AN EVALUATION OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND

PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES OF BASHUNDHARA GROUP

A Term Paper

Submitted To
Sabakun Naher Shetu
Lecturer, Department of Marketing
Faculty of Business Administration
Bangladesh University of Professionals

Submitted By

Name ID
Md. Akif Ahmed Joy 17251023
Nafiur Rahman 17251029
Saifullah Al Amin 17251051

Section: A
Department of Business Administration in Marketing (2016-17)
Bangladesh University of Professionals

May 2020
 ACKNOWLEDGMENT
In performing our term paper, we had to take the help and guideline of several respected

individuals, who deserve our heartiest gratitude. The completion of this term paper gives us

much pleasure. We would like to show our gratitude to our course teacher Lecturer Sabakun

Naher Shetu for giving us an amazing guideline. We would also like to expand our deepest

gratitude to all those who have directly and indirectly guided us in writing this assignment.

Many people, especially our classmates and team members themselves, have made valuable

comments and suggestions on this proposal which inspired us to improve our term paper. We

thank all the people for their help directly and indirectly to complete our assignment.
 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This report was prepared for the course completion of Marketing and Society (MKT-4103)

under the Department of Business Administration in Marketing. In the context of the CSR and

promotional activities of Bashundhara Group, consumers’ perception was evaluated to

understand the impact of CSR activities on Customer Liking. By studying previous literature

we adopted the theoretical framework and developed the questionnaire that was sent via online

channels. Data collected from the questionnaire was used for statistical analysis to determine

the value of CSR activities of the Bashundhara Group. This report also analyzes the company

portfolio using Y&R Brand Asset Valuator to provide clear insight current scenario of the

company enterprises. We have provided some suggestions for its promotional activities in the

end that we think would be insightful for the company.

Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................... 1

1.1 Background of the Study......................................................................................................... 1

1.2 Problem Statement .................................................................................................................. 2

1.3 Objectives of the Study ........................................................................................................... 2

CHAPTER TWO: TOPIC OVERVIEW.............................................................................. 3

CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ............................................................................. 4

3.1 Study Area .............................................................................................................................. 4

3.2 Sample Design ........................................................................................................................ 4

3.3 Research Method .................................................................................................................... 4

3.4 Data Sources ........................................................................................................................... 5

3.5 Questionnaire Design .............................................................................................................. 5

CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH RESULTS AND ANALYSIS ......................................... 7

4.1 CSR Activities Analysis of Bashundhara Group .................................................................... 7

4.1.1 Reliability Analysis ......................................................................................................... 7

4.1.2 Regression Analysis ........................................................................................................ 8

4.2 Portfolio Analysis of Bashundhara Group .............................................................................. 8

CHAPTER FIVE: GENERAL DISCUSSION .................................................................... 10

5.1 CSR Activities ............................................................................................................................ 10

5.2 Promotional Activities ................................................................................................................ 10

CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION ......................................................................................... 12

REFERENCES ....................................................................................................................... 13

APPENDICES ........................................................................................................................ 14
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Companies are facing an unprecedented competitive environment due to the influence of

globalization and the impact of information technology forces industrial marketers to

differentiate their products from their competitors to create value for their customers. One way

to achieve this objective is to create a brand that provides intangible value for its customers.

Empirical evidence increasingly demonstrates that when making purchasing decisions,

customers are not only influenced by tangible attributes like price and quality but with

intangible features such as trust, brand association, reputation, and image (Cretu & R. J., 2007).

Brands based on intangible, emotive characteristics – are seen as more durable and less likely

to suffer from competitive erosion (Lynch & L. de, 2004). Corporate Social Responsibility

significantly impacts the major aspects of the mentioned components in the longer term.

However, it is still ambiguous to interpret the correlation between CSR initiatives and

customer-related outcomes (Chomvilailuk & Butcher, 2013). Furthermore, the authors note

that the relationship between CSR communication and customer response has not been

examined sufficiently, especially in Bangladesh's cultural contexts.

