Shalmali Assignment 3.

1 - Strategic Business Communication discussion

1.   BRAND COMMUNICATION

In today's market, a brand's communication strategy and market exposure are essential for
enterprises. Brand communication helps businesses to create a long-lasting impact on
customers. “Brand communication and service quality make the brand loyalty through brand
trust” (Zehir, Şahin, Kitapçı, & Özşahin, 2011).

Targeted customers can be convinced to invest in your brand, by spending money for
advertisements on channels such as social media, television advertisements, newspaper
advertisements, radio advertisements etc.

Nike

Nike is one of my favourite brands. When I think about footwear, Comfort is the first word
that comes to my mind and next is Nike. Not only Nike brand is popular but also its slogan
“Let's do it”. I've been wearing Nike sneakers for a long time, and I believe they have kept
their commitment to quality.

Nike uses a variety of platforms for advertising its brand.

Website: https://www.nike.com/fi/

The fact that they have depicted people from many cultures wearing their products is what I
find most appealing about this website.

To know the audience, Nike used this strategy of a pop-up window which is very impressive.
When customers open the website, within a few seconds a pop-up message appears on the
window to get the fastest alerts about offers and news about Nike products. Customers can
give their email address, date of birth and shopping preference if they want to join.

On the top of the website, they have New releases, Men, Women, Kids, Sales and collections
as main categories and further sub-categories show which particular type of shoes, clothing
or accessories. It gives a list of products to easily explore and access.

On the webpage they have sections like Gear Up, Trending now, Members days, and Don’t
miss to attract the attention of the customers.

Nike encourages customers to join them via some of the features like “Join as a member”
where free shipping or thirty days return policies are offered especially to members. The
customer was referred to a family member in one of the Nike advertisements “Member Days
are here. The best of membership feature provides membership rewards and member
products for members to feel special.

Nike also has member-exclusive apps like the Nike app, SNKRS, training club and run club
for members to stay active, positive and healthy — together.

Nike has services like Gift cards, student discounts, feedback and promo code options for
customers. Get help to resolve the issues, About Nike options are for customers to know
about Nike.

List of Social Media used by Nike-

https://www.youtube.com/user/nike

https://twitter.com/Nike

https://www.instagram.com/nike/

https://www.facebook.com/nike

Nike uses Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to capture the audience. On these social media,
they post photos and videos of the new products and famous players using their products
in tournaments or marathons etc. YouTube also has Nike, which shows many interesting
videos of athletes and innovation for kids and families.

Though Nike is my favourite brand, I feel they emphasise too much on membership feature.
Customers may not always feel comfortable providing their details to any company or they
may not like pop-ups while exploring the products.

2.   INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION TO GENERATION Y

 Integrated marketing communication is a comprehensive approach to the fields of

marketing, branding, promotions, public relations, and other related fields of strategic
communication (Persuit & McDowell Marinchak, 2016).

Converting business advertising into creative advertising comes with integrated marketing
communication. Advertisement must integrate the business of advertising into a verbal or
visible message that will help not only sell but also creates an image and ultimately retains
the customers. (Blakeman, 2018).
 According to Naumovska, (2017) Generation Y, is recognized as Millennials who are born
between the late ‘70s and middle ‘90s. It is a distinct and powerful consumer group whose
behaviour, customs, and psychology are frequently explored but not fully understood.
Currently, Generation Y is the biggest market segment. As per the research this generation
uses social media like WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram to explore more products and
services. Also, generation Y has their own choices when it comes to purchasing decisions or
preferring any particular brand.

This group is interesting to study for marketing communications as this was the group who
have experienced every way of communication. They had seen windows developing from
Windows 1.0 (1985) MS-DOS to the latest version 11. Hence they have experienced most of
the technology development in their life. Content is important while advertising on social
media otherwise it is very difficult for anyone to remember the advertisement and the
brand. To target, this generation companies should use all types of creative advertising to
brand the product.

References
Blakeman, R. (2018). Integrated Marketing Communication. Rowman & Littlefield.

Naumovska, L. (2017). Marketing communication strategies for generation Y–

millennials. Business Management and Strategy, 8(1), 123-133. Retrieved 10 13, 2022

Persuit, J. M., & McDowell Marinchak, C. L. (2016). Integrated Marketing Communication:

Creating Spaces for Engagement. Lexington Books.

