Nghiên cứu ứng dụng internet marketing tại các doanh nghiệp du lịch việt nam TT TIENG ANH

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING THUONGMAI UNIVERSITY - HUONG KIEU THU RESEARCH ON INTERNET MARKETING APPLICATION AT VIETNAMESE TOURISM ENTERPRISES Major : Business Trade Code : 934.01.21 SUMMARY OF ECONOMIC DOCTORAL THESIS Hanoi, 2021 The work was completed at: Thuongmai University Science instructor: Assoc Prof Dr Nhan Bui Xuan Assoc Prof Dr Hong Pham Thuy Review 1: Review 2: Review 3: Dissertation will be protected before the dissertation review board meeting at …………………………………………………………………………………… The dissertation can be found at: National Library Thuongmai University Library LIST OF PUBLISHED SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH WORKS OF THE AUTHOR RELATED TO THE RESEACH TOPIC Huong Kieu Thu (2015), Promoting Vietnam tourism industry via Internet, Tourism Magazine, No 4/2015 Huong Kieu Thu, Huong Vu Lan (2018), Industry 4.0 in the travel business in Vietnam – Current situation and solutions, Vietnam Trade and Industry Review, No 5+6, 4/2018 Nhan Bui Xuan, Huong Kieu Thu (2018), Applying interrnet marrketing in tourism business at Vietnam tourism companies, International Conference: Industrial revolution 4.0: Opportunities and Challenges to Vietnam’s economic development, Thuongmai University, 8/2018 Huong Kieu Thu (2020), Internet marketing human resources at Vietnamese tourism enterprises, National Conference: Improving the quality of tourism human resources in the context of the 4.0 industrial revolution, 1/2020 Huong Kieu Thu (2021), The process of internet marketing in tourism enterprises: Current situation and some problems, Economy and Forecast Review, No 33, 11/2021 INTRODUCTON The urgency of the dissertation research Internet marketing which includes tourism captivates the attention of researchers from multiple fields from Viet Nam and across the globe Contended as a global instrument as well as a modern means which have a peak of impetus, IM is examined in both the coverage and the profundity from a worldwide extension to a particular country or area These researchers have fully described the function of IM in the Tourism industry However, research is being conducted in the macro level of IM, or in the micro-level of IM without having any particular procedure about the implementation of IM for tourism enterprises Various of researchers admit the major obstacle and the most common limit is that tourism enterprise only constitutes IM as a suitable part of the marketing plan of the company but not a long-term plan which needs to be methodically invested along with a professional plan To Viet Nam, the practical business function of Vietnamese tourism enterprises, in general, raises the urgent question of how to reach a large number of customers as fast as possible with adequate information and lowest cost or how to advertise their company across the globe with the lowest cost and high efficiency meanwhile Viet Nam is becoming a tourist attraction in the region as well as global IM was implemented by Vietnamese tourism enterprises after realized the importance along with the impact However, the payment on IM from Vietnamese tourism enterprises is still limited Although tourism is a highrevenue industry, the investment of technology for tourism is much fewer than other economic industries Moreover, the procedures of IM are not conducted methodically by Vietnamese tourism enterprises They are paying more attention to how to develop IM in an extensive way instead of profound developing Nowadays, IM plays an important role in not only Vietnam but also worldwide tourism, and it’s becoming more and more prominent With all the reasons mentioned above, researching for the implementation of IM in economic tourism in general and Vietnamese tourism is very crucial, and the PhD students have chosen “Research on internet marketing application at Vietnamese tourism enterprises” to be their dissertation topic, majoring in Business and Commerce Target, purpose, and the responsibility of the research This dissertation aims to build up an IM implementation procedure for Vietnamese tourism enterprises and suggest a solution to enforce the implementation of internet marketing in Vietnamese tourism enterprises The questions involved in the researching process for the dissertation are: (1) What are the necessary conditions, steps, and marketing-mix tool for implementing IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises (2) How is the practice of IM implementation in Vietnamese tourism enterprises, (3) What solution should be suggested t to enforce the implementation of IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises To accomplish and reach the aims and answer these questions, this dissertation concentrates on some reasons below: - Sum up some published scientific research projects related to this dissertation domestically and internationally - Systemize some theoretical basis related to the implementation of IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises and experience of Implementing IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises - Analyze and evaluate the practice of implementing IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises, analyze factors that affect the proposal of purchasing tourism service online of the tourism customers - Offer some possible solutions to enforce the implementation in Vietnamese tourism enterprises that suitable for the development vision of Vietnamese tourism Research objectives and scope 3.1 Research objectives The subject of this dissertation is theories and the practice of implementing IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises 3.2 Research scope - Scope of research by content: this dissertation focuses on analyzing the practical condition, implementing procedure, and online marketing-mix tool in IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises for the tourism customers It only focusses on content that related to the implementing principle of IM instead of Implementing IM technique and other technology problems (e.g.: web design, marketing technique through social media and searching tools) - Scope of research by space: Focus on the implementation of IM in tourism