Warid

Advertising Activities of Warid Telecom and Its Impact and Effectiveness on Young Generation

Name Abdullah-Al-Amin ID 041 131 030 Table of Contents Organization Part History Page 5 Organization’s Philosophy Divisions Page 12 Organizational Structure Page 13 Products and Services Offered Industry Analysis 18 SWOT Analysis Page 21 Project Part Page 26 Introduction Page 27 Objectives of the Study 27 Significance of the Study Page 28 Hypothesis Page 28 Methodology 28 Major Advertising Activities Running On Advertising Activities on different Medias 31 Advertising Effectiveness and Impacts Analysis By Group 39 Analysis - Group Comparison Analysis on General Basis 57 Recommendations 60 Conclusion Page 61

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Organization Part

1.1 WARID Telecom International Ltd at a Glance Warid Telecom takes pride in being backed by the Abu Dhabi Group, one of the largest groups in the Middle East and in Pakistan. The Dhabi Group is a multinational company based in the UAE, which owns and operates a wide range of business concerns that are spread across 3 different continents. It has a diversified business interest in the institutions that have enjoyed commercial success as a result of its strong financial resources and extensive management expertise. The Abu Dhabi Group's major investments are in the following sectors: • Telecommunications • Hospitality services • Property development • Oil exploration and supplies • Banking and financial services • Automobile industries. Warid Telecom is currently operational in UAE, Pakistan and within these markets, the company has very quickly developed large customer bases and established itself as one of the leaders of telecom service provision. These achievements have only been possible due to Warid’s uncompromising commitment to provide maximum network coverage and clear connectivity at the most optimum price. Another priority in Warid’s operational agenda is to remain in the forefront of the rapidly changing technology in the field of communication, so that the company can always ensure that evolving customer needs are properly catered for. The company’s track record in Pakistan, where the company established a subscriber base of 4 million users in just its first year of operation alone, serves as a testament to Warid telecom’s customer-driven business mandate. Warid Telecom is planning to launch in Congo and Uganda very soon. 1.2 WARID Telecom In Bangladesh Warid Telecom International Ltd. is a GSM-based cellular operator in Bangladesh. It is wholly owned subsidiary of Warid Telecom International LLC which is the part of an Abu Dhabi based consortium led by His Highness Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan. In Bangladesh, Warid Telecom is set to commence its operations under a landmark MOU that has been agreed upon by the Dhabi Group and the Government of Bangladesh worth USD 1 billion, out of which USD 750 million has been exclusively committed for investment by Warid in the telecommunication sector of the country. Succeeding the MOU signing, the BTRC license for telecom service provision was issued to Warid Telecom, followed by the signing of interconnectivity agreement with all the existing telecom companies of Bangladesh. Warid Telecom’s operational activities in Bangladesh aim to achieve a new

and modern corporate identity, which is congruent with the dynamic changes taking place in the telecom industry of Bangladesh today. With a reflection of a new strategy, Warid’s aim is to be perceived not only as a telecommunication operator of voice services, but also as a universal provider of comprehensive communications services for both residential and business customers. 1.2.1

History In December 2005, Warid Telecom International Ltd paid $50 million dollars (US) to obtain a GSM license from the BTRC and became the sixth mobile phone operator in Bangladesh. 16 is the prefix for Warid Bangladesh as allocated by the government of Bangladesh. Omitting +880 will require using 0 in place of it instead to represent local call, hence 016 is the general prefix. In a press conference on August 17th 2006, Warid announced that its network would be activated two months ahead of schedule, in October, 2006. Again in October, 2006 Warid Telecom put off the launch of its cell phone services in Bangladesh until June, 2007 after its major supplier Nokia walked out on an agreement over a payment dispute. Warid had a soft launch at the end of January, 2007. It gave away complimentary subscriptions among a selected group of individuals, whose job was to make 'test calls' and the operator adjusted its network's quality based on their comments. On the 14th of April, 2007 (Pohela Boishakh) Warid Bangladesh kicked off its advertisement campaign titled "Salam Bangladesh Salam". A few days later on the 29th of April, they launched their website. Amidst all speculation and rumors Warid officially launched their commercial services on the 10th of May, 2007. Warid had also signed bill collection deals with Prime Bank, Standard Bank and Dutch Bangla Bank and security sharing deals with 22 local lenders mainly banks, worth 3 billion Taka (300 crore) arranged by Industrial and Infrastructure Development Finance Company Limited (IIDFC) . 1.2.2 Network Technoloy Network Status Date GSM900/1800 Live/Active March, 2007 Currently the network of Warid Bangladesh is available as BGD 07 when searched for networks manually but is only open to employees and partners. The nationwide GSM/GPRS network is maintained by Ericsson with the exception of the eastern part of the country where it is managed by Motorola. 1.3 Board of Executive Committee Mr. Bashir A. Tahir: Mr. Bashir A. Tahir is a prominent and revered corporate figure who has added tremendous value to the banking, communication, and real estate sectors in Pakistan. He is Member of the Board and CEO of Warid Telecom International LLC. He is also the CEO of the Abu Dhabi Group, Member of Board Advisory Committee, Bank Alfalah Limited and Member of Board Audit Committee, Bank Alfalah Limited. Previously, Mr. Tahir served as General Manager and CEO for BCCE (now UNB). He has been honored with the Sitara-e-Imtiaz by the President of Pakistan General Pervez Musharraf in 2005 in recognition of his pivotal role in various facets of banking, financial advisory and investments in Pakistan. Mr. Marwan Zawaydeh: Mr. Marwan Zawaydeh is recognized for actively promoting world-class cutting-edge technologies in the communication industry in Pakistan, Middle east and internationally. He is currently Member of the Board of Wateen Telecom and Warid Telecom. He is an electronic engineer with 25 years experience at Etisalat in telecommunication including transmission, switching, access, mobile, internet, e-commerce and CATV. He held various senior level positions and

from 1996 onwards, he served as Senior Executive Vice President, Engineering Department. At Etisalat, Mr. Zawaydeh played an important role in corporate studies and decision making related to strategic planning, business policies, organizational development and international investment. He has also served as Board Member in various subsidiaries and business units of Etisalat. Mr. Zawaydeh significantly contributed towards the successful launch of Warid GSM network in Pakistan in addition to rolling out the network covering 28 cities. Mr. Parvez A. Shahid: Mr. Parvez A. Shahid is a distinguished name in the corporate sector of Pakistan and one of the few pioneering entities who have infused the highest international standards of quality assurance and innovation in the banking, communication, and real estate sectors of the country. Mr. Shahid has over 30 years experience in the banking sector and is currently Member of the Board of Wateen Telecom and Warid Telecom. Additionally, he is Executive In-charge of the Strategic Planning Division in Bank Alfalah. Earlier, he served as Advisor to H.H. Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, the Abu Dhabi Group, Joint Executive In-charge of Central Treasury Division, BCCI, Abu Dhabi and In-charge of Global Support Desk for Treasury Operations, BCCI, London. 1.4 Shareholders Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan: His Highness Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Member of the Royal Family of Abu Dhabi, Minister for Higher Studies and Chancellor of the University of Al Ain. He is the Chairman of the Company and takes keen interest in the management of Warid Telecom. He is also the Federal Minister for Higher Education and Scientific Research for UAE and is also Chairman of Union National Bank, Abu Dhabi, Chairman & Director United Bank Limited, Pakistan, Chancellor Al Ain University and President at the Higher Colleges of Technology, Abu Dhabi. His Highness is also the former Chairman Bank Alfalah Limited, Pakistan. Sheikh Suroor Bin Mohammed Al Nahayan: His Excellency Sheikh Suroor Bin Mohammed Al Nahayan is Chamberlain of the Royal Amiri Courts and Member of the Royal Family of Abu Dhabi. He was the Governor of UAE Central Bank for the last 10 years and a major shareholder of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank. He is a member of the Royal Family and holds interest in Bank Alfalah Limited and United Bank Limited in Pakistan. His Excellency Sheikh Suroor is the major shareholder of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Abu Dhabi, and UAE. Other interests include shares in joint stock companies as well as interest in commercial and real estate properties both in UAE and abroad. His Excellency Sheikh Suroor also owns the five star Hotel. 1.5 ORGANIZATION’S PHILOSOPHY The philosophy at Warid Telecom is to lead the way everything they do, ranging from the commitment to the people, customers and the community to working in harmony with investors and regulators. Warid Telecom's aim is to be perceived not only as a telecommunication operator of voice services, but also as a universal provider of comprehensive communications services for both residential and business customers. It strives to provide optimum level of support and care through its highly skilled and motivated team of professionals and through maximum network coverage and connectivity. 1.5.1 Vision Warid Telecom's vision is "To be the leading national communication provider with a strong international presence." 1.5.2 Values Warid Telecom's brand values include: • Quality - We want to make a difference to people's lives. Our optimism is contagious. We are passionate about what we do and we have confidence in ourselves.

