Banglalink’s Market Communication Strategy

The telecommunications sector is one of the most impactful sectors of Bangladesh.

Banglalink Digital Communications Ltd. is one of those influential drivers of the
telecommunications revolution. Banglalink Digital Communications Ltd. is the third largest
mobile phone operator in Bangladesh. Launched in February 2005 and currently with more
than 33 million subscribers, Banglalink was the catalyst in making mobile telephony an
affordable option for the Bangladeshi people.
One of the most influential reasons of such advancement over the years for Banglalink has
been its communication efforts. The communication strategies adopted by Banglalink from
time to time has resonated across multi-diversified channels and target groups that had led the
brand to gain awareness and preference. So, the market communication strategy of
Banglalink is a core component of its business growth.
Now, the term "product" can encompass a variety of items in the telecommunications sector,
starting from core products like voice, data, SMS, bundles to digital (gaming, utility,
entertainment) and enterprise products (field force locator, sales force automation, SMS
attendance, etc.). Focusing on these products, the market communication strategy of
Banglalink is developed and maintained. As per the requirement of briefly understanding the
market communication strategy of Banglalink, the core product and digital products are
focused on the following discussion.

Question 1: What are the various methods of communicating with the market that is used?
Provide details including who are the target customers.
Answer: Banglalink is a nationwide telecommunications operator. In that aspect, their
customer’s geographical segmentation includes the entire country. In terms of demographics
their customers would range from 18 and above. The economical class would be from lower
to the higher end. The main psychographic trait of these customers is that they all seek
connectivity in the form of communication. But, diving more into the customer segments,
Banglalink has customer segments of Business, Personal, and other agencies.
To reach the above-mentioned customer segments, Banglalink adopts different
communication methods. This comprises of both traditional and digital mediums of
communication. Considering service information, product promotions, offers, and any form
of announcements, Banglalink uses a blend of ATL, BTL, & TTL channels. In terms of social
media, Facebook, YouTube, Google, Instagram, Messenger, and other local advertising
platforms like Eskimi are mainly preferred. Along with them traditional channels like trade,
TV, outdoor assets like billboard, shops, etc. are quite prominent. Now, in these channels the
methods that deliver the communication are advertisements, direct marketing (field level
sales interactions), telemarketing (for offers and promotional contents), catalogues (mostly
for retailer businesses), sales force management (through field sales and touchpoint
interactions), web marketing (promoted ads, targeted campaigns, contests, etc.), and trade
shows (annual conference, product launch, milestone celebrations), etc.

Question 2: Why do you choose such method(s) used for communication?

Answer: Choosing specific strategies or methods comes with some pre-assessments or
considerations. Similarly, for the communication strategy some logics go behind the choice
of communication methods. As already known from earlier, advertisements, telemarketing,
catalogues, sales force, web marketing, and trade shows are the major ones. The rationale
behind selecting them are explained as follows:
i. Advertisements - It can promote thematic campaigns because have much larger shelf-
life as they uphold the image of the company for mid/long term periods.
ii. Direct marketing - Direct marketing involves personal interactions and also a scope
for promoting thematic campaigns that are dedicated to brand building of Banglalink.
iii. Telemarketing – Call center executives can easily connect with large existing and
potential customers and also promote product sales.
iv. Catalogues – This happens to be an important card and also a proof for retailers, and
store branding usability.
v. Sales force management – The sales forces are a powerful methodical asset that can
drive both business performance, visibility, interactions with both business partners
and people. And finally, they can contribute to promoting the offers through on-field
efforts. Mainly this includes regional communication efforts across touchpoints and
retailer points.
vi. Web marketing – The many forms in web marketing helps to optimize reach and
ensure proper visibility of contents and campaigns. With the help of historical data
detailing the past usage, spending patterns, browsing history and recent trends,
audiences are tracked and classified. This method also fulfils the social media
objectives. It also allows more precise targeting, remarketing opportunities, and
greater customization, digital channels bring in more revenue and greater ROI.
vii. Trade shows – Such events allow Banglalink to create hooks. Sometimes these events
also attract new fanbases, thereby creating relevant buzz and engagement. Examples
of such events are: the launch event of Banglalink’s new health aggregator service
“HealthHub.” Another instance may be the telco partnership for events such as “Rock
Fest.”

Question 3: What weightage is given or spend allocated to the various methods e.g.,
advertising, direct marketing, public relations, trade shows etc.
Answer: Communication is a double-edged sword and people who are responsible for this
have to stay alert and weigh the merit before going ahead with any type of communication.
Hence, effective market communication for business organizations requires the optimum use
of all available and relevant methods. Among the different methods available to Banglalink
uses a blend of almost all of them. However, the composition of these methods to be used
varies as per business requirements.
For certain promotional campaigns, advertising is heavily relied on whereas for certain
business expansion initiatives trade shows are more relied upon. In such manners the
composition varies. Now, to assess the weightage certain factors come into consideration. For
example, the potential of reach, the degree of customizability, the monetary rate for adoption,
the ease of operability, and the effectiveness and availability of the method to the public.
These are some considerations on weightages and spendings to be allocated to different
methods for market communication by Banglalink. Since the use of methods vary with
business requirements, it does nor remain fixated on certain weightages.
One evident scenario is that Banglalink relies on advertisements heavily. In digital and
traditional media channels they exhibit their commercials. Again, they mainly partner up or
sponsor major events and also hold launch events of new business services and products. So,
the weightage is found to be comparatively more established on advertisements compared to
other methods. The second weightages put would be in direct marketing and public relations.
And, thus through these logical grounds of analysis the weightages on different methods are
assessed for market communication by Banglalink Digital Communications Limited.