Study on promotional activities of halong bay tourism

T h e close cooperation betw een tourism authorities and the trades can claim to the su ccess o f the prom otion cam paigns for the Bay... Public Relations Publicity is rccogni/.cd throu

Hanoi University

F a c u lt y o f M a n a g e m e n t a n d T o u r i s m

* * *

STUDY ON PROMOTIONAL ACTIVIES OF

HALONG BAY TOƯRISM

S u b m itte d by

Ngo Thu Ha

A thesis submitted as the requirement for the degree of

Bachelor o f Tourism M anagement

H anoi, N o v e m b e r 2008

* * *

STUDY ON PROMOTIONAL ACTIVIES OF

HALONG BAY TOURISM

S u b m itted by

Ngo Thu Ha

A thesis submitted as the requirement for the degree of

Bachelor o f Tourism M anagement

Hanoi U niversity

F a c u l t y o f M a n a g e m e n t a n d T o u r i s m

H anoi, N o v em b er 2008

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T

S T A T E M E N T O F A U T H O R S H IP 5

A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T

ABBREVIATIONS

IO R E W O R D

C H A P T E R 1: ĨN T R O D U C T IO N

I I R esearch a p p ro a c h

1.1.1 R esearch a re a o f c o n c e r n

1.1.2 R e s e a r c h

1.2 E x e c u tiv e su m m a ry

1.2 1 T o u rism P rom otion S tru c tu re a n d C o -o p e ra tio n 1.2.2 T a rg et M a r k e ts

1.2.3 P rom otion M e th o d s

1.3 R esearch a im s and s ig n illc a n c e

1.3.1 R esearch a im s

1.3.2 R esearch sig n iíìc a n c e

1.4 T h e s is o rg a n iz a tio n

C H A P T E R 2: R E S E A R C H M E T H O D O L O D Y

6

.7

.8

.10

1 0

1 0

1 1

1 2

.12

.14 14 17 17 18 18 20

2 1 S tep I : R esearch q u c stio n Ib rm a tio n 20

2.2 S tep 2: S e c o n d a ry d a ta 22

2.3 S tep 3: P rim ary m e th o d 22

2.4 S tep 4 : C o n c lu sio n s & R e c o m m e n d a tio n s 24

C H A P T E R 3: L IT E R A T U R E R E V IE W 25

3.1 D estin atio n m a rk e tin g 25

3.1.1 P lace as a p ro d u c t 25

3 1.2 C h a ra c te ristic s o f product “d e stin a tio n ” 26

3.1.3 M ark e tin g a n d to u rists d e stin a tio n 29

3.1.4 O b je c tiv e s a n d b e n e íits o f d estin atio n m a rk e tin g 30

3 1.5 R o les o f destin atio n m ark ctin g o rg a n i/a tio n s ( D M O s ) 3 1 3.2 P rin cip les o f d estin atio n p ro m o tio n 32

3.2.1 D e íin itio n s 32

3.2.2 P ro m o tio n al m ix 34

C H A P T E R 4 37

TI IE R E A L S IT U A T IO N O F P R O M O T I O N A L A C T l V n IBS O F H A L O N G BA Y 4 1 Fact sh e e t o f H along B a y 37

4 1 1 H alo n g B ay a t a g la n c e 37

4 1.1.1 G eo g ra p h ic a l location .37

2

4.1 1 2 P o p u latio n o f th e B a y 37

4 1 1 3 T h e sy sten i o f isla n d s an d c a v e s 38

4 1 1 4 O u tsta n d in g v a lu e s o f I lalong B a y 39

4 1.2 T h e real situ atio n o f I lalong T o u rism in the p erio d 2 0 0 1 - 2 0 0 7 41

4 1.2.1 T o u ris t v o lu m e , to u rist strueturc a n d touriíìt sp c n d in g s tr u c tu r e 41

4 1.2.2 In ữ a stru c tu re a n d th e tourism p ro d u c ls 46

4 1 2 3 R e v e n u e o l tourism a c tiv itie s in H alo n g B a y 48

4 2 Real situ a tio n o f p ro m o tio n a c tiv itie s for lla lo n g B a y 49

4 2 1 S ituational a n a ly s is 49

4.2 2 R eal situ atio n o f m ark et research a n d targ ct m ark et d e te m iin a tio n 52

4 2 2 1 R eal situaticm o f m ark et re se a rc h 49

4 2.2.2 T a rg et m ark et d e te rm in a tio n 53

4 2.2.3 T h e brand p o sitio n in g o f H alo n g B a y 54

4 2 3 Tourism prom otion in H along B a y 55

4 2 3 1 T o u rism p ro m o tio n in m ac ro s c a l e 55

4 2 3 1 1 A d v c rtin g 55

4 2 3 1 2 P rom otional p r in t 57

4 2 3.1.3 T ourism e x h ib itio n s 61

4 2 3 1 5 Internet p r o m o tio n 64

4.2 3 2 T o u rism P rom otion M cthods U tilized by th e T r a d e 65

4.23.2 \. A d v e r tis in g 66

4 2 3 2 2 Public re la tio n s 66

4 2 3 2 3 P rom otional P r i o t 67

4 2 3 2 4 T rade F airs/E xhibitÌ0R S 67

4 2 3.2.5 Internet 67

4 3 Survey results 68

C H A P T E R 5 75

C O N C L U S IO N S A N D R E C O M M E N D A T IO N S 5 1 T o u rism P rom otion S tru c tu rc s in I la lo n g b a y 75

5.2 P ro íìlin g H alo n g B a y 76

5.3 '1'arget M ark ets .76

5.4 P ro m o tio n al m e th o d s 77

A P P E N D IX 82

B IB I.IO G R A P H Y 84

4

A C K N O V V L E D C ỈE M E N T

I irst o f all, I vvould likc to givc m y w arm thank to m y thcsis supervisor M s N go Phuong

D ung for h cr kind support, cncouragem ent as well as the criticism during thc thesis progress

A lso, 1 w ould like to express m y sincerc appreciation to all the lecturers o f Paculty o f

M anagem ent and Tourism w ith m y four years o f e v e r lasting m cm orial experience in the

U niversity

I vvould like to take these opportunities to thank all the supporters from H along M anagem ent

D epartm ent for thcir valuabltí support W ithout their help, I had not been ablc to com plete the vvork

Pinally, I vvould like to send cndless thank to m y fam ily, m y ííiend for all the support and help not o n ly in this thesis but to r m y vvhole life

H anoi, 27/11/2008

N go T hu I la

6

1IM B: I lalong M anagem ent D epartm ent

w I () : W orld Tourism O rgani/ation

A S E A N : A ssociation o f Southeast A sia N ations

M IC E : M ectings, Incentives, C onferences, E xhibitions

V N A T : V ietnam N ational A dm inistration o f Tourism

FO R E W O R D

T ourism is an im portant c o n trib u to r to the econom y o f H along city W orth in th e region

o f m ore than o n e thousand billion V N D annually, a n d w ith in ex cess o f 3 m illion visitors,

it gencrating a g reat dcal o f j o b for local people H alo n g B ay has been identilìcd as o n e o f

th e m o st a ttra c tiv c tourism d e stin a tio n s in V ietnam , to g e th e r w ith th c C apital c ity o f I lanoi,

IIC M C , N h a Trang, H ue

T h e to u rism b o d ics in H alo n g b ay a re o p e ra tin g vvith th e o b ịe c tiv e to lu rth e r d e v e lo p and

d eliv er an integratcd quality tourism p ro d u ct in the reg io n , in harm ony its conservation and

su sta in ab le devciopm ent It is also recognized the need to continually m onitor I lalong B ay’ tourism industry and en su re that they are operating to the h ig h est stan d ard s n ationally and intem ationally W ith th is in m ind the study has been co n d u c te d \vith a vievv to a s se s s in g

th e iin p a c t o f th e c u rre n t p ro m o tio n a l m e th o d s u se d to p ro m o te H alo n g B ay

