Improving the marketing strategy of duc giang detergent and chemical joint stock company in the period of 2018 – 2023

If marketing plan is created that focus on the business objectives, stick to the market, coordinate with other functional strategies and perform marketing activities in line with that st

KHOA QUẢN TRỊ VÀ KINH DOANH

ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI KHOA QUẢN TRỊ VÀ KINH DOANH

LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ QUẢN TRỊ KINH DOANH

NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC : TS PHẠM VĂN HỒNG

HÀ NỘI - 2019

DECLARATION

The author confirms that the research outcome in the thesis is the result of author’s independent work during study and research period and it is not yet published in other’s research and article

The other’s research result and documentation (extraction, table, figure, formula, and other document) used in the thesis are cited properly and the permission (if required) is given

The author is responsible in front of the Thesis Assessment Committee, Hanoi School of Business and Management, and the laws for above-mentioned declaration

Date………

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to express my deep gratitude to the teachers at the Faculty of Business Administration, Hanoi National University for imparting valuable knowledge for nearly two years This knowledge does not only help me complete the thesis but also be very useful for my work in the future

I would like to send sincerely thank the teacher, Dr Pham Van Hong, who enthusiastically instructed me during the completion of this thesis

I also would like to thank all colleagues, friends for supporting and providing useful information so that i can complete my thesis

During the course of thesis, mistakes are unavoidable due to limited knowledge, lack of experience and time Therefore, I would like to receive comments from teachers to make this essay more complete and practical

Sincerely,

Ha Noi, October 25, 2018

Tran Xuan Linh

INTRODUCTION 1

1 Rationale 1

2 Literature review 1

3 Aims of research 4

4 Objects of research 4

5 Scope of research 4

6 Research methodology 5

7 Thesis structure 5

CHAPTER 1: THEORY ON MARKETING STRATEGY 6

1.1 OVERVIEW OF STRATEGY 6

1.1.1 Concept of strategy 6

1.1.2 General competition strategy 6

1.1.3 Competitive advantage 7

1.1.4 Building Competitive Advantage Through Strategies 7

1.2 OVERVIEW OF MARKETING STRATEGY 8

1.2.1 Concept, Nature, Role, Objective of Marketing Strategy 8

1.2.2 Factors affecting marketing activities of enterprises and Analysys of Marketing environment 10

1.2.3 Target market and product positioning 18

1.3 MARKETING STRATEGIES 22

1.3.1 Product strategy 23

1.3.2 Price strategy 26

1.3.3 Place strategy 27

1.3.4 Promotion strategy 31

CHAPTER 2: CURRENT STATUS OF MARKETING STRATEGY OF THE COMPANY 36

2.1 OVERVIEW AND MAIN BUSINESS RESULTS OF DUC GIANG COMPANY 36 2.1.1 Overview 36

2.1.2 Main business results 39

2.2 ANALYZE CURRENT MARKETING ENVIRONMENT OF THE COMPANY 42

2.2.1 Macro environment 42

2.2.2 Industry environment 45

2.2.3 Micro environment 48

2.2.4 Target market and Product positioning 52

2.3 ANALASIS OF STRENGTH, WEAKNESS, OPPORTUNITIES, THREATS 54

2.3.1 Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, Threats 54

2.3.2 Building strategy from SWOT matrix 56

2.4 CURRENT MARKETING STRATEGY OF COMPANY 60

2.4.1 Assessment about current marketing strategy of company 60

2.4.2 Product strategy 59

2.4.3 Price strategy 62

2.4.4 Place strategy 63

2.4.5 Promotion strategy 63

CHAPTER 3: SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVE THE MARKETING STRATEGY OF DUC GIANG DETERGENT AND CHEMICAL JSC 65

3.1 DEVELOPMENT ORIENTATION AND GOALS OF THE COMPANY FROM 2018 TO 2023 65

3.2 SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVE MARKETING STRATEGY OF THE COMPANY 65 3.2.1 Solutions about Product 65

3.2.2 Solutions about Price 67

3.2.3 Solutions about Place 68

3.2.4 Solutions about Promotion 69

CONCLUSION 71

LIMITATION AND IMPLICATION ……… 71

REFERENCE 722

APPENDIX 724

LIST OF TABLE

Table 1: Products with output 36

Table 2: Situation of Business Activities 37

Table 3 : Product volume 38

Table 4: Overall finance status 39

Table 5: Inflation rate 41

Table 6: Balance of trade 43

Table 7: GDP growth rate 43

Table 8: Urban and rural population 46

Table 9: Finance performance 48

LIST OF FIGURE Figure 1: Strategic model of Marketing Mix 22

Figure 2: Direct distribution channel scheme 29

Figure 3: Indirect distribution channel scheme 29

Figure 4: Company Organizational Chart 36

Figure 5: Technological Model 51

Figure 6: Three level distribution channel 61

Figure 7: Vertical marketing system model 68

LIST OF ABBREVIATION

CPI: Consumer Price Index

DGC: Duc Giang Detergent and Chemical Joint Stock Company

FTA: Free Trade Agreements

GDP: Gross Domestic Product

GSO: General Statistic Office

QC: Quality control

WTO: World Trade Organization

Moreover, with the development of information technology and the industrial 4.0 revolution, consumers will have easy access to information on all products, prices, quality

of services will affect very much to business efficiency Therefore, effective marketing strategy becomes more urgent

Duc Giang Detergent and Chemical Joint Stock Company was established in 1963

In more than 50 years of development and growth, the company has developed strategies

to adapt and promote its strengths Marketing activities are noticed and implemented and bring about high economic efficiency, contributing to increase business scale, promote consumption, increase sales and profit However, the implementation of marketing activities are lack of synchronism, not scientific, often subjective, which is one of the reasons for reducing the business efficiency and competitiveness of the company

In the face of that situation and after spending time for learning, researching the status of the company's marketing strategy and learning knowledge, I would like to contribute a small part to the overall interest of the company through the Master's thesis

"Develop Marketing Strategy for Duc Giang Detergent and Chemicals JSC in 2018-2023"

The thesis uses methodology of Collecting and analyzing existing documents

Result: The author provides the basis of marketing theory and marketing strategy in the enterprise Based on this theoretical basis, the author presents the current business situation and analysis of the company's current marketing strategy The author also analyzes strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and Threads in the SWOT model From there, the author proposes a solution to improve the marketing strategy for the company

In the solution to improve the marketing strategy for the company, the author focuses on improving the quality and improvement of products such as design and packaging: the company should pay attention to the quality as well as packaging design to look good, suitable for all subjects, color courteous, sharp images

Focus on diversifying products and quality products to meet the increasing demand

of consumers Investing in new products has the characteristics that products are not available in the market

Prices must be consistent, so that businesses and consumers can cooperate for a long time

The author also made some suggestions to develop the policy of promotion such as advertising, discount…

Master Thesis: Improving marketing strategy at Vu Que Rubber Company - Author Nguyen Thi Luu - 2008

