Developing rebrand strategy for Saigontourist holding company

Background of Vietnam tourism industry and Saigontourist Holding Company.. Saigontourist Holding Company is considered the leader in Vietnam travel & tourism industry, with 36 years of e

MBAVB4

CHAU HOANG NHUT

DEVELOPING REBRAND STRATEGY FOR

SAIGONTOURIST HOLDING COMPANY

MASTER PROJECT MASTER IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

(PART-TIME)

Ho Chi Minh City

(2011)

I also specially thanks to my colleagues, classmates and others who help me information, questionnaire development, contribution ideas and others

Hoping that all of you are more and more healthful and successful in your life

With all the appreciation

Chau Hoang Nhut

MBAVB4

March, 2012, Ho Chi Minh City

COMMITMENTS

I confirm that this thesis is a presentation of my original research work which I have studied and researched Wherever contributions of others are involved, every effort is made to indicate this clearly, with due reference to the literature, and acknowledgement

of collaborative research and discussions

This work is done for the study purpose Copying or using this paper for any other purpose must be subject to the written acceptance of the author

Chau Hoang Nhut

TUTOR’S COMMENTS

Candidate: CHAU HOANG NHUT

Project title:

Comments:

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 2

1.1 Background of Vietnam tourism industry and Saigontourist Holding Company 2 1.2 Problem statement 4

1.3 Project objectives 5

1.4 Scope and limitations of the research 5

1.5 Methodology of the research 6

1.6 Structure of project 8

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW 10

2.1 Concepts of a brand 10

2.2 Functions of a brand 10

2.3 Importance of a brand 12

2.4 Value of a brand 12

2.5 Concept of branding 13

2.6 Branding identity and image 14

2.7 Rebranding 16

2.8 Managing the corporate rebranding 18

CHAPTER 3 INTERNAL ANALYSIS OF SAIGONTOURIST HOLDING COMPANY 24

3.1 Company background 24

3.2 Vision, mission and core values of Saigontourist Holding Company 25

3.3 Key facts of Saigontourist Holding Company in 2011 26

3.4 Current branding of Saigontourist Holding Company 27

3.5 Challenges to Saigontourist Holding Company’s brand 28

3.6 Summary: Strengths and Weaknesses of Saigontourist Holding Company 29

CHAPTER 4 EXTERNAL ANALYSIS OF SAIGONTOURIST HOLDING COMPANY 31

4.1 Vietnam travel & tourism industry overview 31

4.2 Competitor brand evaluation 33

4.3 Customer perceptions about the brands of Saigontourist Holding Company,

Accor group and Benthanh Tourist Service company 39

4.4 Summary: Opportunities and Threats of Saigontourist Holding Company 42

CHAPTER 5 DEVELOPING REBRANDING STRATEGY AND NEW BRAND BROADCASTING PROGRAMS FOR SAIGONTOURIST HOLDING COMPANY 43

5.1 SWOT ANALYSIS 43

5.2 Saigontourist Holding Company new brand broadcasting programs 48

5.3 Rebrand project planning 51

CHAPTER 6 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 53

ABBREVIATIONS

SHC: Saigontourist Holding Company

WTTC: World Travel & Tourism council

VNAT: Vietnam National Administration of Tourism GDP: Gross Domestic Product

VND: Vietnam Dong

USD: US Dollar

WTO: World Trade Organization

SWOT: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1.1: Research flowchart 8

Figure 2.1: Corporate rebranding framework 19

Figure 2.2: Corporate rebranding framework for Saigontourist Holding Company 21

Figure 3.1: Saigontourist Holding Company 24

Figure 3.2: Saigontourist Holding Company 2011 key facts 26

Figure 4.1: Vietnam: Direct Contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP 32