enterprises located in Viet Nam which accommodated in Ha Noi, HCM City, and Da Nang Conducting a survey on Vietnamese and foreign customers such as Chinese, Korean, Taiwanese, American, and other Englishspeaking countries - Scope of research over time: Data used for the period 2015-2020 Solutions will be suggested till 2025 and afterward New contributions of this dissertation - About argumentum, this dissertation has systemized the theoretical basis and practical implementation of IM in tourism enterprises nowadays which include Implementing conditions, IM conducting procedure, and marketing- mix tool in IM In this research of marketing-mix, not only summarizing and analyzing the marketing- mix tool that tourism enterprises established but also come up with a theoretical research model of online marketing- mix factors affecting tourist`s intention of purchasing tourism service which involve online products, online prices, online distribution, and online interactions In addition, it has added two more perceptions into the model of online product factors - In practice, concentrating on the practical conditions of implementing IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises, the IM conducting procedures and analyzing the operations of Vietnamese tourism enterprises in using online marketing- mix tool for IM implementation in their business Therefore, appraising what have the enterprise done to satisfy the demands from customers, this dissertation study the model of online marketing- mix factors that affect the intention of purchasing tourism service of Vietnamese customers and other top countries - About the applicability, the dissertation has suggested an IM conducting procedure for Vietnamese tourism enterprises and solutions in terms of implementing conditions and online marketing mix for Vietnamese tourism enterprises Dissertation structures Besides the guarantee, the appreciation, the introduction, the conclusion, and the index, this dissertation is divided into following chapters: chapter 1: the overview of the research and the researching method that was used Chapter2: the theoretical basis and practical experience in implementing IM in tourism enterprise; chapter the practice of implementing IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises; Chapter 4: Solutions and suggestions to enforce the implementation of internet marketing in Vietnamese tourism enterprises Chapter 1: OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH AND RESEARCH METHODS OF THE DISSERTATION 1.1 Overview of research works related to the dissertation The dissertation has focused on overviewing related research works according to the following two groups of issues: 1.1.1 Researches on internet marketing in businesses in general For this content, there are the following case study authors: Philip Kotler (2003); Kotler and associates (2017); Dave Chaffey (2016); Truong Dinh Chien, (2010); Joel Reedy and associates (2000); Kent Wertime and Ian Fenwick (2009); Judy Strauss, Raymond Frost (2006); Ward Hanson (2000); Chuck Martin (2002); Thai Hung Tam (2007); Pham Thu Huong (2009); Swee Hoon Ang and associates (2004); Alan Charles Worth (2009); Rafi A Mohammed and associates (2004); Al Ries & Laura Ries (2005); Paul Gillin (2010), Josiane Chriqui Feigon (2011) In addition, authors like Ngo Minh Vinh (2011) and Nguyen The Quang (2011) delve deeper into a branch of IM, mobile marketing In studies on the IM process (Efthymios Constantinides, 2002; Philip Kotler and associates, 2010; Pham Hong Hoa, 2013, Dave Chaffey and associates, 2016; Ha Tuan Anh and associates, 2019) 1.1.2 Researches on internet marketing in tourism businesses Here are some case study research authors on IM at domestic and foreign tourism businesses during the time: Buhalis, D., (2003), Jose Ramon Saura and associates (2019), Philip Kotler and associates (2010), Seyed Siamak Mousavi (2012), I Gde Pitana and associates (2016), Phanos Matura (2018), Slamet Riyadi and associates (2019), Filipa Jorge and associates (2018) 1.1.3 The Research gap After reviewing the research works related to the dissertation topic, some conclusions can be drawn as follows: Firstly, IM in the tourism business has other advantages and application conditions that the above studies have not mentioned Secondly, from the perspective of tourism businesses with specific business fields, there has not been any research that provides a specific process of IM application Thirdly, from the overview of the above works, the research gap of this dissertation topic focuses on the following issues: Research on IM application conditions, IM application process, marketing-mix tools at tourism businesses and the current situation of these problems in tourism enterprises 1.2 Research Methods and Process of the dissertation topic 1.2.1 Dissertation research process After building a theoretical framework, the postgraduate collects secondary and primary data through expert interviews, business surveys, and customer surveys as a basis for analyzing the current situation of IM applications in business in Vietnamese tourism enterprises, on that basis, draw general assessments of the current situation, specifying the advantages and limitations of the situation as a basis for proposing solutions and recommendations to increase strengthening IM application in Vietnam tourism enterprises 1.2.2 Research method of the dissertation topic The general research method of the dissertation is a combination of qualitative and quantitative through the combined use of primary and secondary data collection methods 1.2.2.1 Secondary data collection and analysis Secondary data is done through the following three basic steps: Step 1: Determine the data to sum up Step 2: Sum up the data Step 3: Process and analyze data 1.2.2.2 Primary data collection and analysis Step 1: Sum up and analyze the secondary data sources Step 2: Preliminary research The postgraduate conducts preliminary research by the method of group discussion: The focus group is established with people including: experts in the field of marketing and tourism; individuals who are leaders/managers or people who make the highest decisions for the marketing activities of the enterprises Step 3: Design and conduct qualitative research - Develop interview content: The method used by the postgraduate is a direct, semi-structured, indepth personal interview, based on the interview guide The content of the interview was built on the basis of the researched theoretical content of IM and the results of secondary data analysis on the current state of business operations and application of IM in Vietnamese tourism enterprises - Identify interviewees: The interview subjects of the study are individuals who know clearly the information or have an important influence on the organization and implementation of IM application in tourism business activities, which are the leaders in Vietnam tourism enterprises and researchers in tourism industry - Conducting interviews: Interviews were conducted in October and November 2019 through both face-to-face interviews, telephone interviews and interviews via social networking tools such as messenger, zalo - Video interview results analysis With the data obtained from the qualitative research method (individual interviews with business leaders), the postgraduate removed the interview recordings along with the interview notes Then, they proceed to process the results with basic techniques of qualitative data processing, such as: collect emerging opinions; count how often important words are repeated; Search, analyze, link under the support of MS Excel text software For the opinions on the scale in the customer survey, the postgraduate combined with the opinions of other experts to calibrate the scale related to online marketing-mix tools affecting the customers purchase intention to make a formal survey Step 4: Design and conduct quantitative research Quantitative research through enterprise survey - Developing and completing the enterprise quantitative survey form: After completing the first draft, the survey form was sent for pilot interviews at tour operators and hotels The problems and omissions of the first draft were pointed out by enterprises, and the postgraduates edited and completed this manuscript to conduct an official survey - Determine size, sample structure and approach: The sample calculation formula used (Kothari, C.R., 2004) is: Source: Kothari (2004) The minimum number of sample units to be obtained ranges from 73 to 122 elements Postgraduates sent paper and online ballots and collected 168 votes, of which 115 valuable votes were filtered (accounting for 68.45%) - Surveying: The survey was conducted in two phases as follows: Period 1: From December 2019 to January 2020 For Vietnamese tourism enterprises in Ho Chi Minh and Da Nang: Send by mail line or email to businesses at the address on the list of businesses in the form For Vietnamese tourism enterprises in Hanoi: Send the surveys by handing in person Period 2: From February 2020 to March 2020 Survey by online ballot (https://forms.gle/r8DYxf8DgHNRbrKo9) to businesses The survey period was from December 2019 to March 2020 - Perform data entry and data processing: Valuable answer sheets are kept and encrypted, entered into the computer (with paper forms) and exported from google forms to excel with online votes, then processed by an appropriate statistical algorithm to support data analysis Quantitative research through customer surveys 10 The postgraduate conducts a quantitative research on customers in order to obtain the results of the customer's evaluation of the online marketing - mix tools that affect the intention to purchase travel/stay services From there, compare with the actual implementation of online marketing - mix tools of Vietnamese tourism enterprises, consider the appropriate level between actual implementation and needs, desires or feelings, evaluation from customers to proceed - Developing research models and completing questionnaires The model is given to conduct in-depth interviews including 5Ps: product, price, place, promotion and people - Method of performance: The postgraduate conducts interviews with 10 subjects: scientists who are lecturers of marketing and tourism majors with doctoral degrees or higher, teaching seniority of 10 years or more; 03 leaders of enterprises; 03 tourists who know how to search and book tours/hotels online Interviews were conducted in person or by phone After consulting with experts, the postgraduate sum up the following factors, in which: tools of online marketing - mix including: online product, online price, online place, online promotion mix, online people are independent variables that affect dependent variable which is tourists' intention to buy tourism products - Preliminary quantitative survey: The postgraduate conducts preliminary quantitative research on Vietnamese tourists through convenient sampling with a sample size of 70 Preliminary quantitative research time is the first March 2020 The result has 47 counter Feedback is processed after removing unsatisfactory answer sheets (67.14%) Preliminary survey data were processed using SPSS software - Determine sample size and structure: According to the sample size that authors Chu Nguyen Mong Ngoc and Hoang Trong (2008), Tabachnick & Fidell (2007), Comrey and Lee (1992), the postgraduate distributed paper and online questionnaires collected 372 votes, of which 263 valid votes (accounting for 70.7%) - Surveying: The target of tourists surveyed by the postgraduates included tourists from China, Korea, Taiwan, the United States and some visitors from English-speaking countries (UK, Canada, Australia, Philippines ), Vietnam The postgraduates converted the customer survey form to an online survey via google forms in Vietnamese, English, Chinese and Korean languages The customer survey period is from March 2020 to May 2020 - Data entry and data processing: The valid answer sheets were kept and coded, processed, using statistical software SPSS 20.0, AMOS 20 software to support the data analysis process Chapter 2: THEORETICAL BASIS AND EXPERIENCE ON INTERNET 16 However, early in 2020, tourism in Vietnam generally and Vietnamese tourist accommodation establishments particularly have taken a serious hit by the Covid-19 outbreak 3.2 Applying Internet marketing in Vietnamese tourism enterprises 3.2.1 Background of internet marketing in Vietnamese tourism enterprises: According to secondary data and survey results: The basic