Zehir, C. C., Şahin, A., Kitapçı, H., & Özşahin, M. (2011). The effects of brand communication
and service quality in building brand loyalty through brand trust; the empirical research on
global brands. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 24, 1218-1231. Retrieved 10 13,
2022, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042811016703
Karolina

Strategic business communication discussion

Company

“We want to provide you with the freedom to move in a personal, sustainable and safe
way”- that is what Volvo cars states on their LinkedIn page, and I find the same message on
their homepage. In fact, sustainability and safety is the recurring themes within all
communication channels of Volvo at the moment. Looking through the last 20 press
releases, they all touch the subject of either sustainability or safety.

Sustainability is very much on almost every company’s agenda at the moment. I feel that
Volvo has successfully captured the essence of sustainability and are able to get the
message through to the reader in the sense of why a potential customer should choose
Volvo as a sustainable car choice.

Communication likes and dislikes

The overall design on Volvo cars channels is, I feel, appealing. They have used light colors
that feels modern and Nordic. I think that they manage through the colors to strengthen the
feeling that Volvo is a Nordic brand. The Nordic factor I think is something that they
pointed out more during earlier years but now it is more maybe an underlaying theme or
tone in the communication. This video ad from 2014 for example is very much
communicating that Volvo is a Nordic brand, built for the though Nordic
conditions https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbvdzQ7uVPc  

 
Play Video

  

In the video mentioned above, Volvo used the famous football player Zlatan Ibrahimovic,
and there has been more times where they have turned to famous people to get the
message through. This video that was released back in 2013 where Jean Claude van Damme
does a split has been viewed over 116 million times on YouTube 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7FIvfx5J10

 
Play Video

  
 

So, the words personal, sustainable, and safe that I mentioned in the beginning is themes
that are communicated in different ways very efficiently throughout Volvo's channels. You
come across headlines such as “Planned for life” or “thinking of safety” in most channels.
You can read that the company has made strategic choices regarding these main themes,
such as not offering leather interior as an option, or the fact that you can have all the car
models as electric models.

The safety aspect has been the main theme in many of Volvos video commercials over the
years, showing the viewer how dangerous situations can occur out of the blue and how the
company’s safety solutions are there to help the driver when this happens.

In fact, safety is for me personally, one of the main reasons why I like Volvo as a brand so
much. They have for decades invested in safety and made it a priority. You can imagine that
my interest peaked when I got a newsletter a Friday afternoon a couple of weeks ago with
the headline “a new era of safety”. I opened the newsletter, aware that they usually contain a
link that the reader needs to click. But what irritated me with this newsletter was that the
company was launching 3 new safety features and they were described under individual
headlines, so the reader had to click three different links to know what the safety features
where. I opened the first one and then closed the newsletter.

Integrated market communication and generation Y

As a generation I chose the millennials, generation Y, that is people that are born between
1981-1996 and have grown up during the millennial change. Ljupka Naumovska states I her
article from 2017 that generation Y is the largest market segment, and that this generation
is by far bigger than the earlier generations, such as generation X or the boomers.
(Naumovska, 2017)

According to the text, millennials are very brand conscious consumers. They are careful
when it comes to brand preferences and purchase decisions. Interesting I find is that this
generation have two quite different social ambitions: on one hand they might be striving for
self-gratification, but on the other hand social improvement is of as much importance to
them. (Naumovska, 2017)

According to Naumovskas research, consumers in generation Y prefers to get information

about the brand through digital media rather than traditional one. So it is important for the
brand to be online and provide communication In whatever online channels the customer
likes best.

The best marketing strategies to use when wanting to target generation Y, is to be authentic
and genuine. It is important that the communication serves a purpose to solve a problem or
satisfy a need, doing this all while being honest and transparent in your communication
(Fairlie, 2022).

So, as the generation Y is the largest generation, they will be making remarkable purchases
as they reach certain milestones and phases in life. If handled well, companies have a great
opportunity to attract this group of potential customers. However, doing that means being
where generation Y are, that means online using all sorts of digitals tools.

