4.

Introduction

4.1. ORIGIN OF THE REPORT

This report on the study of The Concept of Marketing Strategy of

a Banking Product in Bangladesh as part of Strategic Marketing
Management Course is submitted to, DR. RAZIA BEGUM, PROFESSOR &
COURSE TEACHER, Department of Marketing, University of Dhaka. The
report is submitted individually on December, 08, 2010 under the
direction of the Course Instructor.

4.2. PURPOSE OF THE REPORT

This report has two purposes:

This report is prepared primarily to fulfill the requirement of MBA
course curriculum.
The secondary objective and goals are:

 To study situation analysis of the market for promoting a

product
 To study about marketing mix strategies of developing a
product
 To learn about financial and control process of promoting a
product
 To study the market driven strategies to deliver superior
value.

4.3. OBJECTIVE

The purpose of the report is to acquire practical knowledge about the

implication of the Marketing Strategy for a Banking Product.

4.4. METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION

In preparing this report I have collected the necessary information

from the following source:

a. Primary Sources: Primary data was collected form the

Southeast Bank Limited Personnel. Branch Managers, HO
executives and respective unit heads are interviewed who are

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 jointly implementing this new product to satisfy the premium
customers.
b. Secondary Sources: Necessary documents prepared by the
Annual Report and Web Site of Southeast Bank Limited
(www.sebankbd.com) and others related web links.

4.5. LIMITATION

During the collection of data some problems have been faced.

The answer getting from primary source, they were very reluctant to
answer the question.
On the basis of secondary data, the report has been prepared. So,
some information gap or reliability and accuracy of data may be
question mark.
Time constraint was an important factor for collection of data.
No statistical analysis is done. The findings are not statistically
validated. It is
done on a subjective analysis approach.

5. Company Profile

Name of the Company: Southeast Bank Limited

Chairman: Alamgir Kabir, FCA

Vice Chairman: Ragib Ali

Managing Director: Mahbubul Alam

Company Secretary: Muhammad Shahjahan

Legal Status: Public Limited Company

Date of Incorporation: March 12, 1995

Registered Office: Eunoos Trade Centre, 52-53, Dilkusha C/A

(Level 2, 3 & 16), Dhaka-1000

Line of Business: Banking

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Authorized Capital: Tk.10,000.00 million

Paid Up Capital: 3,422.64 million

Year of Initial Public Offer: 1999

Stock Exchange Listing: April 10, 2000 (DSE) & April 24, 2000 (CSE)

Phone: 9571115, 7160866, 7173793, 9555466 & 9550081

Fax: 99550086, 9550093 & 9563102

SWIFT: SEBDBDDHXXX

E-mail: info@sebankbd.com

Website: www.sebankbd.com

6. E-Banking

Electronic Banking is transforming the financial services industry

through various impossible innovations. The quantity of cross-border
trading and other financial activities is increasing geometrically make
possible by technology. It has been made possible by technology,
particularly information technology to generate, collect and process
information about bank operation and bank customers efficiently and
effectively. It provides the ability to create more effective systems of
controls in individual institutions and in the market themselves.
Compared to the paper based operation, Electronic Banking Systems,
in its most proficient form, offer instant verification and transfer and
reduces the flow of costly paper in the record keeping process.
Application of technology in banking offer opportunity for reduction of
both paper and people.

6.1. WHY THIS PRODUCT

Electronic banking (E-Banking) allow banks to expand their markets for

traditional deposit taking and credit extension activities, and to offer
new products and services or strengthen their competitive position in
offering existing payment services. In addition, electronic banking
could reduce operating costs for banks. More broadly, the continued
development of electronic banking and electronic money may
contribute to improving the efficiency of the banking and payment
system and to reducing the cost of retail transactions nationally and

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internationally. Although many financial instrument and systems are
now considered as “Electronic Banking” came into the terminology of
the financial world in the late 1980s, with the possibility of emergence
of true electronic money. All sorts of back-office information
management technology and financial services using electronic
devices can be included into the term “Electronic Banking”. The
development in information technology has contributed positively to
economic growth through several channels. ICT has led to productivity
growth through the impact on activity processes. Banks have been
increasing their own size and financial strength and expanding the
scope of their products lines to meet the growing demand of on- line
real-time financial services.