T h e s tu d y e x a m in e s th e o v e ra ll a p p ro a c h to to u ris m p ro m o tio n in H a lo n g B ay , and

th e prom otional m ethođs used in term s o f im pact, eiTectiveness and sustainability

F o r th e p u rp o se o f th e stu d y e x te n s iv e c o n s u lta tio n w a s c a rrie d o u t w ith to u rism interests a n d Service providers in H along,

T he study leads to a num ber o f conclusions and key recom m endations in relation to:

• T ourism prom otion S tructures in lla lo n g

• C o -o rd in a tio n issues

• T a rg e t m a rk e ts and

• P ro m o tio n m eth o d s

8

It is intendcd that this R eport vvill bc vvidely available to tourism interests and Service

p r o v id e r s a n d th a t it w ill s tim u la te d is c u s s io n a n d a c tio n to e n s u r e th a t l la lo n g lia y m a in ta in s a n d im p r o v e s its p o s itio n a s a to p t o u r is t d e s tin a tio n

C H A P T E R 1

1 N T R O D U C T IO N1.1 R e s e a rc h a p p r o a c h

1.1.1 R e s e a rc h a r e a o f c o n c e rn

T rav elin g has beconie a trend all aro u n d th e w orld vvith thc nurnber o f to u rists up to

h u n d red s m illio n s and th is n u m b er co n sta n tly in crc asin g y e a r by ycar T o u rism and related Industries cre a te a h u g c am ount o f m o n ey in th e total annual G [)P o f a n y country

in th c w orld A cco rd in g ly , tourism is co n sid cred as thc “c o c k laying g o ld e n e g g ” that each c o u n try each rcg io n is trying to ta k e all a d v a n ta g e s to b e n e íit from th e ir tourism resources H alo n g B ay is not an e x ccp tio n from th is trend E sp ecially, sin c e the B ay has tvvice d e clared a s th e w orld N atural H eritag e in th e y e a r 1994 an d 20 0 0 ; a n d w as listed to

be o n e o f thc m ost bcautiful and m ag n itìc e n t b a y s/g u lfs on H arth, thc d e v e lo p m en t o f

H alo n g B a y 's tourism h as bcen ex p lo re d to th e e v e r ap p e alin g o p p o rtu n ities A ctually, tourism industry in H alo n g Bay has a c h ie v e d so m e o u tsta n d in g resu lts rccently In 2007,

H alo n g vvelcom e 2.01 to u rist a rriv als vvith 1.57 o n e s from ab ro a d and the revenue earned exceeded th e íigure 1,485 b illio n V N D 1

B ased on th is d e v e lo p m en t sta tistic s, H alo n g B a y 's tourism is forecastcd to increase at the rate o f 13-13.5% a n n u a lly in th e p e rio d o f 2001 a n 2015; a n d to a c co m p lish the target

O f 5 m illio n s tourisl a rriv als vvith 2 2 in lem atio n al o n e s in the y e a r 2 0 10 M oreover, incorporated in th e tourism d c v e lo p m cn l stratcgy u p to 2015 c ra íle d by Q u a n g N inh

P eople C o m m itte e , it is d e term in ed to m ark et H alo n g lìa y a s o n e o f th c m ain destin atio n s

1 11MD R eport on the results o f H along bay tourism d ev elo p m en t 2007

10

in V ietnam to p ro m o te H alo n g B ay brand a n d im age n atiom vide and w o rld w id c

c lììc ie n tly 2

In o rd c r to a c h iev e th ese ab o v e o b jcc tiv e s, e sp cc ially vvhen M along Bay is in the voting

c o n te st to becom e o n c o f th e nevv sev cn natural h c ritag e s o f thc vvorld by N evv7w onders,

th e region tourism industry as w ell a s th e rclaled o rg a n i/a tio n s and e n tc rp rises still have

m an y th in g s to do, a m o n g vvhich the p ro m o tio n issu e s sh ould bc paid m o re attention

A c c o rd in g to so m e rccen t rep o rts, the p ro m o tio n a c tiv itie s o f H alo n g h a v e been

im p lem e n te d íra g m en ta lly d u e to the lim ited k n o w le d g c a b o u t a n d o p e ra tio n o f

m ark ctin g lla lo n g B ay í'u rth e rm o re , the in su ffic ien t c o o p e ra tio n b c tw e en th e locai tourism a u th o ritie s a n d tra d e s as vvell as b e tw e en th c tourism a u th o ritie s a t local and national level has cau se d th c inco n sisten cy in c o n stru c tin g , im p lem e n tin g a n d m onitoring

th e p ro m o tio n a c tiv ilie s for H along

T his revievv is being carried out against the backdrop o f a trcm endous dynam ic in thc tourism se cto r A s th e n aturc and ch a ra c te ristic s o f th e tourism industry c h an g es, so too

d oes the prom otional e íĩo rts that are designed to sh a p e the m arket need to change In particular, increasing ch o ic e s o f d estin atio n , and in creasin g a c ce ss to in tbrm ation on these

destination choices creatcs nevv challenges in thc pro íìlin g and prom otion o f

p articular destinations T h is rcport tries to ansvver the qucstions rcg ard in g thc prom otional

e lĩo rts for I lalong B ay under a num bcr o f headings:

• G eneral A pproaches to E nhancing th e Prolllc o f I lalong Bay

> T arget m arket “ W h o a rc th e targtít m a rk c t fo r ị la lo n g to u ris m ? ”

> P ro m o tio n al T o o ls

“ W hat havc been d o n e so í'ar to p ro m o te l lalong B ay natio n w id e and

w orldw ide?”

” W hat are the ou tcom es o f these prom otional tools?”

• T o u rísm Prom otion S tructures a n d co o p eratio n issucs

“ W hat are th e m ost effeclive to u rism p ro m otion stru c tu re s for H along

B ay?”

1.2 E xecu tivc su m m ary

1.2.1 T o u rism P rom otion S tru ctu re and C o-op eration

T h e re is a necd to cre a te stro n g e r s y n e rg ie s b e tw e en th e various agencies involved in tourism prom otion so as to cnhance the collective im pact o f their individual efForts on tourism deveiopm ent in H along Bay speciíically

T h e se sy n c rg ie s arc u n lik ely to be c rcated vvithout a d e d ic a te d stru c tu re w o rk in g to co-

o rd in a te th c a c tiv itie s o f th c v a rio u s a g e n c ie s a n d to c n s u re c o m p le m c n ta rity betvveen them

T h e co -o p eratio n plays such a n im portant role in the su c c c ss o f a d e stin a tio n ’s prom otion

In th is situ a tio n o f H alo n g B ay, several ty p e s o f c o -o p e ra tiv e rcla tio n sh ip can be defined:

