NN GRADUATION THESIS AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE REAL SITUATIONSAND SOME SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVING MARKETING DEPARTMENT AT THAI VIET SMILE CO ,LTD

DUY TAN UNIVERSITYFACULTY OF ENGLISH GRADUATION THESIS NGUYEN PHUONG THAO AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE REAL SITUATIONSAND SOME SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVING MARKETING DEPARTMENT AT THAI - VIET SMI

DUY TAN UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF ENGLISH

GRADUATION THESIS

NGUYEN PHUONG THAO

AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE REAL SITUATIONSAND SOME SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVING MARKETING DEPARTMENT AT THAI - VIET SMILE CO.,LTD

Major : English for Tourism Code : 702

SUPERVISOR: DUONG HUU PHUOC, M.A.

DA NANG – May 2021

This graduation paper could not be finished without the invaluable help,advice, and encouragement from teachers at Duy Tan University in general,and Department of Foreign Languages in particular Therefore, I would like toacknowledge my thanks to all of them

Especially, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Mr DuongHuu Phuoc, my supervisor, is the enthusiasm helper me while doing mygraduation paper

I would like to sincerely thank the management of Thai Viet SmileCompany Limited for their help, providing practical data for me to completethis graduation paper well

In the process of doing the graduation project, it is difficult to avoiderrors I look forward to receiving the comments of all teachers and friends tomake my project more complete

Da Nang, May 2021 Student implementation

Nguyen Phuong Thao

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this thesiscontains no material published elsewhere or extracted in the whole or in partfrom a thesis by which have qualified for or been awarded another degree ordiploma

No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement inthe thesis

This thesis has not been submitted for award of any degree or diploma inany other tertiary institution

Danang, May 25th, 2021

Nguyen Phuong Thao

Tourism is considered to be a key sector of the Vietnamese economy.The study shows the general picture of the tourism situation of Vietnam ingeneral and the Vietnam Tourism Co.,Ltd in particular because tourismbelongs to the industry group that is seriously and immediately affected Thenumber of international tourists to Vietnam has fallen sharply over the pasttwo years due to travel and entry restrictions worldwide It can be seen thatVietnam's tourism industry is exhausted and has not shown signs of recovery,

so we have to find answers, come up with suitable solutions to try to recover

That is also the main content and want to achieve in my graduation: “An Investigation into the real situation and some solutions to improve the quality

of the marketing department at ThaiViet Smile Co., Ltd "

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONSDTU : Duy Tan University

FLD : Foreign Language Department

Co.,Ltd : Limited company

KPI : Key Performance Indicator

TABLES & FIGURE

Table 1: The Situation of Labor in ThaiViet Co.,Ltd 18

Table 2: Labor Structure According to Education Levels 18

Table 3: Revenue of ThaiViet Smile CO.,LTD over 2 Years 2019-2020 25

Table 4: Customer KPIs in 2019 and 2020 26

Table 5: The Number of Tourist at ThaiViet Smile in 2019 and 2020 26

Table 7: Guests’ Evaluation of Marketers Marketing Attitude 29

Table 8 : Evaluation about product of the marketing 31

Table 9: Evaluation about price of the marketing 31

Table 10: Evaluation about place of the marketing 31

Table 11: Survey reasons customers know the company 32

Table 12: Evaluation about Promotion of the marketing 32

Figure 1: The Structure of the Marketing Department 11

Figure 2: Organization Diagram at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd 15

