000042358 STUDY ON PUBLIC RELATION ACTIVITES OF SINGAPORE TOURISM BOARD IN VIETNAM NGHIÊN CỨU HOẠT ĐỘNG QUAN HỆ CÔNG CHÚNG CỦA BAN DU LỊCH SINGAPORE TẠI VIỆT NAM

000042358 STUDY ON PUBLIC RELATION ACTIVITES OF SINGAPORE TOURISM BOARD IN VIETNAM NGHIÊN CỨU HOẠT ĐỘNG QUAN HỆ CÔNG CHÚNG CỦA BAN DU LỊCH SINGAPORE TẠI VIỆT NAM

STUDY ON PUBLIC RELATION ACTIVITES OF SINGAPORE TOURISM BOARD IN VIETNAM

A thesis subm itted as a requirem ent for the degree o f

B achelor o f Tourism M anagem ent

H anoi U niversity

Faculty o f M anagem ent and Tourism

Hanoi Dec, 2006

-5.3.2 The intelligent concentration o f STB on the press in Vietnam _ 70 5.3.3 Clever move o f STB to build up the relation with public - 7 1 -

-LIST OF FIGURES

FIG U R E 1: D ifferences between PR and a d v e r tisin g _ 1 9 FIG U R E 2: PR process - 29 - FIG U R E 3: C om m unication process - 30 - FIG U R E 4: Survey developing steps - 34 - FIG U R E 5: M ission o f S T B - 37 - FIG U R E 6: Vision o f S T B _ - 38 - FIG U R E 7: SW O T analysis o f STB in Vietnam - 40 - FIG U R E 8: PR m anagem ent system o f STB in V ie t n a m _- 41 - FIG U R E 9: M edia release o f S T B - 44 - FIG U R E 10: N ew sletter coversheet o f S T B - 46 - FIG U R E 11: C ontent o f education contest o f S T B - 49 - FIG U R E 12: E valuation process in PR activities o f S T B - 53 - FIG U R E 13: Sam ple o f m edia clip pin g - 54 - FIG U R E 14: M ethod to estim ate m edia v a lu e - 56 -

F IG U R E 15: Proportion o f coverage regarding sp ecific fields _ 59

F IG U R E 16: Proportion o f coverage regarding reader p r o file 60 FIG U R E 17: G eneral attitude ab out Singapore - 62 - FIG U R E 18: Proportion attitudes for specific field s - 63 - FIG U R E 19: A verage m ark o f specific field s _ - 64 -

F IG U R E 20: Source o f inform ation o f S in g a p o r e _ 65 FIG U R E 22: U sefulness o f in fo r m a tio n _ - 68

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STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

"Except where reference is made in the text o f the thesis, this thesis contains no material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part fro m a thesis or any other degree or diploma.

No other person's work has been used without due acknowledgment in the main text o f the thesis.

This thesis has not been submitted fo r the award o f any degree

or diploma in any other tertiary institution."

Student signature

Date 23/11/2006

H o Thi H o n g H anh

F irst o f all, 1 w o u ld like to acknow ledge m y thesis su p erviso r M s B u i

Thanh H u o n g f o r her d e v o te d instruction a n d constructive criticism

With p r o fo u n d know ledge, she has h e lp e d me to have d eeper understa n d in g a n d stim u la ted m e to g rea te r effort I w o u ld also like to

p re se n t m y appreciation to M r H o a n g Gia Thu, fo r his su p p o rt a n d

concern on each m em b er o f tourism 02 a n d me I w ant to s e n d fu r th e r thanks to sp ecifica lly all lectu rers o f F aculty o f M a n a g em en t a n d Tourism w ho have enth u sia stica lly e d u c a te d me fo r m ore than fo u r

y e a rs in the university.

I w o u ld like to th a n k m y co lleg es in PR a g en cy w ho p ro v id e me valuable experience in PR, a n d help me f i n d out the p a ssio n a te in PR.

Finally, I w o u ld like to se n d endless thanks to m y dea rs - f o r their ever- lasting love, encouragem ent, a n d b e lie f in me; a n d sincere thanks to a ll m y b e lo ve d frien d s w ho alw ays s ta n d by a n d inspire me not on ly this im portant tim e but also m y w hole life!

Hanoi 23/11/06

Ho Thi H ong Hanh

A SE A N : Association o f Southeast Asian Nations

PR activities aboard to build up the relationship and awareness with the public Singapore Tourism Board is one o f national tourism organizations which have gained many successes through PR activities in its foreign market In deed, it has gained initial success in Vietnam market.