6.2. Structure of electronic banking

E-banking is a general term referring to various computer-based

technologies for delivering banking services. Electronic banking
systems can be divided into two categories by the functional
characteristics, viz. back-office electronic banking, and electronic
financial instruments or front-office electronic services. Back-office
electronic banking provides information management services, and
quick fund transfer facilities both for traditional banking and financial
instruments and electronic financial instruments. Science inception of
primary forms of electronic banking it has been passed through a
comprehensive evolution process. Electronic banking services can be
grouped into three generations of evolution:

Categorization of electronic banking services

Generation of Back-office Front-office

electronic banking

First generation Ledger, Cash management, Cash dispensers

Head Office MIS

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Second generation Transaction Processing[offline], Telephone bill
ACHs, Generation of information payment, POS
for record keeping, Fund transfer systems, Check
verification, ATMs,
Authorization
Third generation On-line transaction processing, Automatic Fund
Centralized processing at Transfers, On-line
country level, Internet banking, Banking, Home
Inter bank transaction Banking electronic,
processing. Direct Deposit, Check
Truncation, Electronic
Fund Transfer, Internet
Banking

6.3 Varieties of E-Banking

Bank accounts: Savings, Current, FDR, PDS, Term Deposit

Scheme
All these accounts are maintained in electronic way for the sake of
customer satisfaction in Bangladesh. People can deposit their money
through electronic device and also can withdraw their money such
way. These are the common bank accounts which maintained by the
bank customer every now and then and bank is also given high priority
or facilities in this regards to their customer.

Debit Point-of-Sale
An advanced payment system which enables consumers to use an ATM
Card to pay for goods and services, electronically debiting the
cardholders account and crediting the account of the merchant.

Cards: Credit/Debit Card

There are two different types of card. One is debit which designate to
withdraw own money from the bank in any time. Another one is a

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credit system which provided by bank to their customer. Customer can
enjoy their credit amount while they are in shopping, withdraw cash
etc.

Internet Banking
Customers need an Internet access service to handle this type of
banking. As an Internet Banking customer, he or she will be given a
specific user ID and a confidential, secret and secured password so
that they can access to their own account. Here customer can able to
see the ledger balances, transfer his money, request something
towards bank, etc.

Automated Teller Machine (ATM)

Full abbreviation of ATM is “Automated Teller Machine” which acts like
a teller point in a bank who takes and gives money over the counter.
ATM is same as teller point but it run automatically through identity
like card and password. It does not need any slip or Cheque but it is
very much based on A/C holder’s ATM card and it’s Password. Those
who are entitled for ATM card, bank has provided them a password
against every single card. This is like a debit card. People can deposit
their money in a bank account and they have entitled withdraw their
money through ATM card, which is applicable for 24 hours a day and
365 days in a year.

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SWIFT
SWIFT is a bank owned non-profit co-operative based in Belgium
servicing the financial community worldwide. It ensures secure
messaging having a global reach of 6,495 Banks and Financial
Institutions in 178 countries, 24 hours a day. SWIFT global network
carries an average 4 million message daily and estimated average
value of payment messages is USD 2 trillion. SWIFT is a highly secured
messaging network enables Banks to send and receive Fund Transfer,
L/C related and other free format messages to and from any banks
active in the network. Having SWIFT facility, Bank will be able to serve
its customers more profitable by providing L/C, Payment and other
messages efficiently and with utmost security. Especially it will be of
great help for our clients dealing with Imports, Exports and
Remittances etc.