This report was prepared as a requirement for the Marketing and Society (MKT – 4103) course

completion. It explores the CSR and promotional activities of the Bashundhara Group

regarding the societal and economic development of the country. Though, the Group has

substantially contributed to the growth of various economic sectors of the country, evaluating

the perception of CSR activities undertaken by the Group and also highlighting on the strategic

promotional activities should enable authors to provide insights and recommendations to

improve the methodological approach of Bashundhara Group.

1
1.2 Problem Statement

This report aims to address a gap in our understanding of the relationship between perceptions

of contemporary CSR practices and the consequent effective outcomes on customers. In the

context of the CSR activities of Bashundhara Group, customer liking of the company was

measured to test the efficacy of such CSR perceptions held by customers. Also, this report will

highlight the strategic promotional activities of the Bashundhara Group to explore the scope of

improvement in the respective department.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

Establishing specific objectives defines the purpose of the research and helps authors to

proceed in a sequential method. We have determined the following objectives that will be

throughout the report:

• RO1: To explore some major Corporate Social Responsibilities activities of

Bashundhara Group.

• RO2: To analyze the CSR activities of the Bashundhara Group from customers’

perceptions.

• RO3: To highlight the promotional activities of the Bashundhara Group and its impact

on consumers.

• RO4: To suggest new strategic promotional activities for the Bashundhara Group to

improve brand equity using Y&R Brand Asset Valuator.

2
CHAPTER TWO: TOPIC OVERVIEW

The Bashundhara Group began working as a real estate company known as "Bashundhara"

under the auspices of the Group's first concern – East West Property Development (Pvt) Ltd in

1987. This project turned out to be a very successful one and helped to promote the growth of

the trust and confidence of urban people in "Bashundhara." The Bashundhara Group (BG) is

now one of the largest private sector industrial conglomerate in Bangladesh. The BG works in

cooperation with the Government to foster sustainable development, environmental protection,

job generation, and poverty reduction. The BG focuses in particular on the growth of people's

lifestyles and the country's economy. The motto of the community is, therefore, "For the

People, for the Land." The Group has come a long way towards achieving its objectives by

meeting customer needs, contributing to society, innovating, and partnering with its project

implementation process. Bashundhara has successfully contributed to the stability of the

country's financial and capital markets through major investment undertakings from its CSR

department. This report has been prepared in the context of Bashundhara Group.

3
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY

3.1 Study Area

Bashundhara Group has a diversified portfolio with 18 brands. The consumer base of

Bashundhara Group consists of Upper Class, Upper-middle Class, and Middle-Class people of

Bangladesh. Considering data from (Kabir, Seamoon, & Rahman, 2014), we have determined

that 15% of the population of Bangladesh are approximately the consumers of Bashundhara

Group. That would mean that the target population for the study is 24 million. Using Slovin’s

formula at 93% confidence sample size for this study is required to be at least 204.

𝑁
𝑛=
1+𝑁(𝑒)2
24000000
𝑛=
1+24000000(.07)2

𝑛 = 204

Due to the current COVID situation and time constraint, we narrowed down the sample size to

50 respondents.

3.2 Sample Design

Simple Random Sampling Method was used to conduct this study. The respondents are selected

randomly and purely by chance. As every member has a chance of being selected in the sample,

a random selection of members does not affect the quality of the sample.

3.3 Research Method

For the study, we adopted a research framework from (Chomvilailuk & Butcher, 2013) to

understand the perception of consumers of Bashundhara Group towards its CSR initiatives.

While preparing this semi-structured questionnaire two scales were considered as the

independent variable (CSR Reputation and New CSR Initiatives) and the Liking scale was

selected as the dependent variable. A questionnaire was created on Google Form and forwarded

4
through online platforms to potential respondents. Later, the data was used for Reliability

Analysis and Regression Analysis to interpret the relation between CSR activities of

Bashundhara Group and Customer Liking Perception towards it. Also, we have used Y&R

Brand Asset Valuator to evaluate Brand Strength with Brand Stature to explore the impact of

promotional activities of the Bashundhara Group.