• Simplicity - For us, clarity comes through simplicity. We recognize that we are people communicating with other people. We are always direct and easy to understand. • Innovation - We constantly look to do things differently and in a better way. We give color to all that we do. We are ready to push the boundaries and take risks. • Honesty - We are always open and honest. We say what we do and we do what we say. • Friendliness - We enjoy working and succeeding together by building close relationships. While we have a sense of purpose, we also have a sense of humor. We consider the needs both of our customers and of each other. 1.5.3 Objectives Since Warid Telecom has been a success story in Pakistan, Management has high hopes to continue this legacy in Bangladesh. In order to gain a footing in the mobile market Warid Telecom has partnered with Ericsson to provide network solutions for the business. Being one of the top cellular vendors established in over 140 countries & with vast experience in the industry, Ericsson has been able to offer Warid Telecom the latest technology required for their business. This, coupled with Warid Telecom's sound financial backing, has placed it in a strong strategic position to capture the market share in the tapped as well as the untapped market. In its Bangladesh Operation, Warid Telecom has set some objectives based on its values and vision, which management believes will help them reach its desired destination. • To provide the latest technology, unparalleled quality service and friendly customer care: In Bangladesh, Warid has begun its journey with a simple agenda – to enable people to communicate by providing the best possible service and the right solutions to meet their communication needs. Warid is very confident that its operation in Bangladesh would eventually not only reach out to every corner of the country but will also set new trends and benchmark of providing the latest technology, unparalleled quality service and friendly customer care in the telecommunication industry of the country. • To capture the untapped market: In accordance with its business strategy, Warid Telecom plans to establish itself as a Market leader within 5 years, and increase the overall market size through broader coverage of all income groups. Warid Telecom's superior products, high quality of service, affordability, and customer support would enable it to not only capture market share from existing players, but also acquire the so far untapped market. • To be a universal provider of comprehensive communications services: With a reflection of a new strategy, Warid Telecom’s aim is to be perceived not only as a telecommunication operator of voice services, but also as a universal provider of comprehensive communications services for both residential and business customers. • To achieve a unique corporate identity: Warid Telecom’s operational activities in Bangladesh aim to achieve a new and modern corporate identity, which is congruent with the dynamic changes taking place in the telecom industry of Bangladesh today. 1.6

Divisions Warid Telecom International Limited has total thirteen different divisions, which ensure a smooth running of the operation of the company. Administration and Human Resource Management Finance Marketing Government and Operator Relations Sales

Quality Assurance Strategic Planning and Business Development Project Management Office (PMO) Procurement & Logistics Customer Service (CS) Information Technology Engineering 1.7

TEAM IN BANGLADESH Mr. Munner Farooqui

Chief Executive officer (Management)

Mr. Amyn Merchant

Chief Financial officer (Finance)

Mr. Farhan J. khan (Engineering)

Chief Technical officer

Mr. Yasir Ishaq Ansari

Chief Information officer (IT)

Mr. Mumtaz Ahmad khan Mr. Naveed Saeed

GM, HR & Administration GM, Marketing & Sales

Mr. Mia Omer Shah

DGM, Customer Service

Mr. Ashraful H. Chowdhury

GM, Govt. Operations & Relations

Mr. Azmat Mushtaq Khan Mr. Nauman Rahman Affairs

Senior Manager, Strategic Planning Senior Manager, Contracts & Corporate

1.8 ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Other than the division of Management, Finance, IT and Engineering, all the divisions are headed by GM (General Manager), or DGM (Deputy General Manager). Under each division, there are several departments, which are usually led by Senior Managers, or Managers. Management Division is headed by the CEO (Chief Executive Officer) and Finance Division is headed by CFO (Chief Financial Officer). In the similar manner, IT Department is headed by the CIO (Chief Information Officer) and Engineering Division is headed by CTO (Chief Technical Officer).There are no GM/DGM(s) assigned for these Four Divisions. This is the general diagram for the rest of the 9 divisions: 2.

1.9 PRODUCTS AND SERVICES OFFERED At present, Warid Telecom is offering the following packages for the customers: Prepaid Package- ZEM Postpaid Package- ZAHI Scratch Cards Data Cards (Bundle Package for GPRS Usage in laptops) Note: All the Data provided below are taken up to July 2008. 1.9.1 Prepaid Package- ZEM Warid Telecom is offering one of the best prepaid packages in Market called Zem. Package Details Prepaid Startup: This is the regular startup package which is set by default when purchasing a new connection. There are 3 other customized packages with special benefits which subscribers can switch to anytime they want. They Zem 24 hrs, Zem 1 sec & Zem FnF.

All incoming calls are free of charges. All charges are exclusive of 15% VAT. For BTTB Charges, BTTB time band and pulse will be applicable. Helpline (786) charges @ TK. 0.50 from Prepaid customers. Prepaid connection comes with ISD, EISD & pre-loaded GPRS facility. All prepaid packages include BTTB incoming and outgoing facilities. 1.9.2 Postpaid Packages- ZAHI Zahi postpaid has 3 packages which are » Zahi Classic » Zahi Supreme » Zahi Royal All incoming calls are free of charges All charges are exclusive of 15% VAT. For BTTB Charges, BTTB time band and pulse will be applicable. Helpline (786) is free for Postpaid customers. National wide access available on all postpaid packages. For ISD facility on postpaid connection, additional deposit is required for Zahi Classic, Zahi Supreme. All postpaid packages include BTTB incoming and outgoing facilities. 1.10 INDUSTRY ANALYSIS 1.10.1 Political & Legal, Economic, Social and Technological (PEST) Analysis POLITICAL AND LEGAL FORCES Political Instability and influence: Political instability is a big barrier in Bangladesh for any business ventures. Frequent strike or siege activities can hamper the smooth running of business in telecom industry. Liaison with particular political parties also might have a dramatic influence in the start up and the

