Introduction:

Recently a survey regarding the the tourism in Bangladesh has been done by the newspaper The Daily Star, and according to the survey 44% people want to go to Cox’s Bazaar whereas only 3% people said about Bandarban. The main reason behind this huge gap is to us that, Cox’s Bazaar has become a brand itself but no one really branded Bandarban yet.

Rationale to choose ‘Bandarban’ as the place brand:

There are several reason to choose Bandarban as a place brand:

The 3 highest peak of Bangladesh:

Bandarban is one of the three hill districts of Bangladesh and a part of the Chittagong Hill

Tracts.  The three highest peak of Bangladesh - Tahjindong, Saka Haphong,

and Keokradong are located in Bandarban district, as well as Raikhiang Lake, the highest

lake in Bangladesh. Chimbuk peak and Boga Lake are two more highly noted features of

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the district. But compare to other tourism place like Cox’s Bazaar, St Martin,

Shundorbon, Bandarban hasn’t been highlighted.

Ignorance by the authority:

Recently in the Natural 7 Wonder, Government and authority promoted Cox’s Bazaar

and Shundorbon to compete, where Shundorbon took the 14th place in the world’s natural

7 wonder. But Government or any authority hasn’t been promoted Bandarban in a single

event. Though the place is fully enriches with beautiful hills, falls, lakes etc.

Rich cultures :

Rich cultures of various tribes create a sense of social harmony in the region which is

totally unknown to maximum citizen of Bangladesh.

11 th largest hill city:

Bandarban is the world’s 11th largest hill city. But it is a matter of great regret that most

of us don’t know that, and should be branded properly.2

Promising place:

Bandarban is a place with a lot of possibility and future. There is still a lot of place which

are been undiscovered in Bandarban. So, for the sake of the country and for the benefit

for the society and individual this place is needed to be branded.

Scope for the entrepreneurs:

Local entrepreneurs, as well as investors should invest here to expand their business. If the

volume of both public and private investment increases, flow of money will ensure a better

stan/dard of living for local inhabitants.

Creating new tourism spot and as well as adventures:

By branding Bandarban, it will not only create new tourism spot but also will create some

new kind of place to get become adventurous.

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Target Market Analysis:

Demographic Segmentation:

Demographic segmentation is basically market segmentation executed by taking various

demographic factors, such as age, gender, social class etc into consideration. It provides us an

opportunity to divide the market into several groups with each having a common variable. The

word demographic is derived from the word demography, meaning study of population. This

market segmentation strategy aims at understanding the prospective market, and taking necessary

steps to ensure that the consumer needs of a targeted group is fulfilled.

Here we have looked into the following points:

Age

Gender

Income

Education Level

Occupation

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Age:

Bandarban is a place that should be explored by every age group, at least once in a life time. The

renowned place in Bandarban are BogaLake, Jadupai Fall, Keokradong, Tahjingdong, Shangu

River,Golden tample, Nilgiri etc.

Gender

Bandarban is a place for everyone. It is not a place for discrimination based on gender. All our

branded places should be explored by both men and women, for boys and girls. Though it

wouldn’t be possible for all the female to trek the hills, but Nilgiri, Golden Tample can be visited

by all the females.

Income level :

Compare to the cost of Cox’s Bazaar and St martin, the cost of travelling and trekking in

Bandarban will be less.

Education level & Occupation:

Education and occupation does not have much importance on place branding. In the

segmentation, this part will be totally avoided.

Psychographic Segmentation:

Psychographic segmentation groups customers according to their lifestyle. Activities, interests,

and opinions (AIO) surveys are one tool for measuring lifestyle. Some psychographic variables

include:

Activities

Interests

Opinions

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Attitudes

Values

Considering all the variables we can say that Bandarban is a place for trekking and adventures.

Targeting:

Our basic targeted groups’ are-

People who loves to explore of any age without regarding the gender :

People of the country of Bangladesh or any person around the globe who love to explore are

our .

People who loves to trek:

People from any part of the world who loves to trek, Bandarban is the perfect place.

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People who loves hills and fall:

People who loves hills and falls, Bandarban is really a perfect place. The thousands of falls

are available in Bandarban.

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Competition analysis:

Cox’s bazaar & Saint Martin’s island:

Cox’s bazaar has the longest sea beach in the world. Cox’s bazaar and Saint Martin’s island are the competitor as well as a beauty for the tourist of the country and others and attracts people to this beautiful country.

