personal experiences or evidence, particularly for research. It is also described as raw data or
first-hand information. The mode of assembling the information is costly, as the analysis is
done by an agency or an external organization, and needs human resources and investment.
The investigator supervises and controls the data collection process directly.
The data is mostly collected through observations, physical testing, mailed questionnaires,
surveys, personal interviews, telephonic interviews, case studies, and focus groups, etc.
The primary data was collected by using a questionnaire.

Secondary Data - Secondary data is a second-hand data that is already collected

and recorded by some researchers for their purpose, and not for the current research problem.
It is accessible in the form of data collected from different sources such as government
publications, censuses, internal records of the organization, books, journal articles, websites
and reports, etc.
This method of gathering data is affordable, readily available, and saves cost and time.
However, the one disadvantage is that the information assembled is for some other purpose
and may not meet the present research purpose not be accurate or may be accurate.
The secondary data was collected from internet/websites.
 Data Analysis
and
Interpretation

1. Age

Options Respondents Percentage

18-25 years 40 80%
Above 25 10 20%
Total 50 100%

Ag

20

18-25
Years

80
2. Gender

Options Respondent Percentage

Male 35 70%
Female 15 30%
Others 00 00%
Total 50 100%

Gende r

30

male

femal

70 other
 3. Which product of Boat you are using?

Option Respondent Percentage

Watch 10 20%
Earphones 23 46%
Speakers 12 24%
Mobile Accessories 5 10%
Total 50 100%

3. Which product of Boat you are

10
20

watc
24
earphone s

mobile
46
 4. Which product you feel comfortable as compare to another brand?

Options Respondents Percentage

Watch 8 16%
Earphones 20 40%
Speakers 16 32%
Mobile Accessories 6 12%
Total 50 100%

4. Which product you feel

comfortable as

12 16

watch
earphone

32
speaker

40 mobile
 5. How much you find Boat products durable?

Options Respondents Percentage

Very durable 10 20%
Durable 16 32%
Average 13 26%
Non-durable 11 22%
Total 50 100%

5. How much you find Boat products

22 20

very durable
durable

26 32 non
 6. Which product is more durable as compare to another brand?

Options Respondents Percentage

Watch 6 12%
Earphone 24 48%
Speakers 16 32%
Mobile accessories 4 8%
Total 50 100%

6. Which product is more durable as

compare
to other brand?
8 12

watc

32 earphone s

48 mobile
 7. Which brand you find competing with Boat?

Options Respondents Percentage

Go noise 14 28%
Realme 16 32%
Xiomi 15 30%
Boult audio 5 10%
Total 50 100%

7. Which brand you find competing with Boat

?

10

28
go

realme
30
xiomi boult

32
 8. How did you know about Boat?

Options Respondents Percentage

Through influencers 21 42%
Through friends 19 38%
Through digital marketing 10 20%
Total 50 100%

8. How did you know about Boat ?

20

42 influencers

friends digital

38
 9. How much you are satisfied with customer service of Boat?

Options Respondents Percentage

Very satisfied 15 30%
Satisfied 20 40%
Average 10 20%
Unsatisfied 5 10%
Total 50 100%

9. How much you are satisfied with customer service of Bo

10%

30%
very satisfied
20%
satisfied average unsatisfie d 40%
 10. Are you looking forward to by another product of Boat?

Options Respondents Percentage

Yes 31 62%
No 19 38%
Total 50 100%

10. Are you looking forward to by

another

38
ye

62 no
 FINDINGS
1. The survey shows that 80% of customers are from age 18 to 25 years old and
20% customers are above 25 years old.
2. The survey shows 70% of boat customers are males and 30% are females.
3. Through this analysis I have seen that 20% of customers are using watches, 46%
customers are using headphones, 24% are using speakers, and the rest 10%
customers are using mobile accessories.
4. With the help of this survey, I analyse that people think 16% of boat watches
are more comfortable as compare to other brand, 40% of earphones are more
comfortable than other brand, 32% of speakers and remaining 12% of mobile
accessories are comfortable as compare to another brand.
5. In durability, 20% of customers says that boat product is very durable, 32% of
customer says that they are durable, 26% votes for average and 22% of consumer
says endurable to them.
6. By this analysis I found that 48% of earphones, 32% of speakers, 12% of watches
and 8% of mobile accessories of boat lifestyle are more durable in comparison of
other brands.
7. Through this research I came to know that 28% of product of Go Noise, 32% of
products of Realme, 30% products of Xiomi and 10% products of Boult audio are
the competing brands of Boat Lifestyle.
8. According to this survey it shows that 42% of consumers know about boat
through influencers, 38% of users know this brand through their friends and 20%
through digital marketing.
9. The consumer service of boat lifestyle shows that 30% of users are very satisfied,
40% are only satisfied, 20% users say it average and according to rest of 10% they
are unsatisfied.
10. With the help of this survey, I came to know that 62% of people are looking
forward to buy another boat products and on other hand 38% are not looking
forward to buy it products.
 SUGGESTION

1. Boat has to focus on the bass quality of their earphones and speakers.
2. They have to work more on the connectivity and Bluetooth version of their products.
3. They can also have a look on their product prices according to their competitors.
4. Boat lifestyle can shift their manufacturing unit to India from China as to make
the products fully Indian.
5. Company has increased their product durability as the not very durable as compare
to other brands.
 LIMITATIONS

1. The study is limited only to the certain area in Lucknow.

2. The study was taken only from the customer point of view.
3. The findings were drawn only on the basis of information provided by
the respondents.
 CONCLUSION

The study provides insight about the various dimensions associate with customer
satisfaction. Customer prefers boat because of quality and the message to promote new
technology and unique item for comfort of young generation. It can be very effective
way of promotion and this leads to attract huge customers and to capture large market.
On the basis of findings of the study it can be concluded that boat products have gained
customers satisfaction due to their market strategy, quality and variety of products.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Websites:
https://startuptalky.com/boat-success-story/
https://golden.com/wiki/BoAt_(company)-9MR3
https://qz.com/india/1997153/indias-boat-beats-chinas-realme-and-oneplus-in-
headphone-sales/
https://startuptalky.com/boat-marketing-strategy/
https://www.techradar.com/in/news/boat-makes-moves-to-shift-manufacturing-from-
China-to-India
https://entrackr.com/2021/02/boats-income-crossed-rs-704-cr-in-fy20-with-460-growth-
in-profits/
https://entrackr.com/2022/01/boat-revenue-crosses-rs-1500-cr-in-fy21-spent-only-rs-14-
car-on-salaries/