Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Chapter: 01
1. INTRODUCTION
Internet Marketing is an all-inclusive term for marketing products and/or services online
and like many all-inclusive terms, Internet marketing means different things to different
people. Essentially, though, Internet marketing refers to the strategies that are used to
market a product or service online, marketing strategies that include search engine
optimization and search engine submission, copywriting that encourages site visitors to
take action, web site design strategies, online promotions, reciprocal linking, and email
marketing and thats just hitting the highlights (Aldridge Alicia et al 1997). Online
marketers are constantly devising new Internet marketing strategies in the hopes of
driving more traffic to their Web sites and making more sales; witness the increasing use
of blogs as marketing tools for business, for instance. Internet marketing is focusing on
web design and search engine optimization as a starting point; for most sites, the most
traffic still comes from search engines and directories. Internet marketing utilizes the
power of electronic commerce to sell and market products. Electronic commerce refers to
any market on the internet. Electronic commerce supports to selling, buying, and trading
of products or services over the internet. Internet marketing forms a subset of electronic
commerce. With the outburst of internet growth, internet marketing has started becoming
very popular. It is said that Internet marketing first began in the beginning of 1990 with
just text-based websites, which offered product information. With growth in internet, it is
not just selling products alone, but in addition to this, information about products,
advertising space, software programs, auctions, stock trading and matchmaking. A few
companies have revolutionized the way, internet can be used for marketing, such as
Google.com, Yahoo.com, Amazon.com, Alibaba.com and Youtube.com. Internet
marketing has brought forth so many strategies such as affiliate marketing which consists
of pay per click, pay per view, pay per call, pay per click advertising. Affiliate marketing
also includes banner advertisements. In addition to this e-mail marketing, viral marketing,
interactive advertising, blog or article-based marketing are also popular. There are newer
marketing techniques being invented all the time. It is important to know how the trend
would be. Companies are inventing new techniques to find better ways to make revenue
and establish their brand on the internet. Consumers are becoming more and smarter.
They do not want to be a party to the internet advertising campaigns made by companies
unless they get some incentive in doing so. They would be quite keen in participating in
campaigns provided the companies compensate them in some way. There are usually 2 or
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1.3 Methodology
Step 1: Status of Internet Marketing in Bangladesh
Step 2: Different Approach of Internet Marketing in Bangladesh
Step 3: Growth Rate Internet Marketing in Bangladesh
Step 4: Findings and solutions of Internet Marketing in Bangladesh
E-business has created tremendous opportunity all over the globe. Online banking can act
as a complementary factor of e-business. Bangladesh Bank has recently argued to
introduce automated clearing house system. This pushed upward transition from the
manual banking system to the online banking system. The study has been undertaken to
observe present status of the e-business and as its complementary factor online banking
system in Bangladesh. The article analyzes the data that were collected from
Bangladeshis banks up to February 2010 and also used snowball sampling techniques to
gather answer from the five hundred respondents who have already been using on line
banking system on the basis of a questionnaire which was prepared for this study purpose.
The study found that dealing officials of the banks are not well conversant about their
desk work. Authors observed that the country can be benefited through successful
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utilization of e-business as this will help to enhance productivity, monetary gain of both
producer and customer may be feasible and positive impact on raising gross domestic
product. E -business especially with the help of online banking can manage economy of
Bangladesh in a better way as customer will be satisfied (Kim D.J et al 2007).
Like traditional commerce, Online business does not involved only in buying and selling
of goods and services rather includes inter-company and intra-company functions like
negotiations and transactions, manufacturing and marketing etc. using email, Electronic
Data Interchange (EDI), fax, file transfer, video conferencing etc. Depending on the
involvement with electronic means, a company can be either a complete or partial Online
business user. Usually Online business is done in four forms: Business to Business (B2B),
Business to Consumer (B2C), Consumer to Business (C2B) and Consumer to consumer
(C2C). However, Business to Government (B2G) transaction may also exist.
In order to cope with the present world, almost all of the financial organisations and
international businesses in Bangladesh enter in the information highway through hosting
website. Banks and other financial organizations have started online transactions like fund
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transfer, payment etc. However, almost 82 percent usage of Internet accounts for only to
send e-mail while in developed countries like USA, it is only 5 percent or less. This
indicates that ecommerce in Bangladesh lags far behind.
Human resource is must for the development of Online business and in Bangladesh,
around 10000 people are being produced by the educational institutions and training
centres around the country, which is not adequate for a country. Since Bangladesh is a
developing nation, the opportunity for the development of local and international trade
and business, like all other LDCs, is increasing. Although it faces some barriers like
infrastructural, cultural and outlook problem, recent steps taken by the government may
change the situation. The government has taken some steps to build ICT capable society
recently to materialize its dream of a 'digital Bangladesh'.
1.5 CONSTRAINTS
1.5.1 Online business
The number of Internet users is not adequate to create potential profit earning e-business;
there is lack of infrastructural facilities including electricity and transportation system;
high and unstable prices of computer and hardware is discouraging, there is lack of
skilled manpower and personnel required for effective e-business; there is absence of
cyber law and lack of governmental legislation and awareness.
environment. All the efforts should be taken at a time as they all are dependent on each
other.
Telecommunication: It's the integral part of Online business. Although mobile phones
are very common here, the percentage is still very low, only 0.83 out of 100 has got a
phone. This indicates poor level of penetration. Reducing the cost of using phones and
developing the infrastructural support is necessary to fulfill the future demand. Although
all commercial banks have started following automation system, online banking system
through ATM, local credit cards and EFT is available in the selected area only.
Internationally accepted credit cards are not available due to the lack of facilities. It
creates inability to do business with the foreign businesses easily. Along with this exists
illegal mode of payments called Hundi based on basic transfer system. So, banks and
financial organizations are facing barrier at the same time.
Online education and healthcare service is yet to start. Very few sites on personal
initiative on health and medical services are available but they are not up to the mark.
Online education can do well using electronic means but lack of necessary infrastructures
is hindering the process. It should be understood that only Internet connection is not
adequate for the development of Online business. Internet is nothing but a component of
the environment. The environment should be developed wholly. Various researches find
out that people in Bangladesh are friendly to technical innovation. In order to improve the
standard of life the people here can adopt the Online business system easily.
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The first step of the Customer Analysis is to define exactly which customers the company
is serving. This requires specificity. It is not adequate to say the company is targeting
small businesses, for example, because there are several million of these types of
customers. Rather, an expert business plan writer must identify precisely the customers it
is serving, such as small businesses with 10 to 50 employees based in large metropolitan
cities on the West Coast.
Once the plan has clearly identified and defined the company's target customers, it is
necessary to explain the demographics of these customers. Questions to be answered
include:
1. How many potential customers fit the given definition and is this customer base
growing or decreasing?
2. What is the average revenues/income of these customers?
3. Where are these customers geographically based?
After explaining customer demographics, the business plan must detail the needs of these
customers. Conveying customer needs could take the form of past actions (X% have
purchased a similar product in the past), future projections (when interviewed, X% said
that they would purchase product/service Y) and/or implications (because X% use a
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The business plan must also detail the drivers of customer decision-making. Sample
questions to answer include:
1. Do customers find price to be more important than the quality of the product or
service?
2. Are customers looking for the highest level of reliability, or will they have their own
support and just seek a basic level of service?
There is one last critical step in the Customer Analysis -- showing an understanding of the
actual decision-making process. Examples of questions to be answered here include:
1. Will the customer consult others in their organization/family before making a decision?
2. Will the customer seek multiple bids?
3. Will the product/service require significant operational changes (e.g., will the customer
have to invest time to learn new technologies and will the product/service cause other
members within the organization to lose their jobs etc.)
Search engine marketing firm announces soon that they will open an internet marketing
agency in around the world. Internet Marketing Company currently works with
companies to provide them with marketing online, link building services, reputation
management and other services. The company provides a free online quote for interested
parties, as well as a list of all the services and prices they offer. They work with clients in
world, to help them drive traffic to their site. With decades of experience in the search
engine marketing industry, our Bangladeshi companies are able to provide the highest
quality of expertise and knowledge. (Z. Gyongyi et al 2005) The specialists at Internet
Marketing Company can help us to research and decide on the best suitable keywords for
our business with a potential plan on achieving top ranking results.