continuation of this business. However, the situation has improved a lot in recent times. Government Policy: Government is encouraging more foreign direct investments and hence, more and more multinational companies are coming to Bangladesh; creating a potential base of corporate clients for mobile operators. ECONOMIC FORCES Income growth and GDP: the GDP growth has been calculated to grow by 6%(approximately) in the recent future. The income level of the middle to upper class population of the country is also in the growing trend, and so as the standard of living. This is one of the major reasons, why telecom industry is booming in Bangladesh today. Infrastructural Development: Significant infrastructural developments have been taking place in Bangladesh in recent years. Transportation and telecommunication system are developing at a significant pace, implying a positive impact on mobile industry. Industrialization: More and more foreign companies are making investments in Bangladesh, which indicates a greater source of corporate clients for mobile operators. Any new mobile operator should be capable enough to match with the dynamic changes taking place in the telecom industry of Bangladesh today SOCIAL FORCES Positive Attitude towards Mobile: People of our country have grown a positive attitude of experiencing new products and services provided by mobile operators. Various services provided by existing mobile companies like providing internet services, helping to take part in various shows, games, quizzes have been a revaluation in this industry. Symbol of Status: Mobile phone is treated as not only a need, but also a symbol of status. Especially, to young generation, brand, model number etc of mobile sets are very important. Teenagers are quite keen to get their own mobile as early as possible, which is a very positive sign for mobile operators. TECHNOLOGICAL FORCES Use of Internet: the use of internet has been increasing at an exponential rate in Bangladesh. Moreover, with the emergence of optical fiber, this usage and other related facilities has been growing potentially. Internet is helping the mobile companies in promotional activities, providing information and guideline to endusers, maintaining coordination within internal departments and other related activities as well. The networking and follow-up with the customers is also getting done within favorable cost via internet. Telecommunication: In recent years. People of Bangladesh have grown the habit of using cell phones to a huge extent. People are responding to the various promotional activities that are being done via this mode. The increasing number of cell phone users and the need of more dynamic and corporate friendly telecommunication service providers can be a great opportunity for any new mobile company to emerge in this market. Media Revolution: the revolutionary advancement in television, print, visual and other media has made the promotional activities of mobile operators to be more intense, creative and easily available; as well as to promote and create the need amongst the target market of the business venture. 1.10.2 Comparison of Subscriber Base The total number of Mobile Phone Subscribers has reached 44.80 million at the end of July 2008. The Mobile Phone subscribers are shown below: Operators Subscribers Grameen Phone Ltd. (GP) 20.84 TMIB (Aktel) 7.98 Orascom Telecom Bangladesh Limited (Banglalink)9.90 PBTL (Citycell) 1.67 Teletalk Bangladesh Ltd. (Teletalk) 0.93

Warid Telecom International L.L.C (Warid) Total 44.80

3.48

1.11 SWOT ANALYSIS Strengths The Network-The latest GSM technology in Bangladesh: At the corner stone of Warid Telecom’s operational agenda is ensuring that comprehensive network coverage is provided to all subscribers across all locations. In this context, Warid Telecom has decided to opt for GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication) technology for its network in Bangladesh, as it is the global standard for digital cellular telephone service. GSM networks support enhanced data applications and more than 1 billion customers in 109 countries are using this technology. Warid Telecom has launched its cellular services based on 900 and 1800 GSM technology, in order to optimize the utilization of frequency, thus ensuring the highest quality and service. Warid Telecom’s GSM network is set to cover 64 districts of Bangladesh to ensure that its service can seamlessly reach out to every corner of the country. Network capacity is also outstanding as the distance between two towers is six kilometers for Warid, whereas for the other operators’, this distance is nine kilometers. Very Strong Research & Development: Warid has made no compromise on investments required for research and development. With a projected capital expenditure of over US $700 million, Warid Telecom has been set up to provide a premium quality GSM service, which will reach out to most parts of Bangladesh by the end of 2007. Pioneer in some key technologies: Warid Telecom’s place at the technological frontier - Custom-made network for Bangladesh’s environment - Congestion-free connectivity in all coverage areas - Roll out plan for complete national populated coverage by 200X - Future professional network (GPRS compatible and 3G upgraded with soft switch and media gateway architecture) - State of the art IP based contact center and leading data center Exclusive Customer Care: Warid’s mandate for doing businesses by keeping customers at the forefront is reflected in its 'one stop' concept for all of the customer’s telecom requirements. Warid has the maximum number of Sales and Customer Service Centers countrywide, equipped with cutting edge technologies to ensure that customer needs and demands are catered for in the shortest possible time. Warid’s highly trained and well-groomed team of Customer Service Executives is on hand 24 hours to provide the customers support in any area- all to make sure that their communication experience with use is facilitated in the smoothest way possible. Best Practices: Warid Telecom believes in a process driven setup with comprehensive business processes covering all its activities. All business processes are ETOM compliant as per accredited international standards. Innovation: Warid is committed to providing superior level of professional services to all its customers - before, during and after the deployment of its leading solutions. To accommodate its customer's demands, Warid has deployed a state-of-the-art 2.5G EDGE compliant network. There are also innovative services of various standards that cater to a wide spectrum of users. Strong financial infrastructure: projected capital expenditure of Warid Telecom in this country was of over US $700 million in pre-launch period. Partnership with some the major Cellular Giants: Warid is partners with some of the leading vendors in the telecom industry, who help in providing the best and the latest network solutions for the businesses. These vendors include cellular giants Ericsson, Nortel, Siemens, Cisco and Huawei. Vast experience of these cellular giants in the industry, coupled with Warid Telecom's sound financial backing, has placed it in a strong strategic position to capture the market share in the tapped as well as the untapped market.

Weaknesses Lack of Experience of Pakistani Top Management in Local Market: Warid Telecom has brought some of the best people from Pakistan for Bangladesh operations. Top level decisions are totally dominated by Pakistani Management as around 80% of HODs (Head of the Department) are from Pakistan. This is sometimes bad in a sense that this Pakistani Management lacks the knowledge regarding the corporate environment and market of Bangladesh. This often might lead to wrong decisions to be implemented. According to my opinion about this company is that at least Marketing Department and Business Strategy Department should have been dominated by people experienced in Local market. Lack of Coordination among different Departments has also been a major problem for the company. For example: Customer Service (CS) Department sometimes allocates SIMs to VIP customers without taking any prior approval from Finance. Location Problem for offices: For, last one year, Warid Telecom has been facing the problem of finding suitable places for its offices. This is one of the main reasons why Warid is focusing more on developing its franchise centers. Failure to develop a good rapport with the media: Warid Telecom has really not been successful to maintain a supportive relationship with the local media. A lot of misunderstandings with the media could have solved by Warid regarding the launching time, package offerings etc, if it had taken some pro-active approaches. Also, even after its commercial launch, Warid is not getting a good media exposure. Dissatisfaction Level of Employees is getting higher and higher in terms of position, job scope and opportunity, salary and authority. Six working days and no overtime policy are also two major factors in this regard. Opportunities Booming Telecommunication sector in Bangladesh: Warid Telecom has planned to establish itself as a Market leader in this booming sector within next 5 years, and increase the overall market size through broader coverage of all income groups. Warid Telecom's superior Technology, products, high quality of service, affordability, and customer support can enable it to not only capture market share from existing players, but also acquire the so far untapped market. More experienced people in the local telecommunication field could be included in the team for a better understanding in the market Emerging new business sectors (especially MNCs) in the country are creating new customer groups Growing middle class population is becoming the most prospective customer base for Warid Telecom. The buying power of buyers is also increasing, so as their usage of mobiles Functional market (EDGE, GPRS users) is quite potential for Warid If Warid Telecom can make efficient promotion and utilization its latest GSM technology, it can take market shares from existing operators as these competitors have congested network structure because of the unplanned customer growth Threats Competition among existing mobile operators is getting fierce. It is very difficult for any new mobile company to take share from this market. If Warid fails to meet the customer expectations, company’s future would be at stake. Lack of transparency in the Licensing Agreement with previous Government can be a major threat for the existing business of Warid Telecom. Moreover, it is really bad blow on the company’s brand image. Both an unstable political environment and recession in the economy are obstacles to a smooth running of business Lack of support from Telecommunication Regulatory Body

Possible Health Hazards from using mobile phones can act as a negative factor for mobile operators.