12

C o - o p e r a tio n b e tw e e n n a tio n a l a n d lo cal to u r is m a u th o r ỉtic s ; a n d b e tw e e n tuurism

a u th o r i ti e s a n d th c tr a d c s

M inistry o f C ulture, S ports and T ourism and V N A T a re the m ost iníluential players in the prom otion o f H along Bay a s a tourist dcstination V N A T has a strong in flu en ce on the

d esign o f all national p ro m o tio n a l c lĩ o r ts , w h ile a t th e s a m e tim e ; it h a s a d ire c t

r e s p o n s ib ility fo r th e prom otion o f th e rcgion as a w hole

A g o o d re la tio n s h ip \vith V N A T is e s p c c ia lly im p o rta n t in p ro v id in g cohesive

m ark etin g o f lla lo n g B ay S tren g th en in g th e rcla tio n sh ip betvveen H along B a y ' tourism

a n d V N A T is n ccessary to im p ro v e th c m a rk e tin g o f th c B ay in b o th

d o m e stic a n d In tern atio n al m ark c ts A c tiv itie s su c h a s a tte n d a n c e at tourism

e x h ib itio n s w ith V N A T c a n lead to sy n e rg ic s in prom otional effo rt G iv en budget lim ita tio n s and th e diíT iculties in m aking an im p act on an in te m a tio n a l level, m ost regional level agencies have sought to gain m axim um bcneíit írom thc V N A T ’s activities

fo r th eir o w n areas

C o -o p e r a tio n w ith th e T ra d e

T radcs are thc indispcnsable stakeholders o f H along B ay ’s tourism A ctually, a great volum e

o f prom otion activates have been im itated by the trading bodies T h e close cooperation betw een tourism authorities and the trades can claim to the su ccess o f the prom otion cam paigns for the Bay W hile their op in io n s a n d ideas should be proccssed, speciíic

m arketing p ro posals in turn a re sub m itted to m e m b e rs o ỉ' the tra d e for its support

E xam ples o f in itia tiv e s c re a te d th ro u g h a c o - o r d in a tio n o f m a rk e tin g ctT ort a n d

f o stc rin g c o -o p e ra tio n w ith in th e to u ris m in d u stry a re shovvn in th c c a se o f A u L ac

C o rp vvhich h a v e h o st m an y b ig c u ltu ra l a n d s p o rts c v e n ts th a t w cre rc g a rd c d a s o n e

o f m o st elT ective p ro m o tio n a l m e th o d s in m a k in g I la lo n g B a y ’ b ra n d m o re an d m ore

o u ts ta n d in g in n a tio n w id c

C o -o p c r a tio n w ith neĨỊỊhboring reg io n s

A s tr o n g r e la tio n s h ip w ith to u ris m a g e n c ie s in n e ig h b o r in g r e g io n s is a ls o

im portant The developm ent o f econom ic triangle H anoi- Mai Phong- Q uang N inh has created th e precious opportunilies for thc tourism cooperation, especially in term s o f prom otion issucs

1.2.2 T a rg et M arkets

T h e d e te r m in a tio n o f th e p r im a ry ta r g e t f o r th e m a r k e tin g a c tiv itie s o f H a lo n g B ay

is c s p c c ia lly c ru c ia l a s th is m a y allovv th e rig h t b u d g c t a llo c a tio n s a s w e ll a s the

s u c c e s s o f th e w h o le p r o m o tio n c a m p a ig n s T h e m a rk e t r e s e a rc h f o r l ỉ a l o n g B ay

h a s r e v e a le d th a t d o m c s tic to u r is ts m a k e u p a m a ịo r ity p r o p o s itio n in th e s tr u c tu r e

o f to u ris t v is itin g th c B a y T h is is tru e f o r s o m e rc a s o n s :

• The do m estic m a rk e t represents a g row ing m ark et w ith increasing sp en d in g pow er

• T h e re is a g row ing tre n d to w a rd s sh o rt break s, o fte n in the national day-ofTs such a s the Ind ep en d cn ce d ay , G io T o H u n g V uong, L a b o r d a y a n d so on

O n the in tem ational m arket, c a re fu lly d e s ig n c d in tern atio n al pro m o tio n al cam paign

h a s thc p o tential to d e liv e r su b stan tial results T his is particularly true if the focus is on som e priority m arkets such as C hina, Japan, K orea, A S E A N countrics and N orth A m erica.1.2.3 P ro m o tio n M e th o d s

T he study considers som e o f the m ain prom otional to o ls used in the industry gcnerally and assesses th e e tĩc c tiv e n e s s o f th e ir use in I lalong B ay c o n te x t T h e v alue o f a n y particular prom otional m ethod clcarly dep en d s on thc p e c u liaritie s o f th e m arket that is bcing

14

Internet

In te rn e t p r o m o tio n is b e c o m in g in c r e a s in g ly im p o rta n t in a ll s u b - s e c to r s o f th e industry T h e rc arc m any Internet sites established vvhich give inform ation to tourists tra v c lin g to I Ialong B ay H ovvever, th c m ạ ịo rity o f th c s e site s a re e ith c r p o o r q u a lity o r lack in g in updatcd in lb rm atio n T h is rcport p ro v id e s g u id e lin e s and reco m m en d atio n s for the c u rre n t and íuturc d ev elopm ent o f the H along tourism site T he key to achicving thc

b en etìts o f Internet prom otion is h av in g a w e ll-d e sig n e d a n d vvell-m aintained w ebsite that

is a ttrac tiv e , in íb rm a tiv e , in te r a c tiv e a n d q u ic k to d o w n lo a d W e ll-d e s ig n e d to u ris m vvcbsites incorporate inform ation a s accurate and d etailed as brochures o r tim ctables, photos a n d graphs and essentially ơ perate as a ‘V irtual T ourist O f f ic e \ Effective sites

a rc u p d ated reg u larly w ith in tb rm atio n reg a rd in g th e H along's tourism P roducts and services, such a s e n te rta in m e n t a v a ila b le e tc T h e w eb sitc should fo cus on the provision o f basic inform ation aim ed at both intcrested tourists as

w ell as th e tourism trade ilself The w cbsite should b c designed so that it can be easily

u p d a te đ b y IT d e p a rtm e n ts It s h o u ld b e linked to related site s o f a c co m m o d atio n s,

e n tc rta in m e n t and other facilities

T h e vvebsite n c e d s to b e ‘p r o íile d ’ eíT ectively s o a s to e n s u re th a t th e site a p p e a rs

p ro m in e n tly in se arc h resu lts on th e m ain search e n g in e s

Prom otional Print

T he use o f prom otional print and cspecially broch u res w ithin th e tourism industry and

H along B ay is w idesprcad I ỉovvever, o u r research indicates thc num ber o f brochures being published is being rcduced and th is trend is likely to continue d u e to the grovvth o f th e

In te rn e t a s a p ro m o tio n a l m e d iu m a n d th c h ig h c o s t a n d h ig h vvastage o f p ro d u cin g

b ro cln ircs N e v e rth c le ss, in ce rtain c a se s , p rin te d m ate ria l m ay b e necessary to support p articular m arketing initiatives e.g ‘p ackages’, ‘spccial oíTers’, etc

Public Relations

Publicity is rccogni/.cd throughout the tourism industry a s an eíTectivc and relatively inexpensive form o f prom otion T his will involve:

• D eveloping a databasc o f contacts w ithin m ed ia contacts

• O rg a n iz in g fam iliariza tio n trip s fo r m c m b e rs o f th e to u rism an d trav el m e d ia to the Bay

• W o rk in g relatio n sh ip s should be d e v e lo p e d w ith m em bers o f local, n a tio n a l and international m edia It is w ell know n that features in m ag azin es a n d ncw spapers constitute an cxtrem ely pow erful prom otional tool Photographs, inform ation and

c o n ta c t inform ation sh o u ld be provided to th c m ed ia to assist th em in rep orting from the B ay

A dvertising

A d v c rtis in g c a n b e a n c x p e n siv e fo rm o f p ro m o tio n a n d , a s s u c h , a n y a d v c rtisin g

u n d e rta k en sh o u ld bc targeted carefu lly R e s c a rc h e s s h o w th at:

• C h o ic c o f pu b lication is very im portant O n a tight prom otional budget, the re tu rn

froin advertising in niche publications is oíten vcry w orthw hile

• R ead ersh ip , c o v e ra g e and co st sh o u ld all be c o n sid e red \vhen d e c id in g on vvhich publicalion to advertise in

• G e n e r a lly , th e c o s t o f p a r tic u la r a d v c r t is i n g a c tiv itie s c a n b e s h a r c d b y th e

m c m b c r s o f th e tra d e w h o s e b u s in c s s is b c in g c o lle c tiv e ly a d v e r tis e d , e g

16

adverlising 'special oíĩers' and 'package deals'.