Target of this master thesis: As a company manufacturing tires and tubes, marketing strategy is very meaningful to the company If marketing plan is created that focus on the business objectives, stick to the market, coordinate with other functional strategies and perform marketing activities in line with that strategy, then surely the company will expand and occupy the market; generate great revenue and profits

Method: Collect, analyze existing documents

Result: The author provides a theoretical basis for the marketing strategy of the business to create a premise to evaluate and analyze the current status of marketing activities of the company The author has made a number of solutions to recomend the current marketing strategy Details as below:

Firstly, solutions to improve the content of the marketing strategy (completing the objectives, completing the planning process, improving the target market)

Secondly, solutions for Marketing - Mix: product solutions; price solution; Place solution; Promotion Solutions

Thirdly, Solutions to complete marketing strategy: organizational apparatus; Leader; Budget;

Master thesis: Solutions to improve marketing strategy for Sony Bravia LCD TVs

by 2010 - Author Tran Mai An - 2007:

Target of the thesis: Being aware of LCD TVs will be the hottest product in the world of imaging equipment and a new trend of the Vietnamese television market, Sony Vietnam has launched a new line of Bravia LCD TV with deciding that this will be the company's strategic product line, replacing the bulb TV line However, because Bravia LCD TV is only at the beginning of its life cycle, the LCD market in Vietnam is only in its infancy, so it is necessary to take a look at the overall marketing environment for Bravia LCD TV product of the company From there, find out solutions to complete marketing strategy, helping to improve he business efficiency of this strategic product line

The author used two method for implementing the thesis That is: collecting, analyzing existing documents and Interview 300 people in person based on the questionnaire

Results: The author provides a theoretical basis for marketing strategies Present the current marketing situation of the company From that analysis to propose some solutions

to improve marketing strategy for Bravia LCD TVs by Sony Vietnam until 2010 Specifics: solutions for market: demand forecast; Research on customers and Solutions for marketing mix strategies: Products; Price; Place, Promotion

Master thesis: Completing marketing mix of packaging products at Starprint Vietnam Co., Ltd - Author Vo Thi Hien - 2012

Target of the thesis: The increase of competitors in the industry, to compete market share for more and more aggressive and diversified demand about taste customers However, if want to develop the right marketing and long-term development, there must be

a comprehensive marketing strategy to be a guideline for all activities

Recognizing the importance of using Marketing Mix, the author has researched to improve the marketing mix of packaging products in his company hoping to help the company improve business performance

Methods: Collection, comparison, analysis of existing documents

Result: The author provides a theoretical basis for Marketing Mix; Point out the realities of Marketing Mix at Starprint Vietnam From that, analyzed and proposed some solutions to improve marketing Mix in the company Details of solutions as below:

Firstly, finalizing the product strategy: Forecasting, checking and correcting quality problems; improve production processes; promoting internal strength to increase competitiveness

Secondly, complete price strategy: find good materials, reasonable price,

Thirdly, completing the distribution strategy: expanding branches and representative offices; warehouse building

The last, improving the Promotion Strategy: Improving the Department of Business and Marketing, increasing operating budget

Master thesis: Building Marketing Strategy for Pepsi product of PepsiCo Viet Nam

- Author: Group 4-QC3 - 2010:

Objective of the thesis: The level of competition is increasing in order to expand the market share, to dominate the market, to sell products which are a strategic issue, a problem of survival, development or demolition that enterprises are searching Therefore, the author develops marketing strategy for Pepsi product of PepsiCo Vietnam in order to improve the efficiency of its business

Method: Collect, analyze existing documents

Results: The author provides a theoretical basis for marketing strategies; Point out the actual marketing strategy of Pepsi products in 2010 From that, develop marketing strategy for products in 2011

Conclusion: The above works have studied many areas and come up with various solutions based on the materials as well as methods used for research However, there is no research on marketing strategy for Duc Giang Detergent and Chemicals Company

3 Aims of research

Based on evaluation of the status and analysis of the marketing strategy of the detergent division at Duc Giang Detergent and Chemicals Joint Stock Company, from this point of view, I propose new marketing strategies, implementation solutions and control marketing strategy for Duc Giang detergent in the period 2018-2023

4 Objects of research

Master thesis studies all marketing activities of the company such as product marketing, price marketing, distribution channel marketing and media marketing; from that, apply to build a marketing strategy for Detegent industry of Duc Giang Detergent and Chemicals JSC

5 Scope of research

Duc Giang Detergent and Chemicals Company has many products such as cleaning products (detergent, fabric softener, dishwashing liquid), pure chemicals (Nitric acid, sulfuric acid, phosphoric acid .), Industrial chemicals But in the thesis just study the current business situation and marketing strategy in period of 2013-2017 as well as

building the marketing strategy for the period of 2018-2023 and vision to 2025 for Duc Giang detergent

6 Research methodology

 Collect, analyze existing documents: These documents include data on production activities, business of the company Articles, magazines related to the macro situation, industry information

 Interview with experts, some staffs, employees

7 Thesis structure

CHAPTER 1: THEORY ON MARKETING STRATEGY

1.1 OVERVIEW OF STRATEGY

1.1.1 Concept of strategy

Strategies are fighting tactics and defeating opponents in a battle

A strategy is a comprehensive program of action that addresses the underlying goals of a given organization

According to Alfred Chardler: "The strategy involves defining basic, long-term goals, and choosing the right course of action for achieving the goal."

According to William.J.Glueck: "The strategy is a unified, comprehensive plan designed to ensure that the basic goals of the business are realized

1.1.2 General competition strategy

According to Doctor Tran Minh Dao (2006), there are two strategies: Lowest cost and Product differentiantion Specific as below:

Lowest cost strategy:

Enterprises want to create and maintain the lowest cost in the industry or market to create competitive advantage of the business is about price With the lowest cost strategy, businesses use price as the main competitive factor Businesses will set prices low to be competitive Prices will tend to decrease by market size, businesses gain benefits by increasing scale However, it is not possible to decrease linearly because customers will tend to wait for a discount and thus reduce their purchasing power

In this strategy, technology is used as a price support factor, not used as a competitive advantage

Product differentiation strategy:

Implementing this strategy is to make the company's products / services different and more attractive than competitors' products and services (in terms of form, features, durability, quality, service, brand image…) Dedicated products / services must create a clear impression and keep the competitive edge, limit price competition, and compete only

on the level Use specialized technology as competitive advantage In addition, the company needs to have a research and development process, the ability to provide high quality products, effective marketing and sales to ensure that customers can feel the difference and the benefits it brings

The strategy focuses on one segment of the market

This strategy focuses on a group of buyers, a segment of the industry or a geographic market Focusing on the market or product goes in two different directions: one

is product - the customer centralization: the product must look at the customer to design accordingly Second is customer – product focus: customers must follow the product with a look at "a monument." When go in this direction, company can not franchise because it will reduce the value of the product Businesses have to accept the narrow market