7. Situation Analysis

7.1 SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threat)

ANALYSIS
To find out the viability of a particular product we must perform a
SWOT analysis of the product. For analyzing the performance of E-
Banking we can consider the following SWOT analysis:

Strengths:

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1. E-Banking is now in our market. Only a few banks are now offering
these features.
2. Actual fund transfer and fund disbursement is also possible now with
advanced secured software.
3. The product will enjoy the benefit of a first mover.
4. The feature is cheap for both the bank and the customers.
5. The system will require less manual workers.
6. Saves a lot of time.
7. Highly convenient as the service can be made available at any time.

Weaknesses:
1. Security breakdown.
2. Lack of high-tech digital database.
3. Lack of marketing.
4. Lack of stable internet connections.

Opportunities:
1. Non-branch banking is becoming popular in our country. A person
can withdraw or deposit money in any branch of the bank he/she has
account with.
2. Use of electronic and internet services are becoming familiar to the
people of our country.
3. More secured foreign trade is made possible through this.
4. High population coverage is possible.
5. Convenience, high transaction speed, efficient, and much more
effective.

Threats:
1. On strategic risk E-banking is relatively new and, as a result, there
can be a lack of understanding among senior management about its
potential and implications.
2. Business risks are also significant. Given the newness of e-banking,
nobody knows much about whether e-banking customers will have
different characteristics from the traditional banking customers.
3. Banks face three main types of operations risk:
• volume forecasts
• management information systems and
• outsourcing.
4. Security issues are a major source of concern for everyone both
inside and outside the banking industry. E-banking increases security
risks, potentially exposing hitherto isolated systems to open and risky
environments.

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 8. Marketing Strategy

8.1 OBJECTIVE
Southeast Bank will set aggressive but achievable objectives for the
first five years. Within this period we want to take forty percent of the
market share. The important objectives are to provide:
1. High quality financial services with state of the art technology.
2. Fast customer service.
3. Sustainable growth strategy.
4. Commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility.
5. Innovative banking at competitive price.

8.2 TARGET MARKET

For successful business operations targeting the appropriate market is
very important for any business organization. The main target market
of E-Banking is the different traditional banking customers around the
Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylthet City. Then for income basis, the
company targets upper, upper-middle class, middle class families. The
coverage of the service will be available mainly in the cities first and
then move on to rural areas.

8.3 POSITIONING
Providing one stop solution to customer problem in the most
professional manner in the branches will require creating a position in
the mind of its customer. The marketing strategy focuses on providing
the up-to-date facility to the customer. Positioning can be done by
using following:

1. 24- hours cash deposit & withdrawal facility

2. Quick cash withdrawal without having queue
3. Account activities enquiry in any moment
4. Statement request through ATM/Debit/Credit Card
5. Transfer own funds to other account number in same bank
6. Present Balance enquiry
7. More than16-hours shopping facilities
8. Deposit or Mail cash or cheque(s) (Cross cheque) through
mechanical device.
9. Changing Personal Identity Number
10. Cash deposit which will originally deposit very next day of deposit
that means do not need to go to the branch for every occasion.
11. Mini statement which contain 8-10 previous transaction records
12. Can able to pay utilities bill

8.4 Developing Marketing Strategy:

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Once we understand our business' internal strengths and weaknesses
and the external opportunities and threats, we can develop a strategy
that plays to our own strengths and matches them to the emerging
opportunities. We can also try to minimize your weaknesses.

The next step is to draw up a detailed marketing plan that sets out the
specific actions that will put that strategy into practice. See our guide
on how to write a marketing plan.
Questions to ask yourself when developing your strategy
• What changes are taking place in our business environment? Are
these opportunities or threats?
• What are our strengths and weaknesses?
• What do I want to achieve? Set clear, realistic objectives.
• What are customers looking for? What are their needs?
• Which customers are the most profitable?
• How will I target the right potential customers? Are there groups
that I can target more effectively?
• What's the best way of communicating with them?
• Could I improve my customer service? This can be a low-cost
way of gaining a competitive advantage over rivals, keeping
customers, boosting sales and building a good reputation.
• Could changing my products or services increase sales and
profitability? Most products need to be continuously updated to
maintain competitiveness.
• Could extending my product list or service provision meet
existing customers' needs more effectively? Remember that
selling more to existing customers is generally more cost
effective than continually trying to find new ones.
• How will I price my product or service? Although prices need to
be competitive, most businesses find that trying to compete on
price alone is a poor strategy. What else are my customers
interested in? Quality? Reliability? Efficiency? Value for money?
• What is the best way of distributing and selling my products?
• How can I best promote my products? Options might include
advertising, direct marketing, exhibiting at trade fairs, PR or
marketing on the web.
• How can I tell if my marketing is effective?
Check how our customers find out about your business. A small-scale
trial can be a good way of testing a marketing strategy without
committing to excessive costs.