A d v c r tis in g o n th e In te rn e t is a n in c re a s in g ly p o p u la r p ro m o tio n a l m e th o d ío r th e

w id e g e o g ra p h ic a l c o v e ra g e , th e d u ra tio n o f in tb r m a tio n a n d th e c h e a p p ric e in

c o m p a r is o n vvith o th c r ty p e s o f a d v e rtis in g

Tourism Kxhihitions

O u r r e s c a rc h h a s lo u n d tra d c f a ir s to b e a u s c fu l fo rm o f to u ris m p ro m o tio n fo r

c re a tin g ‘w o rd -o f-m o u th ' reco m m en d atio n s in favor o f a p articu lar d estin atio n T he vvorld

k n o w s m o re about I lalong Bay through thc tourism cx h ib itio n s attendcd by I lalong

M anagem ent Board w ith the su pport o f V N A T a n d M inistry o f C u lture, Sports and

T ourism R epresentatives o f the H M D take part in annual tourism ex h ib itio n s vvorldvvide and individual m em bcrs o f th c trade occasionally p articipatc in sector-speciíic trade fairs

1.3 K cscarch aim s and sign iíĩcan ce

1.3.1 R esearch aim s

T h is rep o rt investigates current tourism prom otional tools used by local and regional auth o rities, and m em bers o f th e trad e in attractin g to u rists to H along B ay It vvill identil'y the prom otional m cthods used, assess th eir effe c tiv en e ss an d efficiency, and m ake rcco m m en d atio n s for future incorporation into p ro m o tio n al activities T h e objectivcs o f the study as below :

a ) T o c r itic a lly a s s e s s th e o v e ra ll a p p r o a c h to p r o m o tio n f o r M a lo n g , a n d th e

p ro m o tio n a l m e th o d s a d o p te d , in te r m s o f im p a c t, c o s t- e ff e c tiv e n e s s an d sustainability, and

b) T o p ro v id e a sm a ll n u m b e r o f to c u s e d re c o m m c n d a tio n s th a t c a n be

efĩe ctiv en e sso fp ro m o tio n al activity in the county 1'or thc Bay.

1.3.2 R e s e a rc h significance

T h e rcscarch results can be used as th c refc re n c e for a n y a d ju stm e n ts o f tourism

d e v e lo p m e n t strateg ies by Q u a n g N inh D ep artm en t o f T o u rism and H N D It g iv e s o u t a

d e ta ilc d a n a ly sis on m ark et study, p ro d u ct d e v c lo p n ic n t and targ ct m ark et o f H along tourism th a t can be em p lo y ed by th e M an ag em en t b o a rd , ta u rism o rg a n iz a tio n s and the

to u rism e n te rp rises in im p ro v in g the p o tcn tia lity o f th e ir p ro m otion a c tiv itie s ’ su c ce ss as

w ell as in m ee tin g th e m arkct dcm and

F u rth crm o re, the research fu lfills thc rcp o rts o f p ro m o tio n a l a c tiv itie s for H alo n g bay up

to thc m id o f 20 08 T h e rec o m m e n d a tio n s a n d le sso n s le a m e d c a n b e íle x ib ly ap p lied in

o th e r d e stin a tio n s to ev a lu a tc the e ffe c tiv en e ss o f th cir p ro m otion a c tiv itie s a n d to com c

u p vvith rea so n a b le upgrade

1.4 T h c sis organi/.ation

T h e th esis c o n sists o f '6 ch a p te rs w ith the c o n te n ts as belovv

C h a p te r 1: R esea rch ap p ro a ch

T h is b e g in n in g c h a p te r g iv es th e ov erall idea ab o u t th e th esis to pic, thc d e v e lo p m en t o f

th e a n a ly sis and th e e x e cu tiv e sum m ary

C h a p te r 2 : R esearch m ethod

T h is c h a p te r presen ts d e ta ile d the m e th o d s em p lo y e d d u rin g th e th e sis con d u cted

C h a p t e r 3 : L i te r a t u r c revictv

T h e c h a p te r s u m m a ri/c s th e c o n cep tu al b a ses th a t th e th e sis relies 011 It com prises the

th eo ries o f D estination m ark etin g an d d e stin a tio n p ro m o tio n

C h a p ter 4 : th e real situ a tỉo n o f p ro m o tio n a l a c tiv itie s o f H a lo n g Bay

18

I his is th e m ain b ody o f th e th esis T he C h a p te r rc v c a ls tho to u risn i d e v c lo p m e n t o f lla lo n g b a y to u rism in th e pcriod o f 2 0 0 1 -2 0 0 8 and then d isc u ssc s in dctail the

p ro m otion a c tiv itie s o f H alo n g bay tourism in ihe sa m e period

C h a p ter 5 : C o n clu sio n s and r cco m m en d a tio n s

C H A P T E R 2

R E SE A R C H M E T H O D O L O D Y

T h e research m ethodology used in fu in ilin g the ab o v e objectives consists o f four steps as belovv

2 1 S tep 1: R esea rch q u cstio n ibrm ation

T o u rism is co n sidered to b e th e p riority e c o n o m ic se ctio n o f Q u a n g N in h p rovince in

g cneral a n d H alo n g City in p articular T h e fact that M along B ay h as tvvice listed as the

W orld N a tu ra l H eritag e h as m ade th c n u m b e r o f to u ris ts v isitin g th e d e stin a tio n increase rapidly lto w e v e r, th c d e v e lo p m en t o f to u rism in the rcgion se e m s to bc un d er its

p o tential The to u rists sim ply knovv ab o u t lla lo n g B ay as o n e o u t o f fivc V ietn am ’s

W orld H e rita g es, rath e r Ihan a s an international S ta n d a rd d e stin a tio n o r a m u st see tourist site T h is fact rev eals the need to review th e p ro m o tio n a l a c tiv itie s and to o ls used by the

pu blic and priv ate se cto rs in m ark e tin g lỉa lo n g B ay T h e Bay c a n n o t ju s t k e e p q uiet and

w a it for to u rist to c o m e an d see; ra th e r it m u st b e th e pull lầ c to r th a t en c o u ra g e s to u rists

to pay a v isit th ro u g h the e íĩe c tiv e p ro m o tio n al c a m p a ig n s for p ro m o tio n is regarded as

th c key o f a n y d estin atio n to th e w orld W ithout the eíT ective p ro m o tio n , to u rists m ay not

b e avvare o f such a beau ty on Earth

O n one h an d , it cannot be d e n ie d th a t to u rism in d u stry in H alo n g has g ained a lot o f

a c h ic v e m c n t in term s o f p ro m o tin g th e site to th e c o u n try and th e \vorld O n the o th er

h an d , it sh ould be ad m itte d that in o rd c r to p u t H a lo n g o n th e International tourism m ap,

m ore a n d m ore eỉYorts a n d fu n d s a re req uired F rom th is p o in t o f co n c ern , the Ih esis is

su p p o scd to tak e H alo n g b a y tourism a s th e o b je c tiv e to do a research on thc issue o f

20

d e s lin a lio n p ro m otion T h e rcsu lts vvithdrawn and th e lcsso n s learned can b c applied ỉle x ib ly in o th cr to u rist sites in V ietnam

Kounded on th is b asis, the th e sis is a p ro g ress to th e ansvvers to the tvvo B1G questions

T h e lìrst One is “ W hat are th c m osl eíTective to u rism p ro m otion stru ctu res to r H along

B ay?”