1.1.3 Competitive advantage

Competitive advantage is the strength of this business compared to other businesses, thereby enhancing the competitiveness of enterprises Customers choose to buy something that always compares the cost and benefits A business has a competitive advantage when its profitability is greater than that of the industry average

When looking for competitive advantage, businesses must compare with their competitors to see where they are strong Competitive advantage must come from the ability of the business that the competitors do not have, so difficult to imitate In the case where an enterprise does not have the capability to excel in comparison with its competitors, it must select the key factors which different from these of competition

Some types of competitive advantage such as:

Product quality of the business outperforms competitors;

Product price is lower than that of competitors; the product is different;

Service of business better than that of rival;

Management ability creates products that are cheaper, better and more stable; Better business brand

1.1.4 Building Competitive Advantage Through Strategies

Competitive strategies must be based on sources of competitive advantage to succeed Each company can create a competitive advantage if it takes reasonable steps to gain top position in attracting customers compared to competitors The steps or protocols that each company implements may vary, for example, to produce the highest quality product, providing the best customer service, producing at the lowest cost, concentrating resources and market segments, or gaps in the market No matter what company chooses to create competitive advantage, it is essential to let customers feel superior value than what the competitors offer

Businesses will strive consistently to build competitive advantage through an infinite array of strategies Competitive strategies are designed to exploit the value chain and the forces that create competitive advantage As such, each company will try to build

its own specific strategies in line with the strengths and weaknesses analysis, the value it can provide, the external environment and customer needs Enterprises can choose the basic approach to create competitive advantage such as: lowest cost strategy; Product differentiation strategies or strategies focus on one segment of the market Each strategy in these strategies is a consistent result of the company's choice of product, market and differentiation possibilities These choices also affect each other

1.2 OVERVIEW OF MARKETING STRATEGY

1.2.1 Concept, Nature, Role, Objective of Marketing Strategy

1.2.1.1 Concept

According to Philip Kotler and Kevin Lane Keller (2012):

Marketing strategies are the way businesses do to achieve their marketing objectives and often involve 4P (includes product, price, place, promotion) Details as below:

Product: General policies on product branding, positioning, cancellation, repair, addition, design, packaging

Place: General channel policy and customer service

Price: The general pricing policy should be followed for each product group for each market segment

Promotion (or Communication): General policy on communication, customer contact activities such as: advertising, team, sales, promotion, community relations, fairs, customer service center, internet

1.2.1.2 Nature

Based on customer

Without customers, Enterprises will not have the object to serve, so it does not work "The customer is the basis of every strategy to implement the strategy of the business."

For marketing strategies truly based on customers, marketers need to segment the market

Based on the business

Any business has its strengths or weaknesses compared to other businesses, businesses need to fully exploit their strengths and look straight at the limitations

Maximize the advantages of your business to make a difference

Enterprises need to master five factors:

First factor: Sales can be reduced because of competition, inefficient distribution Second factor: Once the peak is reached in the region, industry, the growth rate of the business will slowdown and the diversification of the product will be needed

Third factor: The fast-moving market requires enterprises to have a lot of strength

in market research, which is to quickly understand the changes in the purchasing decision process and especially the decision of the enterprise regarding the new activities for more effective

Fourth factor: Under the pressure of competition from other companies, the marketing structure must be more complete

Fifth fator: Due to the influence of inflation, the cost of advertising, sales promotion and after-sales services are increasing In these cases, marketing is checked and adjusted so that the use of such costs is more efficient and effective

Marketing decides and coordinates the connection between the business activities

of the enterprises and the market Ensure the business operation of enterprise will go in the direction of the market, know the market, take needs and expectations of customers as the firm foundation for all business decisions The marketing strategy outlines the major aspects of an enterprise's marketing activities Marketing is the foundation for the development of functional strategies: production strategy, finance

1.2.1.4 Objective

The objectives of the marketing strategy are to show the basic indicators: consumption output, turnover, market share which marketing strategy needs to be achieved and determined based on:

Firstly, business objectives of the business

Secondly, results from environmental analysis

Thirdly, marketing capabilities and resources

1.2.2 Factors affecting marketing activities of enterprises and Analysys of

Marketing environment 1.2.2.1 Factors affecting marketing activities of enterprises

Marketing activities of any business are affected by many factors, which form the business environment of an enterprise The environment is approached under the perspective of Marketing as a marketing environment

Marketing environment is a combination of all the factors, the forces inside and outside the enterprise have a positive or negative impact on the operation or decision of the Marketing department in the enterprise to the ability to set up or maintain a business-customer relationship

The changes of the marketing environment have a profound and powerful impact

on businesses Including good and bad effects on business The environment has not only changes, gradual changes and easy detection and forecasting, but it also has potential changes, even shocks

Thus, the Marketing environment creates both favorable opportunities and pressures and threats for all businesses Basically, they must use marketing research tools and marketing systems to monitor, capture and handle marketing decisions in order to adapt to changes from the environment

Marketing environment is a collection of micro marketing environment and macro marketing environment Micro Marketing environment includes factors that are closely related to the business and it affects the ability of the business to serve customers These are the internal factors of the company, marketing channels, customer markets, competitors, suppliers, intermediaries, these factors directly affect the operation of the business and businesses also have a certain influence on these factors

The macro marketing environment includes elements and forces of a large social nature, they have an impact on the entire micro-marketing environment and marketing decisions of businesses The macro marketing environment brings together all the factors that businesses cannot control and change This is the origin of opportunities and risks for businesses Those factors are elements of demographics, economics, nature, technology, technology, political politics, ethics and social culture, etc

1.2.2.2 Analyze external environment

According to Doctor Nguyen Minh Tuan (2006):

Marketing environment is understood as a combination of internal and external factors that directly or indirectly affect the marketing or business activities of the enterprises

The marketing environment of each organization can be divided into two levels: The firstly, the macro environment consists of factors outside the organization that shape and affect the micro-environment, creating opportunities and threats to organizations

The macro environment consists of the following key elements: economic environment, natural environment, technological environment, political-legal environment and socio-cultural environment

Secondly, Micro-environment: including the resources of the company itself (such

as human resources, financial capacity, research and development, production, marketing) and the industry environment such as competitors, customers, suppliers, intermediaries, and the public

Marketing environment is often complicated and fluctuate, with the special characteristics Complexity: The maketing environment consists of many factors and each element consists of many different effects Therefore, when analyzing the environment, the marketing manager must pay attention to the factors that directly and indirectly influence With variability, the Markeing environment can develop in four forms as following: Stable and unchanging; stable with seasonal fluctuations or cycles; Slow-moving changes have been confirmed; Fast changes with unpredictable directions

