LV Thạc sỹ_Public relations at Trung nguyen corporation

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS On completing this post-graduate major project dissertation, I would like to send my deepest and most sincere gratitude to many people for their invaluable help during the conduct of this research First and foremost, I would like to send my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisor Ass Prof Dr … for her constructive and timely feedback as well as her constant and unfailing support, which were decisive factors in the completion of this study Additionally, I would like to show my deepest gratitude toward my colleagues for their valuable advice and guidance in research methodology Furthermore, I would like to give the most sincere thanks to my classmates in EMBA9B – BSNEU On a personal note, I would like to express gratitude to all the family and friends who provided emotional and spiritual comfort throughout this challenging period of research This study could not have been completed without their continual encouragement TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS .2 LIST OF TABLES LIST OF FIGURES EXECUTIVE SUMMARY CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 10 1.1 Rationale 10 1.2 Research objective 11 1.3 Research question 11 1.4 Research Methodology .12 1.4.1 Research process 12 1.4.2 Data collection 13 1.4.3 Data analysis 14 General Characteristics of interviews 20 1.5 Research scope 21 1.6 Research structure .22 CHAPTER II: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND ON PR 23 2.1 Nature of public relation 23 2.1.1 Concept of PR 23 2.1.2 Classification of PR and Advertisement, Marketing 25 2.2 PR tools in an organization .28 2.2.1 Talk or speech .28 2.2.2 Publication 28 2.2.3 Special events .29 2.2.4 News 29 2.2.5 Public interest – sponsor activities 29 2.2.6 Other identification means 30 2.3 Factors affect to PR 30 2.4 PR experiences of coffee Companies of industry 33 2.4.1 Vinacafe 33 2.4.2 Starbucks coffee 36 2.4.3 Learning lessons from case of Starbucks and Vinacafe for Trung Nguyen .39 2.5 Summary of Chapter 39 CHAPTER III: CURRENT SITUATION OF PR AT TRUNG NGUYEN CORPORATION 41 3.1 Overview of Trung Nguyen Corporation 41 3.1.1 Company introduction 41 3.1.2 Establishment and Development Process of Trung Nguyen Company .42 3.1.3 Operational Scale 44 3.1.4 Trung Nguyen Coffee Products 45 3.1.5 Development Strategies .46 3.2 Requirements of public relations at Trung Nguyen Corporation .47 3.3 Current situation of PR at Trung Nguyen Corporation 47 3.3.1 Findings from questionnaires 47 3.3.2 Findings from the interviews .63 3.3.3 Conclusion 63 3.4 Achievements and Shortcomings on PR at Trung Nguyen Corporation 64 3.5 Causes of shortcomings 65 3.6 Chapter summary 65 CHAPTER IV: SOLUTIONS AND ORIENTATION 66 4.1 Orientation of Trung Nguyen Corporation to 2015 66 4.2 Solutions (Recommendation) to Trung Nguyen Corporation 66 LIST OF REFERENCE .68 APPENDIX 1: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR MANAGER .72 APPENDIX 2: SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW FOR MANAGER 76 LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Response rate distributed by staff position Table 2: Response rate distributed by staff position Table 3: The number of questionnaire non-response bias Table 4: The respondents’ ideas on the current PR strategy of Trung Nguyen Corporation LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Response rate for distributed questionnaires Figure 2: The number of questionnaire non-response bias Figure 3: The distribution of respondents by gender Figure 4: The distribution of respondents by age Figure 5: The distribution of respondents by position Figure 6: The distribution of respondents by qualification Figure 7: The summary of the background of participants in interviews Figure 8: The approach applied and adopted by Trung Nguyen Corporation Figure 9: The response rate for the types of target publication Figure 10: The response rate for objects that Trung Nguyen attached much importance to in its PR activities Figure 11: The PR Budget for Trung Nguyen Corporation EXECUTIVE SUMMARY For a business to survive and grow in a competitive market, it is important to develop a solid brand name in the industry In recent time, the process of globalization has made the economic activities of many countries around the globe more dynamic than ever before Vietnam has experienced remarkable growth in economy over the past decade Such positive effect on the macro economy also has direct impact on the coffee industry - one of the largest industries not only in Vietnam but also in many other countries worldwide With a young population that has great passion for coffee, the consumption of coffee and demand for this tasteful drink continue to increase As a result, the number of participants in the Vietnamese coffee industry has increase significantly over the past few years, including both local and foreign brands such as Trung Nguyen Coffee, Vinacafe, Nestle, The Coffee Bean, Highland Coffee, Terra Café, etc With strong competition from many businesses, the enterprise has to build