Project Part

2. Introduction There is a fierce competition in the telecom industry in Bangladesh. Industry Players- the telecom operators are taking aggressive marketing strategies to snatch away customers from the competitors and also for some operators, this is important for their survival. But in order to be successful in this industry, Advertisements and promotional activities are very important. Industry players are heavily advertising in different advertising mediums to promote their tariffs, offers, value added services, social responsibilities, achievements etc. to the customers. Because they know, this is very important to share these informations with their customers and potential customers to show that they are offering better than their competitors in order to attract and persuade the customers to choose that telecom operator’s services. So telecom companies are being very creative in making advertisements and very responsive to their competitors. The newest member of the industry and still a very new face, Warid Telecom also needs to be very creative, responsive and competitive in order to both survive and to achieve result as they expect. Warid Telecom is trying to do exactly the same. They have already proved their strength by showing a very rapid growth. Warid telecom has reached 1 million customers in just 70 days and 3 million customers in just 1 year. This superb achievement was only possible because of the smart, creative marketing, promotional advertising activities done by Warid telecom and also because of the quality of service. 3. Objectives of the Study My objective to do this study is to find out the advertising activities by Warid telecom in details and find out the impacts and effectiveness of these activities on young generation. 4. Significance of the Study This study if of high importance to decision makers especially marketing managers, research officers. Because in this research, the impacts of Warid telecom’s advertising activities will be found out and also how it effective it was on young generation. This will enable them to make necessary modifications to strategy and decision making regarding their target market of young generation and advertisements targeted towards them. 5.

Hypothesis

My hypothesis is the advertising activities of Warid telecom have good impacts on young generation and effective. 6. Methodology I have collected both primary and secondary informations. My primary information sources were interviewing some of the Warid employees and collecting information through questionnaire (attached at the appendix). Secondary information sources were internet and some of the secondary informations were collected from the Warid employees. Then in 1st part of my report I have shown Advertising activities of Warid telecom in details and in the 2nd part I have analyzed the impact of those advertising activities on young generation and how effective those activities. I have analyzed the informations collected through questionnaire.

7. Advertising Activities of Warid Telecom 7.1 Warid’s major advertising activities running on 7.1.1 Zahi Postpaid At Zahi postpaid, Advertisement campaign, Warid is emphasizing low call rate, 1 second pulse and crystal clear sound. This particular campaign is advertised heavily for more than 3 months and still running. At the beginning, Kumar Bishawjit, who is a famous singer, managing director of Gunchil Media Limited & executive director of Hotel Saint Martin Limited, was their brand ambassador for this campaign. Later, Hossain Khaled, who is the managing director of Anwar group, became the brand ambassador. Now Kaniz Almas, a beauty expert and also managing director of Persona group, is the brand ambassador of this campaign. So, it is clear, that Warid is targeting upper class or the business class people for their Zahi Postpaid. 7.1.2 Free Handsets and Bundle offers For around 3 months Warid Telecom has introduced many free handset offers and bundle offers. In free handset offers, if a specified amount of talk time is purchased with a new connection, a handset will be given free. This is in fact a very lucrative offer and Warid introduced these kinds of offers 1st in the market and later this strategy was followed by other competitors as well. A similar kind of offer is bundle offer where a bundle of handset, new connection, talk time etc are offered at a lower price. 7.1.3 Offer a free copy of BLACK’s latest album “ABAR” with a Zem connection Very recently Warid sponsored the release of band BLACK’s latest album “ABAR”. Then Warid introduced an offer where a free copy of the album will be given for any new Zem prepaid connection. This marketing activity shows that, Warid has been targeting young generation. They also created caller tunes for the songs of the album and Warid users will be able to set those caller tunes in their mobiles in order to entertain their callers. 7.1.4 Other Advertising Activities There are many other very creative offers offered by Warid Telecom. One of such offers, Warid introduced a very lucrative business class bundle offer where for the time for any mobile operators, they included expensive “htc PDA” handsets in their offer with a 6 months free internet and Zahi Royal connection bundle for very attractive prices. Warid also heavily advertise their value added services which are of wide variety as well such as Sports news, Alerts, Greetings, Horoscope, Jokes, Weather etc.

Warid also advertises their different packages of Zem prepaid and Zahi Postpaid. They have 3 types customized Zem prepaid packages excluding Zem Regular which are Zem 24 hrs, Zem FnF and Zem 1 sec. They have 3 types of Zahi postpaid packages as well which are Zahi Classic, Zahi Supreme and Zahi Royal. 7.2 Warid Telecom’s Advertising Activities on different Medias Warid Telecom is advertising on TV, Radio, Billboard, Newspaper, Magazine. I have tried to find out the advertising activities of Warid Telecom for the month of July in the main 4 advertising categories which are TV, Radio, Billboard & Newspaper. 7.2.1 Advertising Activities on TV channels: Warid advertises in all the Bangla TV channels except for BTV and Islamic TV. In the month July, three Warid advertisements were shown on TV, which are Kumar Bishawjit- Crystal clear sound (40 second slot) Warid Night Time offer (40 second slot) Warid Mobile Internet- Kalipod Pramani (40 second slot) These 3 advertisements were shown in 4000 to 4500 slots in all channels total. According to Marketing Research Officer of Warid Telecom, the main competitors are advertising double or triple the volume than Warid advertisements. Also competitors like Grameenhphone are advertising in BTV and Islamic TV as well. Grameenphone has advertised 8 different types of advertisements in the month of July where Banglalink has advertised 7 and Aktel has advertised 3. 7.2.2 Advertising activities on Radio: Warid Telecom is advertising in Radio Today, Radio Foorti and Radio Amar. The advertisements were Zahi postpaid with Kumar Bishawjit, Zem prepaid, Prepaid bundle offer, Amar call amar moto and night time offer. It was 900 to 1000 spots in total. (Note: TV and Radio information and data were collected from the interview with Ishita Jabeen Khan, Marketing Research Officer.) 7.2.3 Advertising activities on Billborads: There are 5 types of billboard advertisements that Warid are using which are Billboards- These are large boards advertisements. Mega sign- These are small boards usually advertised many in numbers and arranged in a long line at roadside and placed at lamppost height. Unipole- These are large advertising structure placed in a pole. Overhead- These are the advertisements which fully cover one side of a over bridge. LED- These are large electrical boards which play animated advertisements. Here are the billboards advertising activity in Dhaka city (for July ’08): Area Type Quantity Bijoy Sharani Billboard 1 Dhanmondi Billboard 2 Elephant Road Billboard 1 Farmgate LED 1 Billboard 2 Gulshan LED 1 Billboard 2 Kuril Billboard 2 Mirpur – 1 Billboard 1 Panthopath LED 1 Billboard 2 Shahbag Billboard 1 Shamoly Unipole 3 Sheraton mor Billboard 2