Internet Marketing Company delivers effective and cost-effective SEO services that help
companies compete and attract new customers driven by listings among the top search
engine results. Professionals at the Internet Marketing Company have the expertise and
experience to enhance exposure of a business on major search engines. And the better a
brands exposure, the better a company can reach the customers and prospects who rely
on search engines every day to research, find, and buy new products and services. With
SEO from Internet Marketing Company, everyone can see resultsfast, easy,
and guaranteed.
1.5.6 Branding
The taditional definition of a brand is the "identity" of a company's business. However, in
today's marketplace it is more than just an identity, it has to be an experience. As
technology has advanced over recent years, it is absolutely necessary to consider brand
development as a major part of any interactive marketing effort. Being consistent across
business cards, pamphlets, newspaper and radio isn't easy. And, maintaining that same
type of effort online can be a lot more difficult. In order to successfully manage brand
development and strategy, we need a strategic plan that protects the integrity of our brand
and our message while embracing all the advantages that the interactive spectrum can
offer.
Red Clay Interactive specializes in helping our clients move brands online while
providing the flexibility for them to truly expand into their new interactive space. In this
new space, all brand development efforts must consider not only a consistent website
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presence, but all interactive channels from social media to media buying. Our team will
take the time to understand the business, industry and competitors in order to provide a
set of solutions that work for customer. It's not just about developing a nice website, but
about developing overall brand so users can experience who and what we stand for
through every interaction they have with organization.
In the end, company's brand presentation across channels is just as important as the
appearance of physical location. They all portray an impression that can invite new
customers, extend existing relationships or turn them all away. Partnering with Red Clay
Interactive results in a truly strategic brand development plan and a brand presence that
can be second to none.
1.5.9 Online Video and the Impact It Can Have on our Marketing
Video is making an impact when it comes to our marketing. If we haven't already, its
time to consider using video to market our business. It doesnt matter what size business
we have, video is an affordable and effective tool that can help us connect with customers
and prospects.
1.5.10 Marketing Online - Men and Women Use the Internet Differently
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We know that when it comes to the way men and women shop; it's different. Men waltz
into a store to gather what they came for while women will take the time to browse and
explore the new products that have been introduced in the sales. The same is true when it
comes to the online behavior of men and women; gender stereotypes apply. Take a few
moments to learn how both men and women use the internet and how that information
can help you in positioning your product or service.
1.5.14 Segmentation
1. Understand searcher personas-Its fundamental marketing to anticipate and understand
customer needs.
2. Develop an ideal keyword mix- Many companies start with a list of keywords they
think are best for SEO and implement them with on-page optimization and link building.
3. Optimize content for specifics- Content can mean web pages, digital assets and any
other documents that can be optimized for organic search.
4. Wrap-up- Fragmented marketing with search helps no one. Marketers would do well
for themselves and the customers theyre tying to reach by paying attention to the
development of searcher personas, developing quality keyword research and optimizing
specific pages and digital assets for specific phrases according the searcher needs.
1.6 ANALYSIS
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1.6.2 Marketing
Decreasing of marketing expenses for each purchase
Brand awareness increasing
Growth of conversion rate turning visitors into buyers
Increasing of repeated purchases amount
Increasing of registrations amount
Increasing of references amount in the network
1.6.3 Call-Center
Increasing of handled calls amount
Growth of conversion rate turning calls into sales
Consultancy time reduction
Reduction of calls not related to order placing (guarantee, uptime, etc.)
Chapter: 02
ONLINE BUSINESS IN BANGLADESH
Online business is trading products or services over computer networks, and the most
popular of all such networks is the Internet. It could be thought of as the modern version
of the mail-order purchase by catalogue, and can be conducted by both individuals and
firms and almost any good or service can be offered, from books and toys to plane
tickets and medical services. It allows 24/7 shopping and many choices for consumers,
but limits customer contact and verification by checking the actual goods.
To get maximum people's attraction, the main strategy kaymu follows is:
2.1.1 Giving Advertisements Online
The mother company Rocket Internet makes different rules for its different ventures. So it
did for kaymu; that no offline marketing is allowed. Which means as much as we can
promote kaymu but only online? For example: giving ads on other websites is one of the
main strategies to grab maximum attention.
2.1.3 Blogs/Write-ups
kaymu's social media does a great job by posting minimum 10 blogs on kaymu.com.bd
every month so that people can also read about it.
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Kaymu sells all kind of products starting from clothing, footwear, jewelry, home and
living appliances, health and beauty products, electronics, food and beverage and so on.
By these we get the clear idea that kaymu doesn't only represent one or two kind of
products but a large variety of them.
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In kaymu.com.bd there are products that cost 1000 tk. to more than 10,000 tk. So that
anyone can afford to shop online.
Though kaymu's policy does not give the freedom to give any television ads but so far
whatever kaymu did was enough to make around 40 lacs people to know that kaymu
exists.
From all over Bangladesh anyone can give the order for any product through kaymu's
website. So place is not at all a big issue. Also kaymu provides a very organized and
trustworthy delivery service controlled by ajkerdeal, another venture of Rocket Internet.
2.2.1 Penetration
When marketers try to sell the existing product to the existing customers, they engage in
penetration strategy. It can be achieved in multiple ways. For example, by changing
pricing, by adding minor features, changing the packaging or highlighting alternative
uses. In cookie jar when we pitch a client for their social media account and when we
got their account we then asked for making their website, their visuals and courage them
to start different media platform
develop our service according to changes. For Example: Facebook ad campaign systems
change every quarterly and according to that we need to change our entire ad set.
2.2.4 Diversification
Cookie jar is digital wing of Asiatic events and when Asiatic saw that opportunity that in
Bangladesh digital marketing is growing they start to also diversify their business and
start a digital wing and in future we are hoping to get an extraordinary result.
When a customer sees something they like, they click on the product and view
the details that include pictures, descriptions, payment options and shipping
information.
Customers also can search for their desired products by using keywords in no
time. Kaymu provides advanced search option in which Customers can narrow
down their search and shop comfortably.
Just as one can buy almost anything on eBay, one can sell almost everything, too.
Using a simple listing process, one can put all of the junk in their basement up
for sale. People can sell old laptops, clothing, furniture, etc.
But if one wants to sell as a business, they need to enlist in Kaymu as a Kaymu
seller via which they get a Kaymu e-store. When one sells an item on Kaymu,
they pay a certain percentage of the final sale price to Kaymu.
There is no listing fee except this commission on sales and for people selling
personal products, there is no commission either. Kaymu operates an online
marketplace enabling end customers to buy and sell basically anything online.
Ekhanei.com: Ekhanei is the official Facebook brand page of buying and selling
website ekhanei.com. One of their main objectives of presence on social media websites
such as Facebook is to drive traffic to their main webpage ekhanei.com. Their strategy is
different from other pages because for other brand pages their main objective is to
communicate their brand message and create engagement among online consumers on
Facebook page but on Ekhanei brand page it is to divert the consumers to their own
webpage and generate sales. Its digital marketing is also wider than Airtelbuzz and
Nokia. Airtelbuzz use both the pages increase and post likes through page promotion
and post promotion but for Ekhanei it is also Google ad word advertisement, search
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engine optimization and search engine marketing which other Brand pages dont
mentioned above.
Currently Ekhanei has around 2300000 fans on its page with a people talking about it of
80,000 which show that people are well engaged with this page through likes, comments
and shares of its posts. The other observation is that they mostly post product related
posts with links to their website rather than lifestyle post which Airtelbuzz. Ekhanei also
uses funny and entertaining video on their Facebook page which is product related to
gain attention and engagement of consumers to divert them to their main web page to
generate more buying and selling through their website.
Chapter: 03
LITERATURE REVIEW
The first World Wide Web server and browser, created by Tim Berners-Lee in 1990,
opened for commercial use in 1991. Thereafter, subsequent technological innovations
emerged in 1994: online banking, the opening of an online pizza shop by Pizza Hut,
Netscape's SSL v2 encryption standard for secure data transfer, and Inters hops first
online shopping system. The first secure retail transaction over the Web was either by
Net Market or Internet Shopping Network in 1994. Immediately after, Amazon.com
launched its online shopping site in 1995 and eBay was also introduced in 1995.