essentials for applying internet marketing are thoroughly prepared by Vietnamese tourism enterprises In specific: - 100% enterprises in the research sample have installed transmission lines with Internet connection In addition, company websites are designed as a branding tool which provides information about the brands and core products/services - 100% enterprises have equipped computers for business, including laptops and desktop computers - All the enterprises recognise the benefits of internet marketing appliances to business activities in the tourism industry - Enterprises care about enhancing human capital and implement financial planning for internet marketing activities 3.2.2 Internet marketing procedure in Vietnam tourism companies 3.2.2.1 Opportunities for internet marketing: Tourism enterprises consider consumer behavior as the most important factor (average rate of 4.32) to analyze before making any decision related to internet marketing activities Besides that, because one of the characteristics of the tourism industry is the high likelihood of being plagiarized, which means tourism activities can be easily imitated among companies, so information about competitors is also one of the most essential factors to consider before making decisions on internet marketing Secondary research from surveys or market research online-based conducted by data and analytics organisations should also be taken into consideration Other information about characteristics and demands of consumers which enterprises already have through former services and information about the business environment also build up the foundation for internet marketing decisions The most common method of online market research conducted by tourism companies is online surveys (sending questionnaires to customers via email or inviting customers to engage in online-based surveys) According to a survey conducted, this method made up 56.52% of online market research activities Other methods are online observation (observing consumer behavior on the internet) accounted for 51.3% and online personal interviews (chatting/texting online via chatbots or social media, forums) made up 30.43% of online market research activities 17 3.2.2.2 Market Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning: As online market segmentation criteria is just an add-on criteria after using traditional market segmentation criteria, the activities of market targeting and positioning are still strictly related to traditional methods 3.2.2.3 Determine internet marketing strategy objectives: Normally, the most targeted marketing strategy objectives of tourism companies are raising consumer awareness (100%), enhancing interactions with consumers (84.3%) and increasing consumption of products and services (76.5%) The remaining objectives are increasing market penetration (44.3%) and increasing tourists loyalties (35.7%) Other objectives that tourism enterprises can attempt to pursue are meeting ROI Index expectation, improving conversion rate (converse company readers, followers to customers) Current research indicates that tourism companies always have specific achievable objectives for applying internet marketing despite the business scale or the extent of internet marketing appliances 3.2.2.4 Plan online marketing-mix tool Tourism companies plan online marketing-mix tools based on determined internet marketing strategy objectives Greater details on online marketing-mix tools will be analyzed in the 3.2.3 part below 3.2.2.5 Execute and control applying internet marketing Internet marketing activities are sometimes undertaken incompletely and unmethodically compared to the theoretical online marketing procedure Targeting customers to practice internet marketing (determine which subjects to impact) and planning content for internet marketing are two of the most thorough activities executed by tourism enterprises (average rate of 4.25 and 4.23 respectively) Additionally, tourism companies manage applying internet marketing based on schedule and plan as well as integrating internet marketing and traditional marketing in reality On the other hand, applying internet marketing hold the subjective opinions of company managers, which occasionally include their misunderstanding about internet marketing Therefore, the development of internet marketing plans and strategies are sometimes incomplete 3.2.3 Marketing-mix tools for internet marketing in Vietnamese tourism enterprises: 3.2.3.1 Current state of applying online marketing-mix tools in Vietnamese tourism enterprises perspective a Online product policy Online product policies are demonstrated mostly through the features of company websites Almost all of tourism company websites inform product or 18 service categories for customers to easily follow (95.65%) Other website features are highly rated by enterprises include: Allow customers to order/purchase online and review products/services online after purchasing (78.26%); Allow customers to order customized products (65.22%); Consult/Give advices about products/services online (73,91%); Online customer care (65.22%); Allow customer to use filter and advanced search for products/services (56.52%) b Online price policy Tourism companies use AI (Artificial Intelligence) in pricing activity Through internet marketing, tourism enterprises appraise product or service prices based on their quality and demonstrate this on companies owned media (65.22% enterprises declared to use this pricing policy) 34.78% enterprises give discounts to customers who purchase in bulk Companies also give a reduction in price or have preferential policies for customers who are willing to promote their business online (34.78%) Only 13.04% companies allow customers to refund after making a successful online purchase and transaction c Online place policy Numerous enterprises have focused on online place policies: Distributing through websites, through social media (fanpage, company facebook page, ), and through OTAs In addition, tourism companies distribute products and services by signing contracts with airline companies (airline companies then put names and information of hotels and travel agents on ticket booking sites for customers to easily purchase accompanied services) d Online promotion