Advancement in Asiatic EXP: a BTL Marketing Communication

Being of Asiatic Experiential Marketing Limited (Asiatic EXP) is the leading BTL marketing agency in the nation. I was lucky enough to be an intern of planning department of this company and could see the change which is occurring in the marketing communications arena personally. The way of communication with the people is changing. This adjustment has to be done as the lifestyle of modern people is changing along with the rise of digital media with technological improvement. Keeping pace with those changes, the moderately new digital marketing arena is getting great progress and other communication processes are also becoming dependent to it to make sure the optimum success for campaigns are achieved. To properly determine the level of advancement that Digital Marketing is having over the communication mediums, especially BTL marketing was the purpose of this report. Thus I have attempted to break down the internet behavior of the chose population and furthermore the level of attention the current BTL campaign promotions was getting over the digital mediums alongside their level of feasibility The results of those have shown that the digital marketing arena indeed is becoming quintessential as a modern day communication arsenal, amplifying the precision and effectiveness of the existing modules of communication.

Introduction

Along with the world, behaviors of the people are also changing at a rapid pace. To be in the same alignment with the changes occurring in human behaviors, the process of communicating to people is also changing. It has become more and more essential to find the right target group at the place they access the most as the conventional communication processes is becoming saturated. Asiatic Experiential Marketing Limited (Asiatic EXP), one of the major revenue generating wings of Asiatic 3sixty. Moreover, in the BTL marketing segment of the country Asiatic EXP is the pioneer and so far leading the industry from the front. However, the processes of the business entity are also changing in order to deal with the changing system as stated above. I was fortunate enough to witness the changing process first hand. To overcome the changes I also learned how to deal with this ever changing market place. Advancements of BTL marketing communication were required and so we need to make the best use of the modern marketing tool- the Digital side with an aim of finding the right target group at the right target place in this era. Any sort of campaigns at the moment, even campaigns that are BTL, is launched keeping in mind that the digital sphere is where almost all the target groups frequent. As the communication processes in today’s world have become more integrated than ever before, the use of the Digital Marketing processes for achieving greater effectiveness in BTL campaigns is the key driver. Through my study, I have tried to showcase the present scenario of how impactful the advancement of marketing communication has become in the BTL marketing arena. That is, how Digital Marketing is used as a tool to make BTL campaigns a successful one. This report will portray the whole process from targeting the target group in the huge digital sphere, showing them contents that will create a buzz in the market and will work as a catch to bring them to the actual campaign, to giving them something to recall through post event exploitation.

Objectives of the study

General Objective:

To figure out the advancement in BTL marketing communications through Digital Marketing.

Specific Objectives:

Impact the Digital Marketing arena has made on BTL marketing campaign platforms.
To study internet utilization example of the general population of Bangladesh.
To analyze internet behavior of the sample.
Facebook usage analysis of the sample.
Figuring out the impact done through showing different contents via digital media.
How successful the digital contents are to create top of the mind awareness (TOMA) and effective enough to drive audiences headed for BTL campaign events.

Methodology of the report

Putting the acquired knowledge from the university into practice, as well as the knowledge & skill gathered from the organization I have prepared the report. Firstly, the topic and research objectives were chosen and accordingly relevant data were attained on the issue at hand. At first the topic of the report and objectives of the research were identified and accordingly appropriate data were collected on the subject at hand.

The data collection method was two-fold.

Primary
Secondary

Primary Data:

Survey of 30 respondents.

The convenience sampling method was used to select the samples used for this report. As it was simpler for me to secure the data sample from the respondents who were the students of BRAC Business School, so I used the method.

Secondary Data:

Studying appropriate files of different wings of Asiatic 3sixty group and other different entities.
For completing this report both the data were taken into consideration and analyzed accordingly

Company Profile

Asiatic 3sixty started their journey on May 15th 1966, then known as East Asiatic, serving the general businesses in the absence of established brands in that period. As the time passed by, it has become the leading marketing communications group in the country, providing total marketing solutions to brands and helping them reach their true prospect. In the last 50 years, the group became the pioneering 360 degree marketing solution provider in the country as they lengthened their operation immensely and allowed them to set a standard for other agencies. In 1966, the group affiliated with the oldest agency in the world, with 150 years’ experience in marketing communications & that has grown to be the 4th largest international communications group- J. Walker Thompson (JWT), helping them to give pioneering innovative solutions to its clients by the acquired guidance of the international umbrella. Communication, experiential marketing, public relations, audio-visual productions, research, media buying, printing, outsourcing, broadcasting and digital marketing are the services that are provided by the group through 14 wings under it. Asiatic 3sixty group has the reputation of being one of the most preferred employer in the country which at present employs 875 people in all of its wings. The wings of the group are stated according to the different branches of marketing in the following page.