T h e q u estio n w ill help us to have the d e e p insight into the p ro m otion stru c tu re cm ployed

in lla lo n g All the relevant stakeholđers a rc ex a m in ed to find o u t th eir roles, resp o n sib ilitie s, actual co n trih u tio n s a s w ell as th e m u lti-m u tu al relatio n s am ong them in

p ro m o tin g H alo n g im age a n d brand n atio n w id e a n d w orldw ide B ased on th e results dravvn, th e m ost effc c tiv e structurc is suggestcd to w a rd s a sm ooth cooperation and

e ffìcient task s sharing

T h e scco n d question o f the th e sis is “ W ho are the targ et m arket o f H along B ay ’s tourism ?” ,

p roviding u s the inform ation rcgarding the real situation o f m arkct study for H along, m arkct targeted a n d product positioning T h e dcterm ination o f target m arket is cspecially im portant

to thc selection o f prom otion tools

T h e last a n d biggest question o f the thesis co ncem s about the prom otion tools used by public and private tourism sectors in 1 lalong B ay In o rd er to íìnd out the an sw er to Ihis question, th e tw o sub-questions are raised, detailed “ W hat have becn d o n e so far to prom ote

H along B ay?” and “ W hat a re the outcom es o f thcse prom otional tools?”

T h e lìrst su b question will hclp us to e x am in e every ty p c o f prom otion aclivities applied in

H along B ay T o an sw cr the question thoroughly, thcrc is a deep analysis o f all the prom otion activities, regarding their b en eíit to H a lo n g 's brand and dctailed content vvhen applicd in c a se o f Halong

T h e second one givcs the data on thc rcal o u tcom es oi' prom otion activities for H along Bay

b ased on th e Ibrecasi and actual statistics A lso, a sm all survey w as conductcd to investigate the general attitudes o f tourists to certain prom otion activitics in Halong T he findings will assist in evaluating the prom otion tools subjectivcly and objectively

2 2 S tep 2: S ccondary data

A n e x h a u stiv e rev ie w o f e x istin g d o c u m e n tatio n w a s un d ertak en in o rd e r to assure thc

m ost c c o n o m ic use o f prev io u s research in th e co m p lc tio n o f the study D o cu m cn ts were sourced m ostly from the support o f H M D and the official w cbsite o f Q uan g N inh Province

D epartm ent o f Tourism The data are sought in the period o f seven latest years

7'he lim itation o f the secondary data is claim cd lo the subjective view o f H along

M anagem ent Board and the related bodies M oreovcr, the data are not so updated and insufficient, causing likelihood o f seem -to-be-out-of-date investigation and evaluation

2.3 S te p 3 : P rim ary m cthod

2 3 1 S u rv ey process

S u r v e y o b je c tiv e : D irect su rvey a n d personal intervievvs w ere co n d ư c ted w ith to u rists

a n d re la te d s ta k c h o ld e rs in o rd er to g a th e r inform ation in rclation

• T ourism prom otion m cthods currently utilized for I lalong Ĩ3ay

• T h e to u ris ts ' avvareness o f th e prom otional a c tiv itie s for H alo n g B ay a n d thcir

in flu en ce on th e to u ris ts ' d c c isio n m aking

• S uggestions from trade for im proved tourism prom otion

• C urrent levels o f co-opcration w ithin the tourism industry o f th e county

S u rv ey design :

B ased on th c o b jec tiv e s set a q u e stio n n a ire w as d c sig n c d , c o m p ro m isin g t\vo parts T he lìrst o n e g iv e s th e gcncral p ro llle o f to u rists in term s o f n a tio n a lity , a g e g roup and

g c n d er a n d eđucation level T h e inform ation g ained is very useíiil in in v estig atin g the targ et m ark et o f H along B a y ' tourism The seco n d part c o n sists o f six q u e stio n s referring

th e a ttitu d e s o f to u rists tovvards H alo n g in gen eral an d ce rtain p ro m o tio n a c tiv ity to the

d e g re e o f vvhich o n e tliey a re aw a re o f m ost, th eir e v a lu a tio n a n d w h ich o n e th ey rcly on

m ost

Prctcst: T h e q u e stio n n a ire vvas tested for thc e rro r b efo re it vvas c o n d u c tc d in reality The

tlnal o n e w a s c o m p le te d based on th e e rro r co rre c tio n s

M eth o d o lo g y : T h e su rv ey w a s co n d u c te d b y ih e d ire c t in terv iew in b o th E nglish and

V ietnam ese

S u rv e y con d u ctin g: In o rd e r to gct thc d c sira b lc resu lts, th e resp o n d c n ts w ere selected

random ly 100 c o p ie s o f q u e stio n n a ire w ere d e liv e rc d by five intervievvers to both

d o m estic a n d international to u rists in tw o site s o f B ai C h ay b each (Q u a n g N inh province)

a n d the T e m p le o f L iteratu rc ( H anoi)

2 3 2 L im ita tio n s

T h e su rv e y h a s so m e lim ita tio n s th a t vverc h a rd ly to b e a v o id e d T h e first o n c is thc

o v e rla p o f th e p ro m o tio n a c tiv itie s for H a lo n g b ay , c a u sin g diíT iculties for the

re s p o n d e n ts in tìn d in g th e rig h t a n sw e rs T h e se c o n d o n e is th e sm a ll sa m p le size, vvhich m ay m ake th e su rv e y rcsu lts lim ited

2.4 Step 4 : C onclusions & R econim cndations

[ìased on the know lcdge gathered from th e prev io u s tw o stages, a num her

o t' co n clu sio n s a n d recom m endations are m ade T h e se recom m endations relate to the

in stitu tio n a l a rra n g e m e n ts fo r to u rism p ro m o tio n w a s w cll a s to th e p ro m o tio n a l

m ethods that can bc adopted cost-effectively for the prom otion o f H along Bay

24

C H A PTER 3 LITERATURE REVIEVV

3.1 D estination m arkcting

3.1.1 P la ce as a product

T he em erg ĩn g o f tourism in the turn o f the l&st century created m uch attention to the term

"destination" In short term , “ place” w as considered as a “ product” that can Be sold for protìt T here are m any definitions o f dcstination, varying in scale, point o f vievv and usage; how ever, th e tw o m ost com m on deíìnitions o f destination belongs to the authors Frank

I low ie in M anaging the tourist destination “ D estinations are places that have som c form o f actual o r perceivcd boundary, such as th e physical boundary o f an island, political boundaries

o r even m arket-created boundaries."3

D estination is a type o ỉ'p ro d u ct that incorporates all the Products and services that exist in the place and serv c the dem and o f tourists as vvell as th e reiated beneíits A shw orth and Goodall (1990) claim ed Ihat “T ourist destinations can indeed be treatcd as Products T hey are logically th e point o f consum ption o f the com plex o f activities that com prises the tourist experience and are ultim ately w hat is sold by place prom otion agencies on tourist m arket”4

T he fact o f regarding place as a product is extrem ely im portant in tourism industry as tourism

is an econom ic sector that alvvays seeks for thc p roílt in m arket Tourists com pare this place

to an other before they tak e an holiday somevvhat in the sam e w ay as they are in a superm arket and trying to choose a consum er product on the shclf, this o n e not the othcrs

M oreover, since tourists alvvays choose a destination first, then the speciíic tourist product, it

is ultim ately nccessary to idcntify “th e design o f the right m ix o f features and services, the

developm ent o f an im age that is attractive to the targct m arkct, the dclivery ot' the destination*s Products and services in an accessible vvay and the prom otion o f destination's values and im age so that potential users are íully aw are o f the p la c e 's distinct attractions.