policy Tourism companies use various of tools for promotion, which can be divided into several categories below: Internet advertising: In addition to communication through company websites, Vietnamese tourism enterprises also advertise on other online pages For instance, putting banners on high traffic websites such as vnexpress,net, dantri.com.vn, baomoi.com, raovat30s.com, vatgia.com, giacucsoc.vn, tintuc.xalo.vn and engaging in e-commerce portals Online personal sales: Salesmen conduct personal trades through company websites as well as practice personal selling through their own pages or enterprise fanpages on social media Public relations on the internet: All Vietnamese tourism enterprises practice public relations on the internet through tourism forums Companies can also state their opinions, write articles informing company facts and figures or telling stories about the brand and people of the brand and post them on websites such as vnexpress.net, baomoi.com… Online direct marketing: Vietnamese tourism enterprises have only used emails to promote their business to familiar customers and used cost-free 19 internet phone calls, which is calling through mobile apps such as skype, viber, line, zalo,etc., to assist in personal selling activity e Online people policy Only 47.83% of Vietnamese tourism enterprises have an internet marketing specialist who is knowledgeably aware of both information technology and marketing 30.43% of enterprises have multitasking employees who practice internet marketing simultaneously with other tasks due to company demand 17.39% companies have specialists who have only expertise in marketing and 4.35% companies have only specialists having expertise in information technology This is considered one of the difficulties regarding human capital practicing internet marketing in Vietnamese tourism enterprises Due to specific characteristics of the tourism industry, internet marketing human resources have to comprehend both marketing and information technology 3.2.3.2 Current circumstance of online marketing - mix affecting customers' intention to buy travel/stay products - customer reviews In order to conclude whether tourism businesses properly understand the needs and desires of customers, a customer survey was conducted to collect more comparative information between the assessment of Vietnam's tourism enterprises on their implementation and customers' evaluation of online marketing - mix affecting the intention to buy tourism products Step Descriptive Statistics The survey results showed that: - Regarding Age: the percentage of young tourists (from 18 to 35 years old) who searched for information to buy tourism products on the internet was the highest (at 64.6%) - Regarding Gender: the proportion of female tourists is higher than their male counterparts (57.8% compared to 41.4%) - Regarding Nationality: The survey focused on Vietnamese, Chinese, Taiwanese, Korean, American tourists and tourists from English-speaking countries Due to difference in accessibility, Vietnamese visitors occupied the highest proportion of sample - Regarding Income: Tourists with an income of over 500 USD/month accounted for 57.1% Vietnamese tourists with such income level are those in over per capita income group in Vietnam, and thus their demand for searching and using tourism products will be higher than the other group For international visitors, those with an income of over 500USD/month also have better travel opportunities - Regarding Education: The proportion of tourists with a university degree or higher accounted for 88.6% The figure was 93.92% when high 20 school diploma is considered Such tourists will have good level of using information technology to search for information/buying travel services online - Regarding Occupation: relatively evenly spread in many fields including education, economics/ commerce and students Step Assess the reliability of the scale Preliminarily assess by Cronbach's Alpha, the observed variables of the factors basically met the requirements (except for the variable XT5) Step Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) EFA method with Principal Components factor extraction, Varimax rotation for each factor and a set of scaled factors are used The results of EFA analysis show that 16 observed variables can be grouped into major factors as follows: - Factor 1: includes observed variables CN3, CN2, CN1, this factor is named People and denoted by CN - Factor 2: includes observed variables XT3, XT1, XT2, XT4, this factor is named Promotion and denoted XT - Factor 3: includes observed variables G3, G2, G1, this factor is named Price and denoted G - Factor 4: includes observed variables PP2, PP1, PP3, this factor is named Distribution and denoted PP - Factor 5: includes observed variables SP3, SP1, SP2, this factor is named Product and denoted as SP The results of the EFA analysis, with the coefficient KMO = 0.723 > 0.5, show that the research data is suitable The value of Bartlett test has a very small significance level (Sig < 0.05), which means the observed variables are correlated with each other These factors have a total explanatory variance of 69.775% > 50% and stop point Eigenvalues=1,389 > These numbers indicate that it is appropriate to use the EFA method, the observations produced main factors All observed variables were analyzed using Varimax rotation with cut-off 0.5 EFA’s results of the factor "Intention of buying tourism services", with the coefficient KMO = 0.749, the value of Bartlett test is significant (Sig < 0.05), the groups of factors are extracted with total variance explained 82.185% Step 4: Customer's evaluation of each factor through the average value Customers most agree with the allowance of creating their own travel products via the internet (customers can create their own tours/choose the accompanying services while booking air tickets or hotel room) (µ=4.22; σ=0.729), followed by product demonstration on the internet/product digitization (with clips, pictures describing the destinations in the tour, room 21 facilities and accompanying services in the hotel, seats and accompanying services on the plane) (µ=4.2; σ=0,746) Pre-designed packaged travel products receives the lowest assessment results (µ=4.07; σ=0.8) The