The research is supposed to investigate about PR activities o f Singapore Tourism Board in Vietnam in the scope o f 19,000 words The study is composed o f introducing about main PR activities and evaluation methods o f the business on PR activities in Vietnam Then, there is part for finding whether the activities are valuable or not Result o f the study will helps to bring about the overview about PR activities, and the professional way o f implementation and management o f Singapore Tourism Board when it goes board, and the key factors contributing to the success Consequently, Vietnam National Tourism Administration can use for reference

C H A PT E R l.T H E R E SE A R C H SU B JEC T EM E R G E S

"If I was clown to my last dollar, I d spend it on public relations." 1

1.1 R esearch area o f concern

The recent integration o f Vietnam into the area and world economy, specifically, World Trade Organization (W TO) has opened more opportunities to the country On one hand Vietnam can bring Vietnamese products to the world more easily On the other hand, i f the country does not have a good business strategy, Vietnam may face threat because existing products are more known about than Vietnamese ones in certain market Hence, it is necessary to introduce about Vietnamese products to the new market There are many strategic solutions for that problem, and one o f effective way that is applied by many success corporations in the world is public relation- PR.

Since the turn o f this century PR has claimed the paramount role as a new business branch M any people know o f PR only because it is an important tool in promotion o f

responsibility in the modern business has evolved PR as a distinctive branch While many strong economies have employed PR very professionally and gained achievement in terms o f influencing the consciousness o f target people; in Vietnam,

PR has emerged for several years, and it is at the first stage o f development Hardly any Vietnamese industries and companies have profound understanding, experience, and can use PR flexibly in its daily o p e r a tio n

Regarding to Vietnam tourism industry, although the country has full potential resource to attract foreign visitors, many prospective customers do not know o f tourism products that the country intends to offer Specifically, studies on customer behavior in target market o f Vietnamese tourism 2 showed the one o f the weaknesses

o f the country is to reveal the attractive tourism products in customers mind

h t tp :'/w w w p w kD r.com /public relations q u o tatiu n s /P u b lic R ela tions.him

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Recently, some Vietnamese tourist com panies have implemented several PR activities individually in abroad; however, tourists alw ays consider the country first and then the specific products Thus, the role o f V N A T in PR activities is very important

W hereas, the organization seems to concentrate only event as a PR tool w hen going abroad but not utilize others Perhaps, PR is new branch in Vietnam on the way to evolve; therefore, although try hard, V N A T is still lack o f experience Thus, the thesis

worth benchm arking when going abroad.

1.2 A ttem p ts to the problem

As a pow er economy in the A S E A N region and long - r u n integration into the world economy, Singapore is very famous for its prosperous tourism industry This success

is attributed to Singapore Tourism Board, the national tourism organization o f the country The business has had played a very important role to promote the business to the world In deed, am ong national tourism organizations o f all countries the A S E A N ,

it is believed that all the plans that Singapore Tourism Board has been implementing

is worth for others to learn from Particularly, the right strategic decisions o f STB are shown since its establishm ent and building up the Singapore image STB helped this small island country' start tourism industry with a few resources in the beginning stage, and until now Singapore is very w ell-know n not only for variety o f resources but also as a country o f ‘tourism u n lim ite d '3 Besides improving the tourism resources, STB has been devising good strategy w hen it goes aboard to promote tourism o f the country, w hich ultimately leads to nearly nine m illions4 o f foreign tourist arrivals to the countries This achievem ent is contributed by m any plans, and

PR plan is am ong them

Since its representative office establishm ent in V ietnam in late 2004, STB has implemented successive PR activities in the market, and gained accom plishm ent in terms o f prom oting the tourism image o f the country to V ietnam ese people awareness With professional experience in organization PR activities o f STB have

' N U S W eb site, a v ailab le at: u w w t a s n u s e d u s g /a b o u t/r e s N T S S T B h im

4 S T B repo rt, a v a ila b le at \vw w s t b c o m s u

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stirred the curiosity o f Vietnamese people by diversified PR tools With such success, the thesis is aimed at studying the PR activities o f S T B in Vietnam, and learning about the method o f implementation, management, and outcome measurement As a result, we will gain profound knowledge about PR o f a famous N TO when it goes abroad Therefore, there are some implications for the case o f VNAT, which is on the way to promote Vietnam to the world.

1.3 T he research

Due to the concern on PR activities o f foreign NTO, when it goes abroad, specifically the PR activities o f STB in Vietnam, the research is supposed to make a research on such an issue With the time range in three month and possibly available data, a study

on PR activities o f STB in Vietnam comprises parts to elaborate the following problems Firstly, the thesis will figure out among many PR tools which kind o f PR STB has chosen to employ in Vietnam, and then we can understand how it has implemented these activities Next, besides methods o f implementation, we should understand how STB can measure the outcome o f its PR activities Also, there is a part for findings for the outcome o f PR activities that STB has just implemented in three months- September, October, and November To make it clearer, the study o f STB is going to answer the following questions

The first question is:

What are the prim ary PR activities that STB has been implementing in Vietnam?

The question is supposed to depict the main PR actions o f STB since its establishment

in Vietnam Moreover, along with listing out these activities, the main content o f these activities and the method to organize them are discussed

The second question is:

What are the methods that STB uses to evaluate the outcome o f PR activities?

