Towards enhancing effectiveness of marketing activities of epro education product distribution and development company limited

Current status of marketing activities of Epro education product distribution and Development Company limited .... General comments on marketing activities of Epro education product dist

TOWARDS ENHANCING EFFECTIVENESS OF MARKETING ACTIVITIES OF

EPRO EDUCATION PRODUCT DISTRIBUTION AND DEVELOPMENT

I would like to acknowledge special thanks to all people, named or unnamed, for their support us

CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 6

2.1 Some basic theory concepts 8

2.1.1 Concept of Marketing 8

2.1.2 Educational products and consumer characteristics of educational products on the market 9

2.1.2.1 The educational product: 9

2.1.2.2 Features produce and consume technological educational products 10

2.2 The basic content of marketing activities in business enterprises technological education products 10

2.3 Factors affecting marketing activities of enterprises trading technology education products 18

2.3.1 Objective factors 18

2.3.2 Subjective factors 19

CHAPTER 3: ACTUAL MARKETING ACTVITIES OF EPRO EDUCATION PRODUCT DISTRIBUTION AND DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LIMITED 21

3.1 Overview about Epro education product distribution and Development Company limited 21

3.2 Business Performance of Epro Company 23

3.2.1 Financial analysis 23

3.2.2 Analysis SWOT in company 26

3.3 Current status of marketing activities of Epro education product distribution and Development Company limited 28

3.3.1 Current status of market research 28

3.3.2 Situation of target markets and market products 30

3.3.3 Current situation of making marketing plan 32

3.3.4 Current status of implementing the marketing strategy of Epro company 33

3.3.4.1 Strategies for customer 33

3.3.4.2 Product strategies 35

3.3.4.3 Strategy of discounting for products 36

3.3.4.4 Strategy for distribution 37

3.3.4.5 Strategies of promotion 38

3.4 General comments on marketing activities of Epro education product distribution and

development company limited 40

CHAPTER 4: OPTIMIZATION SOLUTIONS FOR MARKETING ACTIVITIES OF EPRO EDUCATION PRODUCT DISTRIBUTION AND DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LIMITED 44

4.1 The trend to develop business and requirements to improve the quality of marketing activities of Epro education product distribution and development company limited 44

4.1.1 Orientation of business development of the Epro education product distribution and development company limited 44

4.1.2 Demand to improve the quality of business activities of the Epro education product distribution and development company limited 45

4.2 Viewpoints completing marketing activities of Epro education product distribution and development company limited 46

4.3 Solutions to improve the quality of marketing activities of Epro Company 48

4.3.1 Strategy to promote product 48

4.3.3 Diversify, improve the quality of service 50

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 52

APPENDICES 54

LIST OF TABLES

Model 2.1 Key steps in segmentation, identification and position market 11

Model 2.2: Marketing decisions at strategic levels 13

Model 2.3: Marketing-mix and target market 15

Table 2.1: Criteria for selecting technology education products 16

Table 3.1: The performance of business of Epro in 2017 24

Table 3.2: Sales of products in 2017 25

Chart 3.1: The chart of group of customer for market share 25

Model 3.1: Marketing strategy of Ansoff 32

Table 3.3: Revenue, market share of major product groups of the Company in 2017 35

Table 3.4: Marketing activities to support for distribution channels 37

Table 3.5: Advertising costs on the channels 40

Table 3.6: The total cost of product for Marketing activities 42

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Research background

In the context of current economy, education in Vietnam has experienced many strong changes and adapted more demand about learning of everyone In the past, the educational system of our country is not fully equipped with tools to serve teaching, which led to that student didn’t have opportunity to touch new knowledge, understand deeply lessons of teacher So, education in our country has a lot of limits Now, our country has many changes Ministry of educational has many policies to upgrade educational effectiveness by using products as tools to serve for teaching The variation of economy demands many humans who have level and experience to work Education is given more attention to train many humans well so as to adapt to current economy Now, there are many businesses for educational products The changes about structure

in educational business field increase when Vietnam took part in WTO It created opportunity for many companies in their business To succeed in the market, companies have to invest on technology, upgrade product quality and marketing knowledge to stand stable

Epro education product distribution and development company limited is a dependent company

of Egroup Egroup was established in 2008 Now, Egroup is the leading corporation in the field

of online education in Vietnam Mission of Epro company is provide advanced technology education products, ceaseless innovation, promote in a comprehensive way, build trust for customers and partners Now, Epro is distributing 5 main products line such as: Touch English!, E-Robot Coding, Chinh phuc vu mon, Hoc cung thu khoa and E-Smart English Epro tends to be the first company in distributing technology education product of customer