COMMUNICATION:-

Asiatic Marketing Communications Limited & Asiatic Talking Point Communications Limited boasts itself to be one of the best ATL (above the line) marketing solution. It provides its clients with their preferred ATL communication needs. The services include print ads, billboards to posters & booklets. Along with the variety of marketing tools in offer these two wings hold creativity as one of its core competencies making it a strong contender in the industry.

EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING:

Not only in our country, but also in the world Experiential Marketing is quite a new term in marketing. Fortunately, in this particular field, Asiatic group has the pride of being the initiator. Previously, Events, Activation & other BTL marketing campaigns were distinguished which is now known as Experiential Marketing together with providing the clients or the stakeholders and giving out the demanded service. In addition, this wing formerly known as Asiatic Events Marketing Ltd. & Asiatic Footprints has created remarkable experiences through innovation.

MEDIA PLANNING:

Maxus, Mindshare & MEC, three wings that are popularly known as “Group M” within the Asiatic ecosystem offers one basic function to their clients- Media buying service is provided to the clients through Maxus, Mindshare & MEC, the three wings of Asiatic which is known as “Group M” within its Ecosystem. This is the only function served by these wings. in today’s extremely volatile & saturated media jungle, Group M firms offer the best possible media real estate at the best possible price for their clients.

PUBLIC RELATIONS:

For an advertisement to be a success the idea it needs to be timely, good choice of media and most importantly the right message. To be fully integrated through IMC it has also ensured that there is public relation. Keeping liaison with personalities automatically improves the result of projects that is taken on by the clients of Asiatic. Forethough PR is its public relations wing. Ensuring that the right message is being conveyed to the right audience at the right time through the right media is crucial for any advertising success, but there is another factor that helps ensure that success- public relations. Building liaisons with personalities that might affect the outcome of any venture is essential and it is brought to the clients of Asiatic by the groups public relations wing Forethought PR.

PRINTING:

Moitri Printers Ltd. can be regarded as one the best printing solutions which has been operated under the umbrella of Asiatic group. By using top-quality & technologically developed printers alongside trained staff they provide the best output for their clients,

RESEARCH:

With a view to reaching to zenith of success, modern advertisers mix science through the process of communication. Likewise, Asiatic Group offers MRC-Mode which offers the latest analysis of the market scenario to endow the clients with accurate result.

AUDIO-VISUAL PRODUCTION:

Over a decade Asiatic Dhoni-chitra has been providing superior quality content and services to their partner in the field Audio-Visual productions. The purpose of this wing is to meet the international broadcasting standard through excellent service.

OUTSOURCING:

As an outsourcing agency Stencil Bangladesh Ltd. provides clipping path, image masking, shadow & reflection, image editing, raster to vector and other vast range of services to international clients. They are also affiliated with Bangladesh German Chamber of Commerce & Industries (BGCCI).

BROADCAST:

Radio Shadhin 92.4FM, has the honor of having the second largest audience share in the industry within only its third year of operation. With its vast range of unique radio experience for the savvy listeners of this era, they are soon to become a giant in the broadcasting field and yet another success story of the Asiatic group.

Encouraging fervent ideas for creating precious moments- moments that touch lives of people; moment that changes the what and how customers think; moments that turns into ‘Living Ideas”, is what Asiatic experiential Marketing Limited ( Asiatic EXP) intends to do. Shaping consumers’ idea about the brand and building brand equity is done through giving all these experiences- however, a brand is something what people say about it and the experience that people get. A self motivated team with their passion and rooted ROI (RelationshipOwnership-Innovation) in its value system, is the heart of creating these passionate moments. Asiatic EXP is associated with mega international events- not just for arranging them but for giving them new dimension. Asiatic EXP is not only connected in arranging mega nternational events but also for giving them new height. The degree of executions and how precise they are can be measured by A Guinness World Record they had set. For almost two decades, Asiatic EXP has been breaking clutter to facilitate sustainable brand growth- whether exhibiting cultural features or igniting loving moment of patriotism or carrying internet/digital servies to new set of customers. Asiatic EXP offers adaptable BTL marketing solutions and established themselves to be the best in the business, serving the corporate giants notably- Grameenphone, Facebook, British American Tobacco Bangladesh, Unilever Bangladesh, PepsiCo, Nestle Bangladesh, BEXCOM, Standard Chartered Bank Bangladesh, Suzuki Motors Bangladesh, AKIJ Group, Uttara Motors Bangladesh, HSBC Bangladesh, Huawei amongst many more. Besides, Asiatic EXP has the pleasure of working with Sweden Embassy, United Nation affiliates as UNDP and UNICEF; Embassy affiliates as USAID & UKAID; and the Government of Peoples Republic of Bangladesh apart from the business entities. Asiatic EXP has the honor of being the only agency in the country to have a Guinness World Record for their “Lakho Konthe Shonar Bangla” campaign. In addition to that, it also has the respect of being the most awarded agency in the prestigious Commawards by Bangladesh Brand Forum.