PR is the activities that link the corporation with the target public, hence those issues

o f which methods that STB uses to evaluate what it has done in terms o f PR activities and how STB can calculate these actions into cost and benefits are described to bring ore understanding about the professional tourism organization manage its activities

The last question is:

What is the outcome o f PR activities that STB has implemented in reality?

STB has implemented PR activities in Vietnam in very professional way, however, whether the outcome o f them is good The question will helps to answer the question, and partly' evaluate the result o f PR activities in three month Some exposure o f data will be illustrated in this part Moreover, a small survey is carried to evaluate the image o f Singapore and its service to awareness o f Vietnamese people

1.4 O rganization o f the thesis

To make thesis is coherently logic among parts, the thesis is divided into six main

chapters C hapter one is prerequisite information to approach the thesis Then, main

concern o f research and research question are listed

C hapter tw o is a conceptual framework which provides information about

conceptual bases that thesis relies on This part comprises an overview about NTO, and its popular functions What is more, some theory and literature review on PR are discussed Specifically, there is a part mentions about the difference between PR and advertising, marketing and journalism

C hapter three describes in detail the research method o f the thesis In this section,

questions o f the research and research methodology which are primary and secondary method are revealed

C hapter four is an introduction about factsheet o f STB, STB concern in Vietnam,

main PR activities o f STB in Vietnam, and methods that STB uses to evaluate its PR activities To understand how STB implement certain PR activities, the primary activities are described into two parts, its benefits to STB and its content Besides, methods to assess the outcome o f PR activities are elaborate in detail so that we can understand the professional way to manage PR o f STB

C hapter five refers to findings o f the STB outcome in terms o f PR activities in aspect, and then the discussion about STB methods to gain to achieve success in

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Vietnam Firstly, there are findings about the outcom es by the method o f STB In particular, the findings about PR activities, and its PR value are revealed Further, there is a survey to evaluate the aw areness o f V ietnamese people about Singapore and

to scrutinize w hether they are influenced by PR activities o f STB or not After that is the discussion on the way that STB implements and m anages PR activities in Vietnam It helps to figure out the determinant factors o f STB in PR activities when it goes aboard

C h a p t e r six is concluding discussion which com prises sum m ary o f the thesis, important factors drawn from information in this topic, implications for Vietnam, and limitation and further possible research

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N T O has claimed its vital role especially in a modern society where tourism is a criteria and motive power for a development o f a country' Generally, according to the

for the formulation and implementation o f national tourism policy It is, furthermore,

an instrument for the execution o f the national government's responsibilities for the direction, strategy, and control o f t o u r is m 5

Regarding the above definition, the role o f N T O is indeed important to determine the success o f tourism sector o f a country, particularly in a competitive and complex world N TO in each country is certainly different from other countries in terms o f constitution and arrangement as it depends on the other factors like political structure, level o f economic development, and potential value o f tourism to the economy

By and large, N T O has four main goals, which are economic, consumer, environmental and natural resources, and government operations

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• Economic goal: to maximize the contribution o f tourism in Gross Domestic Product, thus national prosperity, and to create more chance o f employment for the residents.

both domestic and foreign visitors Consequently, there is a contribution to the personal growth in terms o f both physical and spiritual aspects Another consumer goal is education about history, geography and exchange culture

historic, and culture foundations o f the country, to guarantee the environmental atmosphere for the community while tourism develops, and to sustain the heritage for later generation

government activities, to take the strategic role to develop tourism toward a certain d ire c tio n h

2.1.2 Functions o f the N ational T ourism O rganization

national tourism body is usually responsible for eight popular functions They are flow o f research data, representation in markets, organization o f workshops and tradeshows, familiarization trips, participation in joint marketing schemes, support for new and small businesses, consum er assistance and protection, and general education

for the country The research can be in a wide range o f aspects relating totourism It can be a forecast o f national tourist arrivals, and a study oncharacteristics o f tourists and key market segment, information sources and media coverage It also can be a survey on the perceptions and satisfaction levels o f tourists, expenditure o f different market segment on tourism products The result o f the research can bring about a strategic vision and strategic idea for N T O to develop a country at a national level, and can

" Philip Kotier et all M arketing fo r H ospitality a n d Tourism, p741 ( 2 0 0 3 )

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-provide valuable information for tourism relating enterprises to catch the opportunities and strengths.

to promote the countries as a destination N TO choose suitable promotional tools for a certain markets because the influence o f those tools on the level perception o f target customers is different Providing brochure, answering questions for prospective visitors, and facilitating the distribution channels are the main activ ities o f N T O offices Moreover, these offices can devise an advertising campaign to attract local visitor to home destinations

interaction o f tourism within members including travel agents, wholesalers, education institutions, and other relating industry such as aviation, and transportation and customers The interaction can be through workshops to provide knowledge and close link among tourism members, or through travel show comprising participation o f travel enterprises to help travel businesses and prospective visitors closer