Alibaba's sites Taobao and Tmall were launched in 2003 and 2008, respectively.
Retailers are increasingly selling goods and services prior to availability through
"pretail" for testing, building, and managing demand.
3.1 Customers
Online customers must have access to the Internet and a valid method of payment in
order to complete a transaction. Generally, higher levels of education and personal
income correspond to more favorable perceptions of shopping online. Increased
exposure to technology also increases the probability of developing favorable attitudes
towards new shopping channels. In a December 2011 study, Equation Research
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surveyed 1,500 online shoppers and found that 87% of tablet owners made online
transactions with their tablet devices during the early Christmas shopping season.
3.3 Payment
Online shoppers commonly use a credit card or a PayPal account in order to make
payments. However, some systems enable users to create accounts and pay by alternative
means, such as:
Billing to mobile phones and landlines[13][14]
Cash on delivery (C.O.D.)
Cheque/ Check
Debit card
Direct debit in some countries
Electronic money of various types
Gift cards
Postal money order
Wire transfer/delivery on payment
Invoice, especially popular in some markets/countries, such as Switzerland
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commerce sites, which allow customers to buy tickets online, the popularity of this
service has increased.
3.6.2 Goal
The goal of Kaymu.com is to provide a smooth online shopping experience for
Bangladeshi customers, as well as providing convenient methods for payment such as
the popular cash on delivery, KaymuSafepay and Advance payments. It aims to achieve
this goal by bringing reliable sellers and buyers together in a solid B2C platform.
3.6.3 Operation
Both buyers and shoppers have to register at kaymu.bd, and then shop and post goods:
the and is here because a registered visitor can buy and sell from the same Kaymu
account, if he/she chooses to. Kaymu is also intent on being convenient to the seller, by
ensuring that payments are properly made. In keeping with their easygoing vibe,
registration for sellers is totally free, but of course, Kaymu receives commissions for the
sales made.
Finally, the site also ensures that transactions actually took place by contacting the buyer
and seller by phone and email.
Strength- Convenient measures.
Weakness- Apparently none: and this is the reason for the rapid rise in
popularity.
Opportunity- Including product suggestions, providing discounts to existing
customers
Threats- Existing Competition- akhoni, ekhanei, bikroy etc.
What drives such popularity? 80% of consumers would buy if free shipping is
provided, and a still-impressive 66% is willing to buy with one-day shipping. 64% of
consumers will make a purchase if free returns and lucrative exchange offers are in
place.
The same Walker Sands Study tells us that 30% of the surveyed group will spend more
than $1000 (77,600 Tk) on an online purchase if it has free shipping and returns, and
only 10% will buy a product priced above $1000 online without free shipping and
returns. It can be seen that free shipping is deemed very convenient and may facilitate
purchases of costlier goods.
3.7.2 Amazon.com
When it comes to USA, it would not do justice to go along without mentioning
Amazon.com, one of the most popular online stores on the planet; it was found by an
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American, Jeff Bezos in Seattle, Washington, America. In the study, it is seen that a
whopping 95% of the surveyed sample have bought something from Amazon in the last
year, and 40% are willing to buy absolutely any product from Amazon. 37% of the
sample disclosed that they would be hesitant to purchase food and groceries from
Amazon, and 29% would hesitate to purchase luxury goods. In both of these cases, the
majority would still consent to buying these goods from Amazon, as well as all the other
categories.
Online business through mobile devices is highly prevalent- 64% of consumers use
theirs to research products before buying them. 52% would buy products if the retailer
offers instore navigation with a mobile device, and 59% would be willing if the store
had checkout via mobile.
Forrester has forecasted that US online retail sales would grow by 57% by 2018; from
$263 billion in 2013 to $414 billion in 2014, which shows a whopping annual growth
rate of 9.5% compounded. Consumers aged 25-33 years spend the most of all age
groups on online shopping in the US-an average of $563 for the last 3 months. Fast
growth creates its own challenges- retailers must ensure smoother and faster checkout,
and that too from mobile devices, which from the aforementioned statistics, prove to be
the rising means of store access for US online shoppers.
In Pakistan, there are 31 million Internet users. 15 million of them browse through
mobile devices, according to the Pakistan Telecom Authority. Pakistans 125 million
active mobile device users, out of population of 190 million, give it the fifth-largest
number of mobile phone users in Asia. The market size and large online population lay a
strong foundation for Internet retailing.
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Internet retailing in Pakistan started in late 1997 with brands such as Liberty Books and
Gift Express, with the first payment gateway provided by Citibank and e-store powered
by The Cyber Bridge. Since then, several stores have been set up in various categories,
including gifts, books, music, movies, consumer electronics, computers, clothing and
footwear. Classified sites, such as OLX, Deals Today and Kaymu provide platforms for
online trading. There is no formal estimate on online retail sales in Pakistan, due to cash
on delivery being popular and in-case of selling to expatriate Pakistanis; other third-
party arrangements are used.
U.S.-based Amazon.com Inc. ships items to Pakistan. Also, U.S. retailers like Macys
Inc. and J.C. Penny Co. Inc. let customers choose Pakistan as the country of delivery
and price items in Pakistani rupees. Unlike in the USA, where most online consumers
pay with credit and debit cards, Pakistani consumers prefer to pay through online
banking or through cash on delivery. There is only one domestic gateway maintained by
UBL (United Bank Ltd), which processes Visa and MasterCard transactions. In Pakistan,
online shopping is also not as massively widespread as in USA. Perceptions are
therefore on a different rung on the ladder. A 2012 report claims that 43.7% of
consumers buy online due to the convenience it provides, 23% buy due to lower prices
online, and 18% make purchases resulting from positive reviews from friends and
family. Speaking of reviews, another study from 2012 reveals that 60% of the sample
discourages online shopping. The same study shows that 70% found online shopping to
save time and 49% found it convenient. Opinions of prices being higher, lower or the
same as real-world market price was mixed, and 58% of respondents felt secure about
making purchases online. The attitudes reflect that of a developing Online business, but
overall show a gradually developing positive bent towards online-shopping.
3.8 BARRIERS
3.8.1 Chances of Fraud
Those who are not shopping online have repeatedly mentioned about the fact that there
is a high chance of being trapped in online shops. Many social online sites are there who
have been victim of fraud. So they dont trust this channel for shopping.
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3.8.2 Insecurity
People are insecure of ordering product online because of chances of getting lower
grade products or fake products. They say that when they are ordering online they are
not sure of what quality products they will be receiving.
3.8.6 Recommendation
The products we make are the basic necessities of any household. We are a FMCG
company and our products moves faster than anything. So for such a very fast moving
product it is very important to have a super fast accessibility to customers when we are
planning to go online. Our products are readily available in the nearest shops of any
person. So for us to seize the e-channel, we have to build a very speedy and fastest
delivery system. In a very densely populated country like ours, where human traffic and
transport traffic both is at the peak, ensuring fastest delivery is very difficult. So for that
I have few recommendations
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To create a central warehouse hub and at least 1 touch point within maximum 4 sq.
km. area. The city will be divided into several zones and each zone will have one
touch point. Each touch point will take orders from the zonal websites whose data
will be centrally coordinated by the central hub. The central database will keep
record of the products in the touch points and ensure all time availability by
alarming the employee when number of product goes down under certain number.
To provide post purchase service to the customers so that we can hear to their
complains and they dont feel that they are not able to come in contact with the
seller.
In this way they will be ensured that they are not being betrayed with fake products
and will not feel insecure.
Chapter: 04
OVERVIEW TOP ONLINE BUSINESS SITE IN BANGLADESH
3. Ajkerdeal.com
4. Ekhanei.com
4.1 Bikroy.com
4.1.1 Company Overview
Bikroy.com is a free classified e-marketplace, i.e. it serves as middle man between buyer
and the seller. This service is can be attained from their website, or their mobile
application.
