1.

0 Introduction
The report titled Bikroy.com customers attitude was prepared as part of our course,
customers attitude, under the guidance of Mr. Md. Ashraf Harun, our course instructor. The
objective of this task is to gather the theoretical knowledge obtained throughout the course
and apply it in a realistic scenario to come up with a marketing strategy for Bikroy.com.
1.1 Origin
This report has been undertaken as a partial requirement for fulfillment of the course
customers attitude (MGT-5199) instructed by Mr. Md. Ashraf Harun. For the purpose of this
report, we had been given the task of preparing a marketing strategy for a product of our
choice. We have therefore chosen to work on Bikroy.com, the pioneer e-marketplace in
Bangladesh. This report was composed after obtaining the course instructors approval on the
topic selected.
1.2 Purpose
The objectives of the plan are two-fold and are described as follows:
Primary Objective:
To come up with a marketing strategy for Bikroy.com Secondary Objectives:
To analyze the factors that affect customers attitude of Bikroy.com
To analyze the gap between current marketing activities and consumer perception of
Bikroy.com
To analyze the industry and position of Bikroy.com
1.3 Scope
The report will focus on marketing activities taking place within Dhaka Metropolitan area for
Bikroy.com. Since Bikroy.com is an e-marketplace for free classifieds, we will not be
considering direct business to consumer or business to business electronic portals for
competitor analysis, as the services offered are significantly different. Recommended
strategies will therefore be made keeping this scope in mind.
1.4 Methodology
To produce this report, varieties of methods have been used. Data has been collected from
different sources, and both primary sources have been used.

Secondary Source:
Website of Bikroy.com

Page 1 of 21

 Related articles
Internet research using different websites
Old report of Bikroy.com
1.5 Limitations
Disclosure of confidential information: Bikroy.com does not disclose any kind of
financial information or market research data to anyone outside the company. That is
why it was not possible to include the necessary information like the revenue model
used to estimate different financials and marketing position of Bikroy.com. The data
collected from them, accordingly, is not sufficient for an accurate analysis.
Lack of information: General lack of information on the free classifieds emarketplaces of Bangladesh.
Time and space restraints: Overall improvement would be possible if resources had
not been restricted.

2.0 Industry Overview

Classified advertising is a form of advertising which is particularly common online, which
may be sold or distributed free of charge. The advertisements are grouped into categories or

Page 2 of 21

classes such as "for sale telephones", "wantedkitchen appliances", and "services

plumbing", hence the term "classified". Classified advertisements are much cheaper than
larger display advertisements used by businesses, and are therefore normally used by
businesses with smaller advertising budgets, or by private individuals. A lack of standard for
reporting also creates a problem because even on a global scale, market statistics vary
concerning the total market for internet classified ads. Some popular free classified emarketplaces

in

Bangladesh

are

Bikroy.com,

Akhanei.com,

ClickBD.com,

and

AjkerDeal.com. However, these sites or portals do not pose as direct competition to one
another as the market to be served is opportunistic. Putting a free classified ad in a certain site
does not stop a consumer from posting in other sites as well, so there is no threat of a
business being taken away by another website providing the same service.
2.1 Company Overview
Bikroy.com is a free classified e-marketplace, i.e. it serves as middle man between buyer and
the seller. This service is can be attained from their website, or their mobile application.

Figure: www.bikroy.com website

Page 3 of 21

Figure: Bikroy.com mobile apps

Bikroy.com is probably the safest and most convenient choice for buying and selling all
across Bangladesh. The website has been in operation since 2012. This service allows
anyone in Bangladesh to buy and sell in their region conveniently in a very simple manner
without registration and complicated procedures. Ads can be posted for free and browsing
with GrameenPhone Internet is free as well. Thus, Bikroy.com aims to attract more traffic
that is more people posting ads on the website, to generate profit.
2.2 Using the service
The website first requires a user to select a location. After that, the list of advertisements
show up and the user can browse through one of eight primary categories:

Cars, Motorcycles & Vehicles

Phones, Computers & Electronics
Fashion & Personal Items
Home & Living
Hobbies, Pets & Sports
Property & Housing
Jobs & Services
Business, Agriculture & Food