• Familiarization trips: It is a popular function o f NTO nowadays NTO is in

charge o f organizing the fam trip to bring key members o f distribution channel and media writers to the destination After experiencing the destination, these people will make an effect on the prospective visitors by introducing a new interesting tour, or writing article about the country,

entity o f the country to make a marketing campaign in foreign country

business is another function o f NTO As these businesses are a new entry, they need instructions to develop and keep pace with all the members in the tourism industry

providing them product information and protect them if any members o f tourism businesses do harm for them

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• General education: N T O arranges conference, courses to educate tourism industry Participation is a human resource working in the industry' o f all level.7

2.2 P rin cip les o f Public R elation (PR)

2.2.1 D efinition o f PR

Abbreviating the term 'Public Relation ’, PR is a well-liked term in m odem business today Public means a group o f concerned people who have practical influence or potential influence on the success o f the corporation There are many definitions o f PR; however, the most popular one belongs to the definition o f Frank Jefkins

"PR is deliberate, planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain

The definition has focused on three important characteristics o f PR ‘Deliberate, planned and sustained' characteristic refers to an organized campaign or program, a continuous effort not a haphazard one 'M utual understanding’ refers to help an

organization understood to others And by being understood, it is hopefully that

goodwill is built up ‘Establish and maintain' reveals the feature to create and retain the goodwill It is important concept as this is the main objective o f PR Until recently, PR has applied prevalently in all organizations, specifically profit or non­profit, and private or public organizations It is believed that the success o f cooperation always accompanied with the success o f PR activities

2.2.2 D ifferentiation between PR and other com m unicational tools

As a kind o f communication tool, PR is totally different from other tools such as advertising, marketing, and the press Those differences are figured out in the following parts

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2.2.2.1 D ifferentiation between PR and advertising

In the book 'Contemporary Advertising" Bovee defines that 'advertising is the non­personal communication o f information usually paid for and usually persuasive in nature about products, services or ideas by identified sponsors through the various

m e d ia '9 This definition regards advertising as a tool conveying information the most properly and persuasively through creation skills, writing skills, graphic design, and decoration on a specific theme

Advertising and PR are auxiliary to each other Firstly, they are both the two essential steps to build up a sustainable brand Indeed, advertising is subjectively com m unicated as the advertising message is mainly launched by the company itself Therefore, it explains the reason why advertising is lack o f trust from the customers

On the other side, PR can draw the faith from the customers as PR expresses message

in objective, non- commercial way However, advertising and PR support and utilize the strengths for each other The role o f advertising is to maintain the prestige o f the brand established by consecutive PR activities, and to influence the need recognition

o f the customers

Nevertheless, advertising and PR are actually much different The following table refers to some distinguished characteristics 10

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A d v e r t i s in g P u b lic R e la t io n

A d vertisin g is wind Advertising is

regarded as an imposition, or uninvited

customer Thus, people tend to resist

advertising

PR is the sun PR is communicated by

media in objective way As the business can not put a pressure to launch the air,

information

A d vertisin g can take place in various

atm osp h ere, and target at custom ers o f

d iversity Advertising campaign can

announcement, discount campaign, and its

customers

PR is like a line, and targets at a certain group o f public PR communicates information directly and targeted at a public o f concern This public will help to diffuse the message to other effectively

A d vertisin g needs an outbreak This

outbreak plays a role as a phenomenon to

create a new impression on audience

Hence, after the campaign finishes, there

is a hope that the attitude towards

products stay the same

PR requires step-by step establishm ent.

PR program need a careful plan to affect the awareness o f the public After PR campaign ends up, the recognition o f customer will change positively, and decide to use the product

A d vertisin g is image Word is not

reliable in advertisement, thus image is

replaced However, potential customers

are likely to make buying decision

through word comparison

PR is word The nature o f PR is to

express in brand language in order to persuade the media world about certain products Image is just a supplementary tool to make the message more animated ;

A d vertisin g is costly The expenditure on

meanwhile the effectiveness is decreasing

PR is m ore econom ical The expense on

PR is lower and the effectiveness it brings about more escalating than advertising

FIGURE 1: Differences between PR and advertising

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2.2 2 2 D ifferentiation between PR and m arketing

In general, marketing is a management process that identifies, anticipates and meets consum er requirements efficiently and effectively Marketing is actually related to

m anagement, in other words, the business management has the expertise at marketing and their duties is search for the needs and wants o f the market, tailor the target custom er desire for products, and finally launch the product to the marketing to satisfy' the customers As the result o f those serial actions, the business will be profitable Meanwhile, PR activities manage and maintain the working environment

o f the business according with the public o f concern so as to support and sustain the brand name

In reality, PR and marketing support to each other The function o f marketing is to seek for information in the market, and provide products and service to meet the needs At the same time, PR is applied at a certain process o f marketing mix, for example, market search, product development, pricing, labeling or even distribution

as all o f them are in the association more and less with the communication and prestige o f the business, thus PR activities PR in this process, plays an important role to provide the knowledge for the market about new products, the price, distribution channel, and several post- purchasing policies 11