3.1.2 C h aracteristics o f product “ destination”

A lthough seen as a product, the o lĩe rin g o f destination is truly far m ore com plicated than that

o f a com posite product I f som eone says “ I d id n 't e n jo y the m eal” , the product is clear and the hotel or restaurant that served it m ay not see that c u sto m cr again I low ever, if a tourist (or

m ore im portantly a num ber o f them ) says “ I d o n 't c n jo y H along (or H anoi, o r V ietnam ) the challenge to the destination m anager is m uch m ore co m p lex 5 F or a destination consists o f

m any aspects, both tangible and intangible, thai m ake up a truly product o f Ihat place, such as people, atlractions, entertainm ent facililies, hospitality services, food and drink, w eather, political status and so on If onc aspect is not good, it m ay dam agc all the rest ones in m ind o f consum ers, in this case, the tourists

T ourism Products in general, and destination in p articular bear thc four characteristics that

m akc it totally d iíĩere n t from the consum cr ones: intangibility, inseparability, variability and perishability The study on thcse characteristics is deadly im portant as it reveals the approxim atc approach in destination m arketing and prom otion, vvhich w ill be analyzed in the follow ing part o f th is thesis

Intangỉbility:

D estination is a w hole that is m ade up o f by both tangible and intangible elem ents H ow ever,

th ere is a little separation betw een these aspccts F o r instance, a frequently m entioned and

im portant ícature o f m any destinations, "the scenery” is obviously physical feature and it is tangible in the eyes o f tourists, but thc to u r visiting it is ultim ately intangible as the tourists

' Frank H ow ie, M anaging th e tourisl destinalion p 1146

eannot feel it by their ovvn senses b eíorc thcy cn gage in that tour In othcr vvords, tourists cannot try th c destinalion in advance That m cans thcy cannot try a holiday or have a free hotel night in their desired destination tor trial bctbre th ey actually book a room W hat they buy is not that scencry o r hotel room , but the chance to cnjoy the scenery’s bcauty and the riglit to use the hotcl room for a certain period o f tim e.

Service is th e m ajor elcm ent oCthe “ intangibles” o f the dcstination A ccordingly says C ooper

e t al S ervice h a s sp e c itìc ch a rac te ristic s th a t s e r th e p ro d u c t apart from th e m o re g eneral

g o o d s s o ld in th e m ark e t-p lace [ ] e m p h a s is is in c re a sin g ly p laced o n th e Service p ro v id e r to

devolop a d e e p er undcrstanding o f the linkages that correspond to consum cr benefits sought and the nature o f thc Service dclivery system itsel^’

In order to increasc the tangibility o f destination product, the m ost im portant task o f the Service provider and the destination m arketer is to im prove the trust am ong the vvoulđ-be

tourists by the travel hrochures, w ebsites o r through th c inteim ediaries o f travel agents to

consult the tourists

Inscparability:

Tourism pnxlucts arc often consum ed and produced sim ultaneously U nlikc the gcneral goođs so ld , tourism Products cannot be produced, then checked for quality before brought to thc m arket 'ITiat m eans there is less opportunity to pre-check a tourism o r hospitality product

in advance The interaction betw ecn the Service provider and the custom ers is an indispensable part o f the product provided A hotel w ith m odem tầcilities, vvell furbished hotcl room , good vicw , but unusetìil room m aid o r lack o f a n y Service cannot havc good cvaluation from custom ers A lso, this characteristics g iv es an idea about the m utual intlucncc betw een tourism providers and custom ers creating the consum ption o f the tourism Products

Inseparabilily, in addition, m eans thai custom ers arc a part o f the tourism product o r Service

A ctually, not only the tourism providers but custom ers are the producers o f the tourism products In a restaurant, for exam ple., if several custom ers are noisy, that can a íĩe ct all the rest, m aking them fecl annoyed, as a result, thc quality o f that restaurant’s Service decreases

in the ey es o f their custorncrs

V ariability:

That m ea n s tourism Products are not stablc and difficult to cxam ine their quality Quality o f tourism Products and services depends m uch on the producing situation (product providers tim e and place o f product dclivery) T h ere are som e reasons for this instability:

• A s tourism Products and serviccs a rc produced and consum ed at thc sam e tim e, it lim its the pre-check o f the Products’ quality

• T h e instability o f tourism dem and also m akes it d itĩic u lt to provide tourism Products and services w ith high quality in pcak seasons

• T ourism Products’ quality dcpends largely on the providers, Iheir skills, proỉcssionalism , as vvell as their m ood in a specitìc interaction vvith custom ers

• D ue to the variability o r tourism Products, custom ers o r lo u rists o íìe n consult other opinions betore m aking their ovvn decision T h is im plies strategic m ovem ents for the

d estin a tio n m a rk e te rs in th e to u ris m P ro d u c ts’ q u a lity c o n tro l, w h ic h in clu d e the

training o f professional tourism providers a n d the constant evaluation o f the custom ers’ satisíaction through the prom otion cam paigns o r tourists’ satisfaction survey

Perishability:

I h e tourism products o r services not yet b e sold today cannot be reserved until tomorroNV A

28

im iseum , gallery o r thealrc licket o r a hotel room or a tour on rainy day vvhich is not soldrcprescnls lost to íhe operator A ctually, a hotcl w ith 100 room s has the room occupancy o f80% perccnt in o n e day, but cannot expoct the lìgure to be 120% in the tbllovving day A bcauty spot, for instance, can gain m axim um proíìts in a crovvđed day, but cannot have dissatisíìed tourists com e back in ncar future w ithout the approxiniately prom otion activities

A consequence o f pershability is the seasonality o f destinations w ith represcnts a m ajor challenge to thc destination m arketers T here are so m e stratcgic solutions to balance the tourism supply and dem and in so m e speciíic tim es

s R cgarding tourism dem and:

• DiíTenciating price to sw itch d e m a n d from peak scasons to the low ers seasons

• In som e pcak seasons, there sh ould b e m ore tourism P ro d u cts andservices in o rd er to incrcase th e choice for the tourísts “still on thequeue”

• U tilizing effectively thc dem and control m ethods such thc reservation system in hotels

s R egarding tourism supply:

T he tourism providers can incrcase thcir supply cap acity in peak seasons by em ploying contem porary o r part tim e staff M oreover, they can encouragc tourists to participate in the tourism product delivery a s vvell as expand their Products and services

3.1.3 M a rk etin g and tourist’s dcstination

N o m atter hovv good thc planning, developm ent an d m anagem ent o f a place is, unless tourists know w hat it has to o íle r and belicve- o r can be pcrsuadcd to believe- that it is w orth visiting,

it vvill rem ain a place vvith m ercly the potential to b eco m c a tourist dcstination M oreovcr, the íầct that to u rists oílen choose destination íirst then the spccilìc Products and services im plies the increasing role o f destination inarketing in thc global tourism industry M iddleton (1988) refcrred to th e com bination o r rcsources and services provided by a destination as the ‘'total tourism product” latcr defining tourism m arketing as th e “total m arkct retlccting the dem and

o f custom ers for a w idc range o f travel related products”7 In short, destination m arketing is detìn ed as a kind o f m arketing vvhich m arkct tourist destinations

A s discussed above, tourism Products o r destination cannot bc treatcd as general goods sold

as they havc speciíìc characteristics that need m ore co n cem in term s o f niarketing The biggest challcnge is the issue o f'“dcm arketing’' T ourists o r consum ers o f p laces rushing to a placc in a particular tim e m ay iníluence the experience o f the place in the future Kurtherm ore, the crow ds o f tourists in pcak seasons can rcsult in the dissatislầction am ong thc present tourists due the dam age causcd by thc v isito r pressure such as physical dam age, social/ cultural dam age or annoyance to the local residents T h is requires destination

m arketers to adjust thcir destination strategy in a given tim e in o rd er to m aintain the annual total o f visitor num bcr w hile decrease the dissatisfaction am ong tourists in peak scasons by

sw itching the dem and ỉrom the peak seasons to the lovvers o r shoulder seasons

3.1.4 O b ịcctiv es and b en eíits o f destination m arketing

T he ob jectiv es and benetits o f dcstination m arkcting sh ould be seen in both tìnancial and non lìnancial term s Private tourisni sectors do destination m arkcting for their ow n o rg an i/atio n s’ proíìt a s th c m ain target Hovvcver, public sectors go beyond ju s t attracting a s m any tourists

to destination as possible T hey concern m ore about th e non íìnancial obịectives tow ards the sustainable developm ent o f the tourist destination that beneíits all the stakeholders such as

