It was late 2011 when a new word repeatedly started popping up in front of us, from local storefronts to billboards to TVCs. A new company, offering mobile financial service in the pre-modern smartphone era was trying to disrupt the industry. Within the same decade, the same company has owned the heart of the people and bagged the prestigious ‘Bangladesh Brand Forum’s Best Brand Award 2019’. The brand is bKash and it’s simple. In this article, we will spot several critical success factors that helped bKash become the brand we love.

ENTERING A BLUE OCEAN

As the authors of the bestselling book ‘The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing’ mentioned, “The basic issue in marketing is creating a category you can be first in.” bKash had the first mover advantage of offering mobile financial services, and continued leading by spreading the name to every corner of the country.

FORGET ME NOT

Apart from being the first entrant, it made sure to stay on top of the consumer’s mind by doing everything they possibly can. They heavily invested in marketing, crafted catchy taglines and repeatedly exposed consumers to their communications contents to carve a permanent space in consumer’s hearts that facilitated consistent brand recall.

BECOMING A STORY BRAND

Most of the marketing campaigns by bKash revolves around small stories that house small glimpses at the TG’s daily life, addressing a specific pain point and its subsequent solution. bKash has strived by making customers the protagonists of the story. Instead of brining celebrities, they use little known faces and portray the lives of the common people. Instead of attempting to conquer the metropolitan cities, bKash first went to win over the roots through targeting villages.

BUILDING A PRODUCT PEOPLE LOVE

2011 was a dauntingly adventurous year for bKash as they tried to convince people to use phones as banks, that too on phones that weren’t smart. bKash made that happen by showcasing small features of their product, one at a time. They taught people why and how to use it, and then went the extra mile to assure their money is completely safe. The latest super-simple, reliable, comfortable and user-friendly bKash app is an evidence of how invested they are in securing their journey towards excellence in FinTech.

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

bKash operates as a subsidiary of Brac Bank, which is one of the most well-known and reputed banks for helping SMEs. From the very beginning, bKash always associated Brac’s name with them to build instant credibility.

FOCUS

One of the most powerful concepts in marketing is owning a word in the prospects’ mind. Remember ‘Think Different’ by apple? I recently read a piece where Kamal Quadir, the CEO of bKash, said that they wanted bKash to be a verb instead of a noun. The indomitable popularity of the phrase “bKash me” speaks for itself. They also own the word ‘simple’ in the prospects’ minds.

While many startups started with a bang, they later lost focus by swaying towards areas they don’t properly understand. bKash kept doing what they do well to become better and better every day, eventually ascending as the most loved brand of the country.