2.2.2.3 D ifferentiation between PR and journalism

Theoretically, journalism is the process o f collecting, verifying, reporting and analyzing information gathered regarding current events, including trends, issues and people The journalism, to put it simple, is like an action to inform deeply for reader about certain new

PR and journalism are naturally unlike Firstly, they are different in terms o f target The target o f the press to convey information as much as possible, at the same time,

PR activities is aimed at change the public attitudes toward the products More importantly, the public that the press transmit the information is more popular, however PR targets at a specific public o f concern Journalism conveys news and

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articles through limited communicational tools due to its nature PR can use a diversity o f communication channels It can be through television, magazine like press, and also through channel, such as the events, trade show or even fam t r i p 12

2.2.3 T he benefits o f PR

In fact, in the United State, almost all marketing managers and brand manager believe that PR plays an important role than other communication tool as it can draw the interest from customers in the most objective perspective Therefore, it explains the reason why PR department is indispensable and has exited in all cooperation since recent decade

The reason why PR is prevalent and is used widely is plausible because o f the benefits it brings about Firstly, PR is the most economic way to reach mass audience, especially people o f concern It is undoubted that marketing, advertising and even the press can not PR helps the business to create a good image through the support o f media world and other industry experts As it is they to have an objective opinion about the business products, and company operation, can make an analysis on the company operation process; which can improve the situation o f the firm consequently In terms o f expense, PR requires less amount o f money than others tools PR does not need to book for a room in the television channel, magazine or even others like designing, decoration like advertising The ultimate goal o f PR is through word o f mouth, the cheapest, the most efficacy and reliable way Beside the economic benefits, PR can stimulate the awareness and demand for the product well When people experiencing the PR activities o f the business, they will have good attitudes toward the products or service, or at least they know the existence o f the products, thus affecting the need recognition o f the customers Good PR activities can make the proactive image for the business, building the brand more firmly In case, some disadvantage circumstances, the firm can make a flexible response Crisis management is, for instance, a kind this hazard Furthermore, PR can help to attract talented employees It is almost like a rule, that people want to work for famous businesses, the one that has a reputable brand and more chance for promotion Some

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are interested in the company because o f professional operation that many people talk about.

In brief PR contributes many benefits for the company both short and long term As the activities can improve the brand image; gain the support from the public, especially from the government, employees and c u s to m e r s Ij

2.2.4 Functions o f PR

Unlike other communication tools, functions o f PR are more diversified Those functions not only share the similarity with other media means, but also have some typical differences that almost no communication tools own By and large, PR has fifteen functions

this can develop to write a speech and message angles

with journalists, radio, television is the responsibility for employees in PR

department

sources, which enables them to contribute a suggestion for the development o f corporation

consumers, and creating effective waves to influence their behavior and demand

business in the community it operates

consumers, assuring two- way communication; collecting and analyzing and anticipate trends, or even rumors associating with the business

PR benefits, a v ailable at: h t t n : / / w w w l c i w e b c o n i / P R h t m

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Management; creating a proactive environment and cooperate culture; avoiding internal conflict o f interest.

local and national government, and public representatives who associate with the field that the business works

opportunities, protecting and managing the ability to require for investment both domestically and overseas

children, and the disabled

image, and operation o f the business As a result, crisis management and solving problems as quick as possible are another function o f PR

newspapers that include the information relating to the business

organization, updating the information on the stock market, investment trends, and external financial management

meeting, and product launch events.14

2.2.5 Principal activities o f PR

The various functions o f PR determine the diversified activities that PR involves in.The following refers to several main PR activities

play an important role for the business to provide information to make it on air As a consequence, it creates media value that draws the attention o f public toward the people, products and services o f the organization These activities are sensitive and essential Since either good manner or small mistake can be amplified The work o f media relation includes: Press

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-conference to inform new products and services; editing press release and send it to the journalists; organizing information session, instructing an update characteristics o f products, especially the new version o f products that business intend to launch in near future; arranging the interview session between company managers and journalists to make them understand more deeply and create a good image in the mind o f media world.

ceremony, celebration It is a good chance for business to introduce more to customers, and other public o f concern about products and business core value Besides, the events can create the belief and the pride o f employees, thus contributing to confirm the internal relationship, and to propagandize the business prestige

that affects the brand name o f the products Crisis can be aroused by the threat o f imitation products, flaw ones I f this affair is not managed well, the brand name can be diluted, thus in long term the business will lose the

proportion o f sale

prestige for the company in the mind o f public This expresses the concern o f the company on the community it operates in In case, there is small mistake happening, the public can accept and tolerate for the business The sponsorship programs have to reconcile with the core value and mission o f the business

instruction programs about how to use products belong to this kind o f activities Those companies applying this type o f programs are business- business products, such as instruction o f a new machine, and cosmetic relating products Show room, product exhibition, giving advice and trial session are also prevalent in this type T he expenditure on these activities is not so high, but it proves to be effective, and always create a good impression

on consumer

• Corporate communication activities: This activities help to improve the flow

o f information am o n g internal corporate environment, and am ong external one This activity assures that there is no misunderstanding during communication process

business with policy maker and government officer with the hope that they will support and adjust the legislation As a result o f that, the company will gain the favorable situation

the problems relating to public and image o f the business.15

2.2.6 Prim ary com m u nication tools o f PR

A lmost all companies are employing the following communication tools for the aim

o f effective PR They are ten major tools

annual publication The articles on these channels can more and less affect the

public, and crcatc a new awareness or idea in their mind

supporting com m unication to implement PR programs and campaigns

reports in international, national and local station are very valuable This can gain the attention from the mass o f audience

about new products

employees during orientation and post orientation process Other materials such as manual book and catalog are given out to people o f concern about the business and products