Figure 4.2: Accor group worldwide 33

Figure 4.3: Accor Group in Vietnam 34

Figure 4.4: Accor brands 35

Figure 4.5: Perceptions of Accor group brand 36

Figure 4.6: Perceptions of Benthanh Tourist Service company brand 37

Figure 4.7: Perceptions of Saigontourist Holding Company brand 38

Figure 4.8: Customer perceptions of the three brands 40

Figure 5.1: Saigontourist Holding Company SWOT analysis 43

Figure 5.2: Saigontourist Holding Company brand identity modification 46

Figure 5.3: New brand broadcasting programs for Saigontourist Holding Company 49

Figure 5.4: Estimated revenue to 2015 of Saigontourist Holding Company 52

LIST OF TABLES

Table 5.1: Customer segmentation and approaching method 44

ABSTRACT

In today’s Vietnam travel & tourism marketplace, companies need to set up effective

branding strategies in order to be competitive Saigontourist Holding Company is considered the leader in Vietnam travel & tourism industry, with 36 years of experiences alongside with many valuable assets: human resources, infrastructures,

support from local and national authorities… But in the next stage of competition in

travel & tourism industry, some weaknesses of the company are revealed, and one of the weak point of Saigontourist Holding Company is the branding system with unclear branding structure, inappropriate brand name in non-tourism business, brand awareness

in global marketplace is low… which caused a lot of difficulties when the company

want to join the international travel & tourism market

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the internal and external factors of Saigontourist Holding Company in order to find out what should be changed in the current branding of the company And after that, some modifications and change in the

brand name, logo design, color design, slogans… will be conducted to suit the visions

of Saigontourist Holding Company of doing business in the upcoming years both in domestic market and global market

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

This chapter will introduce the background of Vietnam tourism industry and brief information about Saigontourist Holding Company, and the problem statement, objectives, methodology and structure of this research

1.1 Background of Vietnam tourism industry and Saigontourist Holding Company

Tourism in Vietnam is a significant component of the modern Vietnamese economy In

2004, Vietnam received 2.9 million international arrivals, up from 2.4 million the previous year The annual increase represented a strong rebound from a slight decline

in 2003 attributable to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in Asia From 1999 to 2004, tourism rose by 63 percent Most of the visitors in 2004, 27 percent, came from China, with 8 to 9 percent each coming from the United States, Japan, and South Korea The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism is following

a long-term plan to diversify the tourism industry, which brings needed foreign exchange into the country

In 2008, Vietnam received 4.218 million foreign visitors, in 2009 the number was 3.8 million, down 11% due to the economy crisis In 2011, Vietnam received about 6 million international visitors, 1 million more than that in 2010 (Vietnam National Administration of Tourism report, 2011)

Tourism is increasingly important in Vietnam For backpackers, culture and nature lovers, beach-lovers and veterans touring the country for a long time, Vietnam has emerged itself as a new tourist destination in South-East Asia and on is now on lists in magazines worldwide Hotel investors especially the potential of the 3000-kilometer-long coast line and the big cities The tourism offer has been increasingly diversified

Local and international tour operators offer tours to ethnic minority groups, walking and bicycle tours, kayak trips and multi-country trips in particular in connection with neighboring Cambodia, Laos and Thailand In addition, thanks to the lift of several movement regulations, foreign tourists have been able to travel freely in the country since 1997

The economy of Vietnam has transformed from an agrarian to a service economy More than a third of gross domestic product is generated by services, which include the hotel and catering industry and transportation The manufacturing and construction (28 percent), agriculture and fisheries (20 percent) and mining (10 percent) have much smaller shares Meanwhile, tourism contributes more 4.5 percent to gross domestic product More and more foreign direct investment has been focused on tourism After the heavy industry and urban development, most foreign investment has been concentrated in tourism, especially in hotel projects (VNAT report, 2011)