7 M iddleton, M arketing in Travel and T ourism , 1994

tourists, loeal resiđents, tourism entcrprises and local authoritics T he objectivcs o f the destination m arketing carried ou t hy public scctors m ight include:

• Im proving the im age o f a destination

• P roviding jo b s for local rcsidents

• Increasing the range o f íacilities that are available to r the local com m unity

• Cìiving local rcsidcnts the pride in their local arca, w hich can happcn vvhen pcople see

th a t tourists vvant to visit their region

• P roviding a rationale and funding for im provem ents to the local e n v iro n m e n t; and

• T rying to m ake thc destination politically m ore acccptable

3.1.5 R oles o f dcstination m arkcting o rg a n i/a tio n s (D M O s)

D estination m arketing organizations are deíìn ed as govem m ent agencies, conveníion, visitor bureaus, travel associations and o th er bodics that m arket travel to their perspective destination areas The cxpansion o f tourism around th e w orld, on one hand, brings nevv opportunities for destination m arketing, in the other hand, leads to a dilution o f established destination identities and to increased com petition am o n g em ergent tourism destinations

T heretbre, roles o f D M O s as the leading agency in m arketing destination have been

c m p h a si/c d ever A place Processing potential resources to bccom e a appealing tourist destination, but lacking an organization acting as the body to m arket, prom ote, advertise, sell and provide intbrm ation, still rcm ains as a hidden destination that is blu r in the tourism

m arket nationally and intem ationally

In regional and city level, role o f D M O s is very grcat A s the m arketing activities carried out

b y private tourism entcrprises are often fragm ented, overlapped and lack o f the oriental

ihem e, it rcquires Ihe intervcntion o f an D M O that acts as the leading agency for the place

m erely a hidden beauty T he tasks o f inform ing tourists, m aking them avvare, have them believe bclong to functions o f prom otion

In destination m arkcting, S im on H udson define prom otion as reaching prospcctive visitors via expcnditure on a prom otional m ix intendcd to achieve destination avvareness and inAuencc prospective cu sto m ers' attitudes and purchasing behaviour; a traditional approach

to destination m arketing8 In general prom otion in tourism can b e a short-tcnn activity, but also, w hen seen at a strategic level, it is m id- and long-term investm ent aim ed at building up

a consistcnt and credible corporate o r destination identity

In the tourism and hospitality sectors, w here the product is a “Service” prom otion is m ore vital than o th er Industries The tourism product is also a discretionary (optional) product,

w hich will bc com peting for both the custom er’s tim e an d m oney against essential ilem s o f cxpenditure and other discretionary purchases T h e se 5 attributes "intangible",

"insepurable", "variable”, "períshable" and "discretionary" m ean that the skill in tourism

K S im on Mudson, D cstination M arketing, p.404

prom olion lies in crcating the perceivcd value o f the product through prom utional vvords,

im ages and sounds

T he p o ssib le o b jec tiv e s for d e stin a tio n p ro m otion m ay inclu d e the follow ing:

B u ild A v v aren ess - T h e dcstination m ark eters plan to p ro m o te d e stin a tio n to a totally new m ark et, vvhich m ean s initial p ro m o tio n al e ffo rls m u st fo cu s on e sta b lish in g an idcntity

In th is situ a tio n the m ark e te r m u st fo cus p ro m o tio n to : 1) e íĩe c tiv e ly reach m o st potential

w o u ld -b e to u rists, and 2) tell the m ark et w h o th cy a re a n d vvhat th ey h a v e to offer

C r e a te I n t e r e s t - M o ving a potential to u rist from a w a re n e ss o f a d e stin a tio n lo p ay in g a visit can p resen t a sig n iíic a n t ch allen g e T h e p ro m o tio n focus sh ould b e on niche

m ark e ts such as cu ltu rally d riv en to u rists, sports to u ris ts o r beach savvy o nes, vvhich

m ean s a ffe c tin g thtí e m o tio n , liTestyle and p e rso n a lity o f tourists

P ro v id e In ĩo rm a tio n - The íour characteristics o f d e s tin a tio n as a product "intangible",

“inseparabỉe”, “variable", "perishable" insist that th e p ro m otion cam p a ig n s provide

to u rists w ith th e a u th e n tic ity o f the d e stin a tio n A n y o v e r claim ed in fo rm atio n can cause

d issa tisfac tio n am ong tourists

S tim u la tc D e m a n d - T h e right p ro m o tio n can d riv e p o ten tia l to u rists to be real ones

P rom otion p ro v id e to u rists vvith th e right rea so n s to v isit th e d e stin a tio n by th e prom otion

ca m p a ig n s such a s th e lovver to u r p a c k ag e p ric e o r th e h o lid ay s on the special o ccasio n s

o f festiv a ls o r carnivals

R e in ĩo r c e th e B rand - A ttractin g to u rists ỉs dirtlcult, yet m ak in g th cm tu rn back is m ore

and m o re c h a llen g in g B eside the co n sta n t d iv c rs itlc a tio n o f'to u rism o ffe rin g s and Service

lỊuality im p ro v em en t, roltí o f pro m otion is o f such im p o rtan t in o rd c r to p e rsu a d e to u rists

A dvertising involves the u se o f m ass C o m m u n ic a tio n s m edia to in ilu en c e ex isting o r

p o te n tia l co n su m e rs' a ttitu d e s o r b e h a v io rs tovvard a p ro d u ct o r S ervice It uses a v a r ie t y

o f m e d i a s u c h a s : n e w s p a p c r s , m a g a z in e s , r a d i o , d ir e c t m a il, o u t d o o r billboards and television

Pub lic R elations

Public relations includc all activities designed to cn h an ce and m aintain tầvorable com m unication w ith a variety o f target groups M any p e o p le are strongly iníluenccd in thcir

ch o ice o f destination, accom m odation and transport by the h o liday program s they sec

on television, and the revievvs they read in the liĩesty les sections o f daily and vveekend new spapers A s such, tourism prom oters a re m aking increasing eíTorts to inAuence m edia coveragtí o f particular tourist destinations o r tourism products

Promotional Print

T h e r e is a h u g e v o l u m e o f p r o m o tio n a l m a te r ia l p u b l is h e d in th e to u r is m in d u s tr y

th a t i n c l u d e s p r o m o tio n a l b r o c h u r e s a n d tourism guidebooks B rochures are oftcn a

m ain s o u rc e o f in íbrm ation at to u rist o rtìc e s and v ario u s to u rist attractio n s and are also in

34

th e m a r k e ti n g o f d c s tin a tio n s a t c x h ib itio n s a n d tr a d e la irs G u id c b o o k s a r e a particularly im portant publication for thc tourism sector.

