'I came to Vietnam for 3 days but drank 7 cups of coffee'

Dr. Prita Kemal Gani, President of the ASEAN Public Relations Network, shared: "I stayed in Vietnam for 3 days but drank 7 cups of coffee." From there, she asked the question, why doesn't Vietnam promote its destination through coffee and cuisine to international tourists?

At the workshop on destination marketing organized by the Vietnam Public Relations Network (VNPR) within the framework of the Ho Chi Minh City International Tourism Fair ITE 2023 held on September 8, the issue of promoting and increasing the recognition of Vietnam's destinations, and what options to do this, was raised by Dr. Prita, from Indonesia, and experts. They shared the same view that Vietnam can promote its cuisine to international tourists, in addition to its landscape, culture and history.

Thailand is again cited as an example of successful destination promotion based on the country's strengths. Dr. Nutthaboon Pornrattanacharoen, representative of the Public Relations Association of Thailand, said that after the pandemic, Thailand changed its destination promotion strategy, enhancing new recognition in many different forms, through different information channels called "Amazing Thailand - Amazing New Chapters". In which, Amazing Thailand is the old slogan of Thai tourism, and Amazing New Chapters is the post-pandemic addition (roughly translated: Thailand - An exciting new chapter).

In this new chapter of promotion, Thailand uses the country's "soft power" of cuisine and martial arts (Muay Thai) as a foundation. A series of activities are organized to promote such as trips for travel agents, with media, social networks... "For Vietnam, it is necessary to direct tourists to cultural and culinary experiences. At the same time, it is necessary to restore tourist confidence after the pandemic, develop niche markets to attract more visitors, continue to connect with tourists...".

International visitors to Vietnam mainly travel on their own.

The post-pandemic destination promotion strategy is posing many challenges for Vietnamese tourism because there are too many changes. Mr. Dang Manh Phuoc, Director of Outbox, a company specializing in tourism data, commented that the tourist market has changed. The most noticeable of which is the explosion of individual tourists (self-sufficient travelers) and policies, development strategies, and destination marketing also need to change to suit this new trend.

Outbox data shows that: For domestic visitors, the trend of independent travelers has also shifted strongly. In 2021, 70.9% of Vietnamese visitors chose to travel independently and 29.1% through tours of travel agencies; by 2022, these figures were 84.5% and 15.5%, respectively; in the first half of 2023, 81.2% of Vietnamese visitors traveled independently.

For international tourist markets, independent travel has long accounted for a large proportion. For example, in nearby markets of Vietnamese destinations such as Taiwan, independent travel accounts for 76.5%, South Korea 81.9%, Japan 80.8% in 2022.

This is a sign that, according to Mr. Phuoc, the old approaches to tourists need to change, no longer focusing on B2B (business to business) but on B2C (business to tourist). Domestic tourism businesses need to focus on individuals, have more personalized products, make more use of data, and that is a big challenge for the Vietnamese tourism industry in the coming years.

In addition, according to Outbox data, after the pandemic, tourists are also looking for tourist destinations with more options, closer and better value for money. This is reflected in tourism statistics that Vietnam welcomes more visitors from Asian markets such as Korea, Japan, Taiwan, China, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, etc.

Sharing the same view with Mr. Dang Manh Phuoc, Mr. Nguyen Chau A, Director of Oxalis Adventure, said that domestic tourism businesses have not kept up with the changes of tourists after the pandemic, while still focusing on the B2B approach. To switch to B2C, it is best to invest in products, optimized content, a good booking system and an effective product marketing strategy to attract customers to their platform/website to book tours and services. On the State management side, it is necessary to perfect visa policies, digitize and help customers access easily without having to go through service companies. At the same time, focus on promoting destination awareness in potential markets through large and long-term promotional projects in those markets.

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/toi-den-viet-nam-3-ngay-nhung-uong-7-bua-ca-phe-185230908135253253.htm