Page 4 of 21

These categories are subdivided into specialized categories and there is a ninth category
Others which does not fall under any of the above classifications. An item can be clicked to
view in detailed mode and the buyer can directly contact the seller via phone number
provided in the ad. For a use who wants to sell an item, they can click the Post your free ad
button on the home screen and follow a series of steps to post an ad. A general description of
the product, a price and contact number is required to post the ad. The ad goes into review,
and within 24 hours, if it attains to the policies of the site, the ad is posted.
2.3 Products/ Services Offered by Bikroy.com
Bikroy.com is, first and foremost, an online marketplace of its kind. One can browse through
categories like Clothing, Footwear, Jewelry, Watches, Mobiles & Accessories, Jewelry,
Books & Media, Electronics, Footwear, Watches, Mobiles, Computers, Electronics, Home &
Living, Health &Beauty, Toys, Kids & Babies, Books & Media, and Sports & Outdoors and
so on to see all the products under these. When a customer sees something they like, they
click on the product and view the details that include pictures, descriptions, payment options
and shipping information.

Page 5 of 21

Customers also can search for their desired products by using keywords in no time.
Bikroy.com provides advanced search option in which Customers can narrow down their
search and shop comfortably. Just as one can buy almost anything on eBay, one can sell
almost everything, too. Using a simple listing process, one can put all of the junk in their
basement up for sale. People can sell old laptops, clothing, furniture, etc. But if one wants to
sell as a business, they need to enlist in Bikroy.com as a Bikroy.com seller via which they get
a Bikroy.com e-store. When one sells an item on Bikroy.com, they pay a certain percentage of
the final sale price to Bikroy.com. There is no listing fee except this commission on sales and
for people selling personal products, there is no commission either. Bikroy.com operates an
online marketplace enabling end customers to buy and sell basically anything online.
2.4 Segmentation
Because of the nature of the service provided, Bikroy.com is open to all with internet access
and a Smartphone or a computer. However, it is not possible to serve all of the market, and
fulfill their needs and wants. The following segmentation can be done for a better, focused
service to customers within this segment.
Demographic Segmentation: Bikroy.com serves anyone in any place within Bangladesh and
allows them to buy and sell within their region. Both genders fall within the target
demographic. Since selling and buying is mostly trusted towards adults, the segmented age
should be 18 years and older. Bikroy.com best serves income groups from lower middle to
upper middle class.
Behavioral Segmentation: A prerequisite to attaining the service is having access to the
Internet and being able to operate a Smartphone, a tablet or a computer. It also requires the
intended customer to be inclined towards selling or buying objects or services online.

Page 6 of 21

3.0 Consumer Profile

Target Market
Even after segmentation, the market is too large to cater to all needs and wants within the
market. Therefore, we suggest the following four basic target markets to channel marketing
strategies towards.
Bargain Hunters

Intelligent Buyers

Convenience

Evergreens

Seekers
Middle class

Buyers and sellers

Look for ease of
transaction
Do not spend

middle

class

Mostly buyers
Look for second-

Middle class

Mostly buyers

Tech savvy

Spend time on

hand/used

researching
product

much

products
Younger

specification

purchases/sale

property,

before

group (18-25)
Lower price is

decision
Nuclear families,

automobiles
Senior level

Lower

age

priority

making

purchases
Students, young
professionals

time

on

Upper

middle

class
Higher age group
(40 and above)
Mostly sellers
Look
to
sell

young

professionals,

professional

retirees

3.1 The Leading Online Marketplace: Bikroy.com

Around 2012 on October Bikroy.com Bangladesh Ltd. started its journey in Bangladesh. And
on June 1, 2012 it was launched. As we know that Bikroy.com is the leading online
marketplace for emerging markets. It sells everything, starting from books, to mobiles &
tablets, fashion wear and accessories, electronics, jewelry, home and living products, kids
products and many more. It is the one stop solution for customers to find their products
online. It is the fastest growing online shopping platform in the emerging markets, with over
million customers. Bikroy.com operates an online marketplace enabling end customers to buy
and sell basically anything online. Organizational structure/ operational network organ gram
Bikroy.com has different departments to run its operations in Bangladesh. Right now
Bikroy.com has 6 different departments which are also called teams.
1. Sales
2. Human Resource
3. Customer Support
4. Finance
5. Public Relation