Shishu Park Mega sign 30 Sonargon Mega sign 40 Billboard 1 Tejgaon Mega sign 60 Uttara Overhead 2 Billboard 1 Badda Billboard 1 Baitul Mukarram Overhead 2 Bangla motor Billboard 1 Fakirapul Billboard 1 FDC Unipole 2 Gabtoli Billboard 1 Gulistan Billboard 1 Janapath mor Billboard 1 Khamer Bari Billboard 1 Khilgaon Billboard 2 Moghbazar Billboard 2 Mohakhali Billboard 2 Motijheel Billboard 2 Paturia Billboard 1 Shamibag Billboard 2 Shantinagar Billboard 1 Stadium Billboard 1 (Note: Billboard data were collected collected from the interview with Md. Rasel Al Habib, Senior Executive, Marketing Services.) 7.2.4 Advertising activities on Newspapers: This is the advertising media where every different advertisements are present and in details. So in any other kind of media, it is in most cases mentioned at the bottom to look for details in the newspapers. The common trend in telecom industry is to heavily advertise in the weekends and holidays so that those advertisements will have more possibility to reach most people. Warid introduced 4 new offers in the month of July, which are Bonus talktime, sms, voice sms for recharging inactive SIM Free HS & Zahi Royal connection for purchasing BDT 6,000 talk time Black’s latest album ‘ABAR’ with Zem prepaid connection Introduces HTC PDA handsets with unlimited internet & Zahi Royal Old advertisements of Zahi postpaid, mobile internet, Zem prepaid were repeated in this month newspapers. A total of 463 Warid advertisements were shown to different newspapers. (Note: Newspaper data were collected by going through different daily newspapers) 7.2.5 Advertising Expense Breakdown and Trend I have collected the advertisement expense data for different advertising mediums for 1 year period. Those Medias are Billboard which include 5 types of billboard advertisement as mentioned before Outdoor which include any kind of outdoor advertisements except those 5 types of billboard (an example can be traffic stands) Press which include newspaper, magazines etc. Electronic Media which include advertising in Television, Radio. The expense data is showing very inconsistent trends. It shows that Warid telecom started their advertising slowly. Then at the 5th and 6th month of their operations they heavily advertised. In each of these months, advertising expense exceeded 200 million in average. In the 1st of these two months which was October ’07 billboard advertisements were especially emphasized which was around 120 million BDT. Then in the 2nd month which was November ’07 TV advertisements were

highly emphasized which was 113 million. After that advertising slowed down again. From January ’08 expending was raised again and from that time on, it was rather a consistent trend. From the graph of advertising compositions, I can see that from the 1st half of the year, TV and billboard advertisements were more emphasized on whereas on the later months outdoor and TV was the main expenditures. Press media was a field of balanced expenditure all around, as this media is the key to communicate the details of all the offers and packages.

8. Warid Telecom’s Advertising Effectiveness and Impacts on Young Generation In target market for telecom industry in Bangladesh, young generation is the most aware, enthusiastic segment. Because they have a lots of friends to keep in touch with, so much to talk about. Many of them are going through to use multiple SIMs from different mobile operators as to enjoy the lower rate, more FnFs etc to talk more and so naturally they are very aware of the activities taken by telecom companies in order to better manage their talking needs by minimizing the cost. This young generation is really is a very interesting segment for the telecom companies and they know it very well which is easily observed by their heavy marketing activities and campaigns just for this group. For example, Grameenphone has created a very strong brand like Djuice, which is very popular and successful brand, targeting this group. Warid telecom, which has shown extraordinary growth in just their 1st year of commercial operations, is the newest member of the industry and is showing magnificent creativity and efforts to reach the customers. Now I want to see what kind of impact Warid advertising activities had over the young generation. To find that out, a questionnaire was designed and 157 sample responses were collected. Now I am analyzing the collected output. I will be analyzing the outputs in 2 sections. In first section, I will classify the respondents in different groups based on how they were interested towards Warid telecom and find out the responses and reactions for each different groups. In second section, I will analyze the some other key questions on general basis.

8.1 Informations about Respondents 8.1.1 Gender My sample size of 157 had 91 male and 66 female respondents. 8.1.2 Time duration of using mobile phone

The data below shows for how long respondents are using mobile phone. Respondents Less than 1 year 21 1 to 3 years 59 Above 3 Years 77

Analysis and Findings 9. Analysis by Group First, I have separated the samples based on using Warid, so Warid users and nonWarid users. Warid Users Non-Warid users 33 124 Next based on the replies from the following question (Q 10), which is directed towards non-Warid users, I have divided the non-Warid users in 3 different groups. (Q10) If you are not using Warid, are you considering to use Warid- if you are to switch your current operator Or to try a new operator? 1) No 2) It is in my consideration 3) I have already liked an offer and thinking to accept it 4) Definitely People, who answered 1st option- “No”, they do not want to try Warid in the near future, they are one group (Group 1). People, who answered the 2nd option- “It is in my consideration”, are another group (Group 2). The people who answered 3rd and 4th options- I categorized them in another group (Group 3) as they strongly considering Warid. The responses were as follows: Total Not Considering Considering Strongly Considering 124 35 61 28 28.23% 49.19% 22.58% This data is a showing a very good potential for Warid telecom as because 49% of the non-Warid users are considering to use Warid services if they were to switch their current operator or to try a new operator. Also another not negligible segment of 23% are strongly considering Warid. 9.1 Analysis of Group 2 - “Who are considering Warid” I am going to show this group’s response for que11, which is, (Q11) If you are considering Warid, what are your current reactions to Warid ads? 1) I have already decided to use Warid, so I do not pay any attention to ads 2) I pay attention to Warid ad details to see if it matches my expectations 3) I look in the ads if any better offer is launched as I am not fully convinced yet 4) I do not pay much attention Now, as they are only considering Warid, option 1 is not applicable for them. Their responses were Total Option 2 Option 3 Option 4 61 21 14 26 34.43% 22.95% 42.62% So People who are considering Warid, 34% of them said, they pay attention to Warid Ad details to match their expectations and 23% said, they search in the ads in order to see if any better offers are being launched as because they still are not that satisfied with the current offers. Another implication might be, as they have to go through the switching process which is not really comfortable, they want to

do this only if the end-result makes up for the trouble. So even if they are interested in Warid, they are waiting and observing the activities of Warid before their final decision making. The rest 43% said, they do not pay much attention to ads even if they are considering Warid. Now reasons behind their responses will be more clear as I analyze the responses of the people of this group for the next question. Now in order to do that, the people who chose either option 2 or option 3- I am considering them in a single category, as they share similarities which is, although they are considering Warid, they want to verify their choices by going through Warid ads and activities to verify their choice. (Q12) If you are considering Warid, What are the reasons for your interest in Warid? a) Low tariff b) Strong brand image c) Feedback from others d) Attractive Advertisements e) Attractive offers f) Attractive Value added services For the question above, respondents can choose multiple factors. Options 2 & 3 from Q11 (35) Option 4 from Q11 Low Tariff 28 80% Strong Brand Image Feedback from others Attractive Ads 9 Attractive offers 21 Attractive VAS 3

