Practical operations
The Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (VIETRADE) has worked in recent months with AFD on a project to improve VIETRADE’s ability to help SMEs in export promotion. The project’s objective is to better Vietnam’s trade promotion, including market information analysis and approach, application of modern and efficient trade promotion methods for export activities, branding and marketing.
Based on the advice of AFD experts, the ministry will intensify its assistance for businesses in specific sectors so they can make use of the project, said VIETRADE Director Vu Ba Phu.
According to Nguyen Thi Thu Thuy, Deputy Director of VIETRADE’s Export Promotion Center, project participants are working together to build customer administration databases, which can be shared with local trade promotion agencies and businesses.
Experts’ recommendations
According to Cecile Delettre, head of innovative communication - partnership - social media for global brands, Business France, businesses should post their information in the forms of images and video on such major social networks and websites as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube and conduct electronic commerce through Alibaba, Lazada, Amazon, and EBat to increase sales and reach more customers.
Pascale Lariviere, communication and branding specialist, Business France, said at the conference that VIETRADE should help businesses in national branding to optimize export promotion services. Vietnam National Branding is the only government program for building and promoting Vietnam’s image through brands of enterprises and products. Over the past 15 years, the program has helped many companies carve out a niche in export markets. However, the program requires changes in core values and strategies, for example, appointing brand ambassadors to promote products and services, and more importantly connect product brands to highlight the connection values.
The project to improve VIETRADE’s ability to help SMEs in export promotion began in July 2018 and will run through May 2019, including governance of export promotion, market analysis, national media and branding, e-commerce and social media, and export promotion services marketing.
Source: ven.vn