3.4 Data Sources

Both Primary and Secondary data sources were used to create this report.

3.5 Questionnaire Design

Referenc
Scale Coding Statements
e

CSR REP1 Bashundhara Group is already committed to using a (Lichtenst

Reputation substantial portion of its profits to help community ein,
groups. Drumwrig
REP2 Bashundhara Group’s reputation for socially ht, &
responsible behaviour is above average for the Braig,
industry. 2004)
REP3 Bashundhara Group is very active in supporting
environmental protection activities.
REP4 Bashundhara Group has shown strong support for
traditional values and culture.
REP5 Bashundhara Group devotes a lot of time and money
to help wide sections of society.

New CSR INI1 The number of projects supported by the company’s (Ricks,
Initiatives initiative appear to be many and diverse. 2005)
INI2 The company is showing strong interest in helping
the whole community.
INI3 A wide range of community groups will benefit
from the initiatives of Bashundhara Group.

5
 INI4 Bashundhara Group initiative appears to operate for
many years.
INI5 Bashundhara Group has announced a long-term
policy for corporate social responsibility.

Liking LIK1 I like the brands of Bashundhara Group a lot. (Poolthon

LIK2 I like purchasing products from the brands of g&
Bashundhara Group very much. Mandhach
LIK3 I have a very positive opinion about the company. itara,
2009)

6
CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH RESULTS AND ANALYSIS

4.1 CSR Activities Analysis of Bashundhara Group

4.1.1 Reliability Analysis

No. of Items

s Alpha if
Cronbach’

Cronbach’
s Alpha

deleted
Scale

items
Statements

Bashundhara Group is already committed to using a substantial .723

portion of its profits to help community groups.
Bashundhara Group’s reputation for socially responsible .720
CSR Reputation

behaviour is above average for the industry.

Bashundhara Group is very active in supporting environmental .719
.748 5
protection activities.
Bashundhara Group has shown strong support for traditional .768
values and culture.
Bashundhara Group devotes a lot of time and money to help wide .580
sections of society.
The number of projects supported by the company’s initiative .799
appear to be many and diverse.
The company is showing strong interest in helping the whole .813
CSR Initiatives

community.
.828 5 A wide range of community groups will benefit from the .801
initiatives of Bashundhara Group.
Bashundhara Group initiative appears to operate for many years. .839
Bashundhara Group has announced a long-term policy for .714
corporate social responsibility.
I like the brands of Bashundhara Group a lot. .854
Customer

I like purchasing products from the brands of Bashundhara Group

Liking

.864
.782 3
very much.
I have a very positive opinion about the company. .345

Table 1: Reliability Analysis of Selected Scales with Statements

7
All the statements have high internal consistency with associated variables. However,

removing REP4, INIT4, LIK1, and LIK2 would increase the value of Cronbach’s Alpha

meaning these items should be removed for better consistency.

4.1.2 Regression Analysis

Bashundhara Group has created a positive perception in customers’ mindsets by implementing

strategic CSR initiatives which also increased their Reputation. The correlation table shows

that people consider the company’s societal contribution more while purchasing products from

the company. (Table 3)

Unstandardized Coefficients B shows that increasing CSR Initiatives has an immense impact

on gaining customer trust. For every unit increase of CSR initiatives, customers’ liking increase

by .860 (Table 4). Selected independent variables predict 51.5% outcome of customer liking

(Table 5) which is significant and Significance P Value from ANOVA (Table 6).