Figure 4: www.bikroy.com website
Bikroy.com is probably the safest and most convenient choice for buying and selling all
across Bangladesh. The website has been in operation since 2012. This service allows
anyone in Bangladesh to buy and sell in their region conveniently in a very simple
manner without registration and complicated procedures. Ads can be posted for free and
browsing with GrameenPhone Internet is free as well. Thus, Bikroy.com aims to attract
more traffic that is more people posting ads on the website, to generate profit.
These categories are subdivided into specialized categories and there is a ninth category
Others which does not fall under any of the above classifications. An item can be
clicked to view in detailed mode and the buyer can directly contact the seller via phone
number provided in the ad. For a use who wants to sell an item, they can click the Post
your free ad button on the home screen and follow a series of steps to post an ad. A
general description of the product, a price and contact number is required to post the ad.
The ad goes into review, and within 24 hours, if it attains to the policies of the site, the ad
is posted.
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4.1.5 Segmentation
Because of the nature of the service provided, Bikroy.com is open to all with internet
access and a Smartphone or a computer. However, it is not possible to serve all of the
market, and fulfill their needs and wants. The following segmentation can be done for a
better, focused service to customers within this segment.
4.1.5.1 Demographic Segmentation
Bikroy.com serves anyone in any place within Bangladesh and allows them to buy and
sell within their region. Both genders fall within the target demographic. Since selling and
buying is mostly trusted towards adults, the segmented age should be 18 years and older.
Bikroy.com best serves income groups from lower middle to upper middle class.
A prerequisite to attaining the service is having access to the Internet and being able to
operate a Smartphone, a tablet or a computer. It also requires the intended customer to be
inclined towards selling or buying objects or services online.
To get maximum peoples attraction, the main strategy Bikroy.com follows is:
1.6.3.1 Giving Advertisements Online
The mother company rocket internet makes different rules for its different ventures. So it
did for Bikroy.com; that no offline marketing is allowed. Which means as much as we can
promote Bikroy.com but only online? For example: giving ads on other websites is one of
the main strategies to grab maximum attention.
1.6.3.3 Blogs/Write-ups
Bikroy.coms social media does a great job by posting minimum 10 blogs on
Bikroy.com.com.bd every month so that people can also read about it.
Most sellers provide cash on delivery to buyers residing in Dhaka, meaning the buyers
can pay after the product reaches their home. Some sellers provide cash on delivery
facility outside Dhaka as well, but not most sellers. Following is a flow chart showing
how a customer can buy through Bikroy.coms website:
Figure 8: Category wise search
them so they are not stuck with stock that hasnt sold. Also, they get free marketing via
Bikroy.com. To get started with Bikroy.com as a seller, one needs to sign a simple
contract paper that enlists them as a Bikroy.com seller. Afterwards, they need to send their
product listings along with product details and images so that it can be uploaded in their
e-store. Sellers can upload from the front end as well by login into their accounts
4.1.10 ANALYSIS
4.1.10.1 Group Influence
There is a significant amount of influence from primary groups, i.e. friends and family for
prospective consumers of this service. Because of cultural norms, it is usual for elderly
family members to provide advice in the purchase or sale of an item. The buying and
selling decision, and hence the use of the service is heavily dependent on the approval or
disapproval of the primary group. Informational influence can also have a role for a
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prospective consumer who has never used such a service before. Expert opinion is sought
out before making the decision to use the service, in this scenario. The opinion from the
expert is likely to change the sale or purchase decision and hence the use of the service.
4.1.10.2 Motivation
The only motivation for using the service is either the need or want to purchase a product,
or the need or want to sell a product. This can be divided into two categories:
Benefit derived from successful and satisfactory purchase/sale from the site will
motivate the user to sell through this site when there is need.
When there is an urgent need to buy or sell an item, the consumer will look to gain
maximum exposure hence will be motivated to use the site more often during those
times. This can lead to an approach-approach motivational conflict because
consumers usually post in all free classified marketplaces and therefore have no
incentive to select just Bikroy.com for the purpose.
4.1.10.3 Gender
From the consumer survey conducted we have found that a greater proportion of men use
Bikroy.com rather than women. There were only 33% female users compared to the 67%
male users, regardless of the fact that the service is targeted towards both genders.
Figure 10: Gender
Percentage of users
Male
33%
Female
67%
This is due to the risk and feelings of insecurity in posting mobile numbers in public sites.
Perpetrators use these phone numbers to harass women, and this deters many potential
consumers who would like to use the service, but cannot because of this persistent
problem.
newness of the industry, consumers are divided between embracing the technological
shifts and entering the e-marketplace, or sticking to traditional forms of buying and
selling.
Figure 11: Consumer perception
4% 4%
3%
5%
Never heard of it 27% 57%
From the consumer survey conducted, we can see that Bikroy.com has a very good
exposure rate. They ran a series of humor based TVCs which were immensely popular
and allowed the general populace to learn about the brand. Only 4.4% of respondents had
never heard of Bikroy.com and 57.4% of respondents had first heard about it from the
TVCs.
Figure 12: Have use bikroy.com
Yes
35% No
65%
Despite the high exposure, only 35% of respondents said that they had used Bikroy.com.
This means that the exposure was ineffective in its purpose. Although the brand and the
jingle were constantly being promoted, the association of the free classifieds e-
marketplace had not reached the target market.
Figure 13: For which purpose did you used Bikroy.com
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16%
Buying Selling Both
40%
44%
Those of who had used Bikroy.com had bought and sold multiple categories of items.
From the consumer survey, we have found that there are more sellers (44%) than buyers
(40%) and there are users who have used the services for both buying and selling.
Figure 14: For which product category did you use Bikroy.com
The most popular category was Phones, Computers & Electronics (50%) among the
respondents, followed by Fashion & Personal Items (25%) and in third place Property &
Housing and Cars, Motorcycles & Vehicles (12.5%).
4.1.11 LEARNING
Learning is any change in the content or organization of long-term memory or behavior.
Before looking into the influence of learning, we examine the conditions of involvement
pertaining to the two features of Bikroy.com.
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4.1.11.1 Selling
The selling feature is a low-involvement process for the following reasons:
it is less time-consuming as it requires simply posting an advertisement on the site
about the product, along with description
does not involve price constraints and thus no limitations
has lower perceived risk as the person would not have to pay
4.1.11.2 Buying
On the other hand, buying is a high involvement process as:
it is more time-consuming due to involving searching for and evaluating available
options among a wide range of advertisements
involves price constraints and thus limits options and requires more calculations
higher perceived risk as the person would be subject to payment
change this existing attitude, it is required to change the cognitive component which is the
root cause.
Weakness:
Some sellers are not efficient and dont deliver the product on time.
Bikroy.com has no reliable delivery partner to maintain all of its daily basis
orders.
Opportunity:
Rapidly growing internet users which are a huge opportunity for e-business in
Bangladesh.
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Emphasizes on e-business.
Young generation is tending to order online mostly as it has less hassle and unique
products. Its increasing day by day.
Threat:
Fraud online buyers
Fraud sellers
b) Personal/Business Filter: This will enable consumers to search for products based on
whether they are being sold by another customer (C2C) or a business (B2C).
c) Brand Filter: Products can be filtered on the basis of their brands. For example, by
filtering a search for cell phones with Symphony, a customer will see all listings from
Symphony only.
d) Price Filter: Price can be used as a filter for getting the desired product. For example, a
range BDT 50,000-1,00,000 for refrigerators will show only the ones belonging to that
price range.
Solution 3: Improvement of App
Description: It is estimated that around 68% of the customers in Bangladesh browse
online through cell phones. As a result, a fully functional smartphone app is critical to
accessing this market. We propose that Bikroy.com takes the help of expert consultants
like Aamra Technologies to remove glitches in their app and make it more user-
friendly.
