In our previous blog, we have done a complete marketing strategy analysis of one of the most renowned banks UBI. In this blog, we will do an in-depth strategic analysis of the marketing strategy of Bandhan Bank.
This blog intends to explore Bandhan Bank’s journey from starting as an NGO to proceeding as NBFC to finally becoming a universal bank. Bandhan Bank focuses not only on banking but also on other economic investment products such as Insurance, Investment management, mutual funds, and mortgage management.
So, as you can see, the world is fully online now, and marketing is the rib of every industry. If you are interested to know more about marketing then do check out our Free Masterclass on Digital Marketing by the CEO and founder of IIDE, Karan Shah.
We will have a look at the marketing strategy of Bandhan Bank by the end of this blog. Before we do an in-depth analysis of the bank, let’s gain some quick facts about it.
About Bandhan Bank
(Chandra Shekhar Gosh – The Founder of Bandhan Bank)
Bandhan Bank Ltd. is an Indian banking and financial services company established in the year 2015 after the Reserve Bank of India granted the universal banking licence to Bandhan Bank. The bank is headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal. Bandhan Bank is present in 34 out of 36 states and union territories of India, with 5,618 banking outlets and more than 2.43 crore customers.
It all began in 2001 when Chandra Shekhar Ghosh observed the plight of Kolkata’s small-time traders. To grow their business, they had no option except high-interest loans from traditional moneylenders. His deep desire to help them led to the creation
of Bandhan, a microfinance institution providing loans and hope to the poorest. Bandhan Bank provides customers access, to simple, cost-effective and innovative financial solutions courteously and responsibly.
| CEO | Chandra Shekhar Ghosh |
|---|---|
| CMO | Rahul Parikh |
| Area Served | India |
| Industry | Banking |
| Market Share/ Revenue | ₹16,694 crores (US$2.1 billion) (2022) |
| Vision | To be a world-class bank with convenient and affordable financial solutions to all, offered in an inclusive and sustainable manner. |
| Tagline | “Aapka Bhala, Sabki Bhalai” |
Marketing Strategy of Bandhan Bank
Now let’s have a look at marketing strategies practised by the bank which aimed to reach out to more people. Bandhan bank uses a Customer Driven Marketing Value Strategy.
Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning
What is Market Segmentation?
Bandhan Bank has a wider reach in the country, where people from various locations, occupations, and gender, and different needs and requirements, economical and social backgrounds, buying attitudes are their customers. So in order to provide services to every section of their customer, segmentation is done by the bank. With help of market segmentation, the bank decides to segment the overall market among this variety of customers. The main purpose is to reach a wider range of people in an efficient and effective manner.
There are various ways of doing segmentation but here we will discuss the prime segmentation methods which are being used by banks.
- Geographic Segmentation
For the international market, it was very important for Bandhan Bank to do geographical segmentation. It is essential as prospective customers are of different cultures, belong to different administrative systems and have different preferences. Now since customers can belong to different segments of the world, for providing various banking services to customers it is well advised to do this segmentation as service providing costs for different customers vary,
2. Demographic Segmentation
Dividing the market into smaller segments and groups on the basis of income, age, gender, occupation, ethnicity, life cycle stage, generation and religion. Products of the bank being of superior value segment the customers on 2 main demographic categories as life cycle stage and income of the prospective.
3. Psychographic Segmentation
Even though people can belong to the same geographic region, everyone has a different psychology, thoughts, the pattern of buying, opinions of consumption, hobbies and so on.
4. Behavioural Segmentation
Dividing the customers into various groups based on their product use, response, knowledge and attitude towards it. According to many marketing experts, to build better consumer segments one should begin with this segmentation.
5. Intermarket Segmentation
It is also known as cross-market segmentation. One thing to be noted here is that even though different people may be situated in different places they may have some needs in common. So in such a scenario, the bank targets the same type of customer but in a different manner.
Now let’s have a look at the Targeting strategy followed by the bank
We saw that there are various segments, so from all Bandhan Bank has to choose a particular segment which can be its potential customer. The target audience of the bank is from varied age groups. Now the new bank account opening holders are from 15-30 mostly. The loan seekers are from 25-45 years. There are special programs being run for senior citizens as well. Selecting a market depends on the following 10 factors out of which 1 is to be selected.
- The target market’s financial return potential
- Entry barriers and various regulations
- The life cycle of the product
- Mission, vision and consumer segment fit the organisation
- Segmentation of cultural attractiveness
- Technical skills of organisation
- Right, and knowledgeable collaborator to aim at the correct market target
- Competitor
- Analysing the strengths and weaknesses of the organisation
- Requirement of financial resources for targeting
Positioning
To be successful in today’s competitive market space, it’s very important to analyse value proposition and brand positioning as well. The bank needs to position itself in such a way that a unique, very different and positive image is being created in the minds of the customer. The following are the ways in which the bank can analyse and improve its positioning:
- Direct competition and competitor’s response threats
- The ecosystem of consumers
- The ability of competitors to either imitate or replicate.