Thus, the business performance of the enterprises and marketing results achieved is dependent on the ability of the manager to develop and coordinate the appropriate marketing mix Businesses that control the changes of the environment, see changes in the environment with new marketing opportunities and quickly adapt to the changing environment will be successful On the contrary, those businesses that do not consider change are opportunities, disregard or resist changes, maintain strategy, organizational structure, working order in isolation from changes in the environment, it will be ineffective

Marketing managers need to monitor and analyze environmental changes, to be able to test and adjust their marketing strategies to match the resources of the business and respond to the new challenges and opportunities in the market

The economic environment: The market needs purchasing power and the public, the current purchasing power of an economy depends on the current income, the price, the

amount of money saved, the need and ability to borrow money Marketers must closely monitor the main trends in income and consumer spending patterns

Firstly, changes in income: The changing trend of income affects the purchasing power of the market If average incomes of consumers increase as a result of a number of factors, such as the number of jobs created, the average wage increases, the amount of money that consumers spend on shopping will increase Business organizations will have the opportunity to achieve higher sales

For various reasons such as unemployment, rising income taxes, inflation real incomes of consumers can be reduced As the total amount of money spent on shopping decreases, some goods such as cars, villas, or trips abroad will be out of customer’s reach Under inflation conditions, consumers tend to buy durable, high value items or items they expect to be able to increase price to protect their value for money

The average income of Vietnamese people in recent years has increased The Vietnamese market has seen the demand for high quality items and better services as customers are able to pay for them

In addition to the average income, marketers also need to pay attention to the distribution of income in society In each society, the upper classes, the middle classes and the lower classes each have different ways of shopping such as the upper classes prefer shopping for luxury products, the middle class often buy Products that have the potential to lead a better life, the low-income classes should primarily purchase essential items for life such as clothing and food

Secondly, savings, debt, ability to borrow money: Consumer spending is affected

by savings, debt and the ability to borrow money Marketers must carefully monitor all fluctuations not only in income but also in cost of living, savings interest rates and the ability to borrow money The volatility of these factors can have a huge impact on the purchasing power of consumers, especially for products that are highly sensitive to income and price

Natural Environment: Inclusion of natural resources that are considered as essential inputs for the operation of the business and has certain effects on the marketing activities

of the business Some trends of the natural environment have a great impact on the marketing activities of a business as follows:

Firstly, raw material shortages: infinite natural resources, renewablels finite resources and non-renewablels finite resources When natural resources are used to deplete, especially non-renewable finite resources such as coal, oil, etc., the producers who

need these materials will have to deal with increasing of the cost of raw materials Therefore, companies need to invest in research to find opportunities to use new substitutes, reduce the level of raw materials needed, reuse and recycle wastes of the materials in use

There are some resources like air, water… also faces exhaustion Some types of resources, such as forests, food can be used extensively Marketers need to assess the impact of this shortfall on the cost of items when switching to other materials

Secondly, energy costs increase: in recent years, energy costs have large fluctuations The increase in the cost of energy use has a major impact on the cost of production in some industries and therefore produces higher prices Manufacturers should therefore keep an eye out for major fluctuations in oil and energy prices to control their costs

Thirdly, the level of pollution increases: The activity of some industries produces waste that destroys the quality of the natural environment Enterprises create products or solutions to control this situation

Fourthly, Changing the Role of Government in Environmental Protection: Governments have different concerns and efforts in protecting the environment There are countries that pursue environmental enhancement as developed countries, but many poor countries do not much because of the lack of funds

Technological environment: Technology is an important force in human life The technology environment includes forces that affect new technology, create new products, and new opportunities The emergence of new technology or new technological innovations can have important long-term consequences that marketers can never predict

As new technologies create new markets and new opportunities, marketers must follow the trends of technological development to exploit these opportunities The trends are:

Firstly, the acceleration of technological change: Some researchers have made the assumption that most of the products we consume today that are impossible to find 30 year ago Nowadays, thanks to new ideas, new products appear quickly to change the appearance of products The acceleration of technology makes the life cycle of the product shorter

Secondly, the budget for research and development: of countries tends to increase, making government-funded research done at research institutes and universities become the source of ideas about new products and services for manufacturers

Thirdly, more and more new technologies such as biotechnology, materials science, robotics, medicine are emerging The introduction of new technologies will create revolution in the products and production process of the manufacturers It also makes the consumer satisfy a need with different products

Fourthly, regulations of governments about technological changes is the tighter and tighter: Technological change can have negative consequences for consumers, so it faces public opposition Recently, the state has intensified the inspection and supervision of counterfeit goods and poor quality goods to protect the interests of consumers Marketers also need to master these regulations when needed and launch new products

Marketers need to understand that the technological environment is always changing and if they master new technology, they can better satisfy the needs of consumers

Political and legal environment: Marketing decisions are strongly influenced by developments in the political environment The factors of this environment include: laws, the direction of economic development of the government

Some political trends to note:

Firstly, it is more and more laws regulating business operations of businesses such

as business law, bankruptcy law, commercial law It is the job of the marketers to master the laws that govern competition, protect consumers and protect the interests of society Businesses need to build a system of ethical standards to provide guidance for their marketing

Secondly, the formation of public interest groups and organizations: in the past decades, the number and strength of public interest groups has increased dramatically These groups have lobbied government officials and put pressure on business executives to pay more attention to the interests of consumers

New laws and the growing number of pressure groups have forced many companies

to set up legal departments and also refrain from more marketing activities Marketers also need to clarify their plans to the legal department to avoid adverse reactions to the company

In Vietnam today, the Consumers' Association has conducted activities to control enterprises, protect the health of consumers Therefore, the marketing decisions of the business must take into account the limits of business ethics to protect the interests of consumers

Socio-cultural environment: Culture is understood as a system of values, concepts, beliefs, traditions and norms of a person or group of people The society in which people grew up has formed their beliefs, values and norms Culture has a decisive influence on how consumers value products and how they behave

Marketers should pay attention to some of the main trends of the socio-cultural environment:

Firstly, core cultural values are very sustainable: marketers have the opportunity to change the customer's secondary values and have little chance of changing core values

Secondly, each culture should include cultural branches Each society contains several branches of culture, ie different groups share the values that arise from experience and certain living conditions Consumers of different cultural backgrounds have different desires and behaviors Thus, marketers can choose the culture branch standard to segment the market and select the target market

Thirdly, the change of values arises: cultural values arise more easily than the core cultural values The main cultural values of society are also expressed through their perceptions of themselves and others, of social and social institutions Marketers need to take these differences into account in order to produce the right marketing program for each type of customer

Fourthly, the changes of Vietnamese society in recent years: the industrialization process that has been taking place in Vietnam has led to great changes in society These are: the process of rural urbanization; the decline of traditional communities and societies; the diverse development of religious and religious forms These changes create a lot of business opportunities for businesses Marketers need to capture changes in society in order to exploit new opportunities and adjust their activities in time

1.2.2.3 Analyze industry environment

Suppliers: Are organizations or individuals providing the materials the company needs for the production of products and services