factor Price is assessed as agree (average 3.46 points) The flexibility of online prices (based on the quantity purchased, the time of purchase, the group of customers ) receive highest agreement rate (µ=3.72; σ=1.17) Incentives for package products stands in the second place (µ=3.5; σ=1,187) The lowest rating belongs to discounted price for internet purchases (µ=3.17; σ=1,233) The factor Distribution was considered as agree (average 3.00 points) Customers give highest agreement to the diversity of online distribution channels (website, corporate fanpage, online buying groups and other online intermediaries ) (µ=3.08; σ=0.838), followed by convenience in finding and buying products online (µ=3.08; σ=0.825) Convenience in online additional support services (online banking payment services, e-visa services, ) receive the lowest point (µ=2.83; σ=0.89 ) The factor Promotion was rated in agreement (average 4.07 points) Online Promotions (Internet coupons, contests, internet games ) receive the highest points from customers (µ=4.22; σ=0,915) Direct Marketing (Send information about the company's products and services via email, mobile phone ) stands in the second place (µ=4.08; σ=0,993), followed by Personal Selling (Sellers of businesses selling to customers via the internet) (µ=4.07; σ=1,127) Online advertising (forms of advertising via internet) receives lowest score (µ=4.05; σ=1.01) The factor People is evaluated as agree (average 3.81 points) The customer agrees the most with the criterion knowledge of internet seller (about the products and services, internet and information technology) (µ=3.87) ; σ=1,033) and second most with the attitude of internet sellers (welcome, cheerful, enthusiastic, polite ) (µ=3.78; σ=1,163) The criterion with lowest value is Internet sales skills (communication skills, listening skills, problem solving skills ) (µ=3.77; σ=1,205) Step Multivariate linear regression analysis According to the results of evaluating the reliability of the scale and analyzing EFA factors, the factors affecting the intention of purchasing tourism services including (1) Distribution; (2) Products; (3) Price; (4) Promotion and (5) Humans are examined The results of correlation analysis show that the observed significance level of all independent factors compared to dependent ones in the correlation matrix are < 0.01, which means regression analysis can be implemented 22 23 The results of regression analysis show that the value of Durbin-Watson Test is 2.018, in the range of 1.5 to 2.5: there is no first-order sequence autocorrelation Test of overall significance (Sig F-Test) returns 0.00 < 0.05: the multiple linear regression model fits the data set and can be used Tests for the simple regression coefficient (Sig t-test) all return less than 0.05: the independent variables are all significant to explain the dependent variable, no variable is excluded from the model The VIF coefficients of independent variables are all less than 2, which means there is no multicollinearity All regression coefficients are greater than Thus, all independent variables included in the regression analysis have the same effect on the dependent variable Based on the magnitude of the normalized regression coefficient Beta, the order of magnitude of impact of the independent variables on the dependent variable Y is: CN (0.473) > SP (0.175) > G (0.168 ) > XT(0.161) > PP(0.112) Regression equation: Y = 0.473*CN + 0.175*SP + 0.168*G + 0.161*XT + 0.112*PP Intention of purchasing travel services = 0.473 * People + 0.175 * Product + 0.168 * Price + 0.161 * Promotion + 0.112 * Distribution Conclusion: All five factors (CN, SP, G, PP, XT) have proportional influence on the intention of purchasing tourism services, in which the factor People has the strongest impact The three factors including product, price and promotion have equivalent effect Distribution is the factor that has the weakest impact on intention to purchase tourism services In reality, customers will be attracted to buy tourism products more by emotional than other factors Therefore the factor People is most appreciated Besides that, tourism businesses are usually small and medium-sized enterprises, along with the easy-to-copy characteristics of tourism products, businesses tend to imitate each other in online marketing - mix tools, leading other tools such as product, prices or promotion to be the same Check for violation of normal distribution assumption of residuals The Mean = -8.08E-16 is approximately and the standard deviation 0.99 is approximately Thus, it can be said that the residual distribution is approximately standard and the normal distribution assumption is not violated The percentiles in distribution of residuals are concentrated in a diagonal, which means the normal distribution assumption is not violated 24 Check for violation of linearity assumption The normalized residuals randomly distributed around the coordinate line, forming a straight line Hence, the linearity assumption between the dependent and independent variables is not violated CFA-SEM confirmatory factor analysis: CFA-SEM confirmatory factor analysis chart Source: Student’s survey According to Hair et al (2009), the indicators considered to assess the fit of the Model Fit model include: CMIN/df = 1.605 < is good; CFI = 0.96 > 0.95 is very good; GFI = 0.96 > 0.95 is very good; TLI = 0.945 > 0.9 is good RMSEA = 0.048 < 0.08 is good Hence, the model fits perfectly 3.3 General assessment of current internet marketing application at tourism enterprises in Vietnam 3.3.1 Successes and reasons 3.3.1.1 Successes - Vietnamese tourism enterprises have invested in equipment and facilities for internet marketing and other activities They are considered to be more agile in applying technology than businesses of other fields - They have also done some steps in the internet marketing process such as online research to identify the target audience, managing the implementation according to the schedule and plan or proposing and developing content for internet marketing activities However, such actions are still done by employees with concurrent employment - Implement multiple internet marketing tools for different markets 25 3.3.1.2 Reasons Firstly, the economic development facilitates the application of internet marketing in Vietnamese tourism enterprises Secondly, the government has issued many macro policies to support implementing internet marketing activities Thirdly, technology has developed Fourth, Vietnamese tourism enterprises have basically invested in technology and technical factors Fifth, enterprises’ leaders basically grasp the fluctuation in the trend of information searching/ tourism services purchasing 3.3.2 Limitations and causes 3.3.2.1 Limitations - Budget for technology investment is limited - Vietnamese tourism enterprises not have standards for data collection and market research, making big data not fully utilized - Online target marketing activities have not yet been paid attention to - The current internet marketing tools are not diverse, mainly through web - Although most customers consider factor “online people” to have major influence on the intention to buy travel services, many businesses have not really invested in it 3.3.3.2 Reasons a) Subjective causes Firstly, tourism businesses have not built an internet marketing process methodically, which leads to a lack of understanding of IM activities Secondly, the awareness of business leaders and employees about internet marketing in some tourism businesses is still incomplete Thirdly, tourist enterprises in Vietnam are usually small and medium size with the budget for marketing activities in general and internet marketing in particular being limited Fourth, there is a lack in number and quality of human resources to implement internet marketing, especially for small and medium enterprises b) Objective reasons Firstly, the legal mechanism is not synchronized Secondly, there is a lack of a specialized agency to act as the locomotive connecting businesses and related ministries in the application of internet marketing 26 CHAPTER 4: RECOMMENDATIONS AND SOLUTIONS TO STIMULATE INTERNET MARETING APPLICATION FOR VIETNAMESE TOURISM ENTERPRISES 4.1 Forecasting the trend of internet marketing applications in tourism corporations and the oriented development of internet marketing in Vietnam tourism corporations 4.1.1 Forecasting the trend of internet marketing applications in tourism corporation Internet Marketing is becoming a global trend, contributing to business development, especially for the travel business Internet Marketing is the best way to reach customers in the fastest way thanks to the development of factors such as connection technology, search engines, and social networks The application of the internet in enterprises is considered an inevitable trend and is becoming continuously developed The growth rate of e-commerce is growing and is expected to remain stable in the coming years The scale of electronic transactions reached about billion USD Online retail and online travel account for the highest proportion in the entire e-commerce market in Vietnam For Vietnamese consumers, according to research by Nielsen Vietnam, consumers' finances will become more optimistic and it is predicted that by 2020, about 55% of Vietnam's population will use the internet Statistics of the Vietnam Tourism Association also show that, in the last years, the demand for searching online travel information in Vietnam has increased more than 32 times In each month, more than million searches in Vietnamese are about tourism products such as domestic tours, foreign tours, hotel bookings, different types of tourism, etc In the peak summer tourist months, the number of searches can be up to million It means the application of internet marketing at tourism enterprises to develop tourism based on online technology is a trend that Vietnam's tourism industry cannot stand aside, especially when tourism is determined to become a key economic sector of the country 4.1.2 The oriented development of internet marketing in Vietnam tourism corporations Over the years, the Party and Government of Vietnam have promulgated Several guiding documents for the science’s application and technology in socio-economic developments, especially in tourism development Institutions and policies going ahead are high priority to open up, pave the way and create better conditions for the foundation and legal corridor for effective tourism development The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism and the whole industry have made great efforts to implement Several activities to implement the 27 overall project of information technology application in tourism, intelligent tourism development, digital technology application to support tourists tourism, promoting intelligent tourism such as: Upgrading and developing Vietnam tourism promotion website www.vietnam.travel Promote tourism promotion campaigns through the VNAT's promotion channels on social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, and connect and share synchronous data between the database systems of the tourism industry calendar, industry, trade, health, education, commercial banking Building and launching the application "Vietnam Tourism" (Vietnam Tourism) to support tourists Organize a survey program for Vietnamese and international delegations of reporters, journalists, tourism businesses to survey destinations to develop digital content to promote Vietnam's tourism 4.2 Proposing some solutions to enhance the application of internet marketing in tourism enterprises in Vietnam 4.2.1 Raising awareness of leaders and employees about the application of internet marketing in enterprises This awareness in addition to marketing awareness also includes IT and internet awareness 4.2.2 Reinforcing the investment in information technology infrastructure Reinforcing the investment in information technology infrastructure to improve the quality of service and raise customer satisfaction Customer satisfaction depends crucially on the exactitude and comprehensiveness of particular data about the accessibility of the destination, facilities, tourist attractions, and other activities Hence, information technology facilitates the factors enhancing consumer satisfaction 4.2.3 Building an internet marketing model in Vietnam tourism businesses The process includes: Analysis of internet marketing environment; Online target marketing (online market segmentation, online target market