(26) 11 6 8 26% 60% 9%

42% 17% 23% 4 7 0

14 20 15% 27% 0%

54% 77%

This graph is showing, the responses of the 2 category from question 11 about the reasons behind their consideration for Warid (in percentage). Now, for people who chose option 2 and 3, Low tariff (80%) was the biggest factor for their consideration of Warid. Then another important factor was attractive offers, which 60% of them chose. It is to notice that, only 17% chose “Strong brand image” as their reason for interest. This is not a very good sign. Rather this explains, why although these many people are considering Warid’s attractive tariff rates and offers but they are not seriously considering to start using Warid. It is indeed a bit difficult to straight forward consider such a newcomer over so strongly positioned competitor like Grameenphone. Now as for the people who chose option 4, who are considering Warid but do not pay much attention to Warid ads. There can be only 1 implication behind this. Which is, they must have considered 1 or more Warid offer or package and if they decide to use Warid, they will choose that considered offer or package. Now I see that the 77% of them choose, “feedback from others” as the reason for their consideration of Warid. This can explain why they do not pay much attention to ads as because they already had some positive feedbacks from their friends and family about some Warid offer or package, which in turn created some interest in them to consider Warid. There is another noticeable feature for this group which is more than half of them thinks Warid has a strong brand image which is not really in line to what other people who consider Warid think. This too can be explained by their hearing of positive feedback from others. Implications 1) 1st of all, almost half of the non-Warid users have Warid in consideration for their next purchase and 23% of them are strongly considering to use Waridshow that, Warid advertising activities are really having very good impacts on young generation. 2) 61 people said, Warid is in their consideration and 39 (64%) out of them chose the reason behind their interest as low tariff rates and 46% reasoned

attractive offers which shows that Warid advertising campaigns on different package tariff and offers are having quite successful results. 3) 33% perceive that Warid has a strong brand image and 46% pointed “feedback from others as their reason to consider Warid. The first data shows that, two third of the people interested in Warid did not choose Warid has a strong brand image for their interest- which is not a very good sign. However the second data shows that almost half the respondents had positive feedbacks about Warid which is a very good sign. It shows Warid telecom’s quality of service. 9.2 Analysis of Group 3- “Who strongly considered Warid” 28 people out of 124 was strongly interested (from Q 10). From this 28 people, 16 said, “I have already liked an offer and thinking to accept it” (option 3 of Q 10) and the rest 12 said, “Definitely” (option 4). This means, 16 people who chose option 3 have a specific Warid package or offer in mind and they are thinking to accept the offer while 12 people who chose option 4 do not have a specific offer in mind but was strongly interested in Warid for other reasons. The implication behind this 2nd group can be, they are actually liked many aspects and activities of Warid telecom like good feedbacks from others, interesting and creative advertisements, many lucrative offers and which made them very interested in Warid telecom in general. Now as for their responses in Que 11: (Q11) If you are considering Warid, what are your current reactions to Warid ads? 1) I have already decided to use Warid, so I do not pay any attention to ads 2) I pay attention to Warid ad details to see if it matches my expectations 3) I look in the ads if any better offer is launched as I am not fully convinced yet 4) I do not pay much attention “thinking to accept” from Q10 “Definitely” from Option 1 11 69% Option 2 0 0% Option 3 5 31% Option 4 0 0%

Q10 0 8 2 2

0% 67% 17% 17%

So, from people who said “thinking to accept” from Q10, 69% of them chose option 1 and 31% chose option 3. That means, most of this group do not really pay attention to ads as they have already decided about accepting an offer. As for the rest 31%, they are still looking for if any better offer launched. This is not irrational, as the fierce competition in telecom industry force the competitors to come up with better offers in a continuous basis. Now, 67% of the people who said “Definitely” in Q10, chose option 2, which means most of this group, who are strongly interested, now trying to choose the best offer by going through the ads. Now as for Group 3’s responses in Que 12: Now I want to see, group 3’s response for Q12. The question was: “If you are considering Warid, What are the reasons for your interest in Warid?” The responses were: Group 3 (28) Low Tariff 12 43% Strong Brand Image Feedback from others Attractive Ads 4

15 6 14%

54% 21%

Attractive offers 15 Attractive VAS 0

54% 0%

This group emphasized Attractive offers (54%), Strong Brand Image (54%) and Low tariff (43%) as to reason their strong consideration for Warid telecom. 9.3 Analysis for Group 1- Who did not consider Warid Out of total 124 non-Warid user, 28% fall in group 3, which is 35 people. At que 13, they responded why they did not consider Warid telecom. The que was, “If you are not considering Warid, What are the reasons behind your lack of interest to try Warid?” The responses were: Group 3 (35) Not a Reliable Brand 23 Do not know much about Warid Less attractive offers 3 Feedback from others 17 High Tariff 5 14% Less Value Added Services Not a very strong Network

66% 14 9% 49% 2 17

40%

6% 49%

It looks like this segment have some bad impressions about Warid Telecom. The main issues were “Not a reliable brand”- 66%, “Not a very strong network”- 49% and “Feedback from others”- 49%. Now the interesting point is the 17 people who chose “Not a very strong Network” were the ones who chose “Feedback from others”. I talked to most of them personally and that is what they said about feedbacks. It seems no other negative feedbacks about Warid were heard except for weak network. About this issue, I have talked with the Reporting Officer of Warid Telecom. According to him, although Warid has covered 64 districts in Bangladesh, there are some loopholes in the covering; means the covering is not strong enough for some areas. In those areas, there will be problem in talking or even no network can be found. But Warid is investing huge amount to gradually solve this problem and to make a more solid covering. But now-a-days even hearing that network issue should be much more rare as the network has been much stronger in recent months. So I think, the feedbacks they got are from several months back. Also it is not a negligible segment of 40% who said, who do not know much about Warid. It is true that Warid failed to reach these people positively. But it might be also, If Warid could reach these people, their impressions about Warid might have been different as it was the case for other groups. 66% of this group reasoned Warid not as a reliable brand. Strong brand image is created to a customer’s mind by factors like strong market presence by strong advertising and promotional activities, high quality and reliable service, positive feedbacks from other people etc. It seems in mostly all of these categories, Warid’s score was low to this group where the other groups of young generation’s view were different. Now I am looking this group’s answer for Que 4, where the question is, “Do you use more than 1 SIM?” Yes No 11 24 So 69% of them answered NO, which means they use only 1 SIM. When these were asked in the next question - Que 6, If No, What are the reasons for continuing with the current SIM? 1) Completely satisfied with the current service 2) Not that satisfied but going through the switching process is troublesome

Out of this 24 people, 4 went for the option 1. But the rest 20 people chose option 2. These 20 people are 83% of the people who use only 1 SIM and 57% of total group- Group 3. So this particular segment is really significantly influential to group 3. Now what this segment is saying that they are not satisfied with their current SIM but as this switching process is troublesome, they are staying with their current operator and do not want to try any new ones. It seems that, they are not very aware and witty even being part of the most aware and witty about mobile phones- the young generation. As because, I also observed that, in this group 3, 40% of total said, they did not know much about Warid where in other groups, they were mostly interested in Warid. In real life, many people like these are seen, who are not much interested in communications or very inactive in the mobile stuffs and do not give much effort behind utilizing the best call rates and also do not go through the switching process even if they are not satisfied with their current SIM- even in the young generation. Although not all who are using single SIM are less aware, but as I found some other traits for this group in the above analysis- It looks like most of this group are less aware. So their decisions do not carry that much weight. 9.4 Analysis for the Warid users Warid users were 33 in my sample size of 157. It means 21% of the total sample size. Now their response for Que 8 If yes, how much influence Warid Advertisements had over your buying decision? 1) Complete Influence 2) Strong Influence 3) Little Influence and attributable to other factors Total Complete Influence 33 8 14 11 24% 42% 33%