reputable brand name in order to retain loyal customers and attract new ones With the increasing competition, Trung Nguyen – a local coffee brand - has to bring its name to a new level This is the reason why public relation becomes the key strategic goal of the Trung Nguyen Public relation is more than just marketing It is the activity that shows the business’ contribution to the community as well as its attempt to gain the public trust and improve reputation Understanding the vital role of public relation, the author would like to dig deeper into this subject and develop a profound understanding of public relation activities through this dissertation The thesis aims to develop a clear picture of public relation strategy and its application in the business world To bring insightful knowledge on public relation to readers, the author intends to introduce and explain some important theories and research work from experts in the field To link the theories to reality, the author demonstrates the case study of Trung Nguyen Coffee The success story of the company over more than ten years of establishment has provided a valuable lesson for future application of public relation In this thesis, the current situation of PR management at Trung Nguyen Coffee will be presented The techniques to combine PR tools with other strategies to build brand value will also be discussed Finally, the dissertation aims to provide some useful recommendations to improve public relation management, not only specifically for the case of Trung Nguyen, but also for many other businesses in their quest towards good reputation and famous brand name The author hopes to make valuable contribution to the public relation topic through the findings in this thesis For a profound understanding of the topic, the author presents an overview of theories and models from experts for effective public relations These theories will be explained in detail and compared against each other for a broad view of the topic In addition, some useful tools for public relation strategy such as news, sponsored activities, social events, speech, publication, etc will be introduced within the dissertation In addition to the theories, the author carries out personal research on the public relation aspect of Trung Nguyen Company to provide an understanding of how PR strategies in theories can be implemented in the business world For a successful research, both quantitative approach and qualitative approach are applied during the data collection process Data are collected from two sources, primary and secondary sources In this case study, primary sources include the questionnaires distributed to staffs and managers at Trung Nguyen together with personal interviews with some selected persons On the other hand, the secondary sources include credible data collected from journals, books, website of Trung Nguyen, etc Stratified sampling method is used to provide a more accurate result which represents the population It is shown that marketing strategy and public relation have close relation A good combination of both can help enhance the brand name and reputation of the business From the history of Trung Nguyen, talk show and special events have contributed much to its current fame With more than ten years of development, Trung Nguyen has successfully built a good image in the public and continues to gain support from coffee consumers not only in Vietnam but also in many other countries around the world Therefore, it is worthy to study the strategies that Trung Nguyen has applied over its history of operation Three core values to the business success are identified, including creativity, development of the brand and adoption of customer-centric strategies Another secret to the success is to build good relationship with other business partners For a successful public relation strategy, the enterprise has to focus on customers’ needs and desires It also has to show effort in building a better world and making contribution to the community through valuable events Together with actual contribution to society, the business has to choose the suitable media channel to transfer the message, keeping the public informed of the effort of the company Besides the above findings, the interviews and questionnaires with Trung Nguyen staffs have once again re-confirmed the importance of PR activities in maintaining good brand name in a competitive market From the analysis of theories and the result from research in Trung Nguyen, the author can provide in-depth knowledge of the public relation topic Furthermore, the dissertation aims to present some useful recommendations to improve public relation management There are diversified types of media channels which corporations can use to forward its message to the public With wide range of options, it is vital that businesses be able to choose the suitable tools for certain product to reach the public at specific period of time As society keeps on changing and the public’s opinion also changes over time, businesses must be sensitive to the needs and demands of people and be flexible in its strategy For