HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITÉ LIBRE DE BRUXELLES SOLVAY BRUSSELS SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS & MANAGEMENT MMCoM9 PHAN LE HUONG LIEN NGUYEN QUANG PHONG SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY TO ENHANCE BRAND AWARENESS OF EUGICA MASTER FINAL PROJECT MASTER IN MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT Ho Chi Minh City (2016) STATEMENT OF AUTHENTICATION We, the authors of this thesis - Phan Le Huong Lien and Nguyen Quang Phong, confirm that we worked on it by ourselves with material retrieved from either public sources or Mega We Care or Eugica brand This paper was exclusively made for the completion of the Master of Marketing and Communication at Solvay Brussels School No substance was or will be used for any other purpose ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First, we would like to thank our tutors, Professor Hoang Thi Phuong Thao and Ms Huynh Ba Chan Nhu, for their generous support and advice during the months that we worked on the thesis We would like to express our deepest gratefulness and most sincere appreciation for all professors of Solvay Business School who always dedicate all their time and passion to giving us an incredible amount of knowledge related to Marketing and Communication Management We believe that what we have learned will contribute to our career success in the near future We would also like to thank our classmates in MMCOM9 class with whom we studied and shared memorable moments both in and outside of class Lastly, we would like to send out warmest thank-you to the Eugica marketing team who provided us with helpful information that enabled our completion of this thesis ACADEMIC TUTOR AND PRACTICAL TUTOR’S COMMENTS Academic tutor’s comment Practical tutor’s comment The thesis which has been conducted by Phan Le Huong Lien and Nguyen Quang Phong on the Social media strategy to enhance brand awareness of Eugica is assessed qualified as a master degree thesis and to be presented to panels The thesis has been well-structured and profound analyzed on the market situation, competition and market segmentation Based on that, the conclusions and recommendation for the brand‟s further development have been drawn out logically They includes both brand, marketing strategy and implementation The social media plan especially has developed trendy concept on green marketing which is found contemporarily worthy for Eugica brand to pursue to pre-empt their competitors Though the thesis is still remarked limited in primary information from customers or traders‟ perspectives in order to have a stronger supports to the social media strategy in terms of content development On overall, the team has performed with high responsiveness and good attitudes with their practical tutor to complete their work up to a satisfactory level Sincerely yours, Huynh Ba Chan Nhu TABLE OF CONTENTS STATEMENT OF AUTHENTICATION ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS LIST OF CHARTS AND TABLES LIST OF SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 10 1.1 Rational of the study 10 1.2 Problem statement 11 1.3 Objectives of the study 11 1.4 Scope and limitation of the study 12 1.5 Methodology 12 1.6 Structure of the study 13 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 14 2.1 Brand and branding strategy 14 2.1.1 Brand Awareness 14 2.1.2 Measuring brand awareness 15 2.1.3 Brand equity 15 2.1.4 Brand identity and brand identity prism 16 2.1.5 Branding strategy 18 2.2 Social media 18 2.2.1 Social media‟s benefits 18 2.2.2 Social media strategy 19 2.2.3 Building a social media strategy 19 2.3 Using social media to enhance brand awareness 20 2.3.1 Focus on the right social media channel 21 2.3.2 Optimize the social content strategy 21 2.3.3 Strengthen the engagement strategy 21 2.3.4 Social media advertising strategy 21 2.3.5 Social media tracking tool 22 2.3.6 Social Media Analytics 23 2.4 Chapter summary 24 CHAPTER 3: EUGICA PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION 25 3.1 Situation review 25 3.1.1 External analysis 25 3.1.2 Internal analysis 33 3.1.2.1 Mega Lifescience and Eugica brand background 33 3.1.2.2 Marketing objectives of Eugica 36 3.1.2.3 Marketing strategy 36 3.1.2.4 Analyzing Eugica marketing campaign in 2015 42 3.1.3 3.2 SWOT analysis 48 Chapter summary 50 CHAPTER 4: SOCIAL