The technology education product is a kind of special goods, it supports student in studying, and making experiment, from that develop the ability to think about the world Trading in technology education product is the connection between commercial elements and service to meet the needs

of teaching and it is suitable for this time Marketing activities for educational products have some features which are different from marketing activities for normal goods The target of marketing for educational products, besides economic value, is to educate children, help children become global citizens in the future Epro company is going on that way with distributing many products, especially English and Coding to move in preschool school, help children initially familiar with English and programming Along with that, the company also distributes in primary schools, secondary schools and high schools by organizing many matches…Despite being a new company with the hesitation of budget and marketing activities, Epro company is going on a right way, making a foundation in developing the company To take maximum profits, create competitive advantage and safety in business, companies need to apply Marketing policies in each case, from that create the most competitive advantage for business Applying and developing marketing policies for the current stage in enterprises are relatively flexible and adapt

to the characteristics of the market through different stages Therefore, the present research focuses on enhancing effectiveness of marketing activities of Epro Educational

Purposes of research

The research aims at investigating the existing marketing activities in Epro Company It based on which to identify weakness and to suggest useful implications for the company to improve effectiveness of making activities of the company Specifically, the research has three main purposes:

- To systematize the basic of marketing theory about technological education products, study and determine the basic contents of marketing activities of enterprises dealing in educational products in the current market mechanism

- Analyze and evaluate trend and dynamics of marketing activities in business of technology education products that enterprises have achieved From that, identifying the successes, limitations; find the main cause with this activity to overcome

- Proposing practical and specific solutions to improve marketing activities of enterprises

dealing in technology products, contributing to improve management efficiency and maximizing profits in the company

Scope of research

Because company has been founded for one year, its number of customers is still limited The customers of the company include both business to business customers and business to customer (B-to-C) customers Due to time and budget constraints, this research only just focus on researching about final customers, the customers involved in this research are people who are using products of this company

Structure of the thesis

The thesis is structured in 5chapters:

Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter 2: Fundamental Theoretical Problems of Marketing Activities of Educational

Technology Enterprises

Chapter 3: Current situation of marketing activities of Epro education product distribution and

Development Company limited

Chapter 4: Solutions to improve the quality of marketing activities of Epro education product

distribution and Development Company limited

Chapter 5: Conclusion

CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND MARKETING ACTIVITIES OF BUSINESS ENTERPRISES TECHNOLOGICAL EDUCATION EQUIPMENT

2.1 Some basic theory concepts

2.1.1 Concept of Marketing

Marketing is defined as “the process of performing activities that achieve a unit's objectives by anticipating the needs of consumers in order to control the flow of goods and services that meet the needs of the organization “Manufacturers to consumers.” (E.McCarthy &Nguyen Xuan Quang, 2007)

"Marketing is the process of working with the market to conduct exchanges, to satisfy the needs and wants of people Understandably, marketing is a form of human activity (including organization) to satisfy the needs and wants through the exchange (Prof Dr Tran Minh Dao, 2010)

Marketing can also be seen as the process by which every individuals or groups achieve what they need and want through the creation, donation, and exchange of free goods and services

“Marketing Management”(- Kotler, 2002)

As defined for managers, marketing is like "selling art," but surprisingly, the most important element of marketing is not actually selling the product "But the purpose of marketing is to know and understand customer so well that the product or service is the most appropriate for that person, and that it will sell," said Peter Drucker, a leading management theorist Ideally, marketing should be the result of a willingness to shop, so the formation of a new product or service becomes necessary to create them

Marketing Activity: A term, defined in different ways in each organization We define marketing activities as a principle of history, technology, guidance and language that promotes values in managing the functional activities of marketing, making marketing the medium This is considered as the heart of all benefits and is important in business activity The purpose of marketing activities is to perform two tasks effectively:

The first task involves achieving organizational goals by reinforcing and marketing strategies, tactics with an appropriate organizational structure that fosters and promotes growth of company

in the next time

The second task involves creating an educational environment in the organization, a highly collaborative environment inside and outside the marketing department This allows people to appreciate the value of marketing in a more positive way and encourage boldness in their work

(Gary M.Katz - collectibles and translation from marketingprofs.com)

It can be said that marketing for technological educational products is a form of activities to satisfy the needs and expectations through the exchange between selling and buying product, and

mission of selling person is to sell products to customers who have demand about educational product

It is generally assumed that marketing is the seller's business, but fully understand that both the buyer and the seller have to do marketing

2.1.2 Educational products and consumer characteristics of educational products on the

market

2.1.2.1.The educational product:

According to the opinion of Professor Pham Minh Hac, former of Minister of Education showed the great role of technology education product for teacher that: “ The product of technology education product serve for teaching in the future of a nation So it is not allowed to make waste products” The technology education product is a kind of service which specifically benefits for customer such as students, teachers to serve for the needs of teaching, providing knowledgeable system to learn effectively

Marketing for technology education product is understood to satisfy with the need of community

or customer, who work in education or care about education, the school’s provision of educational services to the community Objectives to create competitive advantage: expressed in the market share index, the market of enterprises In marketing technology education products, this goal is expressed by the response to teachers, educational institutions, schools to create a competitive advantage, better product quality, provide product timely and distribution channels Here is a summary of the most basic concepts in marketing technology education products to create a premise for the development of enterprises in technology education products So it has to make sure some criteria below:

Business security: By applying marketing policies in business, businesses will analyze, predict

market fluctuations, identify business opportunities, and propose measures Coping with the uncertainties and minimizing the consequences of business risks

In marketing for technological educational products, this goal requires the company to study the safety and rationality of using educational products in the curriculum to support students' knowledge, is a tool for teachers in the process of communication This will help improve the brand, status and long-term prestige of the company

Any marketing strategy must evaluate all about the impact environment Key elements of the macro environment in here include:

Demographic environment: (population explosion, age and ethnic composition, educational level,

displacement, movement from a mass markets to micro markets)

Natural environment: (energy shortages, energy costs, pollution levels, change in the role of

governments in environmental protection)

Technology environment: (accelerated change of technology, innovation opportunities, and

changes in research and development budgets, changes in technology regulations)

Political environment: (laws regulating business, development of public protection groups)

Cultural environment (core cultural values, cultural branches, secondary cultural values change over time)

The microeconomic environment of companies dealing with educational products includes those who directly affect the ability to meet customer needs including: manufacturers - suppliers, business enterprises themselves, competitors, marketing intermediaries, customers and the public

2.1.2.2 Features produce and consume technological educational products

Technological educational products are special kind of goods that play an important role in the teaching and transferring of teachers' knowledge to students Education products that are both commercially available are also a powerful tool in teaching and consolidating knowledge for students after hours in school As a tool for the educational industry, from production until delivery to teach, it must meet strict standards and conditions From the characteristics of the product, the market of this product is very different from other types of consumer products End-user consumers, end-users of the product are those who are interested in the trend of education now, the desire for children to acquire new knowledge in accordance with the needs of the times

2.2 The basic content of marketing activities in business enterprises technological education products

 Research market

Every business has its own marketing orientation and is constantly looking for ways to do research marketing to design systematically, analyze and report information and find related to a specific situation about marketing for that business This work can be possibly done following occasionally or regularly Some successful businesses are those that can best evaluate and respond to changes trends and needs in market

In the field of business about technological educational products, with the characteristics of this industry, the process of research marketing must have accurately and timely data and information and they have to relate to the operation of the business

+ Changes in the macro environment related to the products and services provided by the enterprise

Demand and use behavior of products and services of target groups

+ Competitive dynamics of competitors in the market

+ Customer's assessment on the image, quality, price of the product

 Analysis of SWOT

Based on the findings of marketing research combined with the information derived from marketing information systems of business education technology products, the SWOT analysis model will help to develop marketing strategies for businesses dealing in technology education products SWOT stands for the four main components of environmental analysis and the enterprise itself: the strengths and weaknesses of the business itself, the threats and opportunities from the external environment related to the war in the future of the business In it, strengths are

an asset, an attribute, or a resource that creates lasting competitive advantage for the business and weaknesses that occur when there is a lack or lack of resources that makes the business vulnerable hurt by the competitive advantage of the opponent The first role of SWOT analysis is

to evaluate the macro marketing environment and the business sector At this point, businesses must generally assess the economy, competition, institution, society and market changes Based

on this analysis, enterprises can identify opportunities that can be leveraged and threats to be avoided or limited Then, the analysis of the strengths and weaknesses (internal resources) of the enterprise itself is conducted Strengths need to be leveraged to avoid / minimize threats and take advantage of opportunities, while weaknesses need to be overcome The advantage of SWOT analysis is that it can integrate internal and external factors to determine the key competitive advantage of the business The disadvantage of SWOT analysis is that it is very subjective, difficult to unify among many different analysts

 Establish a target market

Business about technological education products have found that customers using technology education products today is a very large and different set of demand for products Therefore, the business of technology products will have to identify the most attractive parts of the market that they can provide the most effective This identification process is described in this model:

Segment active market Select target market Locate on the target market

segments

Select and target on target market

segments

Locate on each target

segment

Establish marketing mix for each target

is based on principles that include: geographic principles, psychological principles, behavioral principles, and demographic principles The more obvious the market structure is, the easier the technical educational product business will be The next step is to select the product that will be marketed to them Spotlight is more specific, more effective