4.2 Kaymu.com.bd
4.2.1 Introduction
Through internet or others computer networks products or services are bought and sold
which is widely known as E-commerce. E-commerce improves the efficiency and
effectiveness of business, government and not profit organization agencies. Online
transactions can effectively save a lot of time and money which often is the main reason
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for consumers to shop online rather than purchasing from a physical marketplace. As the
people in Bangladesh are not much aware or educated, they still cannot be the large
market worldwide. Previously, people would use computers for completing educational
assignments or used for governmental or private projects. Just recently, the online market
boomed and now more and more people are shopping online. For more than a year
Kaymu is the leading online marketplace for emerging markets. Kaymu replicates the e-
Bay model (online marketplace where buyers meet sellers) in emerging countries where
they do not have e-Bay. Kaymu is a venture of Rocket Internet which is one of the world's
largest e-commerce focused venture capital firms and startup incubators. The company's
business model is to identify successful internet companies from other countries (often
the United States) and replicate them in predominantly emerging markets. Kaymu
operates an online marketplace enabling end customers to buy and sell basically anything
online. Kaymu's successful peer model is eBay which is the leading C2C online
marketplace in the world. Kaymu Bangladesh was launched in October 2013 and as of
now some in formations are given.
4.2.4 Which sites did people visit immediately before this site?
Site Percent of Unique Visits
1. facebook.com 17.4%
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2. google.com 12.0%
3. google.com.bd 10.3%
4. youtube.com 4.4%
5. googleadservices.com 3.3%
(Source: www.alexa.com).
Kaymu's main focuses are the buyers and sellers. The sellers are the clients of Kaymu
who sells products in the website and Kaymu focuses on them because the only way
Kaymu makes money is if the sellers make money. By focusing on obtaining quality
sellers, Kaymu ensures buyers get good products and good services from good sellers and
get competitive deals from sellers and are satisfied. This report looks into the operations
of Kaymu in Bangladesh especially focusing on the issues faced by a new business and its
prospect in the Bangladeshi e-commerce market. The following chapters contain more in-
depth information and analysis on this matter.
Figure 15: Company Position
Rank Country Internet 1 Year 1 Year Total 1 Year Penetration Country's Country's
Users Growth User Country Population (% of Pop. share of share of World
% Growth Population Change (%) with World Internet Users
Internet) Population
4.2.5 History
The mother company of kaymu.com.bd is the Rocket Internet. This is worlds largest
Internet incubator which was found in Berlin, Germany in 2007 by the Samwer Brothers
(it is headquartered in Berlin).The Rocket team has been building online companies since
1999 and has created over 100 market leading companies in 50+ countries. The founders
gained visibility through successful investments in Groupon, eBay, Facebook, Linkedin,
Zynga, etc (either through early direct investment or through taken over target
companies). The company's business model is to identify successful internet ventures
from other countries (often the United States) and replicate them in predominantly
emerging markets. In 2013, Rocket Internet raised close to $2 billion from investors
including Russian billionaire Leonard Blavatnik, Swedish investment firm Kinnevik, and
J.P. Morgan. This is in addition to nearly $2 billion that Rocket raised in 2012. The firm,
tightly controlled by its founders, is known for its aggressive approach in managing its
invested ventures. It prides itself for the speed of execution and ability to hire exceptional
talent.
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Rocket Internet operates in more than 50 countries and has more than 75 ventures in their
portfolio such as the e-commerce retail companies Zalando in Germany, Jabong.com in
India, Lamoda.ru in Russia, ZALORA in South East Asia, The Iconic and Zanui in
Australia, the global food delivery platform foodpanda/hellofood, the global property
listings site Lamudi, Carmudi, etc. Rocket Internets various companies created more than
20.000 jobs worldwide. Previous ventures include, for example, Citydeal, which was
purchased by Groupon for US$126M, which profited by US$90M. Rocket Internet
launched 4 companies in Bangladesh last year- Carmudi, Lamudi, Foodpanda and
Kaymu. Kaymu as mentioned before, replicates the eBay model in emerging markets and
since Bangladesh is an emerging market where eBay has not been introduced yet, Kaymu
decided to come in!
Customers also can search for their desired products by using keywords in no time.
Kaymu provides advanced search option in which Customers can narrow down their
search and shop comfortably. Just as one can buy almost anything on eBay, one can sell
almost everything, too. Using a simple listing process, one can put all of the junk in their
basement up for sale. People can sell old laptops, clothing, furniture, etc.
But if one wants to sell as a business, they need to enlist in Kaymu as a Kaymu seller via
which they get a Kaymu e-store. When one sells an item on Kaymu, they pay a certain
percentage of the final sale price to Kaymu. There is no listing fee except this commission
on sales and for people selling personal products, there is no commission either. Kaymu
operates an online marketplace enabling end customers to buy and sell basically anything
online.
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It is the one stop solution for customers to find their products online. It is the fastest
growing online shopping platform in the emerging markets, with over million customers.
Kaymu operates an online marketplace enabling end customers to buy and sell basically
anything online.
After they register their e-store on Kaymu website, the launch page for them looks like
this in the following:
Figure 18: Product category
This is viewed when the sellers login to Kaymus websites. From here, they can add their
products in their e-store. They also can view their pending orders from this page. To
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purchase any product from Kaymu website, buyers need to open an account too. It is the
same account as the sellers. When buyers open an account, they not only can buy from
the website, but also can list their own products for selling. So after creating an account,
if the buyer buys and products from Kaymu, they will get a text message and verification
email. They need to verify the order. After they verify their order, a notification will go to
the Seller, from whom they want to buy the product. Then the seller will contact the buyer
and set a delivery time and deliver his/her order. In the meanwhile Kaymu Customer
Support is also contacts the Buyer to check the status of their order. If the buyer does not
get their ordered products in a briefed time period, then the Seller Management team
contacts the sellers and urges him to deliver the order as soon as possible.
After the delivery of the product, Kaymu Customer Support contacts the buyer to get the
feedback on the order delivered. Buyers pay for their orders via cash on delivery.
Sometimes, a few sellers demand prepayment when they get orders of very expensive
products. Kaymu Sellers also can contact Kaymu Sales team or the Seller Management
team or the Portfolio Management team regarding any query. It is the duty of Seller
management team and Portfolio Management team to provide any assistance required for
the sellers. From the very beginning of the buy and sell process, Kaymus different
departments are working to provide any support to the sellers and the buyers. This is the
main reason why they are becoming so successful.
is allowed. Which means as much as we can promote kaymu but only online. For
example: giving ads on other websites is one of the main strategy to grab maximum
attention.
Using Youtube As a Large Media: Not only still pictures, kaymu also promotes
itself on youtube, one of the large platform where not only in Bangladesh but also
from all over the world can see what kaymu Bangladesh can do.
Blogs/Write-ups: kaymu's social media does a great job by posting minimum 10
blogs on kaymu.com.bd every month so that people can also read about it.
Targeting Celebrities: Kaymu recently signed an agreement with Bangladesh
national cricket team opening batsman Tamim Iqbal. As per the deal, Tamim will use
Kaymu's sticker on his bat. The agreement was signed at Kaymu's Banani office in the
city. Kaymu Bangladesh chief executive George Wolf and chief public relation officer
Sayeda Umaela Akter were present at the signing ceremony.
Collaborating With Prothom Alo Digital: Kaymu.com.bd, one of the online
shopping communities in Bangladesh, has signed an agreement with ProthomAlo
Digital (a concern of Mediastar Limited) to feature Prothoma Store at
Kaymu.com.bd. By giving Kaymu users all across Bangladesh access to such a great
assortment of books on the Prothoma e-store, both companies are venturing into
unchartered territory.
Facebook Promotion: kaymu has an official facebook page with more than 40 lacs
likes. Time to time giving posts about new products in kaymu's website makes the
visitors crazier to love the service.
Targeting Different Occasions: On this year's Pahela Baishakh, 1422; kaymu
arranged a large program with its employees along with successful sellers with lots of
funfair and enthusiasm. So that these sellers can go home thinking they are with a big
organization which not only think about the profits but also gives good attention to
their precious clients. Thus a corporate relationship is made.
(http://www.thedailystar.net/star-weekend/kaymu-bangladesh-welcomes-pohela-
baishakh-1422-77564).
These are the main strategies of kaymu. Apart from that, thinking about the marketing
theory/ marketing mix, the 4 p's - Product, Price, Promotion, Place; kaymu covers all of
them pretty nicely. Kaymu sells all kind of products starting from clothing, footwear,
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jewelry, home and living appliances, health and beauty products, electronics, food and
beverage and so on. By these we get the clear idea that kaymu doesn't only represent one
or two kind of products but a large variety of them.