MEDIA PLAN FOR EUGICA IN 2016 51 4.1 Objective 51 4.2 Target Audience 51 4.3 Communication concept 56 4.4 Communication plan 57 4.5 4.4.1 Approach 57 4.4.2 Communication strategy 57 4.4.3 Suggested action plan 58 4.4.4 Key Performance Indicator 64 Chapter summary 67 REFERENCES 69 LIST OF SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS No List Description VND Vietnam Dong MS Market share OTC Over the counter TVC Television commercial PR Public relations KV Key visual Q Quarter DHG Dược Hậu Giang ( Hậu Giang Pharma) GMP Good Manufacturing Practice 10 USP Unique selling point 11 SEO Search Engine Optimization 12 KPI Key Performance Indicator LIST OF PICTURES AND TABLES List Description Chapter Figure 2.1 Brand identity prism Chapter Figure 3.1 Market share and growth of top 10 cap and syrup brand Figure 3.2 Production selection drivers per cough candy product Figure 3.3 Market share and growth of top 10 OTC brand Figure 3.4 Production selection drivers per cough medicine product Figure 3.5 Vietnam Digital landscape Figure 3.6 Vietnam Digital landscape Figure 3.7 Vietnam Digital landscape Figure 3.8 Vietnam Digital landscape Figure 3.9 Eugica products including candy, syrup and soft cap Figure 3.10 Eugica sale channel Figure 3.11 Eugica‟s products and price Figure 3.12 Summary of Eugica 360 degree marketing plan in 2015 Figure 3.13 Eugica marketing campaign 2015 in summary Figure 3.14 The process of SMS system from Mega We Care Chapter Figure 4.1 Average daily usage of Internet/ Facebook of Vietnamese Youth in 2015 Figure 4.2 Popular communication tools of Vietnamese Youth in 2015 Figure 4.3 Eugica current Facebook Fanpage Figure 4.4 Communication Strategy in 2016 in brief Figure 4.5 Content direction – Mom‟s corner Figure 4.6 Content direction – Youth‟s playground Figure 4.7 Campaign KPI – Overall Figure 4.8 Campaign KPI – Facebook Ads Figure 4.9 Campaign KPI – Facebook Fanpage 56 4.3 Communication concept In 2015, Eugica launched a communication campaign with umbrella concept “GREEN LIVING IS GOOD”, which promote the trend and the benefit of green living, with four key content pillars that cover completely main categories of Green Living, which are:  Green food: To use herbs and preparations derived from nature  Green exercise: To take exercises every day  Green habit: To have habit of protecting the environment  Green community: To create more green space Eugica also created an informative sustainable social platform, which is a Facebook Fanpage based on the big concept and retained remarkable number of fan recruitment In which, the products are inserted and herbal ingredients are notified Figure 4.3: Eugica current Facebook Fanpage (Eugica Facebook nd) If in 2015, the brand want user to aware about the benefit of green living, in 2016, this thesis will develop the way to communicate with our consumers with an updated concept “I CHOOSE TO BE GREEN” It‟s time for our audiences to activate their “Green Life”, inspired from brand‟s last concept “Green Living is good” They will 57 show determination by choosing the green lifestyle and together with Eugica, they uplift their life standard to a new level 4.4 Communication plan 4.4.1 Approach To inject brand love to the target audience, we need to approach them in three main steps:  Step 1: To attract attention and introduce the brand activities on the main platform  Step 2: Increase the engagement of target audience by crowd-sourcing content market  Step 3: Build and maintain brand love In three main steps, the second one is the key point By using crowd-sourcing content marketing, the plan can get online users engaged to share their own experiences, forming a sustainable platform throughout the year Then having the footage viral to maximize reach and brand exposure In addition, it also can help speeding up the content creation process with minimal investment, content is genuine with high relevancy, offering a diversified and creative content pool, getting both consumers and potential ones involved 4.4.2 Communication strategy Under the concept “I CHOOSE TO BE GREEN”, the brand need to develop a communication strategy to approach target audience and drive them to our communication hub, which is Facebook Fanpage Then, let the users engage with brand activities and become loyalty The communication plan includes three main phases, lasting twelve months, with specific