P e rs o n a l S ellin g /T o u ri.sm E x h ih itio n s

T h e m o s t p ro m in e n t porsonal se llin g tool in th e to u rism se c to r is to u rism tra d e tầirs a n d

e x h ib itio n s T o u r is m e x h ib itio n s o f f e r th e s tr o n g a d v a n ta g e o f fa c e -to -fa c e

in te ra c tio n b e tw e e n tDurism a g e n ts a n d c a n b e a c o s t-e rtc c tiv e m e a n s o f rea c h in g

c u s to m e rs T h e e x h ib itio n o ffe rs th c o p p o rtu n ity to c o n d u c t a lot o f b u sin c ss very quickly and eíĩcctively

I n t e r n e t -b a s c d m a r k e tin g to o ls

T h e a p p lic a tio n o f nevv inform ation a n d co m m u n ic a tio n tec h n o lo g ie s has d ram atically

b ro adcncd p e o p le ’s a c c e ss to in to rm a tio n ab o u t trav el o p p o rtu n itie s a n d has had a m ạịor

im pact on th c trav el a n d tourism in d u stry T h e W T () d e scrib es th e vveb a s the “ ideal

ch a n n cl fo r p ro m otion o f d e stin a tio n s"

T h e re a re a v ariety o f a g e n c ie s w h o se pro m o tio n al a c tiv itie s affect th e d e v elo p m en t o f

to u rism o f H alo n g B ay O n a national level, th e p ro m o tio n o f H alo n g a s an o u tstan d in g

to u rist d e stin a tio n is prim arily th e re sp o n sib ility o f V N A T A t a regional level, a sim ilar

re sp o n sib ility is b o m c by Q u a n g N in h A d m in istra tio n o f C u ltu re , S p o rts and T ourism

a n d H M D W ithin H alo n g c ity itself, th e rc a re a n u m b er o f o rg an iz atio n s w hose

p ro m o tio n al a c tiv itie s affect th e d e v e lo p m en t o f to u rism o f th e B ay T h e se inclu d e p u blic

a u th o ritie s , n o n -g o v em m en ta l o rg a n i/a tio n s a n d th e trad e itself F inally local tourism Iradc m e m b e rs u n d e rta k e a sig n iílc a n t a m o u n t o f to u rism p ro m o tio n a c tiv itie s each year

T h e a c tiv itie s o f all o f th e ab o v e are ev alu a te d in th e n e x t ch apters

C H A P T E R 4

T H E R E A L S1T U A T IO N O F P R O M O T IO N A L A C T IV IT IE S O F H A L O N G BAY

A n cvaluation o f tourism prom otional tools requircs an understanding o f the tourism product

in th e location under review T h is ch ap ter describcs thc m ain features o f the tourism industry

o f H along B ay T hen it vvill continue to cvaluate thc m ain prornotional tools used in Halong Bay by various pub lic authoritics, relatcd agencics an d by the trade itselí

4.1 Fact sh eet o f H along Bay

4.1.1 H alon g Bay a t a glancc

4.1.1.1 G eographical location

H along B ay is located in the N ortheast o f Vietnam , belonging to Q uang N inh Province It is

in the Coastal area stretching from 1060 56 ’ to 1070 37 ’ e a st lo n g itu d ea n d 2 00 4 3 ' to 210 0 9 ' north latitude T o the vvest and northvvest, H along B ay stretches from Y en I lung D istrict, and includcs th e large urban areas o f H along C ity and C am P ha Tovvn, as vvell as Van Don Island District T o the South and southeast, it is adịacent to the w cstem T onkin G ult and to the w est and southvvest lays C at B a Island in the province o f Hai Phong O n the w orld m ap, H a Long Bay b o rders to C h in a in the north and in the east it is adjacent to the [ỉast S ea 9

In 1962, th e M inistry o f C ulture and lnform ation classiíied lla lo n g Bay as a National

L andscape Site, covcring an area o f 1,553 km 2 w ith 1,969 islands H along Bay has been recognized tw ice by U N E SC O as a VVorld H eritage A rea for its universal values o f landscape, geology and geom orphology, respectively in 1994 and 2000, an area o f 4 34 sq

km including 775 islands

4.1.1.2 P opulation o f th e Bay

9 w w w halong.org.vn

36

T h e lotal population o f the Bay is about 1,600 people, inhabiting m ainly in four tìshing

c o m m u n es o f C u a V an, Ba l lang, C ong T au and V ung V ieng (bclonging to H ung T hang Prccinct Ila lo n g city) T hey livc on lloating houses and boats and m ake their livelihood by lìshing and aquaculturc

A long thc s e a coats live the residents o f H along C ity, C am Pha Tovvn, Van Don Island District and C at B a Island o f lla ip h o n g City

4.1.1.3 T h e sy sten i o f islan d s and ea v es

M o st o f th e islands on H a I.ong B ay a re lim esto n e an d vvere ỉb rm e d o v e r 5 00 m illion

y e a rs a g o W ithin th c islands o f the B ay th ere a re h u n d re d s o f beautiful c a v e s o f different

sh a p es and sizes, inclu d in g rnany fam o u s n a m e s such a s T hien C ung, D au G o , S u n g Sot, Tam C u n g a n d B o N au S o in e o f them a re a rc h a e o lo g ic al sites reta in in g tangible

a rc h a e o lo g ic al e v id en cc, such a s D au G o, B o N au, S u n g Sot, Soi N hu, T ie n Long, M e

C u n g , a n d T rin h N u caves

4.1.1.4 O u tstanding values o f H along Bay

A esthetic valu e

T h e p e rm a n en t b eauty o f I la L o n g is c reated by th re e íầctors: sto n e, w a te r a n d sky Ha

L o n g ’s island system is m u ltic o lo re d w ith a variety o f sh a p es a n d can be rcgarded a s a

w a te r-c o lo r, a vvork o f art The islands, scattercd all ro u n d , h a v e dilTerent sh ap es w hich

p ro v o k e th e im agination: D inh H uong (In cen sc B u m e r) im p lies spiritu al sig n iíìc a n ce , G a

C h o i (P ig h tin g C o c k s) th e Symbol o f V iet N am to u rism , C on C oc (T o a d ) recalls the

p a ssa g e o f tim e, vvaiting th o u sa n d s o f y e a rs to se e k ju s tic e in H eaven T h e re are islands

that rc se m b lc a resp lc n d en t throne, a V ietn am ese m o th e r’s cu rv e d b a c k c a rry in g her

c h ild , a ro o f, an o ld m an, a hum an head and so o n 1"

W ithin th e b ig g e r islan d s a re g reat a ttractio n s D au G o C a v e (W o o d en S ta k es) d a z zle s the

se n se s vvith m an y h u g e sta la ctitc s h a n g in g po ised in m id a ir and sta la g m ite s g row ing

m ạ ịe stic a lly upvvards T hen th erc is T hien C u n g G ro tto (H eav en ly P alace) w ith its sm all, narrovv e n tra n ce , but inside looking like a m arv elo u s palace, an d m any o th e r c a v es each

h as its ovvn attractio n s a n d beauty

T h e C u ltu r a l - H isto rica l v a lu c

I lalo n g B ay is a hom c o f a n cien t V iet people

S o i N h u C u ltu re: lasted from 18.000 to 7 ,0 0 0 y e a r a g o , co n c cn tra te d in H alo n g B ay and

B a itu lo n g B ay areas T h e typical arch aeo lo g ical re m a in s o f th is cu ltu re c a n still be found

at M e C u n g , T ien O n g a n d T hien L.ong an d inclu d e a rch aeo lo g ical s e a sh e lls and fresh

sh ells, so m e fresh w a te r m o llu scs a n d sim p le w o rk to o ls

C a i b co C u l t u r e : (f'rom 7 ,000 to 5 ,000 y ears ag o ) is the link betvveen Soi N h u C u lture

a n d H alo n g C u ltu res W ithin the H alo n g a re a so m e relics from th is c u ltu re have been

to u n d a t site s such a s G iap K hau a n d H a G ian Cai B eo a rch aeo lo g ical relics have proved that o u r a n c esto rs a d a p te d to th e m arin e e n v iro n m en t so o n e r than b eliev ed , d e v e lo p in g a

g reat c u ltu re vvhich co n v e rg e d w ith m any o f the c h a ra c te ristic s o f o th e r V ie tn a m ese and

th e S o u th e ast A sian cu ltures

G eo lo g ic a l valu e

H alo n g B ay ’s g eo logical v a lu c h a s been ev alu a te d in tw o w ays: by the histo ry o f its

fo rm atio n a n d by its karst g eo m o rphology

10 w w w halone.org.vn

38