Strong Influence

Other factors

This shows, most of them (42%) had a strong influence of advertisements as a factor to choose the service of Warid Telecom. 33% said they were mostly influenced by other factors except advertising. About what these factors are, implications might be- mainly feedback from others. Also another factor can be that they did some searching themselves and chose Warid as to try a new operator. Then not a negligible segment of 24% said they had complete influence of advertisements to their decision making about Warid. This shows a very good result for the effectiveness of Warid advertisement as 66% of the Warid had significant influence of advertisements to choose Warid Telecom. I mentioned 66%, because I considered the people who had complete influence and who had strong influence. Now to see the reply of Warid users for que 9 The question was “What was the reason behind choosing Warid?” The answers were Warid Users Low Tariff 26 79% Strong Brand Image Feedback from others Attractive Ads 5 Attractive offers 17 Attractive VAS 0

12 8 15% 52% 0%

36% 24%

Almost all of them (79%) chose low tariff rates as their considering factor for choosing Warid. Another important factor was attractive offers. 52% of them pointed this factor as the considering reason. So I see here that mostly they are

attracted by the low tariff rates and the attractive offers of Warid Telecom. This was the case most of the people of who are interested in Warid Telecom. It shows that Warid are successfully devising smart tariff rates and strategies which are having very good impacts on young generation. Then 36% of Warid users said, they chose Warid because they see Warid has a strong brand image- act as a factor. 10. Analysis Group Comparisons I have done some analysis for each group separately. Now for some of the questions I want to do some comparisons on group basis. For question 14 The question was, “In recent months, Warid has been offering many free Handset (mobile) offers, where if you buy a mentioned amount talk time you get a Handset free or at a very low price. Have you seen any of these?” This is one of the very creative, lucrative offers that Warid is promoting for the last few months. The answering options for this question were 1) Yes and I have accepted an offer like that 2) Yes and I was interested 3) Yes but I was not interested 4) No, I have not seen any Warid Users (33)

Not Considering (35) Considering (61) Strongly Considering (28) Option 1 17 52% 0 Option 2 9 27% 3 Option 3 7 21% 8 Option 4 0 0% 22

0% 9% 23% 63%

0 32 15 14

0% 52% 25% 23%

0 22 6 0

0% 79% 21% 0%

Now this question was mainly designed to measure the reach of this offer. Reach is the number or extent of customers covered by an particular advertisement or promotion. So first just to see the reach of this offer for each group, I am adding the result of 1st 3 options as each of this represents that at least the customer has seen the offer. Now for Warid users, the reach is 100%. For the group not considering Warid, it is only 32%. For the group considering Warid, reach is 77% & for the group strongly considering Warid, it is 100%. The result shows a really good reach. But not necessarily this can be taken as a satisfactory result. Because in the question, it was asked if the respondents have seen any of such offers, where Warid has been devised more than 6 of such strategies and advertised them in the recent months. As I have do not have the data of how many offers like that they have seen, I can not tell if they have seen 5 offers or 1 offers. That data would have shown a better measure of reach for these promotional campaigns. Now as for Warid users, 52% said they have seen such offer and also accepted an offer like that. From other people who saw such offers, 27% said, they were interested and 21% said they were not interested. None of them said, they have not seen any offer like that. I think, it is only natural as they had to go through purchase related decisions and also the requirement to answer this question was too easy which is seeing only 1 offer will do. From the people who are not considering Warid, naturally none of them has accepted

an offer like that. From this group who saw an offer, only 9% was interested and 23% was not interested. But most of them have not even seen even a single offer like that. From the people who are considering Warid, majority of them are interested in these offers. 23% of this group has not seen any of such bundle offers. The people who are strongly considering Warid, 79% of them were interested in these offers. Also everyone of this group has seen at least a single of this kind of offer. Group Comparison for question 18 to 20 Now these questions ask if the respondents have seen the prepaid package Zem 24 hours, Zem 1 sec and Zem FnF in 3 different questions. Recently these Zem prepaid categories are not really heavily advertised. So from the respondents reply, it will be clear how much Warid was able to create these brands’ awareness by getting the answer of “do the people know about these packages?” Here are the replies for the question, the number shows the people’s count who said yes. Warid Users (33)

Not Considering (35) Considering (61) Strongly Considering (28) 24 hrs 28 85% 6 1 sec 29 88% 5 14% FnF 28 85% 5 14%

17% 22 24

25 36% 39%

41% 18 17

17 64% 61%

61%

Here I find, almost all the Warid users know about the Zem prepaid packages. It is very natural as they have gone purchase related decisions. Then the group who are considering Warid, only around 40% of them are aware about these customized packages. Then around 60% people from the group who are strongly considering Warid know about the prepaid packages. Last from the group who are not considering Warid, only around 15% of them are aware about the prepaid packages. So it is observed that, Warid was not very successful to create awareness about their prepaid categories to young generation. They should advertise much more for these customized packages just to create more awareness. Group Comparison for Question 22 In this question, young people’s feedbacks were taken about attractiveness, creativity and quality of content (offers) of Warid advertisements and also about reliability of Warid. Respondents have to choose from a scale of 1 to 10 to give their opinions about those 4 factors. This question was designed in the following way. (Q22) Please evaluate what do you think about the following aspects of Warid Advertisements. Unattractive 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 9 10 Very Attractive Unimaginative 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 9 10 Highly Creative Poor Offers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Great Offers Not a Reliable Brand 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

8 8

9 10 Highly Reliable Brand The total responses for each factor were averaged and it was done group wise. Warid Users (33)

Not Considering (35) Considering (61) Strongly Considering (28) Attractiveness 7.11 4.79 Creativity 7.94 5.27 6.68 Offers 8.11 5.78 6.76 Brand Reliability 8.89 4.47

5.88 7.32 7.44 6.40

6.46 7.13

This table shows a trend where Warid users evaluated these 4 aspects by giving highest score who is followed by “strongly considering group” then “considering group” and then at last the “not considering group”. Warid users highly emphasized on brand reliability of Warid and their average score was 8.89 on this factor. If a brand is very strong and has a firm position on people’s mind, that brand will be reliable to both users and non users. But if a brand is new and not many people know about it. Obviously the non-users of that brand will not really find it reliable. However if the users of new brand are satisfied by the service and quality of that brand, then they will find it reliable. This high score on brand reliability by Warid users is showing they are enjoying quality services. The other factors evaluations are quite positive and bears high score as well. Warid users score about offers says they also think that Warid has very good offers. The people who are strongly considering Warid are emphasizing on good offers and creativity of Warid Telecom. As they are seriously considering to start using Warid, this is expected that they have made that choice as they must have liked Warid offers. Their average score on brand image was above 7, which is a very good score. The group with the largest number of people, who are considering Warid, gave decent scores for all the factors. Their trend of giving importance to the those 4 factors are quite similar to the people who are strongly considering Warid. This group decently interested in the offers of Warid and liked the creativity in their offers. They also gave decent score to the newest member of Telecom industry Warid Telecom as they are having quite some positive feedbacks about Warid according to the information from previous analysis. The people who are not considering Warid gave very poor marks in all the aspects. Their average score on brand reliability was very low of 4.47. It seems that they really do not find Warid a brand to trust. And also from previous analysis, it was seen that most of group is not that enthusiastic about mobiles. Response for question 21 Q21. How often do you find any ads of Warid in any kind of media per week? (No need to be exact but close estimation) 1) None 2) 1 to 4 times 3) 5 to 8 times 4) 9 to 12 times 5) 12 to 15 times

