Introduction to BRAC Bank
BRAC Bank Limited is one of the leading commercial banks in Bangladesh at the moment. It was founded in 2001 and has been successfully carrying out its operations ever since. The bank is known to be a subsidiary of BRAC.
BRAC is one of the largest and very renowned non-governmental development organizations in the world that aims and operates on the very specific mission of aiding and serving people with the utmost integrity, transparency, and innovation.
With a focus on technology and innovation, BRAC Bank has introduced many cutting-edge banking products and services in the past few years and has marked itself as one of the most outstanding banks that is established in Bangladesh in the last fifty years.
BRAC bank has been included in providing high levels of services which include internet banking, mobile banking, and online payment systems. Introduction to such a system by BRAC bank has made banking easier for customers as they can have greater access to their financials and know more about it without any hassle.
BRAC bank is also known for its strong commitment to terms of empowering individuals and businesses with the bank’s financial services that are fabricated and tailored to the very specific needs of individuals and businesses in Bangladesh.
Not only that, but BRAC bank has also earned a reputation for centering their services and prioritizing customers by putting them in the center. Furthermore, the organization is known to go the extra mile to exceed the expectations of its customer base with its top-notch banking services as never seen before in Bangladesh.
Today, BRAC Bank is widely recognized and appreciated globally as one of the most respected and highly innovative banks in Bangladesh. And its continued success is a true testament to its unwavering and focused commitment to serving the needs and wants of its customers and stakeholders globally and in Bangladesh.
Introduction to the 7ps in Marketing
The marketing mix is a crucial marketing strategy that involves creating customer value by taking the essential marketing tools into account so that the firm can blend and produce the necessary response it wants from its customers (Principles of Marketing, 2015). And to create the necessary blend, firms often involved in the seven “Ps” of marketing also can be known as the four “Ps” consisting of Product, Price, Place, Promotion, People, Process, and Physical Evidence (can be also grouped as Product, Price, Place, and Promotion).
BRAC bank as one of the leading banking organizations has also implemented the marketing mix to establish itself where it is now in the global market. In this section, we will be focusing on how BRAC bank has implemented the marketing mix and how it has been able to differentiate itself to create the perfect customer value proposition in Bangladesh’s market and globally by discussing the services and many other aspects of it
Product
BRAC Bank has been introducing and providing numerous products and services within its umbrella. Some of them being the following:
Other banking services provided by BRAC Bank:
Card services:
Price
While the different account services are introduced the pricing strategy of BRAC Bank is one of the most affordable as seen here:
Bank account type:
Triple benefits savings account
500 BDT
Higher interest rates than average
Future star bank
100 BDT
Interest on any amount + insurance benefit on 20000 BDT and above
Golden benefits savings account
500 BDT
Average interest rate + fees provided to beneficiary on death or accidents
Happy savers account
500 BDT
Earn high interest from 25000 BDT and get discounts, special lifestyle discounts and free debit card services.
Place
BRAC Bank has established various different distribution channels that are frequently used by BRAC Bank to reach out to its customers regularly on a day to day basis. The distribution channels include:
There are around 187 branches of BRAC Bank all over the country providing exceptional services along with operating in seven business regions all over Bangladesh. It also has 185 zonal offices and 18 premium lounges to ensure quality service to its customers and targeted market. It also has 457 SME unit offices to help small and medium businesses grow in the best way possible and create an impact on lives.
In addition to that, they have 375 ATM booths all over Bangladesh making card transactions easier and faster for its customers. Moreover, BRAC Bank has collaborated with Bkash-the fastest growing unicorn startup for further smoothing of transactions for customers when they wish to withdraw money from the ATM booths via bkash as well.
From farmers to business owners to students, everyone can easily withdraw and cash in money without much inconvenience at all. The help of BRAC Bank’s mobile banking app, has impacted the maximum of Bangladesh’s population as they got access to banking services which were difficult for people earlier.
Promotion
A marketing strategy is an organization's effort to use its given resources to collect customer attention across different channels such as billboards, TV, newspaper, social media platforms, and many more in order to increase sales and has a competitive edge over its rivals.