After targeting the target market, the next step is to assess the attractiveness of the market segments in order to identify the target market A business enterprise of educational technology products will select the target market based on the main factors: the size and growth of the market segment, its attractiveness and competitiveness in the segment That is the system of public and private schools, from preschool to high school

Once the target market is selected, the technical educational business needs to determine the location of the product that it offers in the market Based on customer needs, comparing the features offered by competitors and their capabilities, these businesses need to determine the location of the product Principles of commodity positioning include being of value to the customer, distinctive, of exceptional value, easy to see, within the limits of the customer's pay and profitable exam for business Although segmentation of the target market and location of supply services are based on different principles, the overall linkage will be the most accurate and best satisfying customer needs

 Strategic Marketing - mix

In order to conduct business effectively, increase competitiveness and optimize profits, the Company needs information on consumer demand for its products and business competitors have and potential in the market By setting up a marketing strategy, the Company's marketing activities are conducted in a targeted process that is tailored to the market characteristics of the Company

Marketing strategy is the path the business is going to reach As part of the overall strategy of the business, the Marketing Strategy demonstrates the Company's efforts to achieve a desirable position in terms of competitive position and volatility in the business environment Only when the marketing strategy is developed can the Company perform synchronously its marketing activities starting from understanding and identifying external environmental factors, assessing other internal conditions of the Company Company will then have policies on products, prices, distribution and promotion to achieve the set goals

The role of marketing and marketing theories has changed fundamentally over the decades In contrast to the concept of marketing in the 1950s, which emphasized the importance of customers, the modern marketing concept introduced other important elements of marketing such

as customer-oriented marketing, compete competition, to the internal factors of the company itself The deep essence of expanding the marketing perspective is the need to plan and make marketing decisions on all three levels of strategy, and marketing planning should include

organizational processes (culture organize and link the functions of each department within the organization and how to make, disseminate and implement marketing decisions)

Company Level

Evaluate the attractiveness of market, define orientation of customer, develop and build media programs, advocate for propositions the value of the organization

SBU Strategic Level

How to compete in the selected industry, market segmentation, select target market, positioning product, identify partner and timing, the way of cooperating

Functional Strategy Level

Make marketing decisions, manage issues that arise between customers and agents

Model 2.2: Marketing decisions at strategic levels

The following describes how to make decide marketing that should be considered at different strategic levels At the corporate strategy level, the strategic issue is the identification of the business, the mission, the scope, the status and structure of the organization Thus, the role of marketing is defined as assessing the attractiveness of potential markets that a company can join, including analyzing customer needs and assessing the ability to satisfy this bridge of the competition; public relations campaigns aimed at publicizing the culture of the organization to a large audience; assist in the objective of identifying competing organizations on the basis of reflecting and satisfying the wishes of their clients, introducing media campaigns to declare the value of the company

All marketing tasks need to be done dynamically at all levels However, it is not always the duty

of any level to have experience, knowledge of the characteristics of the target market, and then the challenge for those who do is to ensure the characteristics This will not be overlooked when reviewing company level decisions All marketing tasks need to be done dynamically at all levels However, it is not always the duty of any level to have experience, knowledge of the characteristics of the target market, and then the challenge for those who do is to ensure the characteristics will not be overlooked when reviewing company level decisions

At the SBU level, the focus strategy determines the way in which the SBU competes in its business Marketing decisions include identifying market segments, selecting target markets and positioning them based on thorough analysis of customers, competitors, company resources, and tactics compete on specific market segments Although these are really marketing decisions, there are arguments that marketing strategies are the most effective and highly valued tools for the development of this level of strategy In the 1970s and 1980s, strategic plans developed by strategic planning planners focused on how to develop market segments and speed up development of the markets on the basis of the implementation of the merger strategy or acquisition of other companies

At the lower level of strategy, functional or departmental strategies, marketing strategies emphasize marketing mix decisions (4P, 5P or 7P) and strategies related to maintenance and Develop relationships with customers in the long run (relationship marketing strategy) Strategic marketing decisions incorporate mixed marketing strategies and long-term (3 or 5 year) marketing strategies, while short-term marketing plans (product marketing plans or branding) are defined The annual goal is to implement the long-term strategy of the organization