According to the new strategy 2473/Q -TTG has just approved by the Prime Minister

on 30 December 2011 about ―The strategy for developing local tourism until 2020 with

a vision toward 2030‖, Vietnam will become a nation with a highly effective tourism

sector by 2030 Tourism sector will develop by an average pace of 11.5 – 12% from

2011 to 2012 and the country set a target to welcome 7 – 7.5 million international

tourists and handle 36 – 37 million domestic visitors in 2015

Saigontourist was founded 35 years ago since starting from 1975 in Ho Chi Minh city with the initial business in the tourism industry

On March 30th, 1999, Saigontourist Holding Company was established by the decision

of The People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh city It has since grown to encompass 4

major business areas across:

Hotels & Resorts Saigontourist Holding Company has 54 hotels and 13 resorts

from 3 to 5 stars (with over 8000 rooms) throughout nationwide of Vietnam under different names

Travel service with 2 companies:

o Saigontourist Travel Service company with 4 branches (Ho Chi Minh city,

Ha Noi, Da Nang and Can Tho)

o Fiditour Travel Services company

Range of restaurant systems

Other services: Saigon Exhibition & Convention Center, Saigontourist Cable Television Company, Dam Sen Park, Binh Quoi Tourism Village…

In recent years, Saigontourist Holding Company has diversified, and is now managing

8 travel service companies, 54 hotels, 13 resorts and complexes, and 28 restaurants with well-appointed facilities It has also cooperated with more than 50 local joint ventures, public-private business cooperation establishments and joint stock companies, and 9 joint ventures with foreign partners

In order to meet the requirements from the stakeholders and to increase competitiveness of Saigontourist Holding Company in domestic and foreign market, the company should need the long-term brand and marketing strategy, using effects of the long-time history development and current brand awareness are higher than other ones in Vietnam Moreover, building brand name is indispensable to make the competitive advantages, gain more economic values (through pricing policies) and

improve the company’s image to international markets

1.2 Problem statement

The first problem is the inconsistence and there is no guideline of using the brand logo

Some of Saigontourist Holding Company’s subsidiaries are founded from a long time ago, therefore they had their own logos, brand names… and after joining Saigontourist

Holding Company’s system, their manager keep on developing their own marketing

and branding programs with their current brand Beside of that, its subsidiaries also do not have any guidance in terms of branding activities from the Group and no brand identity about Saigontourist Holding Company under those types of services This leading to an inconsistent and coherent image of the company

The second problem which the company is facing is the name of Saigontourist Holding Company is only awared as Saigontourist Travel Service Company while it’s just the Group’s subsidiary The reason of this is the initial business of Saigontourist Holding

Company is travel service, and after a long time of activating in tourism industry, the company has developed into a group with many subsidiaries, but for management reason, the company name is kept until now This lead to the confusing of the

company’s image and company name in customers’ minds, therefore make the

marketing programs and branding strategy become ineffective and costly

To suggest a new branding strategy for Saigontourist Holding Company which

represent the company with modern and standardized brand image, characteristic, vision

1.4 Scope and limitations of the research

This research topic is mainly based on secondary data analysis and the qualitative research method to gather the information and data from perceptions and observations from other points of view

The research focuses on rebranding of Saigontourist Holding Company, which is a group that has many services and products to deliver but not engage directly in the market field, so I skipped the detailed analysis of the macro and micro environment of Vietnam and the corporation This research analyzed the internal and external points of view of the current brand structure and logo design of Saigontourist Holding Company

and the main competitors in Vietnam Desk research method and interview with persons in charge of the rebranding project is done in order to collect data for the research

This research methodology may apply for other Vietnam companies

This research is trying to suggest a rebranding strategy to Saigontourist Holding Company Therefore HR strategy, financial strategy and accounting are not considered, but some information in the research is collected from those operations

1.5 Methodology of the research

First of all, the concept of brand and rebrand is developed, based on the reality of Saigontourist Holding Company, those concepts will be narrowed to be appropriated

Second is the data collective method In this research, both primary and secondary data are used and the research method is in-depth interview A qualitative research approach was used, since the primary data was collected on a small scale level and since the purpose of this research was to gain a deeper understanding of actions in certain situations The ambitions of this research was to gain an in-depth view of the rebranding situation of a company, hence qualitative research was most suited