9. MARKETING MIX

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9.1 PRODUCT OFFERING
• ATM Services
• Any branch banking
• Internet Banking
• Virtual Banking
• SMS banking
• Wireless Application Protocols
• Telephone Banking
• Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT)
• SWIFT Channel
• Other electronic delivery channels

9.2 PRICING
For a bank the price is one of the elements of the marketing mix. The
prices must always be in conformity with the other four Ps and they
must not be considered as purely financial problem, in which they are
calculated by estimating the costs, to which a margin for profit will be
added. There are 6 main strategies to settle the price for a product.
These are:
• Cost plus profit
• The settlement of the price depending on the competition
• The settlement of the price on the market
• The settlement of the price depending on the value –
• The settlement of the price to penetrate
the bank may settle a low price for a product with the purpose to
win fast a big quota of the market and thus to realize a fast and
Substantial penetration. Entering more detailed in the mechanisms
of the price. Bank should consider total cost of the service they are
offering to the client.

9.3 PLACE

South east bank can give frequent visit to different corporate houses.
Out of the box ideas will be taken to attract customer attention.
Internet, telephone, handbill, billboard and advertising will be used to
reach customer call. Our customer support executives will always be
there to attend any type of customer query. Information desk and help
line will provide customers with be there to provide better support.

9.4 PROMOTION

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 The bank planned a three stage promotion strategy: initial stage,
competitive stage and mature stage. These strategies can be changed
if situation demands. The strategies are as follows:

• Initial stage:
 Informative ads
- Newspaper
- Billboards
- Internet
- Cable operator
• Competitive stage:
 Persuasive ads to motivate about the brand
– TV
– Newspaper
– Direct selling through sales executive
• Mature stage:
 Reminder ads to keep people brand loyal
- Using Satisfied Customers
- TV
- Newspaper

10. Market driven strategy

The underlying logic of market-driven strategy is that the market and
the customers that form the market should be the starting point in
business strategy formulation. “Considerable progress has been made
in identifying market-driven businesses, understanding what they do,
and measuring the bottom-line consequences of their orientation to
their markets.”3 Importantly, market-driven strategy provides a
company-wide perspective, which mandates more effective integration
of all activities that impact on customer value. We examine the
characteristics of market-driven strategy and discuss several issues
associated with adopting that strategy.

10.1 Characteristics of Market-Driven Strategies

A key advantage of becoming market oriented is gaining an
understanding of the market and how it is likely to change in the
future. This knowledge provides the foundation for designing market-
driven strategies. Developing this vision about the market requires
obtaining information about customers, competitors, and markets

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  Becoming market oriented
 Achieving superior performance
 Leveraging distinctive capabilities
 Customer value

The above characteristics needed to be ensured with high importance

to achieve desired objectives.

11. Conclusion

Like in many other emerging market economies, banking sector in the

Bangladesh economy is to face an increasing competition for their
business in the coming days. Their business will no longer remain easy
as they had earlier. Southeast bank believes in its uncompromising
commitment to fulfill its customer needs and satisfaction and to
become their first choice in banking sector.

Though the main objective of this bank is to give high quality financial
services at minimum rate attack. If proper attention and strategies are
followed as suggested in this report, Southeast bank Limited may
become the market leader in this sector. Although in the beginning the
bank will face some problem and huge cash flow will be required but
the brand name and image of Southeast bank Limited will help it to
gain a leading position in the market.

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