Marketing strategies are usually planned at the SBU level or at the company level if the company

is a monopoly There are two important issues that need to be decided at the start of the marketing planning process: the scope of the plan and the time limit of the plan These are platform requirements that are not easy to determine Is it necessary to formulate marketing strategies for each independent SBU, or if the SBU has multiple product lines, is the marketing strategy planned for each of these product lines? The answer depends on the product - the market where each product line exists and competes If there are significant differences, the development

of marketing strategies can help identify potential customers and competitors At the industry level, marketing planning focuses on product development (expansion or elimination), defining the target market for each product line, product positioning, brand linking Product coordination decisions related to the type and depth of each product line should be made in relation to the development of the business strategy of each SBU The decision on the time limit of the plan should also be balanced with other decisions On the one hand, the longer the time, the more strategic changes are based on inaccurate predictions On the other hand, if you do not have enough time to plan, the risks can occur when quick decisions in the short term ultimately weaken the competitive position of the organization or product line

 Implementing marketing strategies: – marketing mix

The next step after locating the product or service on the market is planning and implementing tactical marketing efforts through the development and implementation of marketing mix Mixed marketing is a set of 5P (5P), necessary and controllable tools that a technical education product business must employ to achieve sales and profit targets and on one or more target market segments Marketing strategy of a trading company that distributes technology education products is basically implemented through 4 traditional elements, according to Philip Kotler,

including: product, price, Trade promotion or communication (Promotion) and Distribution (Place) However, in marketing nowadays, enterprises whose main products are products and services are technological educational products that tend to deploy from the four main factors into five factors, which are arranged according to Model 1.2 as follows:

In addition to the quality of treatment, the packaging and storage is very important, it increases the attractiveness of the product specifications, image code of the product

Table 2.1: Criteria for selecting technology education products

manufacturer

• The product is made in the country

• The product is manufactured in foreign countries

3 Packing • Nice packaging, easy to use, nice form

4 Effective products • • Prestige of the actual quality used, have used the good effect

of the user

5 The prestige of the

distribution company

• • Provision of correct and sufficient products

• • Resolve issues immediately when problems arise

• • Has been traded and reputable with individual clients / organizations

6 Price • Price is reasonable, stable

• Consistent with customer economy

7 Circulation standard  Qualified circulation

Based on the research on the product, the criteria for choosing technology education products of individual customers / organizations, companies have developed strategies in product policy

The price policy is a collection of ways and rules that determine the base price of the product and sets the permissible amplitude, which changes the base price under certain conditions of operation business production of the company in the market Simply stated, the price is the amount that the business of technology education products requires to be paid for a given unit of goods From a marketing standpoint, the price is also considered the economic value that the buyer provides to the seller in exchange for the goods and services

For technology education products, customers will accept a competitive price that corresponds to the quality of the products and services they receive

(3) Distribution policy

Distribution channels of Marketing services are direct distribution channels, including distribution channels to the home, direct distribution at the enterprise and distribution through agents

Technological education products use all the above distribution channels, sale staffs along with collaborators will go directly to the house of customer, work with businesses to introduce services, persuade them to use products or services Agent agents are also active forces that are permanently located in the area, willing to sell products or services or meet other needs related to education Social distribution channels are also important in the current integration phase, such as through mass media, word of mouth

(4) Sales promotion and business support policies

Sales promotion policies are activities that promote the consumption of products and services, provide information to customers and solutions to internal relationships and market, including activities such as: Advertising, Promotion, Public Relations, Direct Selling and Marketing

The promotion programs that businesses use educational technology products to send their message to the market include five basic components: (1) advertising, (2) direct marketing, (3) personal sales, (4) public activities and (5) promotion All five are related to communication through which businesses trading in technology and market products can exchange information

(5) Human factors

All natural resources are limited but the human element is infinite, man in the implementation, management and production in all business activities is the core of all things Human factor is increasingly recognized as the key to business success by both business and academia In the informational economy, the competitive advantage depends on the ability to attract talent of enterprises

Companies need to seriously review their marketing thinking It must be reiterated that marketing

is not just the responsibility of the CMO, but all departments and employees in the company must have marketing thinking To do this, the CEO, in addition to building a "customer-oriented" company model, is also involved in marketing planning, marketing budgeting and human resources training The marketing team needs to be updated, updated and new skills that are important to them in the new economy Almost every marketing staff is trained in skills such as market research, advertising, sales However, not everyone practices these skills well

The cost of marketing has grown significantly now It can range from 20% to 50% of sales, depending on the scale It's not just investment in advertising, business development, sponsorship, events, but also the expense of creating marketing impact Or the investment in telephone exchange and hotline is also significant Then decorate office, corporate office is also a cost to make your company "catch eye" from visitors

Because marketing costs are constantly increasing, it is imperative for senior leaders to take control of them Invest in the same amount of money, but get higher efficiency such as the development of new products, customer service That is why many companies nowadays find quality and marketing more effective than conducting mass campaigns First of all, more careful investment in market research, customer data collection The budget must be allocated based on the performance of the previous period Most marketing people insist that the marketing budget for this year is equal to or higher than last year, and they do not objectively see their efforts in the job Only they can determine what tools to maintain, how to promote and how much investment