The development of suppliers seriously affected marketing activities Marketing managers need to monitor closely supply ability, material scarcity, and demand for price increasing of suppliers Employee’s strikes and other events can increase costs in the short run and harm the ability of the company to meet the needs of its customers in the long run

Marketing managers need to monitor closely the trend of price changes with the company's key inputs Increasing the cost of supply can put pressure on the company to increase its selling price and thus sales may be affected

Marketing intermediary: Organizations that help the company promote, sell and deliver products to end users

Marketing intermediaries includes: traders, carriers, marketing agents and financial intermediaries

Traders are organizations that participate in the distribution channel, helping the company find the final consumer or sell to the end consumer Traders include wholesalers and retailers Manufacturers need to use wholesalers or retailers to sell their products because they perform important consumption functions at a lower cost than producers do themselves It's not easy to choose a trade partner and work together with them Companies need to pay attention to maintaining and developing relationships with traders when their consumption ability of their product or destiny depends on them

Carriers: These Companies help manufacturers keep and ship products from their locations to the destination of the end consumer Storage companies store and preserve products before they are shipped to the following destinations The company needs to choose the best way to stockpile and ship the product, balancing between factors such as cost, speed and safety

Marketing Service Agents: These are marketing research companies, advertising agencies, marketing consultants, media companies that help companies choose and introduce their products into right market When the company decides one or more of these agents, the company needs to select them carefully because they are innovative in the quality and price of the services they perform very differently Companies need to review regularly the performance of these dealers to replace them as needed

Financial intermediaries include banks, credit bureaus, insurance companies, and other organizations that help the company conduct financial transactions or insurance against the risks associated with buying and selling product The ability to carry out marketing plans is highly dependent on the increasing of cost of credit loans, the limitation

of credit supply, or both For this reason, the company needs to develop close relationships with key financial institutions

Customers: In order to best satisfy the customers, each company needs to study carefully the needs of its customers The customer market of the company consists of many different types The main types are: Consumers, Manufacturers, Intermediaries, Government, International As follows:

Consumers: Individuals or households purchase products and services for personal consumption

Manufacturers are organizations that purchase products and services that serve the organization's purpose, such as for their production

Trade intermediaries are organizations that buy products and services for the purpose of reselling and making a profit

Government: government agencies purchase products and services to produce public services or transfer products and services to others who need them

International: are overseas buyers including consumers, manufacturers, traders and governments

Each type of market has unique characteristics of the needs that the company must carefully study and design the appropriate marketing program

Competitors: Each company faces many competitors Marketing perspectives show that to be successful, a company can not only be interested in satisfying its customers' needs but also better than its competitors So marketers do not just have to adapt to the needs of their target customers, they also have to adapt to the strategy of the competitor who is serving the same target customers

Each company needs to identify and understand its competitors so that it can design effective competition strategies Each company needs to assess its size and position in the industry relative to the size and position of its competitors Large companies dominate the industry using strategies that smaller companies can not pursue Big companies need to have specific strategies to bring success Small companies develop strategies that allow them to achieve higher return on investment than big companies In short, companies need

to develop marketing strategies to achieve the best competitive advantages on the market

The Public:The marketing environment of the company also includes the different public, interested or influenced to the ability of the organization to achieve: Finance, media, government, local, internal As follows:

The Finance: Influence the company's ability to raise capital Banks, hedge funds, shareholders are the main financial players of the company Each company needs to build a good impression with these organizations

The media: The media are organizations or individuals who perform the communication such as newspapers and television

Government: Government agencies or government officials

Local public: is the public where the company is located as another company or community organization

The internal public: are the workers, the managers

Companies need to prepare marketing plans for their major publics as well as for their clients If a company wants to have a positive response from a public, it needs to design and propose an attractive enough procedure to produce the desired response

1.2.2.4 Micro-environment

Functional structure of a company usually has departments such as: finance; production, human resources, marketing department, R & D department, etc These departments have their own goals for the job function The preparation of marketing plans and programs is assigned to the marketing department The marketing department in the company want to get a high consensus for marketing plan They must pay attention to the duties of the departments and get their support to implement smoothly Specific as follows:

Accounting-The support of the Finance and Accounting Department will ensure timely and sufficient supply of funds for successfully implementing marketing plans and carefully monitoring of revenue and expense, to help marketing department to assess situation and prospect of marketing objectives The support of Human Resources to get personel to implement the marketing plan The support of R & D department to solve problem regarding issues of designing technique and to create products that meet the market's requirements The support of the production department will ensure the quantity and quality of products produced according to the market demand

Every problem in the relationship between the marketing department and other departments of the company will threaten the success of marketing decisions

Marketing: will advance the process of forecasting, setting and satisfying the desired needs of consumers for the product or service The marketing department will perform functions such as customer analysis, purchasing, sales, product and service planning, pricing, distribution, market research, and opportunity analysis Understanding these functions will help strategists identify and assess the strengths and weaknesses of marketing activities

Production: production is the activity of the business associated with the creation of the product The process of production is the process of transforming inputs into commodities This is one of the major activities of the business and therefore has a strong influence on the ability of the business to achieve its stated goals When considering the production process, it is important to pay attention to the following factors: production process, machine capacity, equipment, inventory, labor force utilization and product quality

Financial Accounting: Financial conditions are often viewed as the best way to judge the competitive position of a company and are the most attractive conditions for investors Determining the strengths and weaknesses of your business will help you to develop strategic solutions to meet your defined goals Financial factors often alter existing strategies as well as strategic implementation solutions including: liquidity, leverage, profitability, use of funds, cash and capital of the company

Analysis of financial indicators is the most used method to determine the firm's strengths and weaknesses in investment, finance and dividends However, it should be noted that the financial condition of an enterprise depends not only on its financial functions but also on many other factors such as management, marketing, production so the analysis of financial indicators as well as other analytical tools need to be used wisely Specifically, when analyzing the financial condition of an enterprise, it is necessary to analyze the following basic factors:

Ability to mobilize short-term capital

The ability to raise long-term capital, the ratio between loan and equity

Capital of the company

Cost of capital compared to the whole industry and competitors

Tax issues

Relationship with owners, investors and shareholders

The situation of mortgage loans; the ability to take advantage of alternative financing strategies such as leasing or selling or hiring

Flexible capital, flexibility of capital structure

Cost effective control, ability to reduce costs

Financial scale

Research and development: Research and development is an important activity to study the strengths and weaknesses of enterprises The survival of many businesses depends on the success or failure of research and development, especially those with product development strategies R & D costs aim to develop new products before competitors, improve product quality or streamline production processes to reduce costs