Figure 3: Steps for a Strategic Marketing Process 21

Figure 4: Guest’s Evaluation of Marketers Marketing Attitude 29

TABLE OF CONTENTS

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP ii

ABSTRACT iii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS iv

TABLES & FIGURES v

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Rationale 1

1.2 Aims and Objectives 2

1.2.1 Aims 2

1.2.2 Objectives 2

1.3 Scope of the Study 2

1.4 Methods of the Study 3

1.5 Organization of the Study 3

CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 4

2.1.Tourism Business 4

2.1.1Concept of Tourism 4

2.1.2 Types of Tourism 5

2.1.3 Concept of Tourism Business 6

2.1.4.Products of Tourism Business 7

2.2.Tourism Marketing 8

2.2.1 Concept of Marketing 8

2.2.2 Concept of Tourism Marketing 8

2.2.3.The necessary of Tourism Marketing 9

2.2.4 Marketing Department 9

2.2.4.1 Definition 9

2.2.4.2 Marketing Departments Structure: 10

2.2.4.4 Marketing department equipment 13

CHAPTER 3: CASE DESCRIPTION 14

3.1.An Overview of ThaiViet Smile Co ,Ltd 14

3.1.1 Location 14

3.1.2 The organizational structure of Thai Viet Smile Co.,Ltd 15

3.1.3 Staff of ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd 17

3.2 Introduction of the Marketing Department at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd 19

3.2.1 The Roles of Marketing Department at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd .19

3.2.2 Functions of Marketing Department at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd .20

3.2.3 The Serving Process of Marketing Department at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd 21

3.3 Real situations of marketing activities at the company Thai Viet Smile 23

3.3.1 Product 23

3.3.2 Price 23

3.3.3 Place 24

3.3.4 Promotion 24

CHAPTER 4: ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION 25

4.1 Analysis of Revenue and Number of Tourist at ThaiViet Simle Co ,LTD 25

4.1.1 Revenue 25

4.1.2 Number of Tourist 26

4.2 Analysis of Marketing Quality at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd 27

4.2.1 Analysis of Marketing Staff at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd 27

4.2.2 Guests’ Evaluation of Marketers Marketing Attitude at

ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd 29

4.2.3 Guests’ Evaluation of Marketing Quality at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd 30

4.2.4.Strong Points 33

4.2.5.Weak points 34

CHAPTER 5 DIFFICULTIES AND SOLUTIONS 35

5.1 Difficulties 35

5.1.1 The Difficulties of Online Marketing 35

5.1.2 The Difficulties of Direct Marketing 35

5.2 Solutions 36

CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS 38

6.1 Suggestions for Marketing Department at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd .38

6.1.1 Enhancing staff and Equipment in Marketing Room 38

6.1.2 Improving marketing efficiency of ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd 38

6.1.2.1 Revenue 38

6.1.2.2.Website access indicators 39

6.1.2.3 Customer reviews 39

6.1.2.4 Investment cost per customer 40

6.1.2.5.Social media indicators 40

6.1.2.6 Coverage of the business 40

6.2 Conclusion 41

REFERENCES 42

QUESTIONNAIRE 43

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION1.1 Rationale

Our country is beautiful, from Meo Vac, Lung Cu to the land of Ca Maucape, every place has a fairy-like appearance, because of the beautiful andvivid landscapes that the Creator has given Only come here to realize howwonderful it is This tropical country is beautiful, from white sandy beachesaround the country, dense forests to incredible waterfalls and people here.Vietnam is not only friendly and honest with domestic people but alsointernational friends have to admit this feature

Especially, Danang is known as the most livable city in Vietnam.Recently, Da Nang is gradually becoming a new famous city for tourism DaNang has many tourist attractions attracting foreign tourists from all over theworld

From my experience, people tend to travel after long hours of work Tomeet that demand, travel companies were born In order to survive and beprofitable, many companies have tried their best to renew and diversify travelservices in order to increase their competitiveness

Under the continuous development of the current market economy, thecompetition between enterprises is becoming more and more fierce At thattime, marketing activities seem to become a powerful tool to supportcompetition and attract customers that almost all businesses, whether large orsmall, must perform Marketing helps businesses to survive in the market for

a long time because it provides the ability to adapt to changes in the externalmarket through the process of market research and adaptation to it Thesuccess of a business depends on whether they provide the market with theproducts the market needs, in accordance with the wants and purchasingpower of consumers During my internship, from being awareness of the

importance of marketing, I have chosen the topic "An investigation into thereal situation and some solutions to improve the quality of the marketingdepartment at ThaiViet Smile Co., Ltd "

1.2 Aims and Objectives

1.2.1 Aims

The target is to improve my knowledge about function, commission andimportance of Marketing department in company Moreover, somerecommendations and solutions will be listed out to help ThaiViet SmileCo ,Ltd implement and improve the quality of the marketing department

1.2.2 Objectives

This study is intended to:

Investigate in details into the quality of the marketing department incompany

Figure out strong points and weak points in the marketing department

of ThaiViet Smile Co ,Ltd

Suggest some effective solutions to improving the marketingdepartment’s quality in ThaiViet Smile Co ,Ltd

1.3 Scope of the Study

About the content: the topic goes into an investigation into the realsituation and some solutions to improving the quality of marketingdepartment at ThaiViet Smile Co ,Ltd

About space: The theme of ThaiViet Smile Co ,Ltd in Da Nang city

1.4 Methods of the Study

Method of Collection: I collected the data from the Internet andtourism books in the library of Duy Tan University

Method of Description and Analysis: “I focused on describing andanalyzing the quality of the marketing department from the data collected.Then, I pointed out some strong points and weak points of the real situation ofthe quality of the marketing department and offered some suggestions toimprove the problems From this, I offered some solutions to improving itsquality in ThaiViet Smile Co ,Ltd”

1.5 Organization of the Study

This study is divided into three parts:

• Chapter I is the introduction of the graduation paper includingrationale, aims and objectives, scope of the study, method of thestudy and study’s organization

• Chapter II is theoretical background about the tourism business andMarketing Department

• Chapter III is case description describing the overview of MarketingDepartment at ThaiViet Smile Co ,Ltd

• Chapter IV includes real situation about marketing activities with theanalysis and evaluation

• Chapter V is dificulties and solutions

• Chapter VI is the suggestions to improving its quality in ThaiVietSmile Co ,Ltd and the conclusion

CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

2.1.Tourism Business

2.1.1Concept of Tourism

Today tourism has become a popular socio-economicphenomenon The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) hasrecognized tourism as the largest economic sector in the world,surpassing the automotive, steel, electronics and agricultural industries.For some countries, tourism is the most important source of foreignexchange in foreign trade In many other countries, tourism is one ofthe top economic sectors Tourism has quickly become a spearheadeconomic industry of many countries around the world Today'stourism is an attractive topic and has become a global issue Manycountries have taken residents' travel expenses as an indicator to assessthe quality of life

Although tourism activities have originated for a long time anddeveloped at such a very fast pace, up to now the concept of "tourism"

is understood very differently in different countries and from manydifferent countries, different angles

Traveler's Approach: Travel is a journey and temporary stayoutside of an individual's regular residence, in order to satisfy variousneeds, with the aim of peace and friendship To them, travel is like anopportunity to find life experiences that satisfy some of their physicaland spiritual needs

Approach from the perspective of the tourist business: Tourism isthe process of organizing production and service conditions to satisfyand satisfy the needs of tourists Tourism businesses see tourism as anopportunity to sell the products they produce, to satisfy the needs of

tourists (travelers), and thereby achieve their number one purpose its

is profit maximization

Approach from the perspective of local government: Tourism is acollection of diversified business activities organized to helpindividuals' journey and temporary stay Tourism is an opportunity tosell local products, increase foreign exchange earnings, increaseincome streams from direct and indirect taxes, sharply bottom thebalance of payments, and improve physical and spiritual livingstandards for local people

2.1.2 Types of Tourism

Tourism has many various forms and categorizes which varyfrom types of tourist, of territory of the trip, of the organizationalform of the trip, and of destination As we know, human demand isvery diversified One person’s demand is different from others Thekey reason for the difference based on different classificationscriteria In general, we can understand as follows:

3.Nature Tourism

This is referred as responsible travel to natural areas, whichconserves the environment and improves the welfare of the localpeople It is Tourism based on the natural attractions of a specific area.Some examples include birdwatching, photography , camping, hiking,hunting, fishing and visiting parks These experential tourists are

interested in a diversity of natural and cultural resources They wantwhat is real and they wantto be immersed in a rich natural, cultural orhistorical experiance Nature based tourism provides incentives forlocal communities and landowners to conserve wildlife habitats uponthe industry depends - it promotes conservation by increased value onremaining natural areas.

6.Medical Tourism

Medical Tourism refers to people travelling to a country otherthan their own to obtain medical treatment Medical Tourism mostoften is for surgries or some people travel for dental care of fertilitytreatments People with rare conditions may travelto countries wherethe treatment is better understood Health Tourism is a term for travelthat focus on medical treatments and the use of healthcare services

7.Adventure Tourism

Adventure Tourism is a nice tourism involving exploration of atravel with a certain degree of risk and it may also require special skillsand physical exertion Adventure tourists may have the motivation toachieve mental states characterized as rush or flow, resulting fromstepping outside their comfort zone

2.1.3 Concept of Tourism Business

In essence, tourism business is the sum total of the relationshipbetween the economics of tourism-related activities and economicphenomena Activities are based on the development of tourism

products and the process of exchanging and buying tourism goods inthe market.

The tourism business is a part of the business, the same processtakes place, except that the tourism business is influenced by thespecificity of resources, products, markets and consumer needs ofhuman Tourism business is mainly trading products, intangiblegoods, tourism services

2.1.4.Products of Tourism Business

A tourism product is the sum of the physical and psychologicalexperience got by tourist during their traveling to the destination It isthe composite product, as the combination of different services liketourist attraction, transport, accommodation and of entertainment whichprovide tourist satisfaction Each of the components of a touristproduct is supplied by individual providers of services like hotelcompanies, airlines, travel agencies, etc

Attractions: Of the three basic components of a tourist product,attractions are very important Unless there is an attraction, the tourist will not

be motivated to go to a particular place Attractions are those elements in aproduct which determine the choice made by particular tourist to visit oneparticular destination rather than another The attractions could be cultural,like sites and areas of archaeological interest, historical buildings andmonuments, flora and fauna, beach resorts, mountains, national parks orevents like trade fairs, exhibitions, arts and music festivals, games, etc

Accessibility: It is the means of transport used to reach the area whereattractions are located Tourism mode of transport may be a motor car, acoach, an airplane, a ship or a train which enables the tourist to reach hispredetermined destination Availability of transportation determines the value

of the destination, easy accessibility of a place, increase the value ofdestination or vice versa.

Accommodation: Accommodation plays an important role and verybasic to tourist destinations The demand for accommodation away fromhome is met by a variety of facilities, which is home away from home There

is a large number of varieties are available in the accommodation There hasbeen an increasing demand for more non- traditional and informal types ofaccommodation The latest trends in accommodation are holiday villages

2.2.Tourism Marketing

2.2.1 Concept of Marketing

There are many definitions of Marketing, but the most standard isstill according to Mr Philip Kotler - The name of the father of modernMarketing industry defines Marketing:

+ “Marketing is the science and art of exploring, creating, anddelivering value to satisfy the needs of a target market at a profit”

+ "Marketing is a form of human activity to satisfy their desiredneeds through communication" - (Philip Kotler)

2.2.2 Concept of Tourism Marketing

+ According World Tourism Organization : “Tourism marketing is

a management philosophy that researchers, predict, select based on on the needs of visitors it can bring tourism products to the market to suit the tourism organization's profitable and exciting purpose”

+ According Robert Languar and Robert Hollier : “ Tourism marketing is a range of methods and techniques supported by a special and methodical spirit to satisfy the unspoken or unspoken needs

of the customer that may be for entertainment purposes or for other purposes including public family, business and meeting ”

We can define travel marketing as follows:

+“ Tourism marketing is the process of researching and analyzing customer needs, travel products and services and modes of

supply and support to bring customers to products to satisfy their needs, at the same time achieving the goals of the organization ”

2.2.3.The necessary of Tourism Marketing

1 Tourism brings huge revenue benefits and many other benefits

to suppliers, for the country

2 In addition to economic benefits, tourism is integrated, sotourism development is beneficial in many aspects of politics,diplomacy, culture and society

3 Tourism is a smoke-free industry, so the characteristics oftourism products are different from commercial products, andcustomers are often far away from the product, so tourism marketing isessential in the tourism business

2.2.4 Marketing Department

2.2.4.1 Definition

A marketing department promotes your business and drives sales

of its products or services It provides the necessary research to identifyyour target customers and other audiences Depending on thecompany’s hierarchical organization, a marketing director, manager orvice president of marketing might be at the helm In some businesses, avice president of sales and marketing oversees both the marketing andsales departments with a strong manager leading each department.It’s important to keep a strong marketing department intactregardless of the economy so you remain visible and keep sales strong

2.2.4.2 Marketing Departments Structure:

The structure of the marketing department can differ according tothe company

Above all, a structure helps marketing employees and otheremployees in a company understand what the roles of each person in amarket department are Let’s take a look at the top 4

 Vice President

o This is the person in charge of the entire process of marketing.Thisperson is involved in planning and creating a marketing strategy for acompany.

 Marketing Director

o He/ She is responsible for carrying out the marketing strategy that hasbeen put in place by the vice president.This includes choosing mediums toadvertise and sharing marketing messages

 Public Relations

o They handle the non paid forms of advertising that the company uses

to promote the business

2.2.4.3 Features of Marketing Services

Intangibility

o A physical product is visible and concrete Services are intangible

The service cannot be touched or viewed, so it is difficult for clients to tell in

advance what they will be getting For example, banks promote the sale of

credit cards by emphasizing the conveniences and advantages derived from

possessing a credit card

Inseparability

o Personal services cannot be separated from the individual Services

are created and consumed simultaneously The service is being produced at

the same time that the client is receiving it; for example, during an online

search or a legal consultation Dentist, musicians, dancers, etc create and

offer services at the same time

Heterogeneity (or variability)

o Services involve people, and people are all different There is a strong

possibility that the same enquiry would be answered slightly differently by

Vice President Vice President

different people (or even by the same person at different times) It isimportant to minimize the differences in performance (through training,standard setting and quality assurance) The quality of services offered byfirms can never be standardized.

Perishability

o Services have a high degree of perishability Unused capacity cannot

be stored for future use If services are not used today, it is lost forever Forexample, spare seats in an aeroplane cannot be transferred to the next flight.Similarly, empty rooms in five-star hotels and credits not utilized areexamples of services leading to economic losses As services are activitiesperformed for simultaneous consumption, they perish unless consumed

Changing demand

o The demand for services has wide fluctuations and may be seasonal.Demand for tourism is seasonal, other services such as demand for publictransport, cricket field and golf courses have fluctuations in demand

Pricing of services

o Quality of services cannot be standardized The pricing of services areusually determined on the basis of demand and competition For example,room rents in tourist spots fluctuate as per demand and season and many ofthe service providers give off-season discounts

Direct channel

o Usually, services are directly provided to the customer The customergoes directly to the service provider to get services such as bank, hotel,doctor, and so on A wider market is reached through franchising such asMcDonald’s and Monginis

2.2.4.4 Marketing department equipment

In order to successfully carry out a marketing campaign, they willrequire certain tools to help facilitate their work

Advertising tools

o The creative team will help create campaigns, events as well aspromotional materials This is used to promote the product, services, in order

to create awareness and convert prospects into clients

Media monitoring tools

o These are tools that are used to scan the web and inform you of howwell your online campaign is going These tools scan for blogs, and socialmedia sites

Automation tools

o These tools help the team thereby saving a lot of time Marketers cansave a lot of time by leveraging on technology to handle things like sendingemails and so on

CHAPTER 3: CASE DESCRIPTION 3.1.An Overview of ThaiViet Smile Co ,Ltd

3.1.1 Location

Name of Company : THAI VIET SMILE CO., LTD

Address : 12 Bui Chat Street, Hoa Khanh Bac Ward,

Lien Chieu District, Da Nang CityPhone : 0968.272.768

Website : www.ThaiVietSmile CO., LTD.com

Company Thai Viet Smile CO , LTD is a company operating inthe field of tourism specializing in providing tours and guides atdomestic and foreign tours Under the leadership of company director

Mr Ho Ngoc Long, the company has been operating for 9 years FromSeptember 27, 2012 until now With the view of putting customersatisfaction first, the company's experienced staff is constantly striving

to bring all benefits to customers Since its establishment and

development, Company Thai Viet Smile is aiming to become one of theprestigious travel agencies in Vietnam.

3.1.2 The organizational structure of Thai Viet Smile Co.,Ltd

Currently, the company's head office consists of departments:Operation room, Single ticket office, Business Department, Air ticketoffice, IT - marketing department, Instruction room, Teambuildingroom, Accounting department

Figure 2: Organization Diagram at ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd

* According to this, there are many departments that construct thecomplete organization of ThaiViet Smile Company And each departmenthas its own missions

a Director

The highest position of the hotel is Director, who is responsible fortaking care of almost every business and operates all departments in thecompany

b Deputy Director

The next lower position is Deputy Director The task of this post is

to help General Director to run the company and to solve company’sissues

c Executive room

Director

Instruction roomSingle ticket office

Business Department Teambuilding room

Accounting department

Listen, phone call at the operating room Set all service andmonitoring services of partners and suppliers.Operating, supervising,arranging and guiding tours Resolving inquiries, complaints ofagents, customers, suppliers Daily tour operation.

d Single ticket office

Provide customers with daily retail services such as sightseeingtickets, car rental, Selling daily open tours for guests Consultingservices for customers

e Marketing Department

Coordinate with the executive department to build tourismprograms from content to the price suitable to customer needs,proactively give ideas about new travel products of the enterprise.Advertising the company's tourism programs as well as the company'simage by means of media

f Teambuilding room

Building teambuilding programs for customers IntroduceTeambuilding products to customers and advise them to bring servicesthat best suit customer needs Organizing the implementation ofteambuilding programs, bringing customers new and unforgettableexperiences Rental of equipment for teambuilding

g Accounting department

Organization performs financial and accounting jobs of thecompany Record keeping track of your business expenses Implementperiodic and timely reporting regime to reflect changes for leaders totake handling measures

h Guidance room

Organization of arranging tour guides for tourism programs Abridge between service providers and customers, giving customers theguaranteed services Being the direct representative of the business inthe process of direct contact with customers, serving guests during the

tour program takes place Handle customer queries, complaints andsituations arising during the trip.

i Business Department

Expand and maintain relationships with customers and suppliers,local authorities at destinations that the company is exploiting in thecompany's tourism programs Organize the sale of tourism programs aswell as other products for visitors Sales Department must alsoresearch, build and develop new products, advise the director on marketexpansion and exploitation of new business types

3.1.3 Staff of ThaiViet Smile Co.,Ltd

For resort - tourism businesses, manpower is an important factordetermining the efficiency of using other resource elements of enterprises.Because, person is the subject who conducts all business activities with theaim of the business The table below is the situation of labor in ThaiVietSmile Company

Table 1: The Situation of Labor in ThaiViet Co.,Ltd