Page 7 of 21

6. Seller Management
3.2 Marketing Strategy
Bangladesh is one of the top 10 countries with the largest population where emerging trends
are headed for smartphones and online transactions. The young people these days possess
entrepreneurial skills and wish to make progress. The e-commerce industry in Bangladesh is
experiencing new horizons of success and innovation as more and more online trading
platforms are emerging on daily basis. A look into Bikroy.coms unveiling of the large market
potential would tell us that Bikroy.com catered to an important need. Bikroy.com not only
caters to big companies but also to individuals, giving their businesses a chance to grow by
providing a medium.
To get maximum peoples attraction, the main strategy Bikroy.com follows is:

Giving Advertisements Online: The mother company rocket internet makes different
rules for its different ventures. So it did for Bikroy.com; that no offline marketing is
allowed. Which means as much as we can promote Bikroy.com but only online? For
example: giving ads on other websites is one of the main strategies to grab maximum
attention.

Using YouTube As a Large Media: Not only still pictures, Bikroy.com also promotes
itself on YouTube, one of the large platform where not only in Bangladesh but also from
all over the world can see what Bikroy.com Bangladesh can do.

Blogs/Write-ups: Bikroy.coms social media does a great job by posting minimum 10

blogs on Bikroy.com.com.bd every month so that people can also read about it.

Targeting Celebrities: Bikroy.com recently signed an agreement with Bangladesh

national cricket team opening batsman Tamim Iqbal. As per the deal, Tamim will use
Bikroy.coms sticker on his bat. The agreement was signed at Bikroy.coms Banani
office in the city. Bikroy.com Bangladesh chief executive George Wolf and chief public
relation officer Sayeda Umaela Akter were present at the signing ceremony.

Collaborating With Prothom Alo Digital: Bikroy.com.com.bd, one of the online

shopping communities in Bangladesh, has signed an agreement with ProthomAlo
Digital (a concern of Mediastar Limited) to feature Prothoma Store at
Bikroy.com.com.bd. By giving Bikroy.com users all across Bangladesh access to such a
great assortment of books on the Prothoma e-store, both companies are venturing into
unchartered territory.

Page 8 of 21

Facebook Promotion: Bikroy.com has an official facebook page with more than 40
lacs likes. Time to time giving posts about new products in Bikroy.coms website makes
the visitors crazier to love the service.

3.3 The Buying and Selling Process of Bikroy.com

Unlike other websites, Bikroy.com provides very flexible and user friendly process for both
the sellers and buyers to get registered in the website. Bothe the processes are describes
below:
The Buying Process: To purchase something, one must have an account in Bikroy.com. One
simply needs to register by providing some basic information (name, address, birth date,
phone number etc.). With that account they can place orders on Bikroy.com. Once a buyer
likes something, he/she places an order online by clicking on buy now. After this, a text
message/email is sent with a code to validate the purchase. If the buyer validates it, the seller
can see it when they login to their account and then the seller is responsible for calling up the
buyer, confirming the order, answering to any necessary queries, and deliver the product. If
the buyer is unable to validate the order, a customer service agent from Bikroy.com calls the
buyer up and validates the order. And then the sellers process starts as mentioned above. This
process generally takes about 3-5 working days and the buyer usually gets it by then unless
there are other issues. Often, pre-payment is necessary and then the delivery time becomes
higher as the seller would not dispatch the product without the buyer paying first.
Most sellers provide cash on delivery to buyers residing in Dhaka, meaning the buyers can
pay after the product reaches their home. Some sellers provide cash on delivery facility
outside Dhaka as well, but not most sellers. Therefore, most customers outside Dhaka need to
prepay via bank account or mobile banking. Following is a flow chart showing how a
customer can buy through Bikroy.coms website:

Page 9 of 21

The Selling Process: To sell through Bikroy.com, one needs to have an account as well.
Once an order is placed it is showed in the account where details of the buyer is given with
the product details (the one that the buyer chose). The job of the seller is to contact the buyer,
confirm the order, answer queries of the buyer (if any) and deliver the product. The seller
pays Bikroy.com a percentage commission on the final sale amount. The commission
payment is made after a month. The advantages sellers get are the fact that the products stay
with them so they are not stuck with stock that hasnt sold. Also, they get free marketing via
Bikroy.com. To get started with Bikroy.com as a seller, one needs to sign a simple contract
paper that enlists them as a Bikroy.com seller. Afterwards, they need to send their product
listings along with product details and images so that it can be uploaded in their e-store.
Sellers can upload from the front end as well by login into their accounts

Page 10 of 21

4.0 Analysis
4.1 Group Influence
There is a significant amount of influence from primary groups, i.e. friends and family for
prospective consumers of this service. Because of cultural norms, it is usual for elderly family
members to provide advice in the purchase or sale of an item. The buying and selling
decision, and hence the use of the service is heavily dependent on the approval or disapproval
of the primary group. Informational influence can also have a role for a prospective consumer
who has never used such a service before. Expert opinion is sought out before making the
decision to use the service, in this scenario. The opinion from the expert is likely to change
the sale or purchase decision and hence the use of the service.
4.2 Motivation
The only motivation for using the service is either the need or want to purchase a product, or
the need or want to sell a product. This can be divided into two categories:
Benefit derived from successful and satisfactory purchase/sale from the site will motivate
the user to sell through this site when there is need.
When there is an urgent need to buy or sell an item, the consumer will look to gain
maximum exposure hence will be motivated to use the site more often during those times.
This can lead to an approach-approach motivational conflict because consumers usually
post in all free classified marketplaces and therefore have no incentive to select just
Bikroy.com for the purpose.
4.3 Gender
From the consumer survey conducted we have found that a greater proportion of men use
Bikroy.com rather than women. There were only 33% female users compared to the 67%
male users, regardless of the fact that the service is targeted towards both genders.

Percentage of users

33%

Male
Female

67%

Page 11 of 21

This is due to the risk and feelings of insecurity in posting mobile numbers in public sites.
Perpetrators use these phone numbers to harass women, and this deters many potential
consumers who would like to use the service, but cannot because of this persistent problem.
4.4 Consumer Perception
The consumer perception is crucial to the existence of the service because without the
consumers, the company would cease to exist. Because of the unique nature and the newness
of the industry, consumers are divided between embracing the technological shifts and
entering the e-marketplace, or sticking to traditional forms of buying and selling.

From where did you learn about

Bikroy.com?
TVC

Online

Friends or Fimily
3%

Newspaper or magazine

Radio

4% 4%

5%
Never heard of it

27%

57%

From the consumer survey conducted, we can see that Bikroy.com has a very good exposure
rate. They ran a series of humor based TVCs which were immensely popular and allowed the
general populace to learn about the brand. Only 4.4% of respondents had never heard of
Bikroy.com and 57.4% of respondents had first heard about it from the TVCs.

Have you used Bikroy.com?

35%

Yes
No

65%

Page 12 of 21

Despite the high exposure, only 35% of respondents said that they had used Bikroy.com. This
means that the exposure was ineffective in its purpose. Although the brand and the jingle
were constantly being promoted, the association of the free classifieds e-marketplace had not
reached the target market.

For which purpose did you used Bikroy.com?

16%
Buying

Selling
40%

Both

44%

Those of who had used Bikroy.com had bought and sold multiple categories of items. From
the consumer survey, we have found that there are more sellers (44%) than buyers (40%) and
there are users who have used the services for both buying and selling.

For which product category did you use Bikroy.com?

60.00%
50.00%
40.00%
30.00%
20.00%
10.00%
0.00%

The most popular category was Phones, Computers & Electronics (50%) among the
respondents, followed by Fashion & Personal Items (25%) and in third place Property &
Housing and Cars, Motorcycles & Vehicles (12.5%).
4.5 Learning
Learning is any change in the content or organization of long-term memory or behavior.
Before looking into the influence of learning, we examine the conditions of involvement
pertaining to the two features of Bikroy.com.