BRAC Bank has used different marketing and advertising strategies. It has mainly aimed to empower small and medium businesses as well as the female population nationwide in order to introduce greater new concepts through banking that perhaps many other banks haven’t previously thought of.
In the section given below, we can see the marketing strategies used by BRAC Bank in order to promote its products and services.
BRAC Bank TARA : It is one of the biggest promotional campaigns that BRAC bank introduced that focused solely on the female population and especially female students nationwide in order to empower them to participate more and take control of their independence through financial independence.
This campaign has initiated several events and awareness programs on student and female empowerment such as webinars and many more even during COVID-19.
SME Loan initiative: BRAC bank advertisem*ntfor SME loans was another huge advertisem*nt campaign that encouraged and enabled thousands of SMEs to set up their own businesses with convenient loans provided by BRAC bank. With SME outlets for loans all over Bangladesh, it made a significant impact with this promotional event that is still ongoing.Not only that, BRAC Bank has created surveys and regularly kept in contact with aspiring SMEs to understand and cater to the needs of all those people who wish to have loans for their businesses.
These advertising or promotional campaigns through various channels and social media platforms have allowed BRAC Bank to create value in their customers' minds as they are centralized and have enabled them to share a mutually beneficial relationship. The above mentioned promotional campaigns are two of many more that BRAC bank has established throughout the years.
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People
According to BRAC Annual Report 2020, BRAC Bank has 7740 employees currently working to make BRAC Bank one of the leading financial institutes globally. With training programs conducted for more than 600+ in number, it can be said that the employees in BRAC Bank have exceptional skill sets needed to make it one of the best banks in Bangladesh.
They create employee engagement strategies that have aided in better employee engagement, the satisfaction of work, and a better workforce which utmost resulted in higher idea generation, and greater and improved communication with customers-creating a meaningful customer experience. Given below are the employee engagement strategies that BRAC Bank has utilized from the BRAC Bank Annual report.
Process
BRAC bank has a different process of delivering the utmost personalized customer experience. And this applies to all the different services that it has provided to its customers over the course of the last five years.
For instance, the process of using Astha to send or store money (mobile banking of BRAC Bank) has a significantly different approach which is convenient and easier compared to traditional banking accounts used. For example, with just a NID card and a phone number anyone can use Astha to have the following services and can benefit from BRAC banks mobile banking:
However, the traditional personal loan process requires much more documentation with a minimum income of 30000 BDT and business experience of at least three years to issue a personal loan which is much more convenient than compared to many financial institutions.
Similarly, Probashi banking on the other hand has made banking easier for Non-residential Bangladeshis as the ultimate “One-stop banking solution” service making it easier and more convenient for them. This service has allowed non-Bangladeshi citizens to save their finances, take loans and build a better life here or even do normal banking without much hassle, hence creating value and catering to the needs, wants, and demands of the customers in the most effective way.
Physical evidence
All the amazing and mind-blowing products that BRAC Bank has offered over the years have created significant value for its customers as BRAC Bank has centered its targeted market more precisely, fabricating all the products and accounts as per their needs. Products, services, promotional campaigns, places they have established, and the convenient process all provide hard physical evidence of how BRAC bank has operated over the years.
This has allowed them to gain significant market share over the last few years as they have focused more on customer well-being and customer-perceived behavior which has also created a mutually beneficial relationship for both BRAC Bank and its customers.
The list of awards achieved by BRAC Bank shows significant evidence that the customer satisfaction and the customer perceived value of BRAC Bank is indeed magnificent. BRAC Bank has achieved the following awards:
Some other significant activities of BRAC Bank are:
Conclusion
In the end, it can be said that BRAC bank has exceptionally used all the seven Ps of marketing. And has offered qualitative and quantitative services and products to its customers. Because the value propositions offered by BRAC bank have allowed them to differentiate on a larger scale than most banks, it can be said that BRAC Bank has truly succeeded in the Bangladesh banking sector and has used the marketing seven Ps in the most effective way.
Reference
Principles of Marketing. (2015, October 27). https://doi.org/10.24926/8668.1901
Relevant websites used for reference:
