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1 Rationale Theoretically, in the last years of the twentieth century, marketing communication MC was developed by integrated MC theory, which is considered amore effective communication

THUONGMAI UNIVERSITY

- 

 -MARKETING COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT

OF HIGH-CLASS HOTELS IN HANOI

Major : Business Trade Code : 934 01 21

SUMMARY OF ECONOMIC DOCTORAL THESIS

Hanoi, 2022

1 Rationale

Theoretically, in the last years of the twentieth century, marketing

communication (MC) was developed by integrated MC theory, which is considered amore effective communication method that can respond quickly to market changes(Schultz et al , 2014) From here, the role of MC is raised one level Through MCmanagement (MCM), businesses plan, organize, implement and control MC, therebyincreasing sales, building customer awareness and preferences for products, andbuilding the nice image of the business The literature shows that MCM positivelyaffects performance, and a higher degree of integration in MCM of firms may lead tobetter MC outcomes (Vantamay, 2011) MC makes an important contribution toshort-term profits and long-term brand building (Schultz, 2004) MC managers need

to consider MC as a key competitive advantage and an appropriate solution toimprove MC results (MCR) (Porcu et al , 2017) Because of its important role, MCM

is increasingly receiving study attention in many theoretical and experimental works(Reid, 2003; Vantamay, 2011; Završnik & Jerman, 2011) However, some theoreticalproblems of MCM remain unresolved, empirical studies ignore the role of the effect

of outcome evaluation at the control stage, while control is an important stage ofMCM, is concerned and emphasized by many experts when studying MCM (Duncan

& Everett, 1993; Kitchen & Schultz, 1999)

Practically, in the period of 2016 - 2019, tourism in Vietnam in general and

Hanoi in particular has had a remarkable growth rate, the number of visitors hascontinuously increased The hotel business activities constantly expanded in scaleThe number of high-class hotels is 32, accounting for 5 7% of the number of hotels inthe area but accounting for 34 3% of the proportion of rooms From 2020 until now,the COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the tourism industry Thenumber of international visitors to Hanoi only reached 1 11 million, decreasing by 842% compared to that of 2019; Average occupancy is about 40% (Hanoi Department

of Tourism)… The new context forces high-class hotels to pay more attention tocommunication activities to maintain customer awareness and loyalty, the role ofMCM becomes even more important In addition, the industrial revolution 4 0 hasbrought about significant achievements, many of which are applied in effectivecommunication To be able to take advantage of opportunities while avoidingchallenges, high-class hotels should respond quickly to these changes in theenvironment Compared to other hotel groups, high-class hotels have favorableconditions to invest, approach and successfully apply technological achievements to

MC, lead the development of hospitality industry Therefore, perfecting MCMbecomes more and more urgent for high-class hotels, not only improving the SR and

BE but also being the driving force for the development of the hospitality industry ofHanoi Understanding this, high-class hotels in Hanoi have paid more attention toMCM, however, not all hotels are well aware of and successfully implement MCM

For the above reasons, the implementation of the dissertation topic:

"Marketing communication management of high-class hotels in Hanoi" is

necessary, urgent and meaningful in both theory and practice

2 Research objectives and research questions

Research objectives: Improve a theoretical basis for the content (steps) of the

hotel's MCM process and a research model of the impact of the components of theMCM on the MCR of hotels; apply theory to survey and assess the situation, proposesolutions and recommendations to improve MCM in order to improve SR and BE ofhigh-class hotels in Hanoi

Research questions: To achieve the above research objectives, the dissertation

needs to answer the following questions:

- What are the content and MCM component elements of MCM of hotel?Which criterias are used to evaluated the MCR of hotels

- How was reality of the market communication management of high-classhotels in Hanoi?

- How did components of MCM impact on MCR of high-class hotels in Hanoi?

- What are solutions and recommendations to improve MCM of high-classhotels in Hanoi?

3 Object and scope of the research

Research subject: The object of the dissertation is theoretical and practical

issues on MCM of high-class hotels in Hanoi

Research objects: High-class hotels includes 4 and 5 stars hotel in Hanoi

Research scope:

Scope of content and approach: Studying the theoretical basis, current situation

and MCM solutions of the hotel based on two main contents: (1) the MCM processincludes planning, organizing implementation and control of MC; (2) the impact ofthe components of MCM on MCR, including SR and BE, a management processapproach, and a wide-angle approach within the entire enterprise

Scope of space: High-class hotels in Hanoi, including 32 hotels that have been

rated 4 or 5 stars according to statistics of Hanoi Department of Tourism

Scope of time: Secondary data were collected for the period 2016 - 2021;

primary data was collected through in-depth interviews and surveys from March 2020

to December 2020; solutions and proposals for the period from now to 2025 and thefollowing years

4 Research methods

Research methodology: dialectical materialism and historical materialismSpecific research methods: Combining qualitative research methods and quantitativeresearch methods to complement and support each other in the data analysis process

5 New contributions

Theoretically, through research overview, theories of synergy, information

integration, interaction and relevant parties, the dissertation contributes tosupplementing and clarifying the theory of MCM of hotels, which clearly shows theconcept and content of MCM of hotels, including planning, organizing, implementingand controlling MC The dissertation has inherited, developed and proposed aresearch model to research the impact of the components of MCM on MCR,including 5 independent variables: planning, organizational integration, consistentcommunication, interactive communication, evaluation of results; The dependentvariable is MCR expressed through SR and BE

Practically, the dissertation has analyzed and evaluated quite comprehensively

and specifically the reality of MCM of high-class hotels in Hanoi, comparing theperformance level between chain hotels and independent hotels The test results haveshown that 5 components of MCM have a positive impact on MCR The dissertationsuggests 3 groups of solutions on the basis of completing MCM contents that hotelshave not yet performed well but proven to have a positive impact on MCR of high-class hotels in Hanoi

6 Dissertation structure

In addition to the table of contents, the list of tables, figures, the list ofacronyms, the introduction, the conclusion, the references, the appendix, thedissertation is structured in 4 chapters:

Chapter 1 Overview and theoretical background of hotel MCM

Chapter 2 Research methods

Chapter 3 Reality of MCM of high-class hotels in Hanoi

Chapter 4 Some solutions and recommendations to improve the MCM of class hotels in Hanoi

high-CHAPTER 1 OVERVIEW AND THEORETICAL BACKGROUND OF HOTEL

MARKETING COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT

1 1 Research overview

1 1 1 Studies on marketing communication management and marketing communication processes

1 1 1 1 Studies on marketing communication management

Studies on MCM approach from a narrow perspective: According to the out approach, MCM is interested in how to combine elements of mass communication

inside-to get a unified statement, MCM just sinside-tops integrating at the tactical level (Caywood

& Duncan (1996); Brown (1997); Duncan & Everett (1993) In an outside-inapproach, a deep understanding of the customer and Potential customers are valued(Schultz 1992; Kotler, 1994) but not yet measurable (Duncan & Caywood, 1996)

Studies on MCM approach from a wide angle: Approach studies at the wholeenterprise show that MCM is considered as a continuous management processincluding planning, implementation organization and control; integrating allfunctional units in the enterprise, senior management with the role of MC advocate tothe participation of all functional departments in MCM; customers are placed in thecenter, all MC activities are derived from customers and are customer-oriented;interactive communication is focused; MC generates short-term business results andlong-term brand value (Kliatchko, 2005; Duncan & Mulhern, 2004; Fill, 2005; EBelch, 2018)

1 1 1 2 Studies on the marketing communication process

Studies on the MC planning process: The phased approach of the MC processshows that the three main stages of the MCM process include: planning,implementation organization, and controlling; This process should be seen as ongoingmanagement, planning-based control process Despite describing specifically thestages of the MCM process, these models do not approach integrated MCM at theenterprise-wide level (Kotler, 2000; Duncan 2002; Kitchen & Burgmann, 2010)

Integrated MC process studies: MCM studies with an integrated processapproach reveal different levels of integration of the MCM process (Fill, 2002;Kitchen & Schultz, 2001) ) Accordingly, the levels to achieve enterprise-wideintegration include integration of MC tools to achieve message consistency (tacticalintegration), stakeholder integration with stakeholder engagement in MC (functionalintegration) and strategic integration involves customer-centricity, financial andbranding goals

1 1 2 Studies on the components of marketing communication management

Approaching from a narrow perspective, MCM measurement efforts are

mainly based on the original MCM definitions and frameworks, thus adopting anarrow MCM approach when considering MCM as a combination of communicationtools and messages

Approaching from a broad perspective, identify the components of MCM to

achieve integration across the enterprise The elements that are recognized andconsented by most authors as important components of MCM include: planning,

organizational integration, consistent communication, and interactive communicationSome studies refer to the evaluation of results but it is not clear, there is no empiricalstudy to evaluate the impact of this factor on MCR

Table 1 1 Summary of the components of MCM

Phelps (1994) One voice, integrated, coordinated communication

Low (2000) Interaction, consistent communication, consistent message

Reid (2005) Cross-functional planning, mission marketing, interaction

Lee & Park

(2007)

Distinct communications to target groups, unified communications for consistent messages and images, database-centric communications, forging relationships with existing customers Kliatchko (2008) Stakeholders, content, communication channels, measuring results Jerman &

Zavrsnik (2011a)

Integrating organization, planning, 2-way communication, product branding with corporate branding, consistent communication

Vantamay (2011) Planning and evaluation, organizational integration, consistent

communication, mission marketing, interaction Jerman &

Zavrsnik (2011b) Marketing objectives, two-way communication, communicationchannels Porcu (2019) Message consistency, strategic focus on stakeholders, interactions,

organizational alignment

Source: Summary by the Ph D Candidate

1 1 3 Studies on indicators to measure marketing communication results

Studies on MCR measurement indicators agree that MCR include two factors

of SR (including sales growth, profitability, market share growth) and BE (includingbrand awareness, high valuation, channel cooperation, satisfaction, loyalty)

Table 1 2 Summary of indicators to measure marketing results

Duncan,

Moriarty (1998) BE, customer value (satisfaction), high valuation

Low (2000) Profit, sales revenue, revenue growth rate, market share

Reid (2003,

2005) SR (profitability, market share growth, sales revenue, sales growth),BE (brand awareness, high valuation, channel partnership), satisfaction

(loyalty and satisfaction) Somphol

Vantamay

(2011)

SR (profitability, market share growth, sales revenue, sales growth),

BE (brand awareness, high valuation, channel partnership), satisfaction (loyalty and satisfaction)

Authors (year) Indicators

Šerić (2013) Brand loyalty

Šerić (2014) BE (brand image, perceived quality, brand loyalty)

Source: Summary by the Ph D Candidate

1 1 4 Studies on the impact of the components of marketing communication management on marketing communication results

From a narrow perspective, the authors use SR, BE to measure MCR through a

combination of MC tools (Karunanithy & Sivesan, 2013; Elrayah (2017) This studyhas not studied MCM from an integrated perspective

From a broad perspective, studies measure the impact of MCM components on

MCR from the perspective of enterprise-wide integration (Reid, 2003; Vantamay,2011; Završnik & Jerman, 2011 Study has focused on the important components ofMCM, but the outcome evaluation factor in the control phase is ignored, whiletheoretical studies clearly indicate the important role of evaluation evaluate results inthe MCM process as well as the impact of this factor on MCR

1 1 5 Studies on hotel marketing communication management

Studies on MCM in the hotel sector focus on identifying the MCMcomponents, assessing the impact of MCM components on MCR, includingindicators objectives related to the hotel's SR and BE However, the number of works

is still quite modest, in addition to that, there are very few studies on MCM approach

at the whole enterprise and approach according to the management process, somecomponents of marketing communication management are ignored

1 1 6 Research conclusion and gap

Regarding MCM approaching angle: MCM's wide-angle approach refers to

integrated communication in the entire enterprise, which is said to be a modern andpopular approach for later studies However, the number of MCM studiesapproaching at a broad perspective in the hospitality sector is still limited

Regarding the MCM process: Integrated MCM at the enterprise-wide approach

according to the management process is a gap that needs to be filled

Regarding the components of MCM: Although there is much consensus in the

studies, the important component of MCM is the under-reviewed outcomeassessment, especially in experimental study

Regarding the study of the impact of MCM components on MCR: The outcome

evaluation factor is an important component in the control phase of the MCMprocess, which is ignored

Regarding MCM studies and the impact of MCM on MCR in the hotel industry:

Most of the studies have not approached MCM at the entire enterprise scale, have notidentified MCM components according to the management process

In summary, with the conclusions and research gaps, the dissertation will focus

on the issues that previous studies have not clarified, adding the components of MCM

and develop the evaluation MC result criteria, approaching according to themanagement process and from the perspective of entire enterprise integration

1 2 Theoretical basis of hotel marketing communication management

1 2 1 An overview of hotel marketing communication management

1 2 1 1 Theories related to marketing communication management

Synergy theory: Based on the theory of synergy, Moriarty (1996) argues that

connected messages create synergy that affects the recipient's perception, evoking aconsistent brand within their mind The benefit of message consistency is synergy,which means that MCM is more effective and produces a greater synergistic impact(S Moriarty & D Schultz, 2012)

Information integration theory: Based on information integration theory,

Thorson & Moore (2013) argues that integrated consumers perceive a series ofmessages that they receive at times of exposure and brand experience Synergy theoryand IIT bring up an important issue, that businesses need to achieve consistency incommunication to create synergy, thereby improving MCR

Interaction theory: The theory of interaction indicates that it is necessary to

establish interactions between businesses and customers, they are participants in thecommunication process of the business, not just the goal to be aimed at IT isconsidered as the foundation for MCM studies, in which interactive communication,planning is mentioned as an important component of MCM in many studies byGronstedt (1996), Duncan & Moriarty (1998), Reid (2005); Porcu (2019)

Stakeholder theory: Stakeholder theory is considered the foundation for MCM

studies, in which consistent communication and organizational integration arementioned as important component elements of marketing communicationmanagement in studies by Duncan & Moriarty (1998), Pickton & Broderick (2001),Kitchen & Schultz (2001), Reid (2005); Porcu (2019)

1 2 1 2 The basic concepts

Definition and classification of hotels: Within the scope of the dissertation,

hotel is understood as: an “Accommodation establishment that ensures quality interms of facilities, equipment and necessary services to serve guests staying and usinghotel services” Classification of hotels: According to the level of service provision,high-class hotels are defined as hotels that have been rated 4-5 stars according toNational Standards (VNAT, 2015) According to the degree of association, high-classhotels are divided into 2 groups: chain hotels and independent hotels

MC is the activity of transmitting information about products and businesses tocustomers includes of compelling, consistent, measurable, and coordinatedcommunications programs to influence customers to generate revenue, profit in theshort term, and build BE in the long term

MCM: Within the research scope of the dissertation, MCM is defined as: The continuous, interactive, multi-functional process through which to plan, organize, implement and control compelling, consistent, measurable, and coordinated communications program to influence customers to generate revenue, profit in the short term, and build BE in the long term

MCM of hotels: Within the research scope of the dissertation, hotel MCM is

defined as: The continuous, interactive, multi-functional process through which the

hotel plans, organizes and the organization implements and controls persuasive, consistent, measurable, and coordinated communications programs to influence customers to generate revenue, short-term profits, and build long-term BE for hotels

1 2 2 Content of hotel marketing communication management

1 2 2 1 Planning the hotel's marketing communication

MC planning represents integration at a strategic level when the MC plan isbuilt on the basis of the hotel's mission, objectives, and customer behavior research

Reviewing the overall marketing mission, objectives and plan: The first step in

MC planning is to review the mission, objectives of the hotel and the overallmarketing plan (Završnik & Jerman, 2011)

SWOT Analysis: In MC planning, a SWOT analysis is used to identifystrengths and opportunities that can be leveraged, as well as weaknesses and threatsthat need to be addressed (Duncan & Moriarty, 1998)