In kaymu.com.bd there are products that cost 1000 tk. to more than 10,000 tk. So that
anyone can afford to shop online. Though kaymu's policy does not give the freedom to
give any television ads but so far whatever kaymu did was enough to make around 40 lacs
people to know that kaymu exists. From all over Bangladesh anyone can give the order
for any product through kaymu's website. So place is not al all a big issue. Also kaymu
provides a very organized and trustworthy delivery service controlled by ajkerdeal,
another venture of Rocket Internet.
Products are usually sold at fixed prices. The option of selling at auctioned prices is also
available, but so far no seller has chosen to sell their products by auctioning. So when a
customer sees what s/he likes, they place an online order, they buy it, pay for it and wait
for it to arrive at their doors! If they reside in Dhaka, they usually get home deliveries and
many sellers provide cash on delivery even outside Dhaka (meaning customers can pay
after receiving the product). Customers can pay for an item on Kaymu using variety of
methods, including cash on delivery (this is available only in few cities at the seller's
discretion), bank deposit, bkash or other mobile banking methods, etc. Unfortunately,
online payment gateway has not yet been installed and customers can not yet make online
payments to buy products from Kaymu thereby making it difficult for people outside
Bangladesh to purchase products.
Just as one can buy almost anything on e-bay, one can sell almost anything, too. Using a
simple listing process, one can put all of the junk in their basement up for sale. People can
sell old laptops, clothing, furniture, etc. But if one wants to sell as a business, they need to
enlist in Kaymu as a Kaymu seller via which they get a Kaymu e-store. When one sells an
item on Kaymu, they pay a certain percentage of the final sale price to Kaymu. There is
no listing fee except this commission on sales and for people selling personal products,
there is no commission either. Once anybody registers (for free) with Kaymu, he/she can
access all of their Kaymu buying and selling activities in a single location called "My
Accounts"
responsible for calling up the buyer, confirming the order, answering to any necessary
queries, and deliver the product. If the buyer is unable to validate the order, a customer
service agent from Kaymu calls the buyer up and validates the order. And then the sellers
process starts as mentioned above. This process generally takes about 3-5 working days
and the buyer usually gets it by then unless there are other issues. Often, pre-payment is
necessary and then the delivery time becomes higher as the seller would not dispatch the
product without the buyer paying first. Most sellers provide cash on delivery to buyers
residing in Dhaka, meaning the buyers can pay after the product reaches their home.
Some sellers provide cash on delivery facility outside Dhaka as well, but not most sellers.
Therefore, most customers outside Dhaka need to prepay via bank account or mobile
banking.
Following is a flow chart showing how a customer can buy through kaymus website:
1. Select the desired category
2. Click on the desired category
3. Customer can see all the products under that category
4. Click on the preferred product
5. The customer needs to register/ create his/her own account
6. The customer will get an email
7. Verify the email
After verifying the seller will get an email from kaymu regarding the order and accordingly
he/she will deliver the product to the customer.
details and images so that it can be uploaded in their e-store. Sellers can upload from the
front end as well by login into their accounts.
Following is a flowchart shows how kaymus selling process works:
1. Kaymu's sales dept. calls the seller to sell through kaymu's website
2. After agreeing an account is made by the seller's name
3. When the seller gets an orer, all the information directly goes to that particular account
4. After chewcking the order the seller calls the cutomer to confirm
If the order is confirmed then the seller delivers the product to the customer. Thus a
selling process ends.
Now there is a process through which it all happens. On the next page is a flowchart
showing the full system of kaymu starting from finding the sellers till helping them in
every way also what kaumy does for the customers.
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4.3 Ajkerdeal.com
4.3.1 Company overview
Bangladesh is a developing nation with gigantic prospects. Its economy is consistently
developing and because of the accessibility of cheap labor, unproblematic and productive
communication and exposure to outside world through port facilities, aviation routes and
rail and street; it is an extraordinary spot to invest in. But the world is moving forward,
Bangladesh is also going with the flow. These days communication has become lightning
fast due to the massive improvement of internet, for that business is getting more efficient
through it. All the existing business sector are being benefited by it. And because of the
vast improvement and scope that the internet offers a new sector has emerged, e-
commerce. E-commerce or Electronic commerce is not a new concept; it has been
around for over a decade. But back then it was at an infant stage and was only available in
the developed countries. But now it has been matured and with the help of globalization
and widespread internet access it has entered into our country as well. Ajkerdeal
Bangladesh is one of those companies; Ajkerdeal is an online shopping destination where
people can shop the widest selection of electronics, fashion, home appliances, kids items
and more in Bangladesh and have them shipped directly to their home or office at their
convenience. Ajkerdeal offers free returns and various payment options including cash on
delivery. With affordable prices and great products, Ajkerdeal lets its customer enjoy an
amazing shopping experience with their order sent directly to their doorstep. They are
constantly expanding their product range to include the latest gadgets, fashion styles and
new categories.
Bangladesh has an immense populace which pulls in a great deal of advertisers to offer
their items. However, because of absence of innovation, Bangladeshi individuals still
need numerous latest facilities the modern world offers. A large portion of the
Bangladeshi people doesnt have the foggiest idea about the utilization of internet which
is turning into a challenge for the online marketers. Bangladesh Government is attempting
to provide internet all through the nation, which will empower the development of e-
commerce industry of Bangladesh. From the beginning, ecommerce area is booming
every day and gradually it is spreading its wings.
Ajkerdeal was launched in late September 2013 and its turning into the main online
shopping center for Bangladesh. Here, in Bangladesh, people just knew about Amazons
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business model where customers meet sellers and trade merchandise. Ajkerdeal presented
the Amazons business model in Bangladesh. Ajkerdeal is one of the many endeavors of
Rocket Internet GmbH in Bangladesh. They attempt to take after the compelling internet
ventures from other creative companies and recreate their procedures in developing
markets. Ajkerdeal Bangladesh Limited is thoroughly giving B2C sort on offering which
no other E-Commerce entrance does in Bangladesh.
development stages, extending from newcomer models to industry giants that are setting
up authoritative positions or as yet still expanding their geographic scope. Rocket
Internet's investments include shares in the following companies,
4.3.3.1 Product
Ajkerdeal is, above all else, an online commercial center. On Ajkerdeal One can search
through categories like Clothing, Footwear, Jewelry, Watches, Mobiles and Accessories,
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4.3.3.2 Price
Ajkerdeal offer services. The price of the Ajkerdeal services hinge on various
characteristics. It is not the consumer who pays the price. It is the Vendor of the products
who is accountable for the price of Ajkerdeal. Ajkerdeal runs on commissions
fundamentally. Whenever there is a sale, Ajkerdeal gets it from its Seller. In other words,
Ajkerdeal is the intermediary between the Vendor and the Buyer.
4.3.3.3 Promotion
Ajkerdeal by nature it is an online based business. Hence, the core focus of the Ajkerdeal
governing body is on online platform. To reach its target group it has put its existence to
all possible online sectors. From Google search engines to social media networks,
Ajkerdeal is everywhere. Ajkerdeal has preserved its existence on Facebook, due to the
hefty use of Facebook (Social Network) locally. Ajkerdeal sponsors ads on Facebook
daily that reach outs 10 million. Other than Facebook, Ajkerdeal also maintaining it
presence on Twitter, YouTube and on Instagram as well. They are also using personal
email database to reach almost a million customers. Ajkerdeal is using the tele network as
well, by sending SMS promotions to gain its potential sales possibilities. As a new comer
in the market Ajkerdeal has covered its promotional needs on Online platforms.
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4.3.3.4 Place
Ajkerdeal is an online business, so basically the main place of business for Ajkerdeal is
the virtual place which is www.ajkerdeal.com; where customers are buying their desired
products. And the physical place of business can be considered the address of the
customers, where customers are receiving their ordered goods.
1. Internal Environment
The environment within the organization. Generally known as the element that can be
changed by the organization. For Ajkerdeal Bangladesh they can
2. External Environment
The external environment is the one out of the organization's reach but affects the
organization. Which means the business has to keep them in mind and take steps
according them. For Ajkerdeal Bangladesh they can be the rules and regulation of
Bangladesh, the political situation of Bangladesh, the technological environment and
many more.