2.3 Factors affecting marketing activities of enterprises trading technology education products

Natural environment: factors related to education, characteristics of education in the society

today

Business environment: State-owned enterprises, private enterprises, partnerships, limited liability

companies, joint-stock companies, enterprises with 100% foreign investment capital

Economic environment: growth rate, inflation

Political environment: Laws, Ministry of Education Policies

Socio-cultural environment: habits, culture Enterprises, entrepreneurs

Competitive environment: the effectiveness of marketing activities of companies trading other

technology education products Currently, in a market where there are too many products, while the fixed number of customers; the other companies well implementing marketing strategy will affect the implementation of marketing strategies of the public The rest, especially private enterprises

2.3.2 Subjective factors

A number of subjective factors stemming from the Business Law and regulations of the Ministry

of Education are the decisive factor in the successful implementation of marketing activities for enterprises in general and enterprises in the field of business, technology education products in particular

Scope of the educational product business: For business entities in the field of educational products, the size of the sector includes the sector's network and the network of educational products Around the world the reality is that companies, large companies often easily mobilize resources for marketing activities, but also make it difficult to renovate all infrastructure facilities and technology for the whole system This factor is one of the strengths in the SWOT analysis to create competitive advantage for competitors

Market research: This means to segment the market and select the target market and then analyze

and understand the needs of the target market segment Market segmentation acknowledges the rightness of offering customized opportunities tailored to the needs of a niche market rather than trying to fit everything into every segment of the market The fact is that for each business activity in each industry, the demand for different products and services Therefore, if the company does not have market research activities, the segmentation is divided into very similar customer groups in terms of needs and desires in order to have separate policies to meet the needs

of the group That segment will not be successful The reason is that if it meets all customers the company will not have sufficient resources and not satisfied by customers Because of their different needs, the demand for products and services is different For technical educational product companies, companies can segment by size, sector, economic component or domain of activity

Human resources: Good human resources with deep knowledge and experience in the field of

education for enterprises will play a decisive role in the implementation of marketing activities for enterprises; the human factor is one of the most important factors in the process of providing services to this target group Experience in the distribution and building relationships with customers is very important

The variety of products and services, especially the package products, many add-ons, satisfy the needs of customers, students, and teachers In addition to the kindergarten, elementary school to high school, centers, service quality is also a very important factor in choosing the product of the enterprise

Direction in the future of the company: If a company lacks a long-term and stable plan, the

effectiveness of all activities, including marketing activities, will be negatively affected Especially the future orientation of the Company will affect the positioning of the brand to target customers

Marketing budgets: Marketing activities, including market research, product policies, delivery

pricing, and support promotion, require a stable and relatively high budget Otherwise, the effectiveness of these activities will not be guaranteed

CHAPTER 3: ACTUAL MARKETING ACTVITIES OF EPRO EDUCATION PRODUCT

DISTRIBUTION AND DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LIMITED 3.1 Overview about Epro education product distribution and Development Company limited

Epro education product distribution and development company limited was established in March,

2017 Its office is in 25T1 – Hoang Dao Thuy – Trung Hoa – Nhan Chinh - Cau Giay – Ha Noi

It is a member company of the Egroup Education Group Joint Stock Company Egroup has been operating for 8 years with business activities of producing and releasing educational and technological products

From website of this company, we can see EPRO's vision is to become the leading company in Vietnam which mainly offers online education products, strong competition, always aiming to conquer higher goals and be the first choice of every partner and domestic and international customers Established in March 2017, EPRO education product distribution and development company limited is committed to providing the best education products to its users through nationwide distribution channels With the spirit and responsibility of the great humanity, EPRO wishes to contribute to the development of Vietnam's education system to keep up with the times and increasingly reach out to the world At the same time, building a solid intellectual foundation for the young generation in Vietnam along with the younger generation in many countries around the world

In order to achieve its goals in the coming years, EPRO always attaches great importance to the development and development of human resources, welcomes all candidates wishing to accompany EPRO to build a Vietnamese education Modern with a young, active, energetic, passionate and knowledgeable environment, discovering knowledge based on science and technology, modern technology

Core values of EPRO:

Team spirit: It is a precursor to the formation and development of EPRO and is an integral part of the value chain of a business

Creation: Incessant creativity is the guideline for all the successes of the EPRO, which is the premise for growth in every person in company The company tries to be always creative, breakthrough in thinking and acting towards the common interests of business and community Raise the target: EPRO always strives to explore, innovate, explore and develop modern, quality education products that not only serve the high demand of entertainment, but also contain valuable treasures of knowledge It cannot be ignored