Page 13 of 21

a) Selling: The selling feature is a low-involvement process for the following reasons:
it is less time-consuming as it requires simply posting an advertisement on the site about
the product, along with description
does not involve price constraints and thus no limitations
has lower perceived risk as the person would not have to pay
b) Buying: On the other hand, buying is a high involvement process as:
it is more time-consuming due to involving searching for and evaluating available options
among a wide range of advertisements
involves price constraints and thus limits options and requires more calculations
higher perceived risk as the person would be subject to payment
4.6 Attitude
The general attitude of customers towards online classifieds in Bangladesh is as follows:
a) Cognitive component: This consists of the values and beliefs of the customers. The
beliefs regarding the product category are:
It is unsafe and lacks security
The platforms are technical and thus difficult to use
There is existence of frauds who post ads in the websites
b) Affective component: The affective component, consisting of the feelings associated with
category, is thus slightly skeptical.
c) Behavioral component: The behavioral component has been shaped by the negative
cognitive and subsequent negative affective components. As proof we see that even many
regular educated internet users, 18% of the respondents of our consumer survey; do not use
any online portal for buying or selling. An important observation is that the attitude towards
this category becomes more favorable with the increase of educational level of the customers.
To change this existing attitude, it is required to change the cognitive component which is the
root cause.
This can be done by Bikroy.com through:
Posting safety rules regarding online sale and purchase in its website
Demonstrating the ease of use through its advertisements and Facebook promotions
Actively promoting the existing safety measures adopted by the site
Appeal characteristics: The appeal characteristics which can be used by Bikroy.com for
influencing the change are:
Utilitarian appeal which would highlight the functionality of the site and thus aim to
offset the benefits against the perceived risks

Page 14 of 21

 Light humor appeal to grab the attention of the target customers, and also conforming to
the modern, youth-based target market psychographics
4.7 Self Concept
Target Market is significantly large: At Bikroy.com, almost every profession, from all
corners of the country, will find something or the other to satisfy their needs. Hence, there is
an extremely diversified collection of self concepts, coming from the target group. Thus, this
factor does not seem a significant criterion in evaluating the marketing strategy of the brand.
4.8 Brand Personality
If Bikroy.com were a person, she would be the one in the friends circle everyone adores. She
is always making the group laugh, but whenever you have a problem, you will consult her
first. She is updated on almost every current issue; she would try her best to help you and
would not judge you by your wallet.
In short, Bikroy.com personality is best described by 4 attributes:

Young and Dynamic

Humorous
Friendly and Open
Versatile

4.9 Shortcomings of Bikroy.com as a brand

1. Website Features: While competitors Bikroy.com, ajkerdeal.com and bdjobs.com have
flashy product advertisements grabbing your attention the moment you enter their website,
Bikroy.com has a static line of placements at the bottom. Moreover, the option of liking
their Facebook page is in tiny fonts and black color at the very end of the page, where it
would be ignored by most. Most Bangladeshi online portals open in Bangla language, with
the scope of switching to English. However, with Bikroy, the opposite is in action. This is a
problem, keeping in mind that the majority of the population would be more comfortable
reading it in their mother tongue.
2. Supportive Legal Systems: While, yes, it is true that there is little that such portals can do
regarding ensuring zero fraudulence, they also cannot deny all responsibilities to the
customers in cases of such occurrences. While such sites do have warning messages and
guidelines in their sites, their initiatives should go beyond basic warning messages, and
should include actions such as checking authenticity of vendors, keeping tabs of performance,
keeping records of transactions whenever possible, etc.

Page 15 of 21

4.10 SWOT analysis of Bikroy.com in Bangladesh

Strength:

As Bikroy.coms parent company of rocket internet, it has a strong financial backup

Bikroy.com has decision makers with lots of experience from renowned

organizations. which is a plus point for Bikroy.com.

High traffic of website visitors because of aggressive online advertising.

Bikroy.com has a business model which is already successful.

Weakness:

Some sellers are not efficient and dont deliver the product on time.

Bikroy.com has no reliable delivery partner to maintain all of its daily basis orders.