SWOT ANALYSIS OF ASIATIC EXP

Asiatic EXP is without a doubt the market leader in the BTL communication arena of Bangladesh. Yet, it has is strengths & weaknesses as well as may pursue few opportunities there for the taking and be careful of threats that might weaken them, just like every other firm. These aspects are stated below.

STRENGTH:

Brand Value: Undoubtedly, the biggest strength of this firm is the utter power of brand perception of the entire Asiatic group along with its tie with JWT. Overshadowing out the rest, their brand value keeps on amplifying in the industry being the oldest & the largest agency
Degree of Operation: Its immense operational magnitude and its variation played a vital role in attaining prominence in this field which is apparently one of the key strengths of this firm.
Honor: Another major strength of Asiatic EXP is, being awarded by national and international entities for carrying out events and activations perfectly and also their several triumph.
Diversely talented workforce: Despite the fact that the workforce is small in number in comparison to the workload, they are brilliant & efficient enough to give an edge to the company in the industry.

WEAKNESS:

Short of of Manpower: The workforce has to undertake many projects and in comparison to that, the numbers of people per project are less which eventually have a negative impact on the manpower’s efficiency.

OPPORTUNITY:

Undertaking more projects possessed by firm itself: “Lakho Konthe Shonar Bangla” was a great success for Asiatic EXP. So rather than only waiting for clients’ brief to come, the firm should undertake more projects owned by itself for showcasing the execution capability it holds.

THREATS:

Competitors: In this industry of BTL communication, Asiatic EXP has the advantage of being the market leader. However, there is always the threat of competitor’s taking the opportunity that they were supposed to grab. Hence, it’s better not to be over satisfied and not being relaxed with all the successes they achieved.
Political Issues: Another risk factor that have an impact on this kind of agencies is the inconsistent nature of our political situation

Analysis

It has turned out to be to very difficult to figure out where and when to locate the right group of onlookers as our way of living a life is turning out to be continuously chaotic and they are always on the go. However, with the normal progress in the field of innovation, it has gotten to be possible to precisely locate the right target bunch from the Digital sphere itself, a spot where everybody needs to be regular to fill any need be it social or be it business related. According to National Media Survey, BTRC (2015), it is estimated that in Bangladesh every seconds 19 new internet user emerges. Cumulating 932 users every hour and 22,376 every day. The survey also claims that there has been a growth of 36% in only 18 months, which is from January 2014 till June 2015. During this span of time, the number of internet users increased from 35.5million to 48.34 million. To demonstrate that the general population regardless of social and economic class & breaking all stereotypes are utilizing their recently gained cell telephones to great effect, the astounding Mobile internet usage growth of 506% is enough.

Besides, the famous Czech based social media analytics and publishing companySocialbakers reported that in Bangladesh every second roughly 10 people sign up into the famous social networking site Facebook. The report also suggests that cumulatively 652 hours are spent in that site every day, while this number is 15,642 people when it comes to logging into it at least once. In January 2011 the quantity of Facebook users in the nation was 3.8 million, with a user expansion of 52% in January 2014 the number heightened to 5.8 million. Bangladesh saw a quick increment that year in the user quantity when at December 2014 there were 11.4 million users with a stunning growth of 97% in under a year. Fresh statistics demonstrates that from that point forward 40% user development was recorded with 16 million user in July 2015.

Both the aforementioned facts and figure sources showcases that the amount of individuals in the digital sphere are rising quickly, which shows the way that regardless of how quick paced, unstable and odd our life might be, we usually have sufficient time to spend on and furthermore are eager about staying connected with the web for various purpose.

