Creative ways to promote your business

The MoU focused on setting up a climate-resilient agricultural value chain and aims to develop human resources for agricultural development and investment promotion, particularly through Japanese cultural exchanges and language training.

Under the MoU, a working group composed of members from the public sector, enterprises and civil society organisations in the province will be organised.

Currently, the JICA has been assisting Ben Tre with infrastructure projects under loan projects. One of the projects includes Ben Tre Water Management, which is tackling climate-change effects such as saltwater intrusion and shortage of freshwater by building water sluice gates and other facilities.

In addition, the JICA has also provided consultancy in agricultural development policies.

Nguyen Thi Bich Van

In early 2021, on its Facebook page, IBM Vietnam for the first time announced the appointment of a female Vietnamese CEO to replace a foreign CEO who had been working for IBM for 25 years.

The woman, Pham Thu Diep, is the first IBM’s ‘female general’ in the company’s 25 years of operation in the Vietnamese market.

It is now more common to see women managing large corporations in Vietnam such as Mai Kieu Lien, CEO of Vinamilk; Nguyen Thi Nga, president of BRG; Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, CEO of Vietjet; and Le Thi Thu Thuy of VinFast are some of the names.

However, becoming a CEO of a foreign invested technology firm is still rare in Vietnam.

Before taking the office as CEO of a technology firm, Diep was a high ranking manager with 23 years of experience in the IT field. Starting her career at TRG International, she later held posts at Exact, which provides ERP service and cloud software to clients specializing in accountancy.

Diep joined IBM in early 2011 and has had many leadership positions since then.

In 2017, a Vietnamese woman became the highest ranking leader of Unilever Vietnam, a foreign invested enterprise specializing in personal and family care products and food. The first Vietnamese female president of the leading company in the FMCG sector is Nguyen Thi Bich Van, who has had a strong attachment to the company for the last 24 years.

Le Diep Kieu Trang is another well known name among businesswomen. She worked as CEO of Facebook and Go-Viet before choosing a new way to go.

The ‘golden girl’ with respectable achievements during school has had leadership positions at the world’s largest groups in Vietnam.

The brilliant achievements gained by VietJet Air, the air carrier with the largest market share, in the last decade bear the hallmark of CEO Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao. Last year Vietjet was one of only a few air carriers in the world which did not lay off workers and also made a profit, despite the Covid-19 crisis.

After a period of holding the post of CEO at Fossil Vietnam, Trang chose Facebook to use her experience to connect to the business community, both in Vietnam and overseas.

Global vision

Van said in Forbes Vietnam that being a leader in a multinational environment requires a high level of professionalism. She needs to understand multinationals’ vision and define their role in the multinationals’ business.

The working environment at multinationals is very diverse, so there is high requirement on the ability to work, communicate, and think in that environment. To encourage people to raise good ideas, leaders not only need to understand national cultures, but also understand the abilities of each worker so as to combine their talents and lead the staff to the finish point.

According to Van, this is not an easy work, because the more talented people there are, the more difficult it is for the team to reach a common purpose. In modern times, CEOs need to not ‘issue orders from the top down’, but ‘serve others’. They need to set orientation and then give power to workers to implement the strategies.

Some important positions at foreign corporations were and are held by Vietnamese women. These include Nguyen Phuong Anh, who worked as Google Asia Pacific marketing director in charge of the Vietnamese market; and Nguyen Mai Phuong, who became the youngest branding director of Unilever at the age of 24.

Vietnamese businesswomen also play an important role in the development of Vietnamese enterprises.

The brilliant achievements gained by VietJet Air, the air carrier with the largest market share, in the last decade bear the hallmark of CEO Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao. Last year Vietjet was one of only a few air carriers in the world which did not lay off workers and also made a profit, despite the Covid-19 crisis.

Thao has been included in Bloomberg’s list of 50 global influential leaders for many years. Thao is also chair of the board of directors and founding shareholder of Sovico Holdings, and deputy chair of HDBank.

In the manufacturing sector, Le Thu Thuy, president of VinFast, is a respectable name. Just within a short time, VinFast introduced its first two products – LUX A2.0 sedan series and LUX SA2.0 SUV at Paris Motor Show 2018. Most recently, its first three SUV smart electric cars were launched.

The great strides made by VinFast has created a stronger belief in the future of Vietnam’s automobile industry. This is the first time in history that a Vietnamese company can manufacture luxury cars with good design and high quality, to be sold in Vietnam and in the world market as well.

V. Ha

The campaign will take place from October 2020 to the end of January 2021 and is aiming to promote images of Ho Chi Minh City and encourage every Vietnamese person to travel within Vietnam and every citizen of Ho Chi Minh City to discover the beauty of where they live.

The campaign has been divided into two main phases. The first phase will focus on introducing the image of Ho Chi Minh City – a safe, lively and friendly city. The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism HAS also implemented many activities such as organising an Ao Dai (Vietnamese traditional long dress) Festival, and signing a cooperation agreement on safe,attractive tourism between Ho Chi Minh City and provinces in the Southeast region as well as Binh Thuan province.

In the second phase, the campaign is expected to promote the official identity of Ho Chi Minh City tourism and organise activities to link and promote tourism. Some typical activities will include: Conferences linking Ho Chi Minh City region with provinces in the Northwest, Northeast and Central regions; and the Techcombank Ho Chi Minh City International Marathon.

In addition, the tourism industry of Ho Chi Minh City will continue to boost the promotional activities and communication channels of international tourism organisations such as the Tourism Promotion Organisation for Asian-Pacific Cities (TPO), the Asian Federation of Exhibition and Convention Associations and the International Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), of which Ho Chi Minh City is a member.