objectives, messages and several activities 58 I CHOOSE TO BE GREEN Phase Awareness Action Maintain Time March to May June to September October to December Objective Define the Green Green living in action Living Message style “There is a new way to “Green living isn’t “Let’s live green” Let’s take green living and get difficult action!” Activity  “How green are  “How you?” activity to be green celebrate the even more!” green are  Green you?” activity Series  Viral KOLs: I choose  Green challenge Channel Maintain the green life Millionaire  Green-tionary Gallery  Green-tionary Facebook Fanpage, Website, KOLs, PR, SEM, Display Ads, Social Seeding Figure 4.4: Communication Strategy in 2016 in brief Source: Authors Both activities proposed in three phases of this plan and communication content direction will be detailed in the suggested action plan 4.4.3 Suggested action plan Key activities  Phase 1: Awareness (March – May 2016) The phase will last three months, from March to May The objective is to define the term of “Green Living” among target audiences The message “There is a new 59 way to live green” will be cascaded to two main activities, which are “How Green are you?” and Viral KOL (Key opinion leader)  Activity 1: “How Green are you?” In order to educate users about the role of green living in the society and their own life, we encourage them by an activity called “How green are you?” To join the activity, user need to capture their daily activities that associate with green living and send to Eugicafanpage admin via Facebook messenger application The listed photos will be posted on the fanpage, then users themselves call for voting (like) on their submission In the end of the contest, the most engagement (like – share – comment) photos will get prize  Activity 2: Viral KOLs: “I choose to be Green” In the same time with the activity one, fifty Facebook Key opinion leaders will spread the message “I choose to be Green” by capture the moment they live “green” and post on their facebook profile with the hashtag #IChooseToBeGreen The activities they choose might be quite simple, such as: Not using the plastic bag in one week, eating vegetable in every meal, drinking it up and don‟t water water, thinking carefully before printing… Besides, to attract more contestants to join activity 1, the KOLs will call their community to action by acting green and joining the online contest 60  Phase 2: Action (June – September 2016) The phase will take place from June to September with key message: “Green living isn’t difficult Let’s take action!” Beside of the photo contest, which will be occurred from phase one to phase two, we will have two more key activities to involve user to join in, as below:  Activity 3: Green challenge Be inspired from the big trend of 2015 “Ice bucket challenge”, we create a new trend associating with green issues, which is called “Green Challenge” The trend will be started by 50 KOLs on Facebook They will take video showing their action associating with “green” and posts on their facebook profile In the status, they will tag of their friends to be the next one who will take action, with hashtag #GreenChallenge According to this mechanism, the number of “green” video will be multiplied largely By using the social listening tools, we can count the number of video tagged with hashtag Each 50 videos, Eugica will sponsor 50 million Vietnam Dong to “Green Challenge charity fund” The fund will be invested on environmental associations nationwide  Activity 4: Green-tionary By collecting the photos and videos after various activities from phase one and phase two, including: “How Green are you?”, “I choose to be Green”, and “Green Challenge”, we create a dictionary in form of photo gallery posted on EugicaFanpage and website Users will be the one who directly contribute for the dictionary content Therefore, once they appear on the dictionary, they will share it among their community again  Phase 3: Maintain (October – December 2016) The phase objective is to maintain the green lifestyle among users Phase 3, from October to December will deliver the key message, which is:“Let‟s celebrate the green living and get even more!” 61 The green-tionary will be continue with new content generated from users and spread via media channels and online PR articles In the other hand, we need an activity to attract