Trung Nguyen, as press release, conference and special events have provided fruitful result in the past, the company can continue to apply these media for its public relation strategy It is also recommended that Trung Nguyen should invest more funds into this area of the business to enhance its current brand name Besides, more attention should be paid on lobby activities to develop strong tie with the local authority and government CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale Manufacturing coffee has become one of the largest industries in the world with trading value of almost USD 120 billion per year internationally (Business Line, 2012) Based on goods value, the coffee industry only ranks after the oil and gas industry and the gold and jewelry market (Investorguide.com, 2012) Manufacturing coffee industry is also an attractive investment for many dealers The industry motivates not only trades but also cultural values For instance, different regions have different types of coffee with unique taste, creating the diversity in the coffee world With the strong development of the coffee manufacturing industry, the competition among coffee manufacturers and distributors is becoming fiercer In addition, the globalization adds to the competitiveness in this market To survive, businesses have to build their own competitive advantage, providing unique value to consumers With the unique strength, coffee enterprises can distinguish their own products from others, thus, attract and retain loyal consumers In practice, to creating competitive advantage, businesses have to apply suitable strategies that are relevant to their structure, target customers, product segmentation, etc Understanding this, Trung Nguyen Coffee Company has created appropriate strategic plan and built famous brand name in the Vietnam market Trung Nguyen Coffee has achieved great success since early of its establishment Many articles and reports provide positive view of the company Some authors even described Trung Nguyen Coffee as a “phenomenon” of the coffee industry in Vietnam (Vy, 2009) It can be said that Trung Nguyen Coffee has created great trust in consumers To gain such value, the top management of the company has continuously ensured effective public relation strategy Therefore, in a short amount of time, Trung Nguyen Coffee has not only built an image of high quality but also increased its revenue significantly Started out as a small coffee workshop in Buon Ma Thuot, a small province of Vietnam, Trung Nguyen has now expanded its network to around Vietnam (Dang, 2011) Trung Nguyen has made a historical step in building a remarkable coffee brand name in 10 [8] Quality Supermarket of Vietnamese, 2009 Company info – General information of Trung Nguyen Company [Online] Available at: Last accessed 22nd July 2012 [9] TrungNguyen.com.vn, 2012 Coffee Culture, [Online] Available at: Last accessed 22nd July 2012 [10] TrungNguyen.com.vn, 2012 Products, [Online] Available at: Last accessed 22nd July 2012 [11] TrungNguyen.com.vn, 2012 The biggest coffee museum in the world [Online] Available at: < http://www.trungnguyen.com.vn/1667/bao-tang-ca-phe-lon-nhat-the-gioi> Last accessed 22nd July 2012 [12] TrungNguyen.com.vn, 2012 World Coffee Museum, [Online] Available at: Last accessed 22nd July 2012 [13] Thuan, Q 2007 Buon Me Thuot would become “Paradise of Coffee”: turning ideas into reality [Online] Available at: Last accessed 22nd July 2012 [14] UG-Trade, 2010 Overview of Trung Nguyen Company [Online] Available at: Last accessed 22nd July 2012 [15] Vinatel, 2012 Trung Nguyen Joint Stock Company [Online] Available at: Last accessed 22nd July 2012 69 [16] Vy, D 2012 The capital of global coffee market – A daring idea [Online] Available at: Last accessed 22nd July 2012 [17] Carl J Sheperis, 2009, Counseling Research: Quantitative, Qualitative, and Mixed Methods, Prentice Hall, [18] Dr Nicholas Walliman, 2010, Your Research Project: A Step-by-Step Guide for the First-Time Researcher (Sage Study Skills Series), Sage Publications Ltd, [19] Jean Gallier, 2011, Geometric Methods and Applications: For Computer Science and Engineering (Texts in Applied Mathematics), Springer,2 [20] John W Creswell, 2008, Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches, Sage Publications, Inc, [21] Larry B Christensen, 2010, Research Methods, Design, and Analysis, Allyn and Bacon, 11 [22] Polit and Hungler, 1993, Essentials of nursing research: Methods, appraisal, and utilization, Lippincott, 3rd edition [23] Tesch, R (1990) Qualitative research: analysis types and software tools, New York, Falmer Press [24] Deirdre K Breakenridge, 2012, Social Media and Public Relations: Eight New Practices for the PR Professional, FT Press, [25] Dennis L Wilcox and Glen T Cameron, 2011, Public Relations: Strategies and Tactics (10th Edition), Allyn & Bacon, 10 [26] Fraser P Seitel, 2010, Practice of Public Relations, The (11th Edition), Prentice Hall, 11 [27] Ha, 2012, Confusion between PR and Marketing, PR Pioneer Communications 70 [28] Jennifer Gehrt et al., 2010, Strategic Public Relations: 10 Principles to Harness the Power of