- Regional Bank Industry’s margins
- Firm marketing resources
- Bandhan Bank’s image in the corporate world
- Portfolio of the existing product
Marketing Campaigns
Even when a bank provides many customer-beneficial services until they reach out to the customers to show the services, it doesn’t prove to be fruitful. So advertisement is one of the efficient and easy ways to reach a lot of audiences at the same time. Similarly, Bandhan Bank has launched several advertisement campaigns.
Here are 3 of them
Aapka Bhala Sabki Bhalai – Loan Campaign
The core of the campaign was to focus on middle-class people who struggle in order to get loans for their houses or business, it is where Bandhan bank lends a hand to them.
#UnstoppableNari Campaign
The Bandhan bank film that empowers women entrepreneurs
This campaign features a film which highlights the lives of the entrepreneur women who have been supported by the bank.
Education Program
The education campaign is being run by the bank to provide quality education to underprivileged students. The free schools are being set up majorly for girls, these schools are known as “Bandhan Education Centres”.
Social Media Marketing
Today we are living in the world of social media. So for the world to know you, you have to be visible. Here visible means to be known and accessible to more and more people at any time and place. And for serving this purpose Bandhan Bank is active on many social media platforms.
The bank can be found on
Instagram: 11.8 K followers
Facebook: 392,692 followers
Twitter: 24.6 K followers
From the above statistics, a conclusion can be drawn that most of the bank followers are on Facebook. The posts are more related to various services and policies provided by the bank. Moreover, the bank is also very interactive as its posts also wish people on various festive occasions or some major events being taken place.
So now as you know that social media could play huge in connecting you with your audience, you can check out IIDE’s Social Media Marketing Course and take your business a level up today itself.
SEO Strategies
The number of keywords: is 395.6K which is above 1000 which implies it is good.
Organic Monthly Traffic: 572604, so we can understand that the traffic for the website is amazing. Since the bank is most renowned and people trust it for its pure serving intentions people visit the website. Moreover to view various schemes people have a look at the website.
Influencer Marketing
Bandhan bank doesn’t indulge in any influencer strategy for now. It is also like a form of social media marketing where the brand promotion is done by celebrities. It increases sales and is cost-effective and time-saving as well. Influencer marketing takes a step ahead in marketing, as it becomes easy to connect to the customers. It would be better if Bandhan bank starts focusing on Influencer marketing as well.
E-Commerce Strategies
Bandhan bank has its website. This website is very customer friendly. It promotes various security practices as well to keep customers safe from online fraud and phishing attempts. After logging in to the various customer services like online transactions etc, are available.
Mobile app
MBandan is a mobile banking application of Bandhan bank.
One can easily download the app and make avail of various customer services from anywhere and at any time. The app rates 4.1 / 5, which indicates that the app is good and user-friendly to use.
Features are as follows:
- Easy-to-use app for daily banking needs
- MPIN login system provides additional security
- Many banking facilities like depositing and transferring money can be done
Content Marketing Strategy
Bandhan bank answers many customer-related queries through its portal itself. They don’t have any separate dedicated blogs as of now, but all the customer-related queries are directly addressed through its portal. The bank should start focusing on blogs as it proves to be an effective and easiest and cheapest way to reach the audience.
If we talk about social media then yes, the bank is very active on social media, be it Instagram, Twitter or Facebook. The major posts or tweets are regarding the new policy and features the bank provides. It also wishes customers on every festival which creates a bond between the customers and the bank.
This ends with an elaborative marketing strategy of Bandhan Bank. Let us conclude our learning below from the marketing strategy of Bandhan Bank.
Conclusion – What’s unique about Bandhan Bank’s marketing?
Where various banks strive for market gains, Bandhan bank from the very beginning stands in a very different space compared to other banks. As per analysts, it is a “Unique Indian Services Financial Play”.The focal point is on microfinance, affordable housing, and encouraging MSME sectors.
Connect the country’s large unpenetrated market and the population that is not involved in banking is its prime focus. They are involved in various marketing and also in social services which helps them to gain the trust of the customers. The bank can have a wider reach if they are inclined toward a more digital approach by embracing content writing for the promotion of their bank.
To survive in this competitive world, it’s very important to be aware of the competitors’ movements and strategies as well. HDFC Bank is also a renowned bank among the masses and the banking sector as well. The key strategy of the success of this bank is they are well aware of how digital marketing can improve its position and hence use it effectively to gain popularity amongst the masses.
Now, we can see that if Bandhan Bank also starts working on its digital upgradation it could also improve its position in the market. If we search for the top 10 banks in India we observe that Bandhan Bank stands nowhere. So hence it is suggested that the bank should not only focus on social works but also shift its focus on upgrading as per market needs.
Digital marketing is crucial since it links a company with its clients when they are online and is effective across all sectors. It links businesses with ideal consumers through SEO and PPC on Google, social media marketing, and email marketing. If you would like to learn more and develop skills, check out IIDE’s 4-Month Digital Marketing Course to learn more.
Alternatively, you can enrol in one of our free online masterclasses led by IIDE’s CEO, Karan Shah, to gain insight into the field of digital marketing.
We hope this blog on the marketing strategy of Bandhan Bank has given you a good insight into the company’s marketing strategies.
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