Opportunity:

Rapidly growing internet users which are a huge opportunity for e-business in
Bangladesh.

Emphasizes on e-business.

Young generation is tending to order online mostly as it has less hassle and unique
products. Its increasing day by day.

Threat:

Fraud online buyers

Fraud sellers

Page 16 of 21

5.0 Proposed Strategies

Problem 1: Unsatisfactory User Experience
Description: There is a noticeable stream of issues with Bikroy.com that makes the user
experience difficult and problematic.
For example:
It is difficult to get instant customer service as email responses take time.
Customers have to browse between product listings for a long time to get very specific
products.
The app has many lacking such as difficult search options, improper search results and
incompatibility with some versions of Android.
Solution 1: Secure Online 24/7 Chat Facility
Description: Host Gator is one of the biggest web hosting services in the world, and it has a
highly responsive 24/7 Chat Facility where one can instantly connect with a representative
from the firm for help in any matters. A similar facility offered by Bikroy.com will make it
much easier for customers to get responses to their queries quickly. The initiative may
require hiring of a significant workforce just to run the system, but the potential payoff is
much higher as it will differentiate Bikroy.com in the countrys online business arena in a
very positive manner.
Solution 2: Advanced Search Filters
Description: Bikroy.com has some basic search filters that allow customers to find products
from a specific category. Yet a more advanced search filter will add another differentiating
factor for the company. Such as:
a) Old/New Filter: Customers will get to filter products based on whether they are completely
new or second-hand.
b) Personal/Business Filter: This will enable consumers to search for products based on
whether they are being sold by another customer (C2C) or a business (B2C).
c) Brand Filter: Products can be filtered on the basis of their brands. For example, by filtering
a search for cell phones with Symphony, a customer will see all listings from Symphony
only.

Page 17 of 21

d) Price Filter: Price can be used as a filter for getting the desired product. For example, a
range BDT 50,000-1,00,000 for refrigerators will show only the ones belonging to that price
range.
Solution 3: Improvement of App
Description: It is estimated that around 68% of the customers in Bangladesh browse online
through cell phones. As a result, a fully functional smartphone app is critical to accessing this
market. We propose that Bikroy.com takes the help of expert consultants like Aamra
Technologies to remove glitches in their app and make it more user-friendly.

Page 18 of 21

6.0 Recommendation
To overcome the obstacles Bikroy.com need to change a few of their strategies a bit. The
targets should not be determined from Germany as they do not have the proper market
knowledge of Bangladeshi market. Bikroy.com is expanding rapidly; it is high time that they
open up service centers in other major districts of Bangladesh. Some customers have
complaint about the sellers because they dont respond on time. So, since the seller
management team is responsible for the sellers; team should be more aware of that. Another
complaint Bikroy.com gets most of the time is regarding the delivery service which is
sometime works very slowly. Bikroy.com should open up their own delivery service.
Sometimes sellers or buyers contact number/ address changes. In that case update sellers and
customers information as soon as possible is very necessary. But for some reasons
Bikroy.com employee doesnt change them on time. Whereas it should be done right after
they know about the change. Since its just been 1 and a half year that the company started,
many data are still not properly been documented. Training helps an individual to improve
him/her for giving better output. I believe, it is necessary for Bikroy.com Bangladesh Ltd. to
provide training every month for the betterment of the company.

Page 19 of 21

6.1 Conclusion
Bikroy.com Bangladesh is one of the largest e-commerce website in Bangladesh and it has
earned the reputation of top online marketplace of Bangladesh. It is constant in detection of
business innovation and improvement. While working with the sales team, Bikroy.com
Bangladesh, I experienced the work process of multinational company is a big achievement
for me. Sales activities along with other activities has developed my practical knowledge and
provided me an amazing experience.

Page 20 of 21

6.2 Reference
Bikroy.com: http://bikroy.com/
Slideshare: http://www.slideshare.net/
http://www.slideshare.net/themsaha/status-potential-and-constraints-in-ebusinessapplication-in-bangladesh-46850115
http://www.slideshare.net/priyodresscollection/top10-online-shopping-sites-inbangladesh
http://www.slideshare.net/geekybd/classified-busines

Page 21 of 21