This recent Google Transparency Report (2016) highlighting the ever increasing nature of Google product usage, such as YouTube video streaming, can also be an example of the escalating internet users in Bangladesh. Remembering that, the Digital Marketing actions are created that has additionally affected the adequacy of BTL advertising effort, rather than utilizing usual strategies of producing buzz in the marketplace for promotion, are utilizing significantly more better-quality yet contemporary advanced promoting techniques. As indicated by need of various tasks, it has turned out to be very essential that we make use of diverse techniques for Digital Marketing to full impact with an aim of getting the maximum coverage.

The people who just joined the Digital Sphere is named as Netfants. They consume considerably less volume of internet data, however, their curiosity regarding the digital world is the highest. They consume significantly fewer volumes of internet data, but their interest with respect to the digital world is the maximum. Their need for direction regarding the usage of the internet is also the highest, whereas their need for control is lower than the rest. This specific group of internet users is influenced by the Neteens Neteens are the internet users who like to utter about themselves a lot and will take up any opportunity in the digital sphere to do so. They significantly uses more amount of internet data on social media as they are more passionate and enthusiastic about it. They are less curious than the Netfants, but more than the rest. They are still in constraint of lessons for further up scale in their internet lifestyle which likewise makes their necessity for control somewhat higher too. Netizens influences the Netfants.

When it comes to using the internet through various module Netizens are the users that are by far more mature. They are proficient at the fundamentals of the use and will just need certain symbols for direction, without words portraying them, not at all like the ones at the bottom of the pyramid. Their data consumption is high, whilst their need for direction is extremely low. Data consumption of this type of internet users is high as at the same time they have a very low need of direction. Need for control of the Netizens is nearly at the peak level, and Pathfinders are their influencers who hold the top spot of the pyramid. The consumption of internet has been taken to a whole new different height by the Pathfinders. They always try to find out new means to make the best use out of the gathered information from the “Netosphere”. They are the internet maverick who pave the way to the new world, the most updated of the lot. Targeting the right audience for the right purposes is as important as understanding the internet behavior of the people. From various ways of targeting the right audience in the digital sphere, Facebook targeting through “Facebook Ad Manager” is the most popular one in use. Precise data on potential reach for any promotions through Facebook can be identified through this method. For such analysis, demographics, geographic placement & interest/behaviors are taken into consideration.

As we have recognized our aim, it is crucial to show them contents that they can relate with, stuff which are justified of making a buzz, essence that will most likely catch their consideration and things they want. Google Analytics- Google Trends, Google Keyword Planner & Google Transparency Report are the tools that are used by the agencies to determine those types of contents.

If we have a look at the image, we can see during March 2016, popularity of the internationally famous TV series Game of Thrones is way less than reading articles, searching, watching videos on Bangladesh National Cricket Team was more popular among the internet users of Bangladesh. But exactly one month after that the situation changed as there were no cricket to expect for a long time and the declaration that the Game of Thrones Season 6 will be released. Although if we demonstrate content relating with the Bangladesh Cricket Team in the month of April it may be impactful because of the fame of our team, but, staying aware of the modernity of the population, if we demonstrate them content associated with Game of Thrones the effect would have been far more noteworthy as they would interrelate with it better. By analyzing the number of people searching in all of Google’s networks through Google Keyword Planner about various topic, we can gather ideas, what interests our target customers & all the recent trends. If we look at the image above, we can see that we are not lagging behind the world on being updated. The image above shows, in the digital sphere, how the most watched TV series was able to impact the people of our country as well. Game of Thrones was the most searched word in Google networks in the month of April this year. It recorded 36 thousand searches in that month alone. To grasp the attention of the target group, agency marketers try to come up with the finest and trendiest ideas. These ideas are generated by considering all the factors they got after gathering all these information.

Demonstrating them contents, for example, Artist VoxPop recordings welcoming them to the event, to relevant content with insinuations that follows back to what they want to see or listen; funny contents; contents that will interest them, rouse them and at last will fill in as a catch that will push them to the main event of the campaign. To figure out how effective these techniques were in grasping the attention of the targeted audience and driving them to BTL campaigns as events, I conducted a survey on the Internet & Facebook usage of 30 students of BRAC Business School. The outcome of that review is given underneath. Every day in total they spend 166 hours on the internet, 5.53 hours on an average every day. Moreover, for connectivity, 14 respondents use WiFi, whereas Telco Data Packs users are 7 and both the means are used by the rest of them. All the 30 respondents use Facebook, daily devouring in total 108 hours, averaging 3.6 hours for each day. 25 of those overviewed said that promotions of various BTL campaigns got their consideration; on the other hand 5 said they didn’t. With an astounding 84% success rate of those promotions, 21 people amongst the 25 who saw the campaign promotions, actually attended those events.