4.2 Portfolio Analysis of Bashundhara Group

Promotional Activities of the enterprises under Bashundhara Group are as follows:

Categories Activities
Gift Card
Discounted Prices
Sales Promotion Free Service Campaign
Customer Relationship Management
Occasional Packages
Display Ads
Social Media Ads
Advertising
Newspaper and Magazine
Event Marketing
Personal Selling

Table 2: Promotional Activities of Bashundhara Group

8
Using Brand Asset Valuator of Young & Rubicam the following portfolio analysis of

Bashundhara Group should give an overlook on the impact of promotional activities of

Bashundhara Group:

Figure 1: Y&R Brand Asset Valuator of Bashundhara Group

9
CHAPTER FIVE: GENERAL DISCUSSION

5.1 CSR Activities

CSR Initiatives of Bashundhara Group has become an ideal to follow for aspiring brands.

Bashundhara Group has 3 enterprises that focus on implementing strategic CSR activities to

ensure a long-term outcome for society. From the findings and analysis, we have found that

rather than CSR Reputation, people tend to remember and evaluate the recent initiatives to

reevaluate their perception of brands. Major CSR activities in recent years should be

highlighted to understand the success of Bashundhara Group:

1. ICCB makeshift hospital to tackle the outbreak of COVID-19

2. 10 Crore donation to PM’s relief fund

3. Bashundhara’s interest-free loan Destitute dream of better days

4. Bashundhara Special Children Foundation

5.2 Promotional Activities

The promotional activities of the company are ambiguous at times. Other than the Power

Brands (Fig1) there has not been constant, synchronized promotional activities from the

company. For example, the Ultimate Fun Factory of Bashundhara group has amazing Brand

Strength yet it lacks Brand Stature only because of lack of promotional activities. Even after

months of operation, it doesn’t have its website. All the aspiring brands of Bashundhara Group

has the potential to become power brands. We suggest the following:

1. Increasing Online presence and content quality of Brands like FoodStreet, SunFlower

Restaurant, etc.

2. To continuously penetrate the target market through promotional channels;

3. Bashundhara Group needs to focus on its portfolio management strategy to develop a

synchronized and relevant promotional strategy for its brands.

10
4. Engaging people through CSR activities to create long term value for customers.

5. Crafting promotional activities that complement other Bashundhara brands.

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CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION

This exploratory study focused on understanding the impact of CSR variables on Customer

Preference in the context of Bashundhara Group. There is a positive association among the

selected variables which implores that companies should focus on strategic CSR

implementation like Bashundhara Group to gain trust from the people in the long-term. Also,

we deducted a portfolio analysis of Bashundhara Group to understand its promotional strategies

to stay relevant and competitive in the market. Focused and continuous promotional activities

are extremely important for a new brand to gain Brand Stature which the current aspiring and

new brands of Bashundhara Group are lacking. We have concluded that Bashundhara Group

should emphasize on its portfolio management scenario to induce promotional activities on a

synchronized term.

12
REFERENCES
Chomvilailuk, R., & Butcher, K. (2013). The effect of CSR knowledge on customer liking, across
cultures. International Journal of Bank Marketing.

Cretu, A. E., & R. J., B. (2007). The Influence of Brand Image and Company Reputation Where
Manufacturers Market to Small Firms: A Customer Value Perspective. Industrial Marketing
Management.

Kabir, M. S., Seamoon, F. R., & Rahman, M. A. (2014). Poverty trend among the lower class
households in a rural area of Bangladesh. J. Bangladesh Agril. Univ., 12(2): 337–344.

Lichtenstein, D., Drumwright, M., & Braig, B. (2004). The effect of corporate social responsibility on
consumer donations to corporate-supported nonprofits. Journal of Marketing, Vol. 68 No. 4,
pp. 16-32.

Lynch, J., & L. de, C. (2004). The Power of Emotion: Brand Communication in Business-To-
Business Markets. Brand Management.

Poolthong, Y., & Mandhachitara, R. (2009). Customer expectations of CSR, perceived service quality
and brand affect in Thai retail banking. International Journal of Bank Marketing.

Ricks, J. (2005). An assessment of strategic corporate philanthropy on perceptions of brand equity

variables. Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 22 Nos 2/3, pp. 121-34.

13
APPENDICES

Appendix A: Questionnaire

AN EVALUATION OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND

PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES OF BASHUNDHARA GROUP

The following questions are designed only for academic purpose. We are the student of Bangladesh
University of Professionals (BUP). This questionnaire has been prepared for the completion of the
MKT-4103 course. This study will evaluate the CSR practices of Bashundhara Group from customers’
perceptions. All the data retrieved from this questionnaire will be used for academic purpose only.

The researcher has no intention to represent this information negatively in his paper. The information
will be kept confidential. You don’t have to mention your name.

SECTION I: GENERAL INFORMATION

Name:
Do you agree to give me some information regarding the mentioned topic?

a. Yes 1
b. No 2

If you selected ‘NO’ as your answer, skip to the end of the survey.

SECTION II: PERSONAL INFORMATION

1. Your Age
a. Below 25 1
b. 26-30 2
c. 31-35 3
d. 36-40 4
e. 45 and above 5
2. What is your gender?
a. Male 1
b. Female 2
3. Level of your education
a. SSC 1
b. HSC 2
c. Bachelor 3
d. Masters 4

14
 e. M.Plil / PhD 5
4. Years of experience:
a. Less than 1 year 1
b. 1-5 year 2
c. 6-10years 3
d. 11-15 years 4
e. 16 to above 5

__________________________________________________________________________________
SECTION III: EVALUATION OF CSR ACTIVITIES FROM CONSUMERS’ PERCEPTION

Give your agreement/disagreement in a scale of 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) concerning

the following statement by putting tick mark in the corresponding boxes.

Agree (2)
Agree (1)

Disagree

Disagree
Strongly

Strongly
Neutral
Sl.

(3)

(4)

(5)
Scale NO Statements

Bashundhara Group is already

committed to using a substantial
1.
portion of its profits to help
community groups.
Bashundhara Group’s reputation
2. for socially responsible behaviour
is above average for the industry.
Bashundhara Group is very active
3. in supporting environmental
protection activities.
CSR Bashundhara Group has shown
Reputation 4. strong support for traditional
values and culture.
Bashundhara Group devotes a lot
5. of time and money to help wide
sections of society.
The number of projects supported
6. by the company’s initiative appear
to be many and diverse.
The company is showing strong
7. interest in helping the whole
community.
A wide range of community groups
8. will benefit from the initiatives of
Bashundhara Group.

15
 Bashundhara Group initiative
9.
appears to operate for many years.
Bashundhara Group has announced
CSR 10. a long-term policy for corporate
Initiatives
social responsibility.
I like the brands of Bashundhara
11.
Group a lot.
I like purchasing products from the
Liking 12. brands of Bashundhara Group very
much.
I have a very positive opinion
13.
about the company.

Appendix B: Regression Analysis (Table 2 – Table 5)

Customers' CSR CSR

Liking Reputation Initiatives
Pearson Correlation Customers' Liking 1.000 .516 .717
CSR Reputation .516 1.000 .700
CSR Initiatives .717 .700 1.000

Table 3: Correlation among Variables

Unstandardized Coefficients
Model B Std. Error t
1 (Constant) .370 .574 .644
CSR Reputation .040 .207 .194
CSR Initiatives .860 .175 4.906
a. Dependent Variable: Customers’ Liking

Table 4: Coefficient Test

Adjusted R Sig. F
Model R Square Square Change
1 .717a .515 .494 .000

Table 5: Model Summary

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Model Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig.
1 Regression 21.463 2 10.732 24.918 .000b
Residual 20.242 47 .431
Total 41.705 49
a. Dependent Variable: Customers' Liking
b. Predictors: (Constant), CSR Initiatives, CSR Reputation

Table 6: Analysis of Variance

17