Who can deny the power of NY Times best seller list?
The rise and fall of so many authors can be contributed to that short list. If books sounds obvious how about Billboard top chart? This music chart has been the overarching authority of defining the kings and paupers of music for decades. In short, if the song is in the Billboard chart then it must be good, hence downloadable.
It doesnt stop there. We consult IMDB for renting and buying movies. We check the box office numbers before deciding on which movie to check out in theaters. Our obsession with “Top Lists” stems from one simple premise that benefits both supply side and demand side - it helps us simplify our choices and gives us some much needed PR push.
With that established, i present a criminal situation of not having single, reliable top chart for any categories here in Bangladesh. Movies? No. Music? No. There are some so-called top charts here and there, found in magazines and papers. But they lack the prpoer sampling scope or the validity in technique and can never work like a proper “Top Chart”. And if asked, the cause of this absence will be attributed to difficulat mechanism.
The mechanism of creating such a chart is not that complicated. We just have to have a very transparent sales receipt reporting and acumulating system. With presence of such value adding softwares, its an “up for grab” opportunity for any media house. In recent times we have seen plenty of newspapers and TV channels popping out here and there. In such a hyper-competitive scenario, introducing such “Top Charts” can be a fantastic differentiating point for media houses as well as increase its readership and TRP.
But more importantly, we as customers will be greatly benefitted from this. With the number of categories, products and options increasing in geometric progression everyday - presence of such a filtering process that can tell us what is good and what is not good - is the just the thing required.
Shahriar Amin is a full time brand enthusiast who is the creator of the first brand blog in Bangladesh (http://shammograffity.wordpress.com) where he disburses brand related knowledge for Bangladeshi students and businesses
3 comments:
I guess we do need comparison-based services, in websites, magazines, newspapers, media etc. With so many banks, NBFIs, telecom companies fighting for customers' mind share, its high time that we set the foundation for comparison based mechanisms, so that it becomes easier for us, consumers, to compare and contrast and make an informed decision about our buying.
i don't think we can say everyone is not doing it. I have seen an excellent mechanism employed by a new english magazine in Bangladesh - Purple. They have done a top chart on 10 most popular songs as requested on a radio station - I guess that is the most credible countdown for music anyway, given that so institution is doing it. I agree there is a need for comparative ranking
What is this Purple Magazine? I Googled it and nothing was there. Are you willing to take the initiative to come up with a ranking of 'best performing' Bangladeshi corporates? Say the categories could be service/product quality, CSR, Employee benefits, legal citizenship, brand presence in the country and abroad, website quality etc. I know that DHL and the Daily Star is associated with some sort of entrepreneur awarding thingie, but I am not sure what they do. Good luck with the Purple thingie. Is it a business mag? lifestyle? what is it? good luck.
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