Implementation

Since I joined Asiatic Exp, I was involved with many projects and had the opportunity to implement different tools to analyze the interests of internet users and figure out new and trendy ideas. Among them, Speed Energy drink wanted to arrange a cart racing contest “Speedster” for the 16 private University students. 36 students from each university will compete in the main event. Speed also wanted to do a campus activation to create a hype among the students in each university and slect those final 36 racers through an Arcade Racing game at each university. To do so we suggested creating a Facebook event page containing Voxpop of celebrities inviting the students to join the campus activation, cool & funny contents about cars, racing to keep the students in touch and give them a reminder about the event.

Sweden Bangladesh Nobel Memorial Quiz is a quiz competition among the students of 30 Universities in Bangladesh. So, among thousands of students, to grasp the right audience and attracting them to join the event was a tough work to do. So we planned to use Facebook Ad Manager to track the targeted audience and ask them to join the event page and later showing them cool contents, viral videos, giving updates about the event through that page at the right time. Campaign Ads will also be shown to the targeted audience. This approach will pay off as Facebook is the social networking site where the people of Bangaladesh are frequent and spent most of the time of their internet consumption. Moreover, through Facebook the audience can be filtered and then targeted and reached according to their area of interest.

Along with all the Facebook contents, a Linkedin page that will be a dedicated platform page to create long term communication platforms that engage the entire targeted community will be created. E-mail will be sent to their id collected from their Facebook or Linkein Account as an invitation. Youtube videos regarding the event will be uploaded in the Youtube Channel of Sweden Embassy that will be created before the event.

Findings

I came up with the following findings after the above mentioned analysis.

As a nation we are as updated as any other nation. In Bangladesh, internet users are not trailing behind than the users of other developed countries.
As all the marketing tactics are moving forward towards Integrated Marketing, the distinction between ATL, BTL & Digital marketing are becoming ever more blurry.
This advancement in BTL communication through Digital Marketing systems permit us to precisely obtain and promote to the right target customers in wherever they visit in the digital world.
Modern lifestyle of the modern people is and getting very much dependent on this sphere. The survey outcome on total hours used up on the internet also showcases there dependency.
Time spent on Facebook in comparison to the time spent altogether on the web highlights the way that the significant reason of the modern tech-savvy population is to stay associated with their friends.
The marketers are without a doubt ready to achieve the right target customers positively. The number of people paying attention to the promotions on BTL campaign suggests that.
The amount of individuals who were fascinated enough to go to BTL events because of Digital Promotions, showcases the immensity of accomplishment of the campaigns and the effect they had for the achievement of the said BTL campaign.

Recommendations

From the findings mentioned above, I recommend the following be undertaken:

For the greater expansion and improvement of the campaigns, BTL marketing firms should explore and exploit the Digital Media frequently.
For greater effectiveness of the agencies, use of different tools and techniques should be taught to more employees for analyzing the Digital Marketing sphere rather than relying on few.
With the ATL media turning out to be increasingly soaked, the digital media ought to be more enhanced in contents that will keep the eagerness of the general population letting the advertisers to have the chance to communicate with them with more prominent impact.
Facebook being the center point of most online consumption, the well known social networking site ought to be the most used arena through which promotions for campaigns should be delivered.
For making the current procedures more affected, analysis of the internet behavior of the population should be done globally.

Conclusion

The behaviors of the people are changing along with the ever evolving – fast paced world. Due to this changes, the communication process with the people are also needed to be changed. It has become vital to identify the right target group at the place they frequent the most as the typical ways of communication is becoming saturated. The “Netosphere” is where almost all the target groups frequent and communication campaigns of any sort should roll out keeping that in mind.

Communication in the modern world has become more integrated than ever before. Thus th use of the Digital Marketing processes for achieving greater effectiveness in BTL campaigns is a great advancement and is the way to go forward. Focus should be given not only on the effectiveness of the existing digital marketing techniques, but also on how to get the optimum usage of the whole digital sphere and using all the techniques in the best possible way. To do so, further researches should be conducted and marketers should come up with new innovative digital marketing techniques for the better effectiveness of the BTL Campaigns.