more user to join in  Activity 5: Green Millionaire The activity will run on a Facebook Application, where user can answer various question relating to green living and green solution, then get prize form Eugica Green Millionaire will follow the format of “Who wants to be a millionaire” familiar TV series Communication content direction  Fanpage content direction The Facebook Fanpage is the main hub of communication of Eugica, therefore, the content on it must be addressed effectively in the target audiences, which must follow the four important mandatory: Highly informative and applicable DIY (Do it yourself) tips, diversified content angles towards Green Living, featuring a wide selection of “Green Living” lifestyle, friendly voice and prompt responses to users‟ concerns, using single voce to deliver message and have yet Because the Fanpage serves two different target audiences, which are moms and youth, the content on it must go with two different voices tapping them more thoroughly (mom-oriented and youth oriented) and promoting two product lines separately The content will be divided into two key pillars:  Mom‟s corner: Provide moms knowledge to better care family, including: Health knowledge (diseases and cures, apart from coughing) to take care of family; product focus: capsules, syrup The content should cover four main angles: 62  What to eat to maintain good health Nutrition  Bad eating habit Tips for living green  Utilize left-over, recycle tips Product  When getting cough, user will think about Eugica Consumption products Family bond  Inspiring quotes about family Product focus  Eugica capsule  Eugica syrup Figure 4.5: Content direction – Mom’s corner Source: Authors  Youth‟s playground: Provide practical, young and fun solution that inspire and encourage them to live a green lifestyle This pillars is cascaded to the six angles, as below: 63 Product Product installation artworks creative Product focus Eugica Candy Nutrition Latest diet trends, why we should get rid of fast food, Exercise Quick and yet effective exercise (3-minute squat, 5-minute abs work out,…) Consumption When getting caught in sore issues, take Eugica candy as a companion Social activities Green Living is quite trendy with Colormerun, Prisma Run… Figure 4.6: Content direction – Youth’s playground Source: Authors  KOLs content direction  Phase 1: Pledge “I choose to be GREEN” content: “I ride to work today and that‟s how I choose to be green.”; “I started to take 8-minute abs work out today and that‟s how I choose to be green.”; “I water the tree with water left-over and that‟s how I choose to be green.”; “I finally know how green I am It‟s time to know yours.”  Phase 2: “I had a dinner with full of vegetables and upload that photo on EugicaFanpage Now I challenge you to the same, link to FB app”; “It‟s so much more challenging when turning out to be a “GROUP-CHALLENGE”; “Find your gang and take it on FB app” 64 Phase 3: “The irresistible “Green Millionaire” Got a higher point, I dare you,  link to FB app.”‟ “Who would you call when being stuck in difficult question of “Green Millionaire”, try the game on FB app and you‟ll know.”; “Where is the greenest place on Earth?” Take “Green Millionaire” to know how well you know about green living.”  Fanpage management standard To ensure the fan page can be operated well, the administrator has to follow the management standard Firstly, the content must follow the format of 90% visualizing by photos being written in short text (100-200 characters‟ maximum) Secondly, all materials must have license for using on fan page Moreover, the post should be post on specific calendar, with the quantity of from seven to ten posts per week Lastly, to show the quick reaction to fans, 100% fans question or concerns are responded every hours on week days and every 12 hours on weekend 4.4.4 Key Performance Indicator To evaluate the effectiveness of the campaign, the thesis uses some indicators such as impression rate, engagement rate, CTR, Page like, reach All indicators are calculated by some tools of social media, for example, Facebook insight and Google analytics 65 CAMPAIGN KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR Item Impression Total reach Comitted KPI Estimated KPI 10,600,000 Page Like New Fans 100,000 100,885 Total Total Post Engagement Reach Rate 159,000 99,000 Total Page Engagement