Responsibility: EPRO always emphasizes responsibility in every action and thought as well as in all activities of developing and distributing Education products Each individual EPRO always

sets the requirements and responsibilities for themselves as well as for all customers, partners and the whole society

Humanities: EPRO is active in the field of developing and distributing education products, which are always people-centered for all their activities, and especially for human values, contributing

to good values for humans Every individual in EPRO always respects themselves, loves family, respects friends and colleagues, knows how to share with customers and partners, and in particular is always oriented towards the values of the community

At present, the company distributes 5 main products such as: Touch English, Chinh phuc vu mon, Hoc cung thu khoa, E-Smart English and E-Robot Coding Epro's products are geared toward cutting-edge technology, enabling students to access new knowledge-based technologies that keep pace with today's developed world

Over one year of operation, the company has quickly completed its organizational structure, established three trust branches in Ha Noi, Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City The company founded many functional departments, set up and distributed products to more than 40 provinces

in the country The company has established a network of distribution agents covering the whole country, ensuring timely requirements to meet the needs of customers, introducing and consulting customers to understand and use products

Features of activities of company

To do business about technological education, the company was built in 2017, the key staff of the company was invited from the major corporations and this company is now on the market Epro Company’s inheritance and experience from the pharmaceutical companies go ahead to form the organizational structure and operating apparatus

The chart: The organizational structure of company

After nearly one year of operation, the company has quickly completed its organizational structure, added two more functional divisions, set up 20 agents, present in over 40 provinces and cities, 128 representatives commercial presence in the northern, central and southern cities So far, the company has been operating stably, providing educational products to all students in the country The company has formed a network of agents covering the north, central and south, ensuring the prompt supply of products quickly and promptly for agents and centers nationwide Good human resources, knowledge and experience in the field of business education products for enterprises will play a decisive role in the implementation of marketing activities for enterprises, especially being an enterprise in the field of trading educational products; the human factor is one

of the most important factors in the process of providing services to this object Experience in implementing technology education products and building strong relationships with clients is very important

3.2 Business Performance of Epro Company

Control Board

Shareholders

Administrative Council General Director

Accounting

departmemt

n

Marketing departme

Specialize departme

Operation Department

Sales Department

corridor for business activities of the company Thirdly, building a relationship with another business with the market especially is the system of English language centers, preschools across the country Building a diversified customer base, distribution the first agents across the country Fourth, build a program to serve for customer management with online management software, and then develop the marketing program for the company

Table 3.1: The performance of business of Epro in 2017

1 Sales revenue and delivery service 7.397.811

3 Net revenue from sales and delivery services 7.396.949

(Source: Epro education product distribution and Development Company limited’s financial report)

As the performance of business in 2017, we can see these successful factors helped the company achieve the goal in the first year of establishment The market share of sales has improved well in the business of technology education products on the market in Vietnam Total accounting before tax of Epro company last year reached at 6,960,926 million VND This is a remarkable achievement from the company's efforts, the correctness of the strategies the company is implementing From the above table, we see that the company has started to have revenue With a newly established business, this is a remarkable number

Marketing activities for customers of enterprises trading in technological education products are really paid attention and investment since 2017, but initially achieved the encouraging success Brands and products are gradually gaining market share and popularity

These successes are reflected in the following results:

Table 3.2: Sales of products in 2017

(Source: Report on market evaluation of products)

Through the chart of sales in 2017, we can see product of Touch English! is the first for sale Because this product is invested on money with cost of Marketing is large E-smart English hasn’t had much revenue because this product is new product of company And it is processing of researching market

Looking at the chart above we can see that the market share of the group of customers using the company's products mainly in the northern area of 45% market share, the southern region is still weak, due to market sensitivities, competition and some marketing activities haven’t promoted in some provinces of southern the preservation of product diversification, the demand for traditional products, no breakthrough in the selection of new products in education

Now, Epro company is operating 5 main products They are Touch English!, Smart English, Robot Coding, Chinh phuc vu mon and Hoc cung thu khoa About distributing English product and coding are strengths of the company With the continuous efforts of the sales team and marketing team, the company's products quickly spread to the provinces and cities across the country, bringing profits to the company in the past year although newly established

E-In the five-year development plan 2018-2023 and the general vision of the education sector to

2020 - 2030 of Epro Company, 2017 is the beginning, building the foundation, creating momentum and thrust to break through the years Next, Epro aims at becoming a nationwide distribution channel in 2020-2030

3.2.2 Analysis SWOT in company

Strengths

The company has a team of leaders who are experienced, open minded and flexible in running business and are willing to apply modern manufacturing technology to business administration The company also has staff that is young, enthusiastic, enthusiastic, and ready to absorb new technology