Sundarban:

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Sundarban is the largest single block of tidal halophytic mangrove forest in the world. It is quite an adventure to visit Sundarban. It attracts many tourists from different countries. When tourists come to our country, they don’t only come to visit one place. We can attract them to Bandarban through proper branding and promotions.

Kuakata:

Kuakata is a panoramic sea beach on the southernmost tip of Bangladesh. Kuakata has a wide sandy beach from where one can see both the sunrise and sunset. It’s a great beauty of nature and one more competitor of Bandarban.

Rangamati and Khagrachari:

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Rangamati and khagrachari are nice places to visit. But Bandarban provides more than that a hill city. Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachari are three hill cities and heart of tourism.

Others:

There are other competitors within and across the country. Like Sylhet tea states, lalakhal, birisiri.

And there are thousands of global competitors across the world providing higher facilities but Bandarban alone can’t fight with them. But it’s a beautiful country and Bangladesh can compete with other natural beauties of the world as we have the largest mangrove forest, longest sea beach, surmising and sunset sighting spot and many other historical places. Overall it’s Beautiful Bangladesh and Bandarban is the green heaven and most adventurous part of the country.

Positioning & differentiation strategy:

In marketing, positioning has come to mean the process by which marketers try to create an

image or identity in the minds of their target market for its product, brand, or organization.

Effective Brand Positioning is contingent upon identifying and communicating a brand's

uniqueness, differentiation and verifiable value.

Already we have seen that, now a days all the nations and specific place has been branding,

that’s why it will be in a hard way to brand a place. That’s why, we here try to find cranue. To

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find the cranue, we will emphasis on certain point. These are: hills, lakes and falls and the color

of green.

To those who want hills, lakes and falls altogether and the color of green, Bandarban is here

for you.

Regarding the differentiation strategy, to the foreigner people, ice hill and rock hill is very

common to them but huge portion of them never had a chance to see green soil hill like we are

having in Bandarban.

Regarding the differentiation strategy, to the local or south Asian people, soil hill is very

common to them, to differentiate here, there are a lot of hill citites but Bandarban is having a

historical place also like Golden temple as well as unique tribal culture.

Brand elements:

Logo:

Brand logo is something that expresses specially a graphical aspect or iconic symbol that

represents a company, product or service. Logo conveys an image of a brand.

Transferable: As the texts in the logo are in English which is the international language,

it will be easily transferable in most cultures.

Simple: This logo is very simple with a text of name and slogan. People can get idea

easily form the logo regarding the place that it’s a natural place and can easily get to

know the name of the place by seeing the logo as name is mentioned on the logo.

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Logo of Bandarban

Memorable: It is easy to recall because name of the place in mentioned on the logo.So it

will be easy to remember the logo with name.

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Meaningfulness: The logo is made with the name of place or brand and the attribution of

each color tells about the brand so the logo it is meaningful in every ways.

Adaptable: The logo is easily updatable with time if necessary using other color or

typography. So that we can easily change this overtime if needed

Protectable. The logo is unique in nature and the logo is registered which makes it easily

protectable.

Using color in logo:

In our brand logo we have used four basic colors that expresses our brand attributes.

As when we talk about Bandarban a sense of green nature comes in our mind. Keeping that thing

in mind we have a plan to use that greenish color in our logo.

Colors used in logo are meaningful, descriptive and likeable. These colors are also transferable

as these are adoptable and likeable to the people across the country boundary.

Another reason for choosing these four colors are the attributes of these colors contain which

suits our brand. Like:

Why green:

Green is most closely associated with nature, freshness. It also Represents optimism, growth,

relaxation, fertility, spring, nature, rebirth, luck, healing, youth and/or environment.

Bandarban is itself is not other thing, it’s a place of soothing nature with hill, waterfalls ,river

etc. No other color cant be more perfect than green for describing the place.

Why black:

Black is closely associated with the earth and viewed as a masculine color. It evokes feelings

of stability and reliability. For youth Bandarban is place of adventure, trekking, roaming,

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energetic being close to nature etc. So in terms of stability this color is perfect.

Why white:

White represents purity and cleanliness. Freshness is a blessed element of Bandarban. It’s far

from crowdies, dirtiness of regular city life. Bandarban seems like it’s a part of heaven. So

the color white is perfect to represent its blessed purity to people.