PR, Xlibris [29] Trung Nguyen, 2012, [Online] Available at: www.trungnguyen.com.vn Vnexpress, 2012 [Online] Available at: http://vnexpress.net/gl/kinh-doanh/quoc- te/2012/08/trung-nguyen-muon-la-nha-san-xuat-cafe-lon-nhat-the-gioi/ [30] Collis and Hussey, 2003, Business Research, Palgrave Macmillan, Deirdre K Breakenridge, 2012, Social Media and Public Relations: Eight New Practices for the PR Professional, FT Press, [31] Dennis L Wilcox and Glen T Cameron, 2011, Public Relations: Strategies and Tactics (10th Edition), Allyn & Bacon, 10 [32] Fraser P Seitel, 2010, Practice of Public Relations, The (11th Edition), Prentice Hall, 11 [33] Ha, 2012, Confusion between PR and Marketing, PR Pioneer Communications [34] Jennifer Gehrt et al., 2010, Strategic Public Relations: 10 Principles to Harness the Power of PR, Xlibris [35] Trung Nguyen, 2012, [Online] Available at: www.trungnguyen.com.vn [36] Vnexpress, 2012 [Online] Available at: http://vnexpress.net/gl/kinh-doanh/quocte/2012/08/trung-nguyen-muon-la-nha-san-xuat-cafe-lon-nhat-the-gioi/ [37] Jordan Goldman, 1984, Public relations in the marketing mix 71 APPENDIX 1: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR MANAGER Public Relations at Trung Nguyen Corporation Dear Sirs and Madams, I am Nguyen Van Anh, I am writing my thesis on Public relations at Trung Nguyen Corporation as mentioned above I will highly appreciate your kind cooperation in sharing your opinions and precious experiences by completing this questionnaire and hand out it to me in an hour You not have to reveal your personal information including name, address and your mobile phone number Besides, your opinions generated from this questionnaire will be kept confidential I would like to express my since thanks for you to take your time to complete my questionnaire I strongly believe that the questionnaire’s results completed by you will be the important information and data for my analysis to the case study General information: Please circle the letter next to your choice What is your Gender? A Male B Female Multiply choice question: From the question 2.1 - Please circle one and only answer for each question 2.1 What marketing approach that Trung Nguyen heavily focus on? A Public Relations B Marketing C Combination of the two mentioned above approach D None of them 72 2.2 In the process of working with the media agencies, what type of publication that Trung Nguyen targeted to? A Print-based media B Television and Radio C Talk shows D All of them E None of them 2.3 In your opinion, what is the brand which adopted the most effective and successful PR strategy in Vietnamese instant coffee market? A Nestle B Trung Nguyen C Vinamilk D Others please specify… 2.4 In your opinion, what is the reasonable annual budget for PR strategy of Trung Nguyen? A From VND 500 Million to VND Billion B From VND Billion to VND Billion C More than Billion D Others please specify… 2.5 Do you think that the current PR strategy needs to be changed in the coming time? 73 A Yes B No For question 2.6 to question 2.7, please write one (and only one) given number (from to 5) in front of each question 1= not at all 2= not really 3= so-so 4= quite a lot 5= very much 2.6….How much you like the current PR strategy of your company? 2.7….How much you believe that Trung Nguyen will become the leading coffee brand name across the global by boosting its PR strategy? From the question 2.8 to 2.10, feel free to circle more than one answer 2.8 In your opinion, is the management process of public relations within the context of Trung Nguyen Corporation reasonable, accessible and effective? A Yes B No C No idea 2.9 What is considered the most effective primary tool for public relations of Trung Nguyen? A Talk or speech B Publication C Special events D News E Public interest – sponsor activities 74 F None of them F Others 2.10 What object(s) that Trung Nguyen attached much importance to in its PR activities? A Customers B Potential employees C Employees D Suppliers E Financial organizations F Media agencies G Marketing intermediaries H The government 2.11 Do you have any suggestion/proposal/comment/recommendation for managing and improving the current PR strategy of Trung Nguyen? Please kindly express your brief idea 75 APPENDIX 2: SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW FOR MANAGER INTERVIEW SCHEDULE Dear Sirs and Madams, I am from …………… I am writing the dissertation on managing public relations of Trung Nguyen Corporation, I would highly appreciate your contribution to the research of this topic for taking your time to attend this interview I declare that all of the information achieved from this interview will be dealt with confidentially and anonymously This Interview Form is given to you beforehand with the hope that our interview could be most effective without taking you a lot of time Thank you very much for your kind cooperation! 