Defining the target audience and stages in the buying process: Defining the

target audience is important in MC planning because the marketer can determine theexpected cognitive, emotional, or behavioral response (Kotler, 2000), therebydetermining MC objectives and MC programs appropriate to each audience

Defining MC objectives: MC objectives relate to what the hotel is trying to

achieve when implementing communication programs MC objectives can be theobjectives that each MC tool and the integration of MC tools need to achieve in agiven business period

Determining the MC budget: Percentage of revenue method, competitive

balancing method, ability-based method, goal-based method, and task-based methodThe goal and task-based budgeting method was found to be appropriate (Duncan &Moriarty, 1997, 1998; Reid, 2005)

Coordinating MC tools: To develop an integrated MC program, hotels need to

select and coordinate the use of MC tools A separate MC plan for each tool is built

on the basis of coordination with other tools

1 2 2 2 Organizing the implementation of marketing communications of the hotel

(1) Organizational integration

The role of managers: Senior managers have an important role in trusting and

supporting MC (Završnik & Jerman, 2011) Each MC tool has its own advantages anddisadvantages, MC managers need to understand each of these tools in order tocombine the tools most effectively, making the most of each tool's strengths

MC is the responsibility of all departments and employees in a hotel: MC is

not only the responsibility of the marketing department, but MC needs to beintegrated into the work of all functions and employees in a hotel

Internal Communication: Organizational internal communication involves

horizontal and vertical internal integration at the organizational level

Collaborative culture: Collaborative culture is an important factor to promote

the coordination mechanism between departments in the hotel (Porcu), enhanceunderstanding and sharing between individuals and departments in the business

Developing coordination skills for employees: With the important role of

coordination in MC to ensure consistency in communication and achieve setobjectives, employees need to be trained and develop skills in cooperation works

(Porcu, 2019)

Collaboration in MC and outsourcing of MC services: To ensure integration in

communication, it is necessary to have regular communication between the hotel and

MC partners and intermediaries (Duncan & Moriarty, 1998; Reid , 2005; Vantamay,2011; Porcu, 2019)

(2) Consistent communication

Creating key MC ideas: The hotel's message is conveyed through many

different sources, so these messages need to be coordinated strategically Therefore,the main communication idea should be broad enough to be able to carry out differentsub-campaigns (Duncan & Moriarty, 1998)

Integrating the message transmitted across all MC tools: MCM not only uses

traditional MC tools, but should also work with other components of the marketingmix to ensure consistency (Duncan & Moriarty, 1998)

Integrating messages sent from all departments: Messages are conveyed to

customers from many different departments, not only the marketing department, sothe MC organization needs to ensure careful coordination through messages from alldepartments with the goal of maintaining consistency (Porcu, 2019)

Consistency in all visual communication components: Maintaining consistency

in all visual elements of communication such as brands, logos, colors (Lee & Park,2007)

Consistency in all components of linguistic communication: All elements of

linguistic communication should ensure consistency, including slogan, motto, mission(Lee & Park, 2007)

(3) Interactive communication

Message creation: Deciding the content, structure and form of the message to

ensure it is suitable for each specific medium and medium The message ensures toprovide accurate, clear and complete information for the buying decision

Combining tools, mass media and personal communication: Combination of

mass communication tools (advertising, sales promotion, public relations) andpersonal communication tools (personal selling, direct marketing, online marketing)and ensure integration between these MC tools (Duncan & Moriarty, 1997)

Building a database that allows to capture information and understand customers’ buying behavior: Hotels need to integrate all customer information

collected into a unified database, which is used by all guests hotels, are granted accessrights and are easy to use for all MC servants

Tracking and handling customer feedback: Answering all questions and

compliments from customers, handling all customer complaints, especiallycomplaints and complaints that need to be resolved quickly

1 2 2 3 Controlling the hotel's marketing communication

Building a system of criteria to evaluate MCR based on objectives: Controlling

MC is a process that includes many tasks for each specific period based on short,medium and long-term objectives The evaluation criteria need to be developedspecifically with each tool as well as the overall MCR evaluation criteria