Why blue:

It evokes feelings of calm and trust. Bright blues are considered to be dynamic and

exhilarating. It also represents reliability, truth, intelligence, confidence, loyalty, integrity,

wisdom, peace and/or trust. The characteristics of tourists, youth visitor, country loving

people etc who will come to Bandarban is symbolized by this color.

Slogan:

‘Drink the nature’

The beauty of nature can only be drunk. And Bandarban holds the raw beauty of nature with

green everywhere, falls, hills and lakes. It’s a green heaven

Value Innovation:

Package tour:

Like other places Bandarban now has the offerings of package of tour/travels or honeymoon

packages. These packages consist of transport and accommodation facilities as well as guides.

Hotel & resort:

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Bandarban doesn’t yet have world class hotels or resorts except one or two. Government or Bangladesh

Parjatan has to take initiative on this point or should give permission for private investment.

Transportation:

There is lacking of good transport facility and due to that many tourists think twice about visiting

Bandarban. New AC bus is introduced in that route for the travelers.

Food:

Food is another important factor while visiting Bandarban. There isn’t enough restaurants and food court.

But recently there are some initiatives taken for better food service.

Souvenir shop:

There are some souvenir shops with local handmade products but established without proper planning. So

tourists mostly can’t find their desired product in one place. These souvenir shops can serve very well the

purpose of collecting hand made products.

Brand sense:

We experience our world through our five senses: Sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. BRAND

sense is a revolution in brand building that demonstrates exactly how that can be accomplished.

It is a landmark work that explains what the world's most successful companies do differently,

integrating all five of the senses -- touch, taste, smell, sight, and sound. It is a holistic way where

a brand includes these five senses positively.

Brand must fit in consumer mind. If any of the sensory system is negative to the customer it

would be difficult for the brand to fit in the customer mind. Now-a-days brands are trying to

capture the consumer’s five sensory system. So, sensory system is very much important when

people make decision about purchasing anything.

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Bandarban is well known for its natural beauty. Along with natural wealth,this place is blessed

with different cultures,various lifestyle and food habits and an eclectic population..In bandarban

there is verity of lifestyle as more than fifteen ethnic minorities living in the district besides the

Bengalis.Visitor can get to know the cultural diversity,can experience different food varities,can

enjoy different festivals like Raj Punnyah, Sangrai etc.Moreover there are historical

places.Burmese Markets etc.For promoting the brand we can use our sensory nerves at a

maximum level.

When branding Bandarban, the first exposure is sight, then sound, then taste, next touch and last

but not the least is smell.

Sight

We are creatures naturally drawn to attractive things, be it an autumn sunset, a fluttering

butterfly. Sight represents the simplest sense to understand for good reason.

Sound

Sounds are powerful.  They tap into something primal within us.  Audible brands push us in

directions that we unconsciously follow. The association of a sound with your brand represents

one of the best ways to capture the attention of your target audience or viewers/visitors. Real

Sound of nature like sweet chirping sound of birds, lovely sound of water fall, wave of littile

river etc will make the visitor feel different and a feeling of being in beautiful peaceful world.

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Taste

Among five brand sense taste works when we eat something. This taste is also beneficial for a

brand. Bandarban represent the heritage of tribal people in front of modern society. Visitor can

not only feel the beautiful nature of Bandarban also can taste of those traditional food which are

very famous for tribes. The taste of those foods will seem uncommon and new experience to

them.

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Touch:

Touching a brand is about more than being able to hold or touch rather it is about emotional

connection. A recent study out of MIT found that when individuals came into physical contact

with certain objects that varied by quality, texture, and material, they were left with feelings of

deep emotional resonance. If one’s brand lacks a similar interactive element – something that the

consumer can touch or feel – then you already stand to lose a great deal of business

As we are promoting a place as a brand, touch is of less importance. But still it is an

essential sense for our brand. When visitor will place them self on a transport availabable in the

town, there is a sudden change in emotion, they will be filled with joy. Available transportation

includes rickshaw,the ride of rickshaw may create some emotion in mind rickshaw.There are

also the regular public transit system of ancient four-wheel-drive vehicles, known locally as

Chander Gari (meaning the Moon Car), It is also possible to travel by native boats too. So all

this will create a enjoyment and experience.Moreover, visitor can touch the creature of blesses

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nature, feel the coolness of water, touch the accessories or tribal shop etc.All these will make a

real sense.