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• Sponsored books: Them e o f these books relates to the fields that the business works Besides, the books provide detail information about supporting services and how to use the product correctly.

activities

between managers and employees, employees with customers, upper-level managers with policy maker, government officer can influence the public opinion positively In particular, manufacture visit o f C h ie f Executive Officer can enhance enthusiastic spirit o f employees, and inspire them to raise their productivity

exhibition, sport event, cultural festival, scholarships, and donation programs The value o f PR through sponsorship is to increase the awareness o f the existence o f products and the business This process helps to make famous event attributing to a certain business brand name As a result, corporate

responsibility o f the business is recognized by the public, achieving crcdit and

honor among public o f concern The position o f the product is claimed more confidently

difference between com pany and competitors This kind o f activities express through other supporting tools- both tangible and intangible ones, for instance, company logo, stationary, books, card visit, uniform, working atmosphere, core value o f the services, and attitudes o f employees 16

2.2.7 T arget public o f PR

Besides the two main publics- internal public and external one- in other words, employees and consumers, each organization has its own special target public The process to identify target public o f PR is very necessary, as it affects significantly on the PR strategy and communication campaign Identify ing the public is furthermore,

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a continuing procedure The company should not only maintain the relationship with

a traditional public, but also have to anticipate a new one when micro environment o f the business changes Target public o f one organization is different from others; however, it is believed that to divide into ten ty pical categories o f target public Other special public is derived more or less from these categories

that are influenced by the environment company work in Public o f each organization is different from the other It depends on which field the business operates, the characteristics o f the business, and the aspects o f com pany's concern Hence, even a group o f organizations share one area, their public is not similar Public could be the local government, a laboratory, a hospital, or

an education institution, etc Each organization also has different problems relating to public such as security, noise, garbage

with this group can create valuable strength contributing the success o f the business This group can be divided into several subgroups, such as

management and execution group, white-collar group, blue- collar group

relationship am ong employees in the organization To manage this relationship is not easy; it requires the combination o f the following factors:

importance o f internal communication for the success o f the business

also modern technology to support the information flow and avoidnoise in communication process,

within the organization or from external sources The external sources are recruitment agency, and current em ployees’ network

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The relationship with this group is very important to attract the talented and skillful employees for the business.

production suppliers The association with suppliers determines the competitiveness o f the company over others competitors

insurance companies Good impression and close link with this group can create favorable condition when the company needs financial help

consumers Distributors are wholesalers, representative office, shop owners Therefore, the closer relationship with distributors is, the better the business is

business directly, or modify it to become new products Consumers and users can be individuals or businesses Some popular PR activities for the group are product exhibition, sponsorship, consum er club

negatively for the image o f organizations Organization has different influential people depending on the nature o f the business For instance, people o f influence o f a tourist company includes: policy- maker o f tourism bill, and officer o f national tourism organizations

association, a group o f businesses that operate in the same industry

with other public group A s media is the most convenient way o f the business

to approach other public group Media world is composed o f publication, editors, and journalists The responsibility o f those people is to give out an appealing story, hot issues that draw the interest from readers Hence, PR employees are supposed to inform news about the organization to the m e d ia 17

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2.2.8 Process o f PR

There are many opinions o f PR experts about the process o f PR However, the core o f procedure devising PR strategy is the same as others strategy, which is include planning, organizing, leading and controlling To make it more simple and specific, the thesis is supposed to concentrate on the PR process defined by Cameron et al The process comprises four basic steps: research, action, communication and evaluation

FIGURE 2: PR process

systematically and to achieve deeper understanding toward certain problems C om m on problems are:

o How can we identify target public?

o What is the link between the information the business has and

message the company intends to give out?

o What is the influence o f the information we have and communication plan?

o Moreover, at the end o f this stage, the research information will give details about the facts, problems and anticipate the effect o f them in future Research can convey through various tools: survey, interview, and feed back, and then achieved information

is conducted for analysis

good action plan is developed from careful research Besides, it needs other important work to contribute to success o f the phases In particular, the business normally carries out in eight steps respectively They are identifying target public, goals o f communication, communication strategy, communication tactics, time table, estimated budget, and resources In general PR department usually have several actions at the

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same time They can be action for general plan, just-in-time plan, backup plan and alarm plan.