References

Naumovska, L. (2017, 4 14) Market communication strategies for Generation Y-

Millennials  https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ljupka-Naumovska/publication/
317341070_Marketing_Communication_Strategies_for_Generation_Y_-_Millennials/links/
59353c0c45851553b6f077f0/Marketing-Communication-Strategies-for-Generation-Y-
Millennials.pdf

Fairlie, M. (2022 8 6) Marketing to Millennials: How to capture gen Y

customers https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/6602-selling-to-generation-y.html
Sayem

1. Company/ Brand Communication

Introduction

The company that was selected for this assignment is ‘BKASH’, it is a Bangladeshi company
and co-owned by the BRAC Bank and Alibaba group. BKASH is the largest mobile financial
service (MFS) provider in Bangladesh which started its journey into the market back in 2011 as a
start-up, since then it has scaled fast enough to be awarded the ‘Bangladesh Brand Forum’s Best
Brand Award 2019’. (The Daily Star, 2019)

Before discussing the strategic business communication of BKASH, the business model needs to
be clarified. BKASH enables financial transactions through mobile phones for its customers all
across the country and their customers are individuals, SMEs and large corporations. BKASH
mainly operates its business model through distributors, agents like small shops and other
businesses that accept payment through BKASH. BKASH uses the following marketing
communication channels – 

Marketing Communication Channels

• TVC – BKASH invests a hefty amount of money in Television Commercials (TVC). For
the TVCs BKash sometime cast celebrities, but mostly less popular faces with common
characters so that maximum number of people can connect with the culture. These
advertisements mention different offers by BKASH and take place on most of the local TV
channels targeting audiences of different demographics. (The Daily Star, 2019) 

 Bkash TVC

• Retail outlet Displays – BKASH uses branding materials heavily in their stores as it has
got almost everywhere in Bangladesh. The materials include banners, posters, and signage
boards. Because of BKASHs wide reach they utilize all the possible ways for branding activities.
The agent shops are colored in Pink mostly which symbolizes the BKASH logo, beside BKASH
branded signboard, banners and stickers are also used which can easily grab the attention of
anyone in the streets. In this below Banner it says – “BKASH Korun” which means “BKASH
me”, so BKASH has placed itself as a word for money transferring through mobile phone for
majority of the people in Bangladesh. (The Daily Star, 2019)

  

Picture : (lightCastleBD, 2022)

• Social Media – BKASH has been also very active in popular social media like Facebook
and Instagram. They are aggressively conducting regular content marketing through social media
to build a strong connection with the target customers. These video and imagery contents portray
discount offers, Cashback offers, celebration posts, events, announcements, stories etc. to build
bonding with customers from different segments. 

  

Picture - (bkash, 2022)

• Mobile App – BKash keeps of sending notifications regarding different offers and events
and announcements through the BKASH mobile app which might be irritating for some
customers then it has created such a strong presence in the customer’s life that none will remove
the App from their phone just to get rid of the notifications. These notifications keeps on
reminding people to use app for different purposes.

• Mobile Texts – BKASH also sends text messages from time to time regarding different
offers and announcements to their customers on different occasions, people just cannot get over
BKASH.

• Billboards – In the roads, highways and buildings BKASH billboards and paintings are
common in Bangladesh. This type of communication is a reminder that no matter where you go
you will always find BKASH as a reliable money transfer option and BKASH actually does it by
covering all the villages, districts and divisions with its uninterrupted service.

• Collaboration – BKASH has partnered with thousands of other businesses to promote

different discounts and cashback offers in collaboration which is making them an alternative of
Banks for cash transferring. (bKash, 2022)A big chunk of SMEs, also large corporations use
BKASH for receiving payments, salary disbursement and other types of financial transactions.

Positive aspects of BKASH’s Marketing communication

The marketing communications strategy that BKASH use has many positive aspects and that is
the reason they have acquired the majority of the market share while having other competitors
around. BKASH gives its customers a sense of reliability and availability of money transfers at
any time and location with the right communication strategy. BKASH focused more on
localization to communicate with the mass market properly as they successfully built a brand and
this type of communication strategy not only helped to establish the customer base but also
created a strong network of agents, distributors and partners which is crucial to building a Brand
Value Proposition (BVP). The storytelling the company uses through the different channels are
also noteworthy, this type of strategy 

Negative aspects of BKASH’s Marketing Communication

As every coin has two sides, marketing communication also has some negative impacts on
customers . BKASH’s communication strategy is no exception as it can have some negative
impact on the customers. It might become annoying for many people when continuous messages
and notification comes through various channels. BKASH’s strong communication in the market
can create a monopoly by suppressing the competitors which are not beneficial for the customers
in the long run. When communicating too much with the customers there could be
miscommunication which can backfire for them.