Smell:

Unless one is in the food industry, smells are probably the last concern on list. Brand can still use

aromas to its benefit. Tribal people made their food in a bit different way than us which will have

special smell.

Fig: Pentagon of brand sense

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Leveraging through Secondary Brand Strategy:

Brands can also be associated or linked to other entities that have their own association which is

known as ‘Secondary Brand Associations’. A brand is successful if it gets higher brand equity

with the response of customers towards that brand from knowing it as awareness to become

loyal. For pulling up the existing equity or creating new, brand uses secondary brand associations

as a leveraging tool.

For a place like “Bandarban”, the secondary brand associations can be thought with some entities

that will leverage its equity from awareness to a higher level by being more highlighted to its

target market and go to the next level of branding.

If the associated entities for any brand are considered then the appropriate associations can be

signified:

Events:

When it comes to place branding the most appropriate way to leverage it is through events. In

Bandarban there are many historical and exceptional places such as Buddha Dhatu Jadi('Swarna

Mandir') which is the largest Buddhist temple in Bangladesh, Raj Vihar and Ujanipara Vihar,

Shoilo Propat, Meghla and Nilachal etc any event such as TV magazine program, or could be a

good source of brand leverage. Besides, the tribal people arrange in various cultural occasions

like Raj Punnyah Sangra etc can be live telecasted or fair can be arranged .moreover as

bandarban is great place of natural beauty any program regarding photography can be arranged

there. Any exhibition on bandarban photography may also create leverage. on We can use these

events as leveraging tool.

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Spokesperson or celebrity endorsement:

To promote our brand in the as spokesperson we have chosen Musa Ibrahim, Bangladeshi

mountaineer and a journalist by profession. Our aim is to use his confident and encouraging and

youthful image to promote our brand, especially to the young society.

Fig: Pukurpara,yet an undiscover place to Parjatan

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Bandarban Tourist Spots:

Boga Lake: Boga Lake is the most beautiful natural lake in Bandarban, Bangladesh. It is also known as Bagakain Lake or Baga Lake. The color of water of this Boga lake is blue and very much eye catching.

Buddha Dhatu Jadi: The Buddha Dhatu Jadi is a Theravada Buddhist temple known as the Bandarban Golden Temple.

Chimbuk Hill and Tribal Villages: Chimbuk hill is the third highest mountain in Bangladesh. The road of this area is zigzag. So if a traveler rides in a jeep it will be adventurous and charming.

Keokradong : Keokradong is the second highest mountain of Bangladesh. Keokradong is about 4,035 ft (1,230 meters) high from the sea level of Bangladesh.

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Meghla Tourist Spot: Meghla Parjatan Complex is one of the most amazing tourist spots for the travelers and tourists coming from all over Bangladesh and world.

Nilachal Tourist Spot: There is another beautiful place to see near Meghla, which is called Nilachal. Nilachal is known as tiger hill. The view of Nilachal is so spectacular for snapping..

Mirinja Parjatan: Mirinja is a wonderful tourist spot in Lama, Bandarban. Mirinja is about 1500 feet high from the sea level of Bangladesh.

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Nafakhum and Remakri: Nafakhum is one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Bandarban.

Nilgiri and Thanchi: Nilgiri is one of the tallest peaks and beautiful tourist spots in Bandarban. Beside this Nilgiri spot travelers and tourists can also roam around the Mro villages.

Prantik Lake: Prantik Lake is really a beautiful tourist spot in Bandarban district. Prantik lake of Bandarban is surrounded by many kind of plants and trees.

Sangu River: Sangu River is the complete part of the natural beauty of Bandarban. Sangu river follows a northerly circuitous course in the hill tracts up to Bandarban.

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Tajingdong: Tajingdong, also known as “Bijoy” is the highest mountain of Bangladesh. Tajingdong is about 4300 feet (1310 meters) high from the sea level of Bangladesh. “Tajing” means “Great” & “Dong” means “Hill” so that means “Great hill”.

Conclusion:

By branding Bandarban, one of the beautiful place of Bangladesh will come to know to the

people all over the world, especially who loves to trek, who loves falls, hills and lakes. Branding

of Bandraban will increase the place in Bnagladesh to attract local and foreigner ourists. Last of

all Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation has totally been ignoring the Bandarban, they should take

some inititative, by branding Bandarban they also may come to know about the place.

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Bibilography:

1. The Daily Star

2. www.wekipedia.org

3. www.banglapedia.org

4. www.google.image.com

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