76 INTERVIEW FORM Please kindly give your opinions of the current PR strategy that Trung Nguyen adopted in the passing time? Is this good enough to boost Trung Nguyen’s competitiveness? In your opinion, what are the shortcomings in PR strategy of Trung Nguyen? In your opinion, the competitive advantages that Trung Nguyen gained when adopting a proper PR strategy? In your esteemed company, what the function/department acting as the PR planning and management? Can you tell me some achievements they have made that you treasure? What recommendations you give to the establishment of an elevator company in Vietnam? 77 APPENDIX 3: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STAFF Public Relations at Trung Nguyen Corporation Dear Sirs and Madams, I am Nguyen Van Anh, I am writing my thesis on Public relations at Trung Nguyen Corporation as mentioned above I will highly appreciate your kind cooperation in sharing your opinions and precious experiences by completing this questionnaire and hand out it to me in an hour You not have to reveal your personal information including name, address and your mobile phone number Besides, your opinions generated from this questionnaire will be kept confidential I would like to express my since thanks for you to take your time to complete my questionnaire I strongly believe that the questionnaire’s results completed by you will be the important information and data for my analysis to the case study General information: Please circle the letter next to your choice What is your Gender? A Male B Female Multiply choice question: From the question 2.1 - Please circle one and only answer for each question 2.1 What marketing approach that Trung Nguyen heavily focus on? A Public Relations B Marketing C Combination of the two mentioned above approach D None of them 78 2.2 In the process of working with the media agencies, what type of publication that Trung Nguyen targeted to? A Print-based media B Television and Radio C Talk shows D All of them E None of them 2.3 In your opinion, what is the brand which adopted the most effective and successful PR strategy in Vietnamese instant coffee market? A Nestle B Trung Nguyen C Vinamilk D Others please specify… 2.4 Do you think that the current PR strategy needs to be changed in the coming time? A Yes B No For question 2.5 to question 2.6, please write one (and only one) given number (from to 5) in front of each question 1= not at all 2= not really 3= so-so 4= quite a lot 5= very much 2.5.How much you like the current PR strategy of your company? 79 2.6.How much you believe that Trung Nguyen will become the leading coffee brand name across the global by boosting its PR strategy? From the question 2.7 to 2.9, feel free to circle more than one answer 2.7 In your opinion, is the management process of public relations within the context of Trung Nguyen Corporation reasonable, accessible and effective? A Yes B No C No idea 2.8 What is considered the most effective primary tool for public relations of Trung Nguyen? A Talk or speech B Publication C Special events D News E Public interest – sponsor activities F None of them F Others 2.9 What object(s) that Trung Nguyen attached much importance to in its PR activities? A Customers B Potential employees 80 C Employees D Suppliers E Financial organizations F Media agencies G Marketing intermediaries H The government 2.10 Do you have any suggestion/proposal/comment/recommendation for managing and improving the current PR strategy of Trung Nguyen? Please kindly express your brief idea 81 APPENDIX 4: SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW FOR STAFF INTERVIEW SCHEDULE Dear Sirs and Madams, I am from …………… I am writing the dissertation on managing public relations of Trung Nguyen Corporation, I would highly appreciate your contribution to the research of this topic for taking your time to attend this interview I declare that all of the information achieved from this interview will be dealt with confidentially and anonymously This Interview Form is given to you beforehand with the hope that our interview could be most effective without taking you a lot of time Thank you very much for your kind cooperation! 82 INTERVIEW FORM Please kindly give your opinions of the current PR strategy that Trung Nguyen adopted in the passing time? Is this good enough to boost Trung Nguyen’s competitiveness? In your opinion, what are the shortcomings in PR strategy of Trung Nguyen? In your opinion, the competitive advantages that Trung Nguyen gained when adopting a proper PR strategy? In your esteemed company, what the function/department acting as the PR planning and management? Can you tell me some achievements they have made that you treasure? 10 What recommendations you give to the establishment of a elevator company in Vietnam? 83 ... Strategies .46 3.2 Requirements of public relations at Trung Nguyen Corporation .47 3.3 Current situation of PR at Trung Nguyen Corporation 47 3.3.1 Findings from questionnaires... and shortcomings on PR at Trung Nguyen Chapter 4: Solution of PR at Trung Nguyen Corporation In this chapter, the author will analyze the orientation of Trung Nguyen Corporation to 2015 With the... organization? What is the requirement of PR at Trung Nguyen Coffee Company? What is the current (aims and strategies) situation of PR activities at Trung Nguyen? 11 What are some recommendations to