Macro Environment: These are the bigger parts of the external environment that
has big influence on the market but cannot be changed by changing any smaller
factor. Such as the economic condition of the country or the political condition.
Micro Environment: The microenvironment is the smaller external environment
like the supplier, bank and government policy.
The business environment can be analyzed with different tools. One of them is SWOT
analysis. It works with four different types of environment. They are the Strength,
Weakness, Opportunity and Threats of an organization.
4.4 ekhanei.com
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Ekhanei.com is probably the safest and most convenient choice for buying and selling all
across Bangladesh. They originally launched their services in 2006 as Cellbazaar as an
innovative SMS service. The website has been in operation since 2007.
This service allows anyone in Bangladesh to buy and sell in their region conveniently in a
very simple manner without registration and complicated procedures. Ads can be posted
for free and browsing with GrameenPhone Internet is free as well. Ekhanei.com has also
recently acquired OLX.com.bd and owns its registered customer base under their domain.
The revenue model for Ekhanei.com is advertising. It earns revenues from other
companies advertising on its website, based on the number of traffic of Ekhanei.com.
Thus, Ekhanei.com aims to attract more traffic that is more people posting ads on the
website, to generate profit.
For a use who wants to sell an item, they can click the Post your free ad button on the
home screen and follow a series of steps to post an ad. A general description of the
product, a price and contact number is required to post the ad. The ad goes into review,
and within 24 hours, if it attains to the policies of the site, the ad is posted.
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4.4.3 SEGMENTATION
Because of the nature of the service provided, Ekhanei.com is open to all with Internet
access and a smartphone or a computer. However, it is not possible to serve all of the
market, and fulfill their needs and wants. The following segmentation can be done for a
better, focused service to customers within this segment.
4.4.5 ANALYSIS
4.4.5.1 Group Influence
There is a significant amount of influence from primary groups, i.e. friends and family
for prospective consumers of this service. Because of cultural norms, it is usual for
elderly family members to provide advice in the purchase or sale of an item. The buying
and selling decision, and hence the use of the service is heavily dependent on the approval
or disapproval of the primary group.
Informational influence can also have a role for a prospective consumer who has never
used such a service before. Expert opinion is sought out before making the decision to use
the service, in this scenario. The opinion from the expert is likely to change the sale or
purchase decision and hence the use of the service.
4.4.5.2 Motivation
The only motivation for using the service is either the need or want to purchase a product,
or the need or want to sell a product. This can be divided into two categories:
Benefit derived from successful and satisfactory purchase/sale from the site will
motivate the user to sell through this site when there is need.
When there is an urgent need to buy or sell an item, the consumer will look to gain
maximum exposure hence will be motivated to use the site more often during
those times.
4.4.5.3 Gender
From the consumer survey conducted we have found that a greater proportion of men use
Ekhanei.com rather than women. There were only 33% female users compared to the
67% male users, regardless of the fact that the service is targeted towards both genders.
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Percentage of users
33% Male
Female
67%
This is due to the risk and feelings of insecurity in posting mobile numbers in public sites.
Perpetrators use these phone numbers to harass women, and this deters many potential
consumers who would like to use the service, but cannot because of this persistent
problem.
TVC
4%
3% 4% Online
5% Friends or Family
Newspaper
57% Radio
27%
Never heard of it
From the consumer survey conducted, we can see that Ekhanei.com has a very good
exposure rate. They ran a series of humor based TVCs which were immensely popular
and allowed the general populace to learn about the brand. Only 4.4% of respondents had
never heard of Ekhanei.com and 57.4% of respondents had first heard about it from the
TVCs.
Figure 28: For which purpose did you use Ekhanei.com
16%
Buying
40% Selling
Both
44%
Those of who had used Ekhanei.com had bought and sold multiple categories of items.
From the consumer survey, we have found that there are more sellers (44%) than buyers
(40%) and there are users who have used the services for both buying and selling.
4.4.6 LEARNING
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4.4.6.1 Selling
The selling feature is a low-involvement process for the following reasons:
It is less time-consuming as it requires simply posting an advertisement on the site
about the product, along with description.
Does not involve price constraints and thus no limitations.
Has lower perceived risk as the person would not have to pay.
4.4.6.2 Buying
On the other hand, buying is a high involvement process as:
It is more time-consuming due to involving searching for and evaluating available
options among a wide range of advertisements
Involves price constraints and thus limits options and requires more calculations
Higher perceived risk as the person would be subject to payment
In both the cases, learning will increase consumer knowledge about the site and its usage
situations, along with the benefits offered. As a result, it will be stored in customers
memory increasing chances of recall when the customer would buy or sell anything
online.
The learning theories which could be effectively applied in case of Ekhanei.com are
discussed below:
Being the hub for all types of products a customer may need in a varied range of
situations
Being the site containing the best deals and practices
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These positive associations will lead to learning about benefits, attributes and usage
situations of the website. As a result, Ekhanei.com would be stored more favorably in the
schematic memory. Also it would ensure the site achieve top-of-mind recognition in the
category, as the associations mentioned above are critical to customers. And ultimately
this would lead to trial of the site.
Chapter: 05 Analysis
5.1 SWOT ANALYSIS
Figure 29: SWAT Analysis
Better website among competitors
All brand new products
Deals with renowned brand
STRENGTH Brand warranty
Fast delivery
Strong collaboration among departments
Easy and free register
Delivery in whole Bangladesh
High turnover rate
WEAKNESS Low brand recognition
No refund on specific products
Lack of ATL and BTL marketing
Emerging online market
OPPORTUNITY Take order from outside Bangladesh
Gift delivery service
Emergency delivery
Upcoming native competitors
THREAT International giants
Political instability
Lower internet availability
5.1.1 Strengths
Better website among competitors: Ajkerdeal Bangladesh has better website
among competitors like pickaboo.com and clickbd.com
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All brand new products: Selling all brand new products here. Ajkerdeal
Bangladesh do not sell any second hand or refurbished goods.
Deals with renowned brand: Ajkerdeal Bangladesh is very popular for coming up
with deals from various renowned brands like Samsung, Bata, Apex.
Brand warranty: A lot of brands offer authorized warranty to customer who buys
from Ajkerdeal Bangladesh.
Fast delivery: Delivery among customer all over the country within three days.
Strong collaboration among departments: Ajkerdeal Bangladesh has a very strong
collaboration among departments. Like delivery to content department they
communicate fast and solve problems.
Easy and free register: It is free and easy for seller to register with Ajkerdeal
Bangladesh.
Delivery in whole Bangladesh: Ajkerdeal Bangladesh delivery their product all
over Bangladesh no matter in cities or villages.
5.1.2 Weakness
High turnover rate: The turnover rate in Ajkerdeal Bangladesh is high due lower
chance of career development and small pay scale.
Low brand recognition: A lot of people are not aware of the brand named
Ajkerdeal Bangladesh. They mostly know bikroy.com or ekhanei.com
No refund on specific products: In some products like books, some clothing they
do not offer refund.
Ajkerdeal is only focusing on online marketing. The company should focus on
some ATL marketing and BTL advertising.
5.1.3 Opportunity
Emerging online market: The online market in our country is still an emerging
market with a lot of potentially.
Take order from outside Bangladesh: Ajkerdeal Bangladesh can take order directly
from outside Bangladesh and delivery them to a destination inside Bangladesh
like UpoharBD.com
Gift delivery service: Ajkerdeal Bangladesh can also take gift deliveries orders
like cakes or cards or flowers.
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Emergency delivery: They are currently not offering emergency delivery service
like same day delivery but they can since there is a demand of it.
5.1.4 Threat
Upcoming native competitors: Upcoming native competitors can be a big threat.
As a lot competitors are coming up.
International giants: International giants like Amazon or EBay can come to our
market and take over it if Ajkerdeal Bangladesh cannot make a strong position in
the market.
Political instability: Bangladesh is a country with unstable political history. So
political incident can harm the business in times.
Lower internet availability: As a third world country internet is not yet widely
available everywhere in our country so Ajkerdeal Bangladesh is still out of reach
of a lot of potential market.