Rate 13.15% 1.33% Figure 4.7: Campaign KPI – Overall Source: Authors Item Unit KPI Committed Estimated FACEBOOK ADS Impression Facebook Ads | Page Like Promoted Post | Post Engagement Page Like 6,666,667 100,000 CTR 1.5% Impression 3,933,333 Engagement 59,000 CTR Figure 4.8: Campaign KPI – Facebook Ads Source: Authors 1.5% Total View Total Posts 100,000 168 66 Item F New Fan Totali Pos Totalgreach Total engagement u Total Post Reach Rate Totalr Page Engagement Rate e Total view KPI Unit Committed Estimated FACEBOOK FANPAGE Fan 100,885 Post 168 Reach 7,420,000 Engagement 99,000 CTR 13.15% CTR 1.33% View 100,000 4.9: Campaign KPI – Facebook Fanpage Source: Authors 67 4.5 Chapter summary In conclusion, social media will help Eugica raise brand awareness more effectively in 2016 Some shortcomings seen from the 2015 campaign can be changed and adapted in better ways As for budget, after the success of the previous campaign, client spends more budget implementing the campaign in order to ensure the social media activities' positive effects on consumers Besides, while the concept in 2015 – Green living is good – is generic and not specific enough to generate any consumers' reactions, the updated campaign concept – I choose to be green - are clearer and more focused The consumers will be inspired and called to action by choosing the green lifestyle and together with Eugica, they will be taking their life standards to a whole new level Furthermore, with two target audiences including moms (from 25 to 35 years old) or the youth (from 20 to 25 years old), the social media campaign in 2016 has a good content strategy that's specific to and able to effectively approach each group of target audience Moreover, to ensure good fan page management, the administrator has to follow the management standards in order to control the traffic, content, interaction between the brand and its consumer, etc Then, timely responses to fans' complaints every hours on week days and every 12 hours on weekend is also a plus to enhance brand image Last but not least, the combination of Price, Place and Product also contributes to the success of social media campaign In terms of price, Eugica has a lot of SKUs for consumer to choose from For the distribution, Mega We Care continues to take advantage of DHG Pharma distribution channels to maximize Eugica's brand presence, hence, it is easy for consumers to find and buy Eugica products anytime and anywhere In terms of packaging, Mega We 68 Care changed Eugica products with catchier packaging in order to impress customers Therefore, all three aforementioned factors help the social media campaign become more effective 69 REFERENCES Report Mega We Care (2015), Eugica marketing plan in 2015 Mega Lifesciences (2015), Mega Lifesciences PCL Investor Presentation 2015 Wearesocial (2016), Wearesocial digital in 2016 Sanisphere (2015), Market overview IMS (2015), Market overview Q&Me (2015), What is Vietnamese Youth lifestyle Book and document Palmer, A (2012), Introduction to marketing theory and practice, Oxford university press McDaniel, C., Lamb, W.C., Hair, F J (2008), Introduction to marketing, Neil Marquardt Kerpen, D (2013), Likeable social media, Entrepreneur press Armstrong, G., Kotler, P (2008), Marketing an introduction, Pearson Education Meyerson, M (2015), Success secrets of the online marketing superstars, Labor Ferrell, O C., Hartline, D M (2005), Marketing strategy, Thomson South-Western Kotler, P., Adam, S., Brown, L., Armstrong, G (2006), Principles of marketing, Pearson Education Kotler, P., Armstrong, G., Ang, H S., Leong, S., Tan, C T., Hon-Ming, Y.O (2012), Principles of marketing an Asian perpective, Pearson Education Kotler, P., Armstrong, G (2012), Principles of marketing, Pearson Education Kerin, A R., Hartley, W S., Rudelius, W (2010), Marketing, Paul Ducham, McGrawHill Irwin Dibb, S., Simkin, L (2009), Marketing essentials, Charlotte Loveridge Barsy, D T (2015), Chapter 7, Building and managing brands Internet Dinh Dung 2012, „Partnership opens up business opportunities‟, posted 23th December 2012, viewed January 2016, 70 Mega We Care 2012, „Mega acquires “Eugica” from DHG Pharmaceuticals Viet Nam‟, posted 18th December 2012, viewed January 2016, DHG Pharma 2013, „Giới thiệu công ty CP Dược Hậu Giang‟, posted 23th October 2013, viewed January 2016, Eugica own media https://www.