their awareness and acceptance After action, communication assures the message can reach target public correctly In fact, this is not an easy stage,

as during the procedure there are many noises affecting, thus making the message more difficult or incorrect to understand The noises can be verbal and non-verbal The following is a communication process that PR employees take into consideration when communicating a new message The responsibility o f them is to minimize noises and find out the effective communication tools

FIGURE 3: Communication process

o f the phase is to measure the effectiveness o f PR activities, and then to have experience for further campaign The effectiveness can be assessed

by both qualitative and quantitative methods Qualitative are the positive

or negative feedback o f the public Quantitative are the increasing number

in certain public group, or the growing awareness percentage 18

2.2.9 N T O and Public R elation A ctivities

NTO as mentioned above, is actually a kind o f business, the one responsible for marketing a nation as a special product- destination Like other business, N TO also consider PR as one o f key determinant to build up N T O success The success is to enhance the awareness o f the public about the brand name o f a destination Moreover,

ls Public relation, a v ailable at httn:Vcn A vikipcdia org/w iki/Pub lic relations

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-other goal o f PR activities is to affect public opinion when they happen to involve in every phases o f buying decision process for tourism product o f NTO.

Besides, it is due to instinct o f tourism, the foreign- oriented nature, the PR duty o f NTO, consequently, is more complicated N T O has to assure that their domestic public is well informed and updated with the news about destination At the same time, it tries to expand and approach the foreign public to gain the awareness It is surely that implementing PR activities in foreign countries is very difficult for NTO NTO not only has to deal with new public with different o f culture, understanding, norms but also compete with other destinations

Usually, N TO has a team in charge o f domestic PR activities, and another team in charge o f foreign PR activities The employees in charge o f oversea PR activities have to have deep understanding about the brand o f destination and some basic knowledge about host countries In fact, some N T O want to master PR activities in foreign countries by hiring PR experts as these people have experience to approach target group

In short, to achieve ultimate goals, N T O is responsible for good PR activities both domestically and oversea to enhance the awareness for destination, and build up a good image

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C H A P T E R 3 R E SE A R C H M E T H O D

3.1 R esearch question

PR has been played an important part in daily strategic operation o f every business Following the fact, tourism business considers PR a key success factor STB is one o f business that specializes in this sector, and it has been regarding PR as an essential part o f marketing strategy since recent years When expanding the market in Vietnam STB uses PR as a paramount tool to influence the public awareness o f Vietnamese visitors The business actually has been successful by applying that tool In deed Vietnam market has been increasing with a very high rate o f arrivals, which ranks the second for specific destination arrivals to Singapore It is believed that regional office

o f STB in Vietnam with the partner has combined effectively between the knowledge

o f tourism and the expertise in marketing and PR to contribute partly to the prosperity

o f tourism sector o f Singapore Therefore, the thesis is supposed to take STB as a target object to do a research With the inspiration from the success o f PR actions that STB implements in Vietnam, the theme o f the thesis is concentrated on study on PR activities o f STB, consequently, to have deep point o f view, and to experience and learn from business

Founded on that basis, the thesis is composed o f three main research questions The first research question is: "W hat are the prim ary PR activities that STB has been implementing in Vietnam? ”

The question will help us to examine which types o f PR activities that STB has applied mainly in Vietnam To answer the question thoroughly, there will be a part for deep analysis o f every PR activity Each activity will be seen two aspects, the benefit o f certain activity to STB, and the content o f it when it actually takes place The second research question the thesis is: ‘W h a t are the methods that STB uses to

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T he question will inform us about the methods that STB uses to measure the outcome

o f PR activities To have profound understanding, the thesis contributes one part to figure out the process o f the methods and its efficacy

The last research question is: “ What is the outcome o f PR activities that STB has implemented? "

The question will provide us data about the reality o f PR activities o f STB through figure o f the business during the latest three month, and moreover, there is a small part the thesis will presents about the result o f investigating a small sample o f Vietnam people about their awareness toward Singapore through a survey The findings will help to evaluate the level o f success o f STB in Vietnam both subjectively and objectively

3.2 Research m ethodology

The research will use both primary and secondary methods as the two main resources The primary data obtained by survey will be used as a method to evaluate the outcome o f PR activities that STB has generated Meanwhile, the secondary data will provide detail information o f the PR activities, methods that STB has been using to assess the effectiveness o f PR, and relevant data to rely on The followings will describe more specifically about the two methods

3.2.1 Prim ary method

The primary method in the thesis is used with the aim to obtain the response from Vietnam people toward their awareness o f Singapore and the fields that STB focuses

in PR activities The primary data is conducted through a direct survey T he following section is described the steps implementing it

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3.2.1.1 Survey developing steps

Goal establishmentSurvey designSampling proceduresChoosing methodologyPretest questionnaireConducting a survey

FIGURE 4: Survey developing steps

Conduct information about the awareness o f Vietnam people to answer whether the PR activities that STB has implemented influence the awareness positively In other words, the goal o f the thesis is to evaluate the effectiveness o f STB PR

activities

On the basis o f necessary information to assess the goal, the survey is designed The survey is divided into 2 main parts, which are personal profile and main question about Singapore The first part includes 4 questions to ask the respondents about their background Specifically, the questions will bring about information about gender, ages, education, and occupation The second part comprises 6 questions asking about attitudes o f respondents on Singapore and specific fields, the source o f information they get from, the evaluation o f them on the available information, the channel p f information they rely on From all these questions, there is hope that whether STB uses media channels and media tools effectively

Choosing the sample or representatives o f the population is determines the precise outcome o f the survey Hence, to choose the respondent randomly, the sample the

survey aims at is the group o f people passing through Ethnology Museum The respondents who do a survey are chosen at random from the group.

3.2.1.3 L im itations

The primary data can not avoid several errors The first limitation is that some the source o f information that the survey lists out also contain advertising and PR activities For instance, the television is very good media tool for public relation but it also is used for the purpose o f advertising It is the same situation for internet, news and magazines In fact, this is very difficult and complicated to separate them as they always happen together As a consequence, it can not be measured accurately the effect o f PR activities The effect o f PR and advertising ironically are combined Furthermore, not only STB but also specific business entities o f Singapore launch PR projects at the same time Then, it is complicated to evaluate whether people influence by PR o f specific Singapore business or STB PR activities It is explained why the result o f the survey is comparative The second limitation is that assuring the unbiased respondents, the survey, however, can only measure the representative as a part o f population but not target segments that STB focuses on Besides, the survey is limited by eighty- five respondents It would be more accurate if the sample is larger

3.2.2 Secondary data

The secondary data that the thesis uses is obtained by the materials provided by two main sources, STB agency in Vietnam, and T & A Vietnam, the PR agency o f STB The materials used by thesis are the figures for the last three month o f STB

3.2.2.1 L im itation

The limitation o f the secondary data is that it may be subjective due the fact that document is in the point o f view o f STB and its PR agency, T & A Vietnam In particular, the effectiveness o f PR activities can be exaggerated

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C H A P T E R 4 REAL SIT U A T IO N O F PR A C T IV IT IE S OF STB IN V IE T N A M

what others say about you Public relations practice is the discipline which looks after reputation with the aim o f earning understanding and support and influencing opinion and behavior "IV

4.1 F act sheet o f Singapore T ourism Board (STB)

Singapore Tourism Board is an only one specialized agency in charge o f one o f the most key success sectors in Singapore - tourism From the time it was established until now', the business has continuously been evolved, developed, and comprised more diversified functions contributing to the success o f Singapore tourism today Set

up in 1964, STB was firstly named Singapore Tourist Promotion Board which was responsible for promoting Singapore as a tourist destination Then, the fact that more and more service organizations participated in the tourism such as hotels, airlines, and travel agents, which influenced the image o f Singapore made the government, think

o f STB as an organization to coordinate these organizations When tourism developed, human resources for the industry were also increased, and assuring both quality and quantity o f man relating factor was one o f the Board function Moreover, during the 1960s and 1970s, STB evolved in the encouragement campaign to call investment into infrastructure development such as Jurong Bird Park and Sentosa Later in 1970s, the business positioned the city as a venue for MICE market, and the campaign, indeed, has been very successful since then In 1980s, the Board played an active role in preserving and maintaining many culture identities such as Chinatown

In 2004 the business has differentiated itself in the tourism market as a “Uniquely Singapore", and the brand successfully has opened a new era for Singapore tourism

M ission

We develop and champion tourism, so as to build the sector into a key driver o f economic growth fo r Singapore.

FIGURE 5: Mission o f STB

11 Institute o f Pu blic Relations, a v ailab le a t :

h t tp : / /w w w pwkp r.co m /Dublic relations q u o tatio n s/P u b lic Re lations.htm

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STB, nowadays, has extensive network throughout the world with twenty-two regional offices and two marketing representatives The regional offices are in charge

o f wide ranges responsibilities from tourism marketing to investment promotion They work with local partners to promote Singapore to host people, help the Singapore tourism businesses and non tourism businesses in finding more opportunities, assure the competitive activities o f strategic units, and encourage the evolvement o f media and travel trade

4.1.1 STB and V ietnam m arket

4.1.1.1 T arget groups o f Singapore T ourism Board

At the end o f 2004, STB opened a regional office in Vietnam, locating at Ho Chi Minh City The office is not only in charge o f tourism activities o f STB in Vietnam but also in Indochina However, the fact that STB chooses Vietnam to place partly proves its concern on the market In fact, although ranked only as the fourteenth, Vietnam owns a very high increasing rate o f tourist arrivals to Singapore.21

According to S T B 's long term strategy, the main segment markets o f Vietnam that the Board is aiming at are six main groups They are family, highly mobile individuals, education, regional opportunity seekers, incentives and healthcare

_l Singapore T o u r is m Board, a v ailable a t : h ttp ://a n p s tb e o m s a /a sp /a b o /a b o a sn