Management: Management has five functions that are planning, organizing, promoting, managing human resources and controlling Planning is the management activity that involves anticipating, setting goals, setting strategies, developing policies, formulating goals Organizing is the management activity that creates the relationship between authority and responsibility, namely organizational design, specialization,

description about job detail, extended control, unified command, coordination, design and analysis of work Promoting is the leading, liaisoning team works, change of activities, delegation, improvement of work quality, satisfaction of needs, change of organization, staff morale and management spirit Human Resource Management is a system of philosophies, policies, and functional activities that appeal to, train, develop and sustain people in order to achieve optimal results for both business and employees Control is the quality inspection, financial control, sales, inventory, cost, analysis of changes, reward and punishment

1.2.3 Target market and product positioning

1.2.3.1 Target market

According to Doctor Vu Phuong Thao (2005):

Enterprises need to determine who their customers are They have needs and desires to be satisfied Do marketing strategies need to be built for each customer group or for all customers? That is only answered through market segmentation and target market selection This is done through the following steps:

Firstly, Measure and forecast demand: Enterprises need to estimate the current needs and future needs of the product, as well as consider the factors that affect that demand This issue is especially important for deciding on the size and the way of entering the market

Secondly, Market segment: Marketers admit that consumers in the market are heterogeneous, which can be grouped in different ways Consumers groups can be set up based on geographic, demographic, psychological, and behavioral parameters The process

of segmenting customers into groups to highlight differences in demand, personality, or behavior is called market segment Each market is made up of market segments

Thirdly, Target market selection: A business can choose to enter into one or more segment of a particular market Most businesses, however, enter a new market by serving a single segment, and if this proves successful, they advance into other segments Penetration is not a random thing but follows an active plan Successful small businesses often determine that only a small number of customers will buy their product or service So their mission is to identify, as accurately as possible, the potential customers at the same time offer marketing campaigns as well as invest serious money and effort into that network of potential customers

Selecting a segment to penetrate must take into account three factors: the size and growth of each segment, its scale, structure and relevance to the marketing capabilities of the business

1.2.3.2 Product positioning

Product positioning is design of the product and image of the business to occupy a special position and valuable in the mind of the target customer Positioning the product requires the business to decide how many points difference and what differences for the target market

The essence of product positioning is to identify the product and the business to a certain position in the target market so that it has a particular image in the mind of the customer and is able to compete with the competitor in same target market

Businesses must position the market to know the customer's perception of the product Consequently, there must be clear, concise and impressive messages, along with the offering of good-quality products and services that can penetrate customer perceptions Moreover, enterprises position products to compete The level of competition is increasingly intense, which is a great challenge for any business that wants to survive and develop Therefore, the created product must have a unique image and different from the competitor's products In addition, product positioning also helps businesses evaluate the effectiveness of communication activities To attract the attention of customers when they are disturbed by the communication activities, the best way is to position effectively When positioned well, advertising messages can attract the attention of customers by conveying clear ideas about the unique of the product in line with the benefits that customers expect

Some product positioning activities:

Firstly, create a specific image for the product or brand in the mind of the customer

in the target market The image of the business, product and brand is based on: the design and dissemination of the image that the enterprise chooses; Customer experience through product consumption

Secondly, choosing the position of the product, the business in the target market: The image is portrayed in the mind of the customer not only by the product itself and the marketing activities of the business but also by the correlation compared to competing products The position of a product on the market at what size is the customer's perceived and formed attitude with the product when the customer access to competitive products

Thirdly, creating differentiation for their products, brand: A position in the markets

in which businesses choose only becomes a reality if it is backed by the outstanding

features of the product and other marketing activities when customers compare to competing products Make a difference in the product is to design a series of significant differences so that customers can distinguish the product of the business with competitive products

Fourthly, select and promote meaningful differences: the problem is how much difference businesses have to promote and what are the differences that make sense to the target customers Businesses must select the differences associated with the benefits that customers expect in the product, as well as ease of expression, enabling the communication activities to provide clear, authentic information and impressive to the target customer

1.3 MARKETING STRATEGIES

According to Philip Kotler and Kevin Lane Keller (2012):

Marketing Mix (4P) is often used to develop specific marketing strategies to market segments through product, pricing, place, and promotion This is also the key to the success of the business

Strategic model of Marketing Mix:

Figure 1: Strategic model of Marketing Mix

1.3.1 Product strategy

According to Doctor Tran Minh Dao (2006):

A marketing strategy built on 4P will start from the product policy This is a reasonable thing because the most essential thing of a business is to have a product or service to market

Product policy is the backbone of a marketing strategy, which is the first element that businesses decide to target in order to match potential customers Only when formulating product policies, does the company have the direction to ensure that the products that the market requires If product policy does not guarantee a steady market or consumption, it will be very risky and may lead to failure Product policies ensure the business finish objectives of business strategy such as profit, position and safety

In the classic conception: A product is a combination of observable physical and chemical properties that is assembled in a uniform form and is a bearing of value In the

Place

Channels Coverage Assortments Locations Inventory Transport

Promotion

Sales Promotion Advertising Sales force Public relations Direct marketing

production of goods, the product contains two attributes: value and utilization value In other words, a product as a commodity, it is not just a combination of physical, chemical,

or functional properties but also an exchange value or a value

From a marketing point of view, the product is anything that can be gone to market

by the company to attract attention, desire, acceptance, ownership or consumption to satisfy a desire or need of customer

By definition, the product can be objects, services, ideas which means that they can be tangible or intangible, or include both tangible and intangible elements Visible elements of the product such as size, nature, color, packaging Invisible elements such as: quality, image, warranty service, brand, style

Thus, the product understanding from the perspective of marketing more widely, helping businesses to research the product from which to map out the more complete and effective

Components of the product:

Firstly, the core product part is the base level of the product It contains the intrinsic properties of the product This part answer for the question is what customers actually buy

in the product or what the customer needs

Secondly, the realistic part of the product: the basic form of the product, including

5 elements: characteristics, labels, packaging, quality, design of the product

Thirdly, complementary products: include those services and additional benefits These features make a seller's product distinguishable from the competitor's product Including: accessories, service places, after-sales service, warranty, delivery

The marketing planner needs to distinguish three different levels of product To acknowledge with a three-layer structure allows marketers to see a lot of opportunities to expand the company's offerings to customers, making the company's products adapt to the needs of customers

Product strategies:

In the face of fierce competition, along with the development of technical and information systems, prices are no longer the leading position, but customers are also interested in other factors such as quality, design, service… In addition, according to the current business trend, enterprises not only meet demand but also orient demand and stimulate demand; more specifically produce products that go ahead of the needs that currently do not appear

Meanwhile, marketing must determine what to produce, how to produce, how to sell So that product strategy is the foundation, the first step in the production process business It requires businesses to have creative mind and sophisticated observation, not only in the current market but also in the futures market, from which products are launched

to meet the rich needs of customer

From the point of view of maketing, the product exists in three forms: product item; product line and product mix Therefore, it is necessary to develop product strategies for all three forms

Product strategy is broad and includes the following main directions: Product aggregation strategy; Product line strategy, and strategy for each specific product Details are as follows:

Firstly, Product Aggregation Strategy includes: extended, prolonged, deepening, increasing the uniformity of the set In the strategy we have four strategies as follows:

Strategy for expanding the product mix: This strategy is implemented by adding new appropriate product lines

Strategy for stretching the product line in a set: In this set, strategies it is done by adding several items to each product line, giving the company a complete product line

Strategy to increase the depth of the product mix: This strategy is implemented by increasing the number of variants of each product such as changing the size and taste of a product

Strategy to increase and decrease the uniformity of the product mix: This strategy is implemented depending on the enterprise want to have a solid reputation in a field or to participate in many areas

Secondly, the product line strategy: setting strategy, development, limitation, transformation, modernization product line As follows:

Strategies for establishing product lines: For the safe and effective business to establish the appropriate product line and gradually strengthen the lines in terms of quality

as well as volume to increase business power

Product development strategy: demonstrated by the development of items in the product line Product development is expressed in two ways: expansion and addition

Adding strategy: Add new items to your existing product line to increase profitability, add more products to consumers, use your company's excess capacity, and prevent competitors

Product Line Restriction Strategy: abandoning ineffective product lines to concentrate resources on other products and product lines

Product modification strategy: improving shape, size, packaging, design, brand to attract more customers

Product modernization strategy: product transformation according to the increasing demand of the market

Thirdly, strategy for each specific product: including innovation, imitation, adaptation and product positioning strategies As follows:

Product innovation strategy: Reactive innovation and active innovation Innovative response is made when the environment changes In order to implement this strategy, enterprises must have great marketing capabilities and have flexibility in their organization and production Active innovation is made when the environment has not changed but businesses want to find a higher level of development To implement the business requires: large capital, patent, invention and good ownership of the distribution system

Product immitation Strategy: Made when business does not dare to innovate for fear of risk This strategy needs to be implemented quickly because imitation is too slow will increase commodity stagnation

Product adaptation strategies include improving product quality such as improving technology, improving skills, finding better sources of raw materials, strictly checking product quality; or lower the selling price by eliminating the useless cost

Product Repositioning Strategy: This strategy aims to give the new product a place

in the consumer's mind by: making the product have a special place in the mind of current and future buyers; Make it clearly distinguishable from competing products; Meet the expectations of customers in the target market

1.3.2 Price strategy

According to Doctor Nguyen Minh Tuan (2006):

Price is one of the basic marketing mix parameters In business, price is a controllable tool that businesses need to use scientifically to achieve their business strategy Prices are of great importance

For customers: is the basis to decide to buy this product or other product, price is a lever to stimulate consumption

For businesses: Price is a competitive weapon in the market, determines sales and profits, indirectly reflects the quality of products and affects the overall marketing program

For Macroeconomics: prices are the ones who direct the economic system, affecting the distribution of factors of production, inflation, interest rates of banks

At present, in the market, besides price competition, there is competition based on quality, service but price still plays an important role Goods will not be sold if prices are not accepted by consumers Consumers are always concerned about the price of goods, so the way to set a correct pricing policy is vital to any business Price decisions can affect the entire business process of the enterprises

There are three basic pricing methods: cost-based Pricing; Customer-based pricing and pricing based on competitors' prices Details are as follows:

Firstly, cost-based pricing: With this method, an enterprise can offer the price of a product by adding a profit to the cost of the product The calculation of product costs must

be based on the level of output and the costs involved and the profit margin varies according to the product, service and desired level of achievement

Secondly, Customer-Based Pricing: This method prices according to the customer's perception of the product, not the cost of the manufacturer Different customers will have different opinions about the product Customers only care about the characteristics or benefits of products such as quality, service, design Other customers value the meaning of shopping rather than the function of a service, product This method gives the company the ability to profit from the selling price, thereby improving the efficiency of the business However, the implementation takes time and effort to organize the implementation of studies on the acceptance of prices by customers

Thirdly, Pricing on the competitor's price: With this method, the selling price of the company will be determined on the selling price of the competitor Top companies are usually price fixers and other companies can position their prices against the price of the lead company so that their product is within a comparable price range that still has the advantage of price This method of valuation is most common for markets where the elasticity is difficult to measure

The above pricing methods have created different options for basic prices Businesses need to choose for themselves a reasonably price level by considering more factors such as: the psychology of buyers when perceived price; the reputation of the business and the brand; The attitude of agents, wholesalers, retailers

There are four price strategies including: pricing strategies for new products; Pricing strategy for product mix; Price adjustment strategy; Price change strategy Details are as follows:

Firstly, the price strategy for new products: we have the market-skimming price strategy and market penetration strategies

With the market-skimming price: When applying the "good price" price strategy, businesses often set their selling prices at the highest possible price, for the segment of the market that buyer ready to accept that new product When consumption decreases, the company can reduce the price to attract customers In this way, businesses that sell new products will achieve high levels of revenue and profit in the early stages of the product life cycle

This strategy applies only to conditions such as: high demand for new products, customers not sensitive with changes of price; quality and impression of the product in line with the price factor; Competitors hard to enter the market

With market penetration pricing: With this strategy, businesses will set new low selling prices to gain market share and profit in the long run

This strategy is consistent with the following conditions: market is price sensitive, low price attracts customers in large quantity; Production costs are inversely proportional

to production; Low prices do not attract more competitors

Secondly, the pricing strategy for product mix: in this case, the business must build

a set of selling prices that ensure maximum profitability across the entire product portfolio rather than individual products The pricing for the product category is not straightforward, since different items are related to each other in terms of demand, cost, and different levels

of competition There are four common scenarios: product line pricing, optional product pricing, captive product pricing, by product pricing

Pricing for product lines: pricing for products with the same functionality, sold to the same consumer group When pricing for a product line, the business must take into account the price difference, how the customer evaluates the features of each product and the price of the competing product to make the right decision

Pricing for additional products: Many companies offer products with optional features For example, customers who purchase a computer may require a CD set and pay for it as an optional option The company must determine which parts are optional and must decide the price for it

Pricing for the captive product: Some companies produce some products with compulsory sidekicks such as a razor blade, a DVD player need DVD disk In these cases, Usually the price of the main product is not high because the company made a profit

by selling the by product

Pricing for the by-product: The production of the main product forms a number of byproducts whose destruction of these byproducts is costly or wasteful, the enterprise will try to process and find the market to reduce the cost of the main product Therefore, they will generate revenue, help businesses have conditions to reduce the price of the main product, gaining competitive advantage

Price Adjustment Strategies: Enterprises adjust prices according to different business conditions and factors of market conditions such as: price discount, discriminatory pricing policy, psychological price and regional pricing

Discount: Many companies offer discounts to stimulate customers in the following cases: early payment, bulk purchase, perform some functions for manufacturers such as inventory, statistics, out of season, exchange of goods such as old goods to buy new goods

Price discrimination: Many companies often change the basic price to suit each customer, suitable for each product, consumption area This is the case where the company sells a product with many different price levels are not based on different cost bases but depending on customer segment, type of product, region or time of sale