According to Vo Thi Ngoc Thuy, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, in order to restore tourism activities in the city after the “hit” of the COVID-19 pandemic, “Hello Ho Chi Minh City” is considered as the pioneering activity in a series of events and programmes to promote the city’s tourism brand as identified in the Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Development Strategy to 2025 and vision to 2030.

In addition, “Hello Ho Chi Minh City” will be one of the most important activities aimed at realizing the goal of building Ho Chi Minh City into Asia’s leading lively tourist city where visitors can experience different the values of local cultural heritage and lifestyle in a safe, smart city; bringing inspiration and emotion to every journey.

Located nine kilometres from the centre of Buon Ma Thuot city, Kontam tourist site is an attractive destination for tourists, particularly at weekends and public holidays.

Covering a total area of 17 hectares and hosting magnificent hills, mountains, waterfalls, springs, valleys, and accommodation facilities imbued with the typical culture and architecture of the E De ethnic group, Kotam welcomes more than 400,000 tourists every year.

According to Deputy Director of Dak Lak provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism Dang Gia Duan, the launch of the Kontam tourist site has contributed to preserving and promoting the distinct culture of the Central Highlanders while reducing poverty and generating income for local ethnic minority people.

The successful tourism model was made possible thanks to a joint effors of a group of five female entrepreneurs five years ago. They are Nguyen Thi Ngoc Anh, Nguyen Thi Hue, Nguyen Thi Phuc Minh, Vu Thi Xoan and Doan Uyen Thao, directors of five companies operating in trading, processing and exporting agricultural products, honey and mechanical equipment.

The quintet are also enthusiastic members of the Dak Lak Female Entrepreneurs club, headed by Nguyen Thi Ngoc Anh, which has actively participated in charity activities in the locality.

They came up with the idea of building a model which can help locals reduce poverty in a sustainable way. The Kotam ecological site was born, surrounded by the E De ethnic people’s villages, including Pak, Kotam, Krong A, and Krong B.

As the owner of Quang Anh Trade Ltd. Co, one of the top companies with the highest revenues in Dak Lak, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Anh was appointed the Director of the Kontam Community-based Tourism Joint Stock Company.

Not long after its launch, the Kontam company had attracted 35 members from the Dak Lak Female Entrepreneursclub , who poured a large investment into the construction of the tourist site.

Traditional long stilt houses of the E De ethnic people at the Kontam tourist site (Photo: Vietnam Pictorial)

According to Ngoc Anh, from the beginning, the project team has kept in mind that the ultimate goal of the project is to protect the environment and pristine beauty of the natural landscape while honouring the cultural identity of the Central Highlanders.

Therefore, the traditional long stilt houses of the E De ethnic people were constructed at the site and all staff members at the site wear an E De ethnic brocade uniform.

Thanks to its amazing scenery and landscapes, Kotam quickly became an alluring tourist complex for visitors from across the country.

Nguyen Thi Hue, a member of the Board of Directors of Kotam Community-based Tourism Joint Stock Company, said that the tourist site has the huge advantage of food self-sufficiency, providing tourists with a fresh and clean source of vegetables, meat, and fruit.

Visitors to the site can taste the delicious indigenous dishes of the Central Highlanders, including papaya flowers cooked with fish, grilled snakehead fish, pork grilled in bamboo tubes, and chicken salad with banana flowers.

When the COVID-19 pandemic saw complicated developments in the province, Kotam staff members donated quintals of vegetables to those working at the front lines against the pandemic.

In an effort to welcome back vacationers in the post-COVID-19 period, the tourist site has coordinated with training facilities on tourism services, hotels and restaurants to improve the skills of staff members.

Promotional activities have also been launched to further advertise the site to travel agencies and tourist companies.

Built with both enthusiasm and love for the homeland of the five female entrepreneurs, the Kotam tourist site has contributed to upholding traditional culture as well as boosting socio-economic development in Dak Lak province.

The programme, themed “Seven localities – attractive and safe tourism”, will be implemented by Ho Chi Minh City and six other provinces including Ba Ria – Vung Tau, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Dong Nai and Tay Ninh.

Under the programme, the localities will enhance their cooperation to effectively promote and explore tourism products as well as stimulation activities such as the reduction of prices for accommodation services, entrance fees and vouchers for tourists attractions.

In Lao Cai province, Sapa is one of the destinations pioneering the second tourism stimulation initiative with a programme entitled “I Love Sapa”.

Accordingly, Sun World Fansipan Legend is applying the programme “Love Vietnam” with a free buffet lunch worth VND200,000 for tourists buying cable car tickets to the top of Fansipan mountain or a return ticket on the Muong Hoa train worth VND100,000 on all weekdays from now until the end of December.

In addition, Sapa town will welcome visitors with unique art performances by local artists.

In the near future, huge discounts and promotions will be offered by a series of travel businesses, hotels and restaurants in the town.

However, the locality will continue to strictly implement measures to prevent and control the epidemic.

Da Nang has been the locality most affected by the second COVID-19 outbreak in late July. Once the epidemic was brought under control, the city’s tourism sector launched the campaign “Da Nang misses You” campaign to attract tourists.

Ho Chi Minh City also has a programme themed “Hello Ho Chi Minh City” to introduce the image of a safe, dynamic and friendly city. Accordingly, tickets to tourist attractions and tourism service providers have been reduced.

Meanwhile, Quang Ninh province issued a stimulation package worth around VND100 billion; offered a 50% discount on tickets to destinations in Ha Long Bay, entrance fees to famous sights and selected accommodation in the locality.

On the occasion, Binh Thuan and Khanh Hoa provinces have also developed many new tourism products as well as expanding their stimulation programmes to attract more visitors.