Studying customers’ survey: It is necessary to regularly conduct surveys to

assess the perception of target customers about the hotel's MC activities (Einwiller &

Boenigk, 2012)

Evaluating message consistency: In modern MC, it is important to regularly

evaluate the consistency of all planned messages to ensure the integration of MCactivities

Adjusting MC and plan the follow-up MC: Measure MCR and compare with set

objectives (Kliatchko, 2008) Evaluation of the results is an important basis fordetermining the necessary changes at each point of time and make the next planning

1 2 3 Research model and hypothesis on the impact of component factors on marketing communication results of hotels

1 2 3 1 Component elements of hotel MCM

The literature review revealed multiple studies demonstrating the positiveimpact of MCM components on MCR The identified factors include:

Planning: Planning is the MCM element that involves defining MC objectives

based on the mission, overall targets; develop action plans on the basis of promotingstrengths, limiting weaknesses, taking advantage of opportunities and avoidingchallenges of the environment to achieve goals (Duncan & Moriarty, 1998; Reid,2005; Duncan & Moriarty, 1998; Lee & Park, 2007; Završnik & Jerman, 2011)

Organizational integration is the MCM element related to the strength of the

organizational structure model and the cross-functional relationships in theorganization (Reid, 2003; Vantamay, 2011), reflects the involvement ofrepresentatives of different functions in decisions related to brand communication(Završnik & Jerman, 2011)

Consistency communication is the MCM element that involves the coordination

of all messages and tools in communication to build a clear, coherent and consistentbrand image and positioning (Vantamay, 2011)

Interactive communication is the MCM element related to connecting

customers with the business and its brand (Reid, 2003; Vantamay, 2011); emphasizesgenerating behavioral responses of the target customers through communication withthem based on data (Lee & Park, 2007)

Result evaluation is the MCM element related to MC controlling, determinning

criterias and methods of evaluating the MCR to take appropriate actions to achieve

MC objectives

1 2 3 2 The criteria for evaluating the results of the hotel's MC

MCR measurement indicators developed based on study by Reid (2003),Vantamay (2011), Porcu (2019) include:

Indicators measuring SR: Sales revenue growth, profitability, market sharegrowth

Indicators measuring BE: brand awareness, high valuation, channelcooperation, customer satisfaction and loyalty

1 2 3 3 Research model and hypotheses

Planning is the component elements of MCM that show integration at thestrategic level when the MC plan is defined on the basis of mission, objectives,marketing plan and customer behavior study Organizing MC is the next stage of theMCM process Organizational integration refers to the level of functional integration

or stakeholder engagement Consistent and interactive communication involves

integrating at the tactical level or coordinating messaging and MC tools to ensureconsistency and engagement During the MC control phase, result evaluation is animportant factor in demonstrating integration at the strategic level when reviewingMCR is the basis for MC adjustment and subsequent planning, towards customers toachieve their objectives The relationship between the components of MCM and thestages of the MCM process is shown in Figure 1 1 below:

Figure 1 1 The relationship between the MCM process and

the components of MCM

Source: Proposal of the Ph D

On the basis of a research overview and theoretical basis on MCM, thecomponents of MCM, the evaluation criteria of MCR (SR and BE), research model

by Duncan & Moriarty (1998), Reid (2003), Završnik & Jerman (2011), Vantamay(2011) and Porcu (2019), NCS proposes research models and hypotheses:

Figure 1 2 Proposed research model

Source: Proposal of the Ph D

H1a: Planning has a positive impact on SR

H1b: Planning has a positive impact on BE

H2a: Organizational integration has a positive impact on SR

H2b: Organizational integration has a positive impact on BE

H3a: Consistent communication has a positive impact on SR

H3b: Consistent communication has a positive impact on BE

H4a: Interactive communication has a positive impact on SR

H4b: Interactive media has a positive impact on BE

H5a: Result evaluation of results has a positive impact on SR

H5b: Result evaluation of the results has a positive impact on BE