Psychological price: Many customers use price to measure product quality When applying a psychological price policy, the manufacturer considers the psychological factor

of the price rather than merely the economic aspect

Pricing by geographic region: The company should consider the price of the product when sold in different geographical locations When applying this policy, the company should pay attention to the price policy of its competitors

Price change strategy: In many cases, due to changes in the business environment, businesses are forced to change their pricing strategies, which means that they must change the base price

Firms are forced to reduce their prices when faced with overcapacity, reduced market share, or market dominance by lowering prices

There are many situations that businesses need to raise prices actively Despite the risks of price increases, if successful it will give the business a stable or increase in profit Situations that lead to proactively raise the price of the business such as inflation, cost, demand exceeded supply

1.3.3 Place strategy

According to Doctor Nguyen Minh Tuan (2006):

Distribution is a bridge that helps manufacturers deliver products to customers: the right products, the right time, the right place, the right channel, the flow of goods

Enterprise focus on products, transportation operators save costs, limit risks, damage At present, more and more businesses are interested in distributing as marketing variables that create long-term competitive advantage for enterprises in the market Organization and enterprises do distribution activities through distribution channels

Direct distribution channel: It is the form of enterprise selling the finished product

to the end consumer without intermediaries

Figure 2: Direct distribution channel scheme

Some advantages as below:

Firstly, Strengthen the relationship between producers and consumers, timely obtain accurate information market

Secondly, Producers directly introduce products to consumers, after-sale service, which is trusted to build a stable market

Thirdly, shorten shipping time, reduce the consumption

Fourthly, Reduce transit costs

Fifthly, it is advantageous for manufacturers to control prices and sales promotion methods, flexibly adapt to market changes, make timely decisions, adjust modes and prices, and seize market opportunities

Disadvantages as follow: slow sales, high direct sales, need a large team of sales staff, must invest in large stores

Indirect distribution channels: are the form of enterprises selling their products to end-users through intermediate stages, including brokers, agents, wholesalers and retailers

Figure 3: Indirect distribution channel scheme

Some Advantages as below:

Firstly, with this form, enterprises can concentrate their efforts on good production, enhance new creativity and improve product quality

Manufacturer

Agents

Wholesaler

s Brokers

End user Manufacturer

Secondly, it is advantageous to save, reduce the occupancy of working capital because enterprises do not need to lose capital to promote consumption

Thirdly, it is advantageous to help the central store expand the market, promote consumption, coordinate consumption relations, resolve the conflict between quantity and demand, product type and time gap

Disadvantages: long time of goods traffic, difficult to control in intermediate stage, lack of information from consumers on demand, feedback on price, quality, design, product services

There are three basic distribution strategies: broad distribution strategy; selective distribution strategy and exclusive distribution strategy As follows:

Firstly, broad distribution strategy: use this method to increase the presence of products and services on the market to increase sales and penetrate the market in a certain area To implement this strategy, manufacturers will use a large number of intermediaries

to distribute This method is often used when the manufacturer recommends to the customers the consumer goods

Secondly, selective distribution strategy: This method promotes the value of the brand and its associated services Therefore, with this method, manufacturers often use a limited number of distribution centers Only distribution centers that meet the minimum requirements to ensure the image of the product will be choosen

Thirdly, exclusive distribution strategy: Using this strategy to completely control the product distribution policy and build a strong image on the product, manufacturers use only one agent at each geographic region, or country The method of using an exclusive agent often applies to high-tech products and services and has a high commercial risk When implementing this strategy, manufacturers need to support their agents in terms of training, technical facilities

The choice of distribution method has a decisive influence on the company's ability

to control brand policy and price policy throughout its distribution system In addition, the manufacturer should also base on the attitude of the consumer If consumers pay more attention to the price factor without paying attention to the brand, the manufacturer will choose the method of broad distribution On the other hand, if the label is an important factor, the product requires the accompanying instructions and services; the manufacturer will favor the distribution method of selection, even exclusive distribution

1.3.4 Promotion strategy

According to Doctor Tran Minh Dao (2006):

In addition to developing suitable products, attractive pricing, and through sales channel to reach the target customers, businesses must create a brand in the market, design and promote image creation This is a great way to sell the products and can provide customers with other useful information to help ensure successful sales

The basic tools used to accomplish the organization's communication goals are often mentioned as the promotion system Each tool in the marketing mix is considered as

an integrated marketing communication tool

Depending on the specific conditions that companies have different advertising goals The advertising objective also depends on the requirements of the media mix of the company Usually, the company's advertising goals are often directed toward the following issues:

Increase the number of consumer goods in the market

Open up new markets

Introduce new products

Build and strengthen the prestige of the brand and reputation of the company

The advertising objectives can be customized as information, persuasive or reminder Information advertising is used in the early stages of the product life cycle with the goal of creating initial demand Persuasive Advertising is at the competitive stage when the company's goal is to increase demand Reminder Advertising is very important during the maturity phase of the product in order to maintain the customer

In general, ad content is often evaluated based on its attractiveness, originality, and credibility The ad message must say something desirable or interesting about the product

It also needs to talk about unique aspects, different from other products The company needs to analyze these characteristics in the content of its advertising message

Here are some of the highlights of some of the advertising media that companies use:

Newspaper: advantages are easy to use, timely, widespread in the local market, widely accepted, high reliability The disadvantages is short life expectancy, limited readership

Journal: Advantages are the choice of population and geography, prestigious, term relationship with readers The disadvantage is the long wait time

long-TV: the advantages are very common Advertising via TV exploit the advantages of sound, image, language, color The audience is wide, multi-level social class, the ability to communicate quickly should be easy to get attention The disadvantages are that the duration is limited, the cost is high, the audience is less selective, the time is too short

Radio: The advantage is that many listeners, low cost, flexible geography Limitations are only introduced by sound, low attention ability, short life span

In addition, companies advertise through posters, leaflet, catalogs, letters, packaging, word of mouth, telemarketing, computarketing, etc Each kind of advertisement has its advantages and benefits

To choose the appropriate advertising medium, the advertiser must decide on the frequency, intensity and impact of advertising

Evaluating advertising effectiveness is very necessary but also very difficult First

of all, we must rely on sales to evaluate advertising effectiveness Ads increase the level of awareness and preference of goods and increase sales Advertising effectiveness is also measured by the effectiveness of the media by indicators such as how many people know, how many people remember, how many people prefer advertising messages

 Direct Marketing:

Personal selling are individual communications This form requires human resources; employees need professional skills; cost and much time However, direct personal offers are very convenient and flexible, persuasive and effective Major offer tools:

Firstly, Marketing by sending catalog to reach prospects; Based on this catalog customers will order by post

Secondly, Marketing by direct mail: Businesses send letters of offers, brochures, and other forms of offers to customers, hoping to sell the goods or services, collect or select a list of customers for sales force, inform information or send gifts to thank customers