Ajkerdeal Group, they are still maintaining their business separately from each
other and still have no change in their business model or in their websites. So
Kaymu is still a competitor of Ajkerdeal for the time being. Pickaboo has emerged
recently and is getting to a lot of reach towards its potential customer base.
Akhoni.com has rebranded itself as Bagdoom.com and it was one of first mover to
the e-commerce sector.
Figure 30: Market analysis in top online site in Bangladesh
Below a chart is Target Market Price Method of Website Advertising Language
given to show some Distribution Design Platform
highlights of these
companies. Name
Ajkerdeal -Mass Market Competitive Home delivery Most -TV -English
-1st hand buyer Attractive -Facebook -Bangla
-Twitter
-Instagram
Kaymu -Mass Market Lowest Home delivery Not up to Facebook -English
-1st hand buyer the Mark
-2nd hand
buyer
Bikroy.com -Mass Market Competitive Home delivery Very -Facebook -English
-1st hand buyer Attractive -Instagram -Bangla
- Twitter
Ekhanei.com -Mass Market Competitive Home delivery Attractive Facebook -English
-1st hand buyer -Bangla
I have tried to analyze Kaymu Bangladeshs market prospects and competitors of in terms
of competition, challenges faced, customer base and overall industry analysis. The
financial analysis of Kaymu was not properly done because of lack of financial
information due to confidentiality issues.
Kaymu has some competitors who are also trying hard to grab the opportunity to get
settled in this emerging market. OLX, Ekhanei, ClickBD, Akhoni, Bikroy, Rokomari are
some of the other popular e-commerce websites who are also becoming popular.
OLX is an Indian online classified who are operating in Bangladesh since early 2013.
OLX website can be used through internet and mobile applications. OLX allows its users
to post free advertisements to sell their products. They are looking forward to getting
revenues by streaming advertisements on their website.
Bikroy is another online classified which is also providing a platform for the Bangladeshi
people to buy and sell products for free. This is right now the most popular platform for
the Bangaldeshi people.
ClickBD is the first e-commerce website of Bangladesh which started its journey in 2005.
ClickBD is mostly used as a second hand product selling website. ClickBD now has 25
online stores along with its classified to provide its customers a wide range of product
choice.
at various Facebook groups. On this survey I have gathered information from various
people who participated on filing the form on their own will. I have gathered information
from 41 individuals, due to time restriction and the deadline of this report I couldnt
gathered information from more people.
So here I will be discussing the information from the survey to paint a picture of the
consumers perception regarding Ajkerdeal Bangladesh.
Age Group
9% 16-20 Years
10%
21-25 Years
26-30 Years
31 Years and above
23% 59%
From this analysis we can clearly see that the majority of the people thats highly
involved are people who are in their early 20s, which is 90% of my sample population.
The second largest groups are the people in their late 20s which is 7%. The teenagers are
at 3% and out of 41 individuals that participated in the survey none of them are over
thirty.
5.5.2 Gender
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To properly target the consumer base an organization needs to know who their main
consumers are. Gender plays an important role here.
Male: 68%
Female: 32%
Gender
Male
44% Female
56%
From the chart above we can see that there isnt a very big gap between Male and Female
user regarding their involvement with e-commerce businesses. While the male
participants are 56% and the female are at 44%, just a mere 12% gap. So we can see
although the men are being more involved but the women arent falling behind. So
Ajkerdeal should continue to target both male and female as their consumers.
22%
Yes
No
78%
78% of the people previously had online shopping experience. Which is a good sign that
many people are adopting into this online shopping behavior, so organization should more
focus on this sector.
21% Bikroy
35% Kaymu
Ajkerdeal
Ekhanei
18%
26%
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Approximately 35% of the participant picked Bikroy as the top site. While Kaymu being
the second one with 26% of the peoples support to rival Bikroy. Only 21% and 18%
people chose Ekhanei and Ajkerdeal respectively as the top site in Bangladesh.
Sales
27%
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b) Personal/Business Filter: This will enable consumers to search for products based on
whether they are being sold by another customer (C2C) or a business (B2C).
c) Brand Filter: Products can be filtered on the basis of their brands. For example, by
filtering a search for cell phones with Symphony, a customer will see all listings from
Symphony only.
d) Price Filter: Price can be used as a filter for getting the desired product. For example, a
range BDT 50,000-1,00,000 for refrigerators will show only the ones belonging to that
price range.
Themed Ads
Description: Specific themed ads can be used before special occasions like Eids, Pahela
Baishakh, Valentines Day etc to promote products relevant to each ritual.
Ekhoni.com unless the site shows up in the top results too. So Ekhanei.com should
engage in intense keyword bidding and Search Engine Optimization to make sure its
name is at the top of search results when major keywords are used, such sell online
Bangladesh, buy online Dhaka etc.
5.6.2.6 Solution: App Promotion through Local Cell Phones and advertising
Description: When a person buys a new cell phone, he usually checks to see what apps
are pre-installed. If the app of Ekhanei.com is present in such phones, the firm will have
won a user of the app without having them install it themselves. The person may later
resort to using this app to search or sell a product. So Ekhanei.com should partner with
local cell phone makers like Walton and Symphony so that their cell phones come pre-
installed with Ekhanei.com.
Besides, the mobile app itself should be promoted through advertising in Facebook and
TVCs.
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Chapter: 06
Recommendation & Conclusion
Recommendation
1. Verify that the current maturity of your E-Business organization is in line with
strategic business objectives, online strategies and meets performance criteria.
Benchmark against external parties but be careful in choosing them, include other
customer groups and sectors.
2. Build sponsorship and involvement at senior and operational level by showing
the real value of E-Business for the organization.
3. Clarify ownership (governance, roles & responsibilities) but also review
governance and ownership for all customer facing processes. Make ownership
transparent throughout the whole organization. Leverage the positive culture towards
E-Business to do this.
4. Bridge the gap between different units in the organization, specifically marketing
and IT, by establishing a cross departmental E-Business steering team. Work on
creating an integrated E-business roadmap. Pay attention to improving E-Business
process integration (cross-departmental) and Business & IT alignment.
5. Invest in improving E-Business performance and cost measurement. Include
cross-channel measurement metrics to determine the real value for the organization.
Continually measure e-business performance and take corrective action where
needed.
6. Specify the desired internal E-Business competences, roles and location. Invest in
developing in house E-Business competencies (cross departments).
7. Contemplate (re)organizing IT: start differentiating between short and long term
projects, (re)organize IT accordingly and/or contemplate outsourcing either. This will
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Conclusion
After careful observation, it has come to my conclusion that e-commerce has undeniably
become an important part of our society. The World Wide Web is and will have a large
part in our daily lives. It is therefore critical that small businesses have their own to keep
in competition with the larger websites. Since web developers have lowered down the
prices for their services, it has become more affordable for small businesses to use the
World Wide Web to sell their products. Although there are negative aspects of e-
commerce, small businesses have tried to accommodate to the needs of the consumers.
For example, one of the negative aspects of e-commerce is that consumers lack the advice
and guidance of sellers, to accommodate that, they have customer service through the
phone of online to answer any questions. It is also important to note that e-commerce
does not benefit all small companies equally. How much revenue a business gets from e-
commerce depends on what kind of service it gives. For example, most people would like
to try on clothes before they buy them, so it probably would not benefit a small business
that sells clothes as much as a small business that sells home supplies or specialty books.
Nevertheless, e-commerce does benefit any business even in small ways. This is why it is
crucial to understand how e-commerce affects small businesses because it is becoming
such a huge part of how society functions that it affects the economy greatly and whatever
happens to the economy affects us. This is why is it important to understand this subject
because in the long run, it will affect all of us. Bikroy.com is one of the largest e-
commerce website in Bangladesh and it has made the status of top online marketplace of
Bangladesh. It is relentless in detection of business revolution and development. Bikroy
first entered the Bangladeshi market back in 2012. In this very little time it has cemented
its place as one of the leading e-commerce site in Bangladesh. It has created job
opportunities for many fresh graduates. Bikroy.com also uses university going students as
their agent and pay them based on commission. It gives them a great experience which
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they can use in real life. They always maintain good relation with both their vendors and
customers. They will utilize bikroy to make them even stronger than before, continue to
give Bangladeshi market always something to look forward to.
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