The EarthWear Brand: What Makes the EarthWear Brand Unique? (Case Study Sample)

The EarthWear Brand
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Question 1: What makes the EarthWear brand Unique?
The EarthWear brand is mostly unique because of its authenticity. Unlike other brands that claim to be natural yet they use artificial ingredients to make beauty products, EarthWear products are made from truly natural ingredients that grow from the earth. They do not have additional chemicals like many other cosmetic brands. Additionally, the EarthWear brand is personalized to the needs of each and every customer. This makes it unique because other brands just make products that will sell without having specific segments of people in mind. They mostly make one size fits all products. Additionally, Bessant interacts with her customers on some level whether it is online, at the market or in retail stores. Most other brands do not have this. Once the product is made, the brands do not go out of their way to establish personalized relationships with their customers. Further, EarthWear aims to genuinely help customers understand their skin tones and how best they can take care of them. Other brands do not have this aspect. They simply want customers to purchase whichever products they have irrespective of whether customers understand their functionality or even if the customer will use the product or not. Further, the EarthWear brand focuses more on customer satisfaction as compared to sales or making a profit. Bessant would rather have a customer understand the nature of the product she is offering instead of pushing a sale on the customer. Most other brands are more concerned with sales above everything else. Moreover, EarthWear does not engage in hostile selling in which customers are coerced or even forced to buy products. Instead, Bessant uses a laid back approach in which she tells the customer the value of the product and then lets the customer to make their own decision on whether to buy the product or not. Lastly, the EarthWear brand is unique because of the hands on work involved in the creation of products. Bessant is involved in the procedure from the procurement of the supplies, the making of the products themselves, packaging, taking of orders, marketing, and accounting to the final delivery of the product to the customer. Most of the other cosmetic brands do not have this. The person responsible for the procurement of supplies is not the same one involved in the production of the cosmetics and neither is he the one involved in taking of orders, marketing or accounting. This is because they are decentralized (Bessant, 2016).
Question 2: Establishing a positive Reputation for EarthWear
To establish a positive reputation for EarthWear, Bessant has utilized the personalized approach strategy. She especially uses the personalized approach in the preparation of the products. She prepares the products with various groups of customers in mind. Most of the products she creates incorporate the feedback from her customers (Obschonka, 2011). This shows that she is a business woman who cares about her customers and it goes a long way to enhance her reputation. Additionally, she personally sells the products to the customers in the market, from her house, online and in fairs. This shows that she is committed to the brand and customers value this. They trust her and this goes to further affirm her reputation. She is also reliable in that she promises that products will be ready by a particular time and then delivers promptly. Customers will talk well about a business person who keeps their word (De Castro, López, & Sáez, 2006). Bessant also uses truly natural ingredients to make her products unlike other brands which say they are natural and they are not. This shows that her brand is authentic and goes a long way in increasing customers’ trust in her. This complements her reputation. Further, Bessant is more concerned about equipping customers with information on how they can take care of their skin and how EarthWear products can help in that instead of only focusing on the profits side. This causes Bessant to come across as a genuine individual who has a passion for skin care and it enhances her reputation in the long run. Bessant's personal reputation affects EarthWear's reputation in that there is no distinction between her and the brand. As a sole proprietor there is no difference between her and the business. They are one and the same. Whatever she says or does affects the brand directly. When Bessant has a good reputation, the business rides on it. On the other hand, when Bessant has a bad reputation, the EarthWear brand suffers the same. Currently, Bessant is enjoying a good reputation within her community. This is especially because of the good word of mouth spread by customers to their friends and family members. In the end, this results into more sales for the EarthWear brand (Borzywoski, 2014). Question 3: EarthWear’s Corporate Culture
EarthWear's corporate culture is based on integrity. Bessant has committed herself to the establishment of products that are truly made from natural ingredients with no exceptions because her products are all natural no artificial products are used in making them. This is in line with what she promises her customers. Additionally, EarthWear's corporate culture also comprises of emphasis on good customer service. Bessant believes that she would rather educate a customer about the benefits of using natural products on their bodies as compared to pushing a sale. She also ensures that all of customers’ issues and orders are dealt with promptly. She also incorporates her customers' feedback in the development of products. This indicates that she values her customers' input. Further, the EarthWear brand is built on passion (Denison, 1990). Bessant has no formal education in science but she has conducted research by herself to enable her create truly natural products for her customers. She has also dedicated herself to educating people on the importance of using natural products for their body care regardless of whether that person will eventually buy her products or not. Further, there is a culture of dedication and commitment in EarthWear. Bessant started out her brand as a hobby. Through dedication, she has grown the company to a great extent all by herself. Currently, she has to do the product creation, marketing, accounting, maintenance of social media accounts and research tasks by herself. Without commitment, this would not have been possible as she would feel that it is too strenuous to run the business. Earthwear's corporate culture also encompasses a great deal of innovation because Bessant has created each of the products right from scratch. To develop more products to satisfy the growing customer demand, she must continue innovating (Kotter, 2008). The individuals she hires to help out with the work must be able to think outside the box to achieve this. Further there is a corporate culture of growth within the EarthWear brand. Bessant has sacrificed so much to see her business grow. She even had to move from the area of Estevan to North Battleford because it had a wider market opportunity. She has also ventured out, setting her products up in markets, fairs and even in retail stores as well as online to reach more customers. She even hopes that the business will saturate the Saskatchewan region as well as the Western Canadian Market. This shows that the people she hires to assist her in running the business must have a desire to grow the company and with the company. They must be ready to do whatever it takes to achieve this while remaining true to the customer and the authenticity of the products. Further, there is a culture of risk taking in EarthWear. While selling her products to retail stores, she refused to allow them a 50% off the suggested retail price and instead offered them 30%. This was a major risk because the stores were already used to the 50% markup. She however stood her ground and let the retailers change their markup expectations. The new employees must be able to take risks in the running of the business (Zwilling, 2012).
Question 4: Recruiting New Employees
To get her ideal employees, Bessant should start with advertising the position in local media, in the firm’s social media accounts and on the website. This will help to attract a large pool of qualified professionals to choose from. This step ensures that she has qualified people for the job position. Once the applications for the job position trickle in, she should sieve them choosing the ones that are most suitable for the position she is offering. Those that do not match the required criteria are set aside and contacted to be notified that they have been unsuccessful. Those that best match the criteria are then invited for an interview. This first interview will set to establish the candidate’s particular knowhow on the field of natural cosmetics and the general operations of business. As such, the questions asked will be more detailed towards the line of natural cosmetics. Those that have more knowledge and exposure will be identified and invited for a second interview. The rest will be notified that their interview was unsuccessful. During the second interview, Bessant should pose more practical questions and tasks to the candidates. As a matter of fact, she can do a practical interview in ...