selection and online market positioning); Define internet marketing strategic goals (brand communication strategy goals and sales communication strategy goals); Planning online marketing mix (online product, online pricing, online distribution, online promotion and online people); Implement, test Internet marketing; evaluate and adjust Internet marketing Along with the steps in the process, it is necessary to regularly study the characteristics and online behavior of tourists and combine it with traditional marketing activities 4.2.4 Apply virtual reality technology in website-designing Though this type of tourism service is invisible, the virtual reality technology can provide customers with visual elements, intuitive images of hotel's rooms with gadgets being equipped smartly and meet the qualities requirements 28 4.2.5 Benefits from the smart mobile phones, research on designing internet marketing tools in mobile-friendly sites Tourism businesses may probably create several applications on their mobile phones to be more convenient for their customers when searching for information and getting a better connection 4.2.6 Expansion in cooperation relationships with domestic and foreign OTA The combination of domestic and foreign OTA relationships needs to take advantage of each partner’s strength 4.2.7 Creative content in marketing with an enhancement in video marketing Through the videos combined with lively images and sounds, the businesses will reach their customers better Besides, it would be easier for their customers to remember the advertising products with video than usual ones 4.2.8 Enhancing online training and fostering of human resources Although there are jobs in IM, Viet Nam tourism businesses can outsource, but for small and medium enterprises in the tourism sector, it is not recommended to outsource 100%, that's because the jobs on Planning and producing media content requires experience and in-depth understanding of the current state of the business, the industry market and customer characteristics 4.2.9 Combination of internet marketing tools and traditional marketing The combination of IM and traditional marketing will help SMEs take advantage of the advantages and overcome the disadvantages of each form of marketing, making marketing activities more effective in general 4.3 Proposals 4.3.1 To the government Creating a supportive environment for E-com to develop Holding short courses, training sessions, conferences with a view to providing basic knowledge of the Internet and E-com Promoting IM, including but not limited to its roles, benefits, and application in business and tourism industry to be specific 4.3.2 To Vietnam National Administration of Tourism The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism needs to identify IM as a large and effective solution and tool that deserves priority for development - Consider having priority policy for research activities, information technology application in general in IM activities of Tourism Enterprises - Act as the focal point for linking enterprises in implementing IM applications 4.3.3 To other stakeholders 29 - The Ministry of Information and Communications, coordinating with other ministries, shall assume the prime responsibility for submitting to the Government the publication of policies, which will encourage and support the development of Vietnamese tourism enterprises in the field of information and internet communication - Media agencies associate and support Vietnamese tourism enterprises in internet marketing application, conveying messages and information about tourist throughout the internet 30 CONCLUDE Although the IM app brings about Several advantages to business, the application of IM in travel agencies in Vietnam still has some downsides since this app is not exhaustive, skipping the procedure of system unification Besides, IM has not been fully understood and is not run wholeheartedly, which leads to the fact that we haven’t taken full advantage of this app With an overview of research works related to the concept, benefits, online marketing-mix tools of IM, postgraduate students summarized a number of theoretical issues about IM in tourism business and studied the lessons learned from tour operators and accommodation service businesses to draw the lessons learned for travel agencies in IM application They analyzed and assessed current status of IM application in Vietnamese travel agencies through a survey of 115 tour operators, accommodation service businesses and 263 domestic tourists as well as foreign tourists Then, they proposed the solutions and recommendations related to IM application conditions, IM application process and online marketing - mix tools for Vietnamese tourism enterprises Limitations of the dissertation and the next research directions - Data is not gathered systematically to evaluate according to some criteria in order to find out the current status (Vietnam Tourist enterprise groups, business accommodation establishments groups, air transport enterprises groups, other tourist services business groups) - IM application activities have not been identified in different groups of enterprises in the tourism industry (group of enterprises, group of accommodation businesses, group of air transport enterprises, group of enterprises dealing in travel and tourism) other travel services) - It has not been shown how to IM differently for businesses of different sizes, as well as how to it differently with different market segments The limitations in this research of the postgraduate student can be the direction of future research by the postgraduate student himself as well as other authors ... misunderstanding about internet marketing Therefore, the development of internet marketing plans and strategies are sometimes incomplete 3.2.3 Marketing- mix tools for internet marketing in Vietnamese tourism... practicing internet marketing in Vietnamese tourism enterprises Due to specific characteristics of the tourism industry, internet marketing human resources have to comprehend both marketing and... manage applying internet marketing based on schedule and plan as well as integrating internet marketing and traditional marketing in reality On the other hand, applying internet marketing hold the