6)

More than 15 times

This question was designed to observe the reach of Warid advertising activities in general by finding out how many times the respondents face & also remember Warid advertisements in any kind of media in a week. Warid Users (33)

Not Considering (35) Considering (61) Strongly Considering (28) 1 to 4 0 0% 8 5 to 8 4 12% 13 9 to 12 12 36% 6 12 to 15 11 33% 5 Above 15 6 18% 3

23% 37% 17% 14% 9%

12 13 21 16 9

20% 21% 34% 26% 15%

0 2 7 11 8

0% 7% 25% 39% 29%

The response to this question is showing a very good reach of Warid advertisements measuring by number of times a customer in this particular segment face ads in a week. It can be considered that above 9 times per week is a measure of good reach which include the last 3 options given for this question. In this way, 87% of Warid users see more than 9 ads in a week where this percentage for the groups “Strongly Considering”, “Considering” and “Not Considering” are 93%, 59% and 40% respectively which are very good. This is not a surprise though. Because in reality, telecom companies are in fierce competition with each other and they are always trying to outdo their competitions by taking more and more aggressive marketing strategies and heavy expending on the advertisements. It is so much so that wherever people go and whatever they do they can not really avoid advertisements by the telecom companies. These advertisements are everywhereroadside lampposts, large billboards, traffic stands, roadblocks, large LEDs (Roadside TVs) and even Rickshaw Rain covers. These were only the outside picture. Other medias like Television channels, radio, newspaper, magazine are full of advertisements by these fierce competitors. So people are being more exposed to these kinds of advertisements day by day. It is to notice that, Warid users or the people who are thinking of using Warid are facing a higher range of advertisements than the people who are less interested or not considering at all. The group who is strongly considering Warid, almost all of them (93%) faces good number of ads in a week which as considered before above 9 advertisements. Their ratio is even higher than the Warid users (87%). I think the reason is, as that group is seriously considering to purchase Warid service- they are much more careful than other groups in this regard. Because this informations will help them making a better decision. For the group who is not considering Warid, 40% of them are facing a good number of advertisements. This 40% is a decent number despite of the fact that most of them did not know about the Warid prepaid categories and many of them did not know about the free handset offers. So it does show, even by going through many advertisements different groups has different impacts as different group has different purpose or goals. Like people who are strongly considering are not only facing the ads but also going through what is inside the ads and for the group from the other end, they only look at the unavoidable ads.

11. Some more Analysis on general basis Analysis of question 15 The question was if the respondents know any of their friends who have accepted one of the free handset offers or bundle offers. Q15. Do you know any of your friends who has accepted one of such offers? 1) Yes. (Please specify how many ________) 2) No The replies Total Yes 157 61 39%

were No 89 57%

68 people (39%) from my total respondents of 157 said they know someone who has accepted such an offer. Now I have also provided a space for them to specify the number of friends they know who accepted such offer. The table below is showing how many people knows only 1 of their friends as a user of such offers, how many knows 2 and so on up to 4 people. 1 2 3 4 Total 47 9 5 0 80 77% 15% 8% 0% From these 61 people, 47 said they know 1 of their friends who has accepted an offer like that, 9 people said they know 2 of their friends and 5 people said they know 3 of their friends and none said 4 or above. Finally, from my sample, respondents know 80 of their friends who have accepted either a free handset offer or a bundle offer. This shows a very good impact of Warid’s free handset and bundle offer marketing campaigns over young generation and also a good acceptance of Warid by this generation. It is also true that all these 80 people might not be separate individuals as there might be some kind of overlaps like multiple respondents might report a same friend and it might be like, some reported friends can be from the Warid group of my sample. So that number might be less than 80. Still this results represents a very good impact of Warid ad and promotions. For question 16 Q16. Can you recall an advertisement for Zahi Postpaid with Kumar Bishwajit? 1) Yes 2) No This advertised mentioned in the question is a heavily advertised campaign. This advertisement where Kumar Bishwajit is the brand ambassador has been advertised in all kinds of media for quite a long time. The replies for this question was, Total Yes No 157 147 10 94% 6% This advertisement is showing a wonderful of reach of 94%. Implications behind this can be, Kumar is a very among popular and well known to all of us, so people notice and remember this ad easily. Then advertised is also creative piece of work by Warid Telecom as they way they delivered the message and they also showed very

attractive and competitive tariff and other quality features. Also as I mentioned this ad has heavily shown in all kinds of media. This achievement also shows that, Warid telecom has the ability to create such an ad like this to reach a mass population and make that population remember the ad. Only advertising heavily can not achieve such success if the advertisement is not attractively designed to draw people which require creativity. However it is also true that not all of their advertisements were successful. As in previous analysis of different ads’ reach was not that satisfactory. I think, one of the major reasons behind this would be low budget on advertising. As Warid Telecom is advertising 2 to 3 times less than the strong competitors of the industry. Responses from question 17 The question was 2. Did you know that Warid has sponsored the release of BLACK’s latest album “ABAR” very recently? 1) Yes 2) No This is a campaign which is targeted towards the young generation. In this campaign, Warid sponsored the release of band Black’s latest album ‘Abar’ & also offered a free copy of that album with the connection of Zem prepaid. The response for this question will give a picture of how successful they were. Total Yes No 157 121 36 77% 23% The replies show that 77% of the total sample size knows the story that Warid telecom sponsored the release of Black’s latest album. This is a very good response. Young people are very much addicted to music nowadays and they really are very aware and careful about the release of new albums. This nature must have played a significant role behind the reach and awareness of this particular campaign. So this was a smart and creative strategy of Warid and it was successful as to be able to reach a high percentage of young people.

12. Recommendations Warid telecom should increase their budget on advertising. This is indeed very important for many reasons: Although Warid telecom is doing very good. Still for some its very good advertisements reach was not that satisfactory. It will only be a wasting if such good creative and effective marketing strategies were to be failed for only less advertising activities. Other strong competitors are advertising multiple times more than Warid telecom. In this competitive industry, not only for success but also even for surviving keeping up with the competitors is crucial. Also many people still are not very persuaded about Warid has a strong brand image. Although many people liked Warid offers and other features like low tariffs and customized packages, still they are quite hesitant about giving Warid connection a serious thought. So Warid must take steps to position their brands much stronger in peoples mind. Advertising is a very important factor for that achievement. Warid advertisement attractive did not get very impressive feedbacks on. So Warid should try to make their advertisements more catchy and soothing to the eye. They can also include many humor and fun in their advertisements to catch more eyes.

Warid telecom’s marketing campaigns and offers related with Black’s latest album Abar did get some very considerable attention in young mind’s. These are the creative to catch more customers from different segment by emphasizing some of the relevant and crucial attached with that segment. 13. Conclusion Warid telecom is doing extremely well and has a very good potential in the future. However not only keeping this up will be enough for their expected success. They must always find new creative strategies and aggressively and smartly apply those strategies in order to keep their rapid growth. After all, it is undeniably true that this telecom company Warid telecom has shown the fastest growth in Bangladeshi telecom market in a very little time. But of course, it is a very difficult challenge to be the best which is their target in such competitive market. So Warid telecom must try hard to keep up their good work and go for better.