Founding shareholders are both strong supporters and big customers bringing more revenue, profit

Competitive advantage for products is good that helps stabilize sales, market share against domestic and foreign competitors and new competitors

The company also has flexibility in competition about price for marketing activities

Weaknesses

The experience of providing service is low Being a business education technology product in the market has been operating more than 1 year, capacity of product supply of the company has not left much impression, not many customers in the province known

Charter capital and financial capacity are much lower than the direct competitors Currently, the company is one of the groups of joint stock companies with the lowest chartered capital in the market, which affects the financial capacity of the Company when bidding for large projects

There is no real business strategy for medium and long term This is really the weakness of most Vietnamese enterprises in general, not farsighted

Activities for building brand like PR are not professional and effective Product brand identity is not clear

System of collecting- processing information for management, making business decisions are not organized properly, professional and effective

Opportunities

Vietnam economy has overcome the period of economic crisis, is and will develop with stable GDP growth at an average of 6.8% per year The investment, income and living standards of the population are increasing The market for educational products continues to grow in size

Policy is stable, secure and order are guaranteed, a safe destination for international investors, the legal system in general and the law on business education products in particular are increasingly improving in line with international practice is a good environment for economic development, including the education sector

The youngest and thirteenth population in the world (developed in the direction of shifting to industrial, service and urban areas) is a very good and potential market for business development Technological education, especially in remote areas without access to advanced technology The people's intellectual level and people's life have been improved A significant part of the population attaches great importance to the education of children in modern life Integration opens many opportunities to develop export markets and strongly promote operations, investment and trade in Vietnam

The competitiveness of the economy is getting more and more intense, but it is also a driving force for quality improvement, especially in the fields of import and export, increasing GDP, national reserves and trade balance Better days are an advantage for the business to grow

The number of companies trading educational products is still modest in terms of product investment in a potential market like Vietnam This promises to be a potential market for this industry

Threats

The market is currently experiencing a lot of uncertainty with interest rates and a very high inflation increase, putting pressure on and affecting the production, business and people's lives The environment and level of technology management, information technology backward, lack of standards are creating a great challenge for most Vietnamese enterprises in business and

3.3 Current status of marketing activities of Epro education product distribution and Development Company limited

3.3.1 Current status of market research

Market research is an important part of making a decision in marketing In the face of increasingly fierce competition, market research is an essential tool, a prerequisite for successful market access Therefore, most companies said that "it is necessary to sell what the market need, not sell what you have" and study the market is a factor contributing to the success of the business

The company made a surveyed in four major cities: Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Hai Phong and focuses on individuals aged 22-50 who are interested in the trend of education and effective teaching methods for children The purpose of the survey is to understand the consumer habits in using educational products and services, find out the acceptance of public toward technological education products, predict demand of using product of market and analysis data to propose directions inbusiness The number of direct surveys distributed in each area is as follows: Hanoi City 301 cases, Ho Chi Minh City 301 cases, Da Nang City 209 cases, Hai Phong City 200 cases

Most teachers use educational products in teaching today Nearly one third of the respondents have need to use technology education products in their teaching jobs In particular, half of the surveyed students were teachers at kindergartens and English-speaking centers who were teaching English with technology A large percentage of respondents were interested in educational technology products, of which over 50% said they would buy these products for their children to study at home These are optimistic forecasts that technology education products such

as English or programming will be welcomed as a new wind of educational technology

In addition, Vietnam has many favorable factors for the development of education, including the proportion of young people accounting for more than 70%, so this time investing in technology education products is reasonable Not only from the standpoint of meeting the market demand, Epro will provide new business opportunities for distributors to increase sales and maximize market

According to the results of customer surveys on technology education products, the idea of supplying these products has attracted a lot of customers In Da Nang, 90% of the respondents

were interested in this product, in HCMC and Hai Phong with 81% and 80%, followed by Hanoi with just over 54% Based on the traditional teaching habits of teachers, the demand for this product is very high and they are willing to pay for the use of these products

Following the survey, to investigate how to improve business efficiency, the survey was conducted for 200 people who are using the company's services for 1 month or more, of which 16 are using the service The service is private, 184 customers use the service is individual Survey results show that:

Chart 3.3: Customers realize products through marketing channels (Sour: Marketing department)

30% of customers know about the company's products via television, 10% through panels banners, 35% via the Internet, newspapers and only 15% through friends and relatives and 10% realize brand and products through different channels Thus, advertising the products and services

on television, radio, the Internet and the press are now more effective than the forms of communication through panels, posters, and banners in the street With 10% of the products

Marketing channels

Televisionn Banner Internet Relatives Different