Third is data analysis, in which the secondary and primary data necessary for the rebranding project of Saigontourist Holding Company are analyzed

Secondary data:

o A survey with 100 samples which reflects the customer perceptions about

Saigontourist Holding Company and main competitors in Vietnam market like Accor group in Hotel business and Benthanh Tourist in Travel service are conducted The research is done with customers who used travel and hotels services They are all around 25 – 55 years old, living and working

in Hochiminh City with stable income around 6 – 50 million VND per

month, that considered middle class to hi-end customers

o Besides of that, the information from existing reports of Vietnam National

Tourism Administration (VNAT), World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and Saigontourist Holding Company and other related information are collected

Primary data:

o An interview with Mr Tran Huy Thang, Sales & Marketing Director of

Saigontourist Holding Company and branding consultant experts in Dentsu Inc is conducted The interview guide was sent to the respondents

in advance via email The interview questions are focused on the brand identity design of Saigontourist Holding Company and competitors in Vietnam; the requirements of the new brand identity for Saigontourist Holding Company and respondents can also provide some ideas and suggestions for the rebrand project

o Opinions of respondents about current brand structure of Saigontourist

Holding Company as well as the main competitors of Saigontourist Holding Company in Vietnam; the strengths and weaknesses of the brand and the reason that lead to the rebranding of the corporation These points

of view are the suggestions, which drive the general direction of this research

After all, some conclusions and suggestions for the rebrand project of Saigontourist Holding Company will be conducted, based on the theories developed and analyzed data The research flowchart will be summarized in figure 1.1 below

Figure 1.1: Research flowchart

Source: Proposed by author

1.6 Structure of project

The research is structured according to 6 chapters First chapter introduces the reason why this research is started and the way approach to find out the core problem statements

In chapter 2 the brand strategy framework is built along with some branding concepts given by many authors, experts and practitioners Chapter 3 analyzes the current business status and reveal some challenges to the rebranding strategy of Saigontourist Holding Company and thus, give a clear view of the Strengths and Weaknesses of the corporation

Chapter 4 analyzes the brand structure of main competitors of Saigontourist Holding Company as well as some of 2011 key facts in Travel & Tourism industry of Vietnam

in order to construct the Opportunities and Threats of Saigontourist Holding Company

In chapter 5, based on the SWOT analysis of Saigontourist Holding Company brand, some modifications of the brand elements will be suggested and thus, lead to a new brand decision Besides of that, a new brand identity broadcasting program will also be planned in order to bring the new image of Saigontourist Holding Company to the public

The last chapter is conclusions and suggestions for rebranding project of Saigontourist Holding Company

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter will present the important theories, concepts of brand, branding, brand identity, brand image, rebranding Moreover, a theoretical model that will be used is

the “Corporate Rebranding Model” (by Daly & Moloney, 2004) which present an

overall framework of a corporate rebranding process from beginning to end, have been found to be relevant to the purpose of the research

2.1 Concepts of a brand

A brand is defined as ―a name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or a combination of

them, intended to identify the goods or services of one seller or group of sellers and to

differentiate them from those of competitors‖ (Kotler & Keller, 2006)

Ind (1997) proposes that ―a product is something that is made, in a factory; a brand is

something that is bought, by a customer A product can be copied by a competitor; a

brand is unique‖ Branding has the purpose of separating a brand from other

competitors and to identify a product or a service and to build customer awareness

(Kay, 2004) According to Albaum, Duerr and Strandskov (2005) a brand is ―anything that identifies a seller’s goods or services and distinguishes them from others‖ A

trademark is a part of the brand and is protected by law (ibid)

Van Gelder (2003) states that when defining a brand; everything is carefully prepared and planned in order to create value for the customers that will benefit the organization

2.2 Functions of a brand

When moving from the concept of a brand, there is a need to explain its functions Kotler and Pfoertsch (2007) discuss that branding is a very intangible concept and is

often being misunderstood as to forming an illusion that the product is better than it really is The authors state that, what brands actually do is that they facilitate the identification of products, services and businesses, and differentiate them from competition Similar findings are made by Czinkota and Ronkainen (2004) and they state that branding has importance to customers, because it simplifies the buying process in the way that it reduces complicated buying decisions and provide emotional

benefits, and offer a sense of community‖

According to Hollensen (2007) the basic purposes of a brand is universal, and these are:

To distinguish a company’s offering and differentiate one particular product

from its competitors

To create identification and brand awareness

To guarantee a certain level of quality and satisfaction

To help with promotion of the product

Holensen (2007) further states that these purposes have the function of creating new sales (take market shares from competitors) or to create a demand for repetitive sales (to get loyal customers)

According to Kotler and Keller (2006) a brand can also give signals of a certain quality

of the product Brand loyalty can create barriers of entry to other companies because

the brand is placed in the consumers’ minds and it can create competitive advantage

and a willingness to pay a higher price It creates brand identity through its brand name, but also teaches the customers what the product does and why the customer should choose that specific product (ibid)

According to Xie and Boggs (2006), branding means more than just naming a product; brands are a result of market segmentation and product differentiation

The increasing growth of globalization has forced companies to consider the importance of branding (Xie & Boggs, 2006) Wong and Merrilees (2007) state that branding has a remarkable potential for international marketing According to Kotler and Pfoertsch (2007) brands are gradually more vital for companies in just about all industries since customers face a great number of different suppliers Hence, the need for companies to differentiate themselves through branding is very important (ibid)

Czinkota and Ronkainen (2004) state that brands are important because they ―shape customer decisions and, ultimately, create economic value‖ Brands are important in

both consumer and business-to-business situations, where a decision of purchase is needed A strong brand can create sufficient higher total returns to shareholders than a weak brand (ibid)

2.4 Value of a brand

Branding is important because of different reasons, and furthermore it generates value

in different ways Czinkota and Ronkainen (2004) state that a strong brand allows the company to take advantage of the brand awareness in other new markets as well, because the brand might be known in countries where the brand has no physical activity

Kotler and Keller (2006) mention that a strong brand creates higher profits which in turn create higher value for the shareholders

Motameni and Shahrokhi (1998) state that new brands in a global marketplace have a tiny chance of competing against established brands, and creating a brand from scratch involves enormous investments The return on the investments spent on branding is converted into brand awareness, image and loyalty and the concept summarizing the value of the brand is referred to as brand equity (ibid) According to Keller (2007) different marketing programs must be created to satisfy different market segments in building brand equity:

Differences in consumer behavior have to be identified

The branding program has to be adjusted accordingly through the choice

of brand elements, the nature of the actual marketing program and activities, and the leveraging if secondary associations

2.5 Concept of branding

The original meaning of the word branding derives from the American Wild West, many years ago At this time there were no fences to separate the cattle from one ranch

to another This meant that, the farmers would burn their symbol or brand into the skin

of the cattle, to be able to differentiate and determine the owner (Pickton & Broderick, 2005:243)

The concept of branding is today still about differentiating; the term however encompasses a wide ranging phenomenon, which as it will be shown, affects both customers and employees There are several different views and approaches to branding, but in order to make this thesis comprehensible, only a few issues of the branding concept will be presented

In (Pickton & Broderick, 2005:243), Aaker defines:‖ ―A brand is a distinguishing name

and/or symbol (such as a logo, trademark, or pack design) intended to identify the goods and services of either one seller or a group of sellers and to differentiate those

goods or services from those of competitors‖ Other theorists talk about branding as a

promise the company gives to the customer Common for all definitions of branding is however, that it is about differentiation and creating preference in the minds of the customer

When discussing branding, theorists often refer to two overall strategies; product and corporate branding Product branding, is building separate brand identities for different products a company produces, so that a company can have more than one brand to sell

In corporate branding the products and the brand have the same name, meaning that when you brand a product or service, the whole company is being branded Traditionally product branding has been more practiced, but in recent years a change toward corporate branding has been seen The concept of corporate branding is much more complex than product branding, as the organizational values, and the added values to the brand, function as the core for the corporate branding (Xie & Boggs, 2006)

2.6 Branding identity and image

There is much literature and definitions of brand identity and image For example the image can be said to be the current perception an audience has of an organization and

can be defined as: ―The result of all the experiences, perceptions, knowledge and associations people have of a brand‖ (Larsson, 1997:95) To continue Melin (1999)

describes brand identity as the image an organization wants their product to portray, what makes it unique and that the identity is becoming increasingly important in

explaining a brand’s success By Lagergren (1998), the identity is the expression or the

message and the image is the result of the branding efforts and how the target audience perceives the message, or the brand However, since this thesis is investigating a service and not a product, we wanted to make it clear that we are talking about a corporate brand Furthermore, when referring to a corporate brand the whole organization from top to bottom and across different areas is involved in realizing the brand A successful corporate brand is formed between the interrelation of strategic

vision, organizational culture and the corporate images held by its stakeholders (Hatch

& Schultz, 2001) therefore, organizational identity plays an important role in corporate branding

Brown et al., (2006) define organizational identity as what is portrayed as core, central, enduring and distinctive about the character of the organization Moreover they define identity, intended image, constructed image and reputation as terminology that can be applied to both the individual or organizational levels For them identity is the mental associations about the organization held by organizational members who answer the

viewpoint of: ―Who are we as an organization?‖ To continue Brown et al., (2006),

defines Intended image as the mental associations about the organization that

organization leaders want important audiences to hold and has the viewpoint of: ―What does the organization want others to think about the organization?‖ When an

organization tries to change the intended image but the identity does not follow, the organization is faced with multiple identities The company should strive to have one voice, and thus this difference in image and identity is critical, and a major hazard of a corporate rebranding (Gotsi & Andriopoulos, 2007)

Constructed image is the mental associations that organizational members believe others outside the organization hold about the organization and has the viewpoint of: What does the organization believe others think of the organization? And finally Reputation is the mental associations about the organization actually held by others outside the organization and has the viewpoint of: What do stakeholders actually think

of the organization?‖ (Brown et al., 2006)

The organizational identity can be explained by using the identity prism proposed by Kapferer (2004) The identity prism divides the identity in to six facets: physique, personality, culture, relationship, customer reflection and self image These facets define the identity of a brand as well as the boundaries which it is free to change or develop The physique is the tangible part of the brand and it is made of a combination

of either salient objective features or emerging ones The personality, is another facet

of the brand identity, and is the way it speaks of its products and services; by looking at the communication it can be known what kind of person it would be if it was a human Moreover, another facet in identity is culture; it means that the brand has a set of values and principals governing it, culture has an essential role differentiating brands because

it indicates the ethos whose values are in the products and services of the brand To continue a brand is a relationship; because, brands have exchanges with people, this facet defines the mode of conduct that most identifies the brand; therefore, having a lot

of implications in how the brand relates and acts to its customers Also a brand is a customer reflection; the brand will tend to build a reflection or an image of the buyer or user which it seems to be addressing; reflecting is the result of how the customer wishes to be seen as a result of using the brand And finally a brand speaks to our self-

image; it’s the targets own internal mirror, with it we develop a relationship with

ourselves and promoting a brand reflects a sense of alliance with it

Since there are numerous definitions of organizational identity and image, we will henceforth be using the terminology proposed by (Brown et al, 2006) To reach the purpose, it is necessary to research the mental associations the organizational leaders want important stakeholders to have, called the Intended image, and furthermore the actual associations held by the organizational members called the Identity

2.7 Rebranding

According to Gotsi & Andripoulos (2007) a gradual modification of the positioning and representation of the corporate brand, is a natural aspect of managing the brand in response to the ever changing market environment However as mentioned in the problem statement, it is a matter of definition when to distinguish a change in the corporate brand as a rebranding The chosen definitions for this thesis will be presented below

The word rebrand is a neologism developed by the two words re and brand Re implies

―again‖ and brand being the name or symbol that differentiates a company (Muzellec

& Lambkin, 2006:805) characterizes a rebranding as: ―The creation of a new name,

term, symbol, design or a combination of them for an established brand with the intention of developing a differentiated (new) position in the mind of stakeholders and

competitors‖ With a rebranding you are, in other words, trying to change the already

established perception of the brand in the minds of stakeholders Not much has been written about rebranding in academic journals compared to the attention the concept has been given in the business press This reality can be caused by a number of various reasons, certain is however that the concept contradicts most of the marketing and branding literature available Existing brand theory says that for every brand there is a set of assets or liabilities connected, called the brand equity Brand equity is created over time and one of the major values, is the brand awareness that is built, hopefully attracting and retaining customers In the case of a revolutionary rebranding all the consistency a company has built, is destroyed (Muzellec & Lambkin, 2006) The revolutionary rebranding mentioned above, consist of a change in company name, logo and slogan When rebranding revolutionary, the company is most often making changes into values, vision and culture which are important parts of the corporate brand identity that are attempted to be changed

Muzellec & Stuart (2004) mentions a second type of rebranding called evolutionary The evolutionary rebranding is not as drastic as the revolutionary, as it only consist of a change in the name, the logo or the slogan (Muzellec & Lambkin, 2006) furthermore states that the evolutionary rebranding does not have any major changes in either marketing aesthetics or positioning This is however exactly what a revolutionary rebranding has, as name, logo and slogan are changed It might be hard to understand the motives to rebrand, as it in the case of evolutionary changes and in case of revolutionary totally destroys, the relationship the company has with the stakeholders Rebranding does however occur, due to several reasons (Muzellec & Lambkin, 2006:810) presents four broad categories that can trigger a rebranding

Change in the ownership structure

o Mergers and acquisitions

o Spin-offs and demergers

o Private to public ownership

o Sponsorship

Change in corporate strategy

o Diversification and divestment

o Internationalization and localization

Change in competitive position

o Erosion of market position

o Outdated image

o Reputation problems

Change in the external environment

o Legal obligation

2.8 Managing the corporate rebranding

Daly & Moloney (2004) have developed a framework that explains the stages a company must go through in order to carry out a successful rebranding The model is divided in three overlapping stages of analysis, planning and evaluation

Figure 2.1: Corporate rebranding framework

Source: Daly & Moloney (2004)

The analysis stage of the model both concerns an internal and an external investigation Externally the market has to be analyzed for size and potential, in form of current attitudes and preferences, and the competitions strengths and weaknesses Internally the process must commence with researching management and employees: attitudes, perceptions, fears and aspirations towards the legacy of the brand or the company Through this identification the new brand decision can be based Use the already existing values and perceptions that are important for the brand Remove others which can be absolute or in contradiction and adding or rephrasing if needed

The planning stage starts with the communication to the internal customers (employees) The company must develop communication plans and training programs

to train employees in acquiring the new company policies, and to gain the support and commitment of the employees The external communication in the Daly & Moloney framework is mostly concerned with the different strategies that can be used when a company is renaming itself There are however also guidelines to how the company should go about the more general part of the external rebranding marketing plan Most importantly Daly & Moloney stress that a successful rebranding must be planned very carefully The external planning and implementation has to be based on the assumptions and scenarios found in the analysis, and furthermore it has to take resources and budgets into consideration The evaluation stage of the Corporate Rebranding Model is described as an ongoing process It is suggested that all stages of the rebranding are evaluated upon completion, but also that the campaign as a whole is being evaluated (Daly & Moloney, 2004)

However, in order to reach the purpose of this research, the model is changed to adapt the real status of Saigontouris Holding Company and Vietnam Travel & Tourism industry The external as well as internal elements that related to the brand of Saigontourist Holding Company will be analyzed and the target customer segments for the diversified services and products of the corporate will also be chosen Based on the mentioned modifications an alternative conceptual framework is created which is summarized in figure 2.2

Figure 2.2: Corporate rebranding framework for Saigontourist Holding Company

Source: Adapted from the framework of Daly & Moloney(2004) Each step of the framework can be broken into smaller steps explained as:

Analysis

o Internal analysis: the corporate background as well as performance status

will be examined And the current branding system will be analysis The goal of this step is to present the Strengths and Weaknesses of the current corporate brand

o External analysis: the Vietnam tourism industry will be examined and

brand audits of the corporate and the main competitors will be done with the expert in Saigontourist Holding Company, to figure out the Opportunities and Threats that the corporate is facing

o As the summary of this step, a SWOT analysis of the current brand of

Saigontourist Holding Company will be presented and it will point out the brand elements that will be modified in the Modifications step

Modifications

o In this step, the current brand elements will be checked and the

inappropriate elements will be removed in order to reach the goal of the rebranding project

New brand decision

o After all the analysis and modifications are done, the new brand

suggestions will be presented and chosen by Saigontourist Holding Company

Target audiences

o In this step the target customer segments will be identified and the

approaching method for each segment will be presented

New brand broadcasting programs

o Suggestion for the new brand broadcasting programs such as advertising, promotions, workshops, press conferences… will be done in this step in

order to bring the new brand image of Saigontourist Holding Company to the public

Evaluation

o The evaluation stage of the Corporate Rebranding Model is described as

an ongoing process It is suggested that all stages of the rebranding are evaluated upon completion, but also that the campaign as a whole is being evaluated

After a framework of rebrand project for Saigontourist Holding Company is developed, the next chapter presents the collected internal data of Saigontourist Holding Company First is the background of Saigontourist Holding Company and some key facts in the performance of the company, in the next part, the problems in current brand structure

of the company is revealed Finally, the strengths and weaknesses of the brand of Saigontourist Holding Company is conducted

CHAPTER 3 INTERNAL ANALYSIS OF SAIGONTOURIST HOLDING COMPANY

This chapter will analyze the company background of Saigontourist Holding Company, key facts in 2011 performance and challenges of the branding strategy in order to

reveal the company’s strengths and weaknesses

3.1 Company background

Figure 3.1: Saigontourist Holding Company

Source: Corporate presentation

Ho Chi Minh City Tourist Company (Saigontourist) has been operating since 1975 In 31/03/1999, under the decision of The People's Committee of HCMC, Saigontourist Holding Company was established, including many member units with Ho Chi Minh City Tourist Company as the core unit

Saigontourist Holding Company is the biggest state-run corporation in the hotels and travel sectors

Over the years, Saigontourist Holding Company has diversified its commercial activities, currently running 8 travel companies, 54 hotels, 13 tourism zones and 28 well-equipped restaurants It has made nationwide investment in more than 50 joint-stock companies and domestic limited liability and 9 partly foreign-owned companies

3.2 Vision, mission and core values of Saigontourist Holding Company

Vision: A top tourism corporate of Vietnam and South East Asia, and aiming

for international markets Not only doing well in the main business, Saigontourist Holding Company is also contribute to the community in order

to enrich Vietnamese’s cultural and spiritual lives Saigontourist Holding

Company is working as a Vietnamese cultural ambassador to deliver

Vietnamese character to the world

Mission: Deliver a wide range of services via all units of the corporate system,

where customers can feel the truly Vietnamese hospitality and cultural traditional values

Core values:

o Vietnamese traditional and hospitality

o The variety of high-class services to ensure maximum customers experiences (travel services, hotels, food & beverage, entertainment…)

o A top travel and hotel management corporate of Vietnam