Conclusion

BKASH has become one of the strongest brands in Bangladesh just within 11 years which is a
huge achievement for any start-up company. Their marketing communication strategy played a
big role in positioning themselves as the first choice for money transferring through mobile
phones. They have not only created a Brand Value Proposition but also created an emotional
bonding with their customers.

2. Integrated Marketing Communication to Generation Y/ Millennials

The earth has seen different generations since the evolution of mankind. A generation can be
characterized as “an identifiable group that shares birth years, age, location, and significant life
events at critical developmental stages.” (RUBB, 2017). The timeline of generations for the last
100 years have been characterized as follows –

• Baby boomers – The year 1946 to 1964 (RUBB, 2017)

• Generation X - The year 1965 to 1980 (RUBB, 2017)

• Millennials or Generation Y - The year 1981 to 2000 (CHIP ESPINOZA, 2016)

• Generation Z or Next Generation – The year 2001 to present (CHIP ESPINOZA, 2016)

Generation Y/ Millennials 

This generation of people currently belongs to the age group of between 25 and 41 years. The
characteristics of this generation have many similarities and distinctness from the others. 
Millennials were taught from an early age that they are special and have distinct characteristics
of having high perceptions of themselves, thus communication strategy should be done
accordingly to make them feel special. (CHIP ESPINOZA, 2016)-

As millennials are a blend of tech savviness and real-world explorers, so to cater to them
specially the following communication strategies can be used –

• The right marketing strategy for the Millennials should be simple and precise. As the
Millennials are more interested in the feature of the goods and services than any other factors,
also Focus on the socio-economic value of the brand which can attract the millennials. (Hayden,
2019)

• Prioritize digital marketing channels properly as this generation spends quite a lot of time
in the digital world. the mixed marketing channels because this generation can be found both
online and offline channels. The Digital Platforms like – Facebook, Youtube, Instagram, Mobile
Apps, Click Ads, Digital Banners, Emails should be used. The right offline channels can be
Newspapers, Billboards, signboards and brand promoters etc.

• The contents should include entertainment, emotions and freedom to establish a

relationship with this type of customer group and then involve them in the communication
process by storytelling.

• These customers want to be heard, so a proper customer communication channel needs to

be established online and offline by giving them the platform to speak about talk about their
expectations and demands.

• The AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) model can be a good option to boost Sales
among the millennials as they are rational while making a purchasing decision. 

Conclusion

Every generation has basic similarities and differences with the other generations, but
considering the distinctiveness brands should use segmentation to classify the customers. Brands
need to be careful while communicating with different generations and treating them
accordingly, or things can be chaotic resulting in damaged brand value.

References

BKASH. (2021). Facebook. Retrieved from Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/bkashlimited/photos/a.687036814706203/5575898412486661

bkash. (2022, 10 12). bKash Limited - 🧥👚 Bikash Payments Bring a difference in worship style!
Get 10% instant cashback on advance payment of your choice of clothes from Le Reve's trendy
collection. A maximum of ৳100 per customer per day during the campaign and a total of ৳150
per day throughout the campaign. Retrieved from Facebook.com:
https://www.facebook.com/bkashlimited/photos/a.687036814706203/5575898412486661/

bKash. (2022). Media center / News. Retrieved from bkash: https://www.bkash.com/bn/media-

center/news/bkash

CHIP ESPINOZA, M. U. (2016). Managing the Millennials. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons,
Inc.

Hayden, M. (2019). Marketing to Different Generations. Retrieved from six-degrees:

https://www.six-degrees.com/marketing-to-different-generations/

lightCastleBD. (2022, 3 30). The evolving G2P Payment Landscape in Bangladesh - LightCastle
Partners. Retrieved from LightCastle Partners:
https://www.lightcastlebd.com/insights/2022/03/the-evolving-g2p-payment-landscape-in-
bangladesh/

Robert G. DelCampo, L. A. (2016). Managing the MultiGenerational Workforce. New York:

Routledge.

RUBB, V. A. (2017). CLASH OF THE GENERATIONS - MANAGING THE NEW

WORKPLACE REALITY. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

The Daily Star. (2019, December 19). how-bkash-became-the-most-loved-brand-the-country.

Retrieved from thedailystar: https://www.thedailystar.net/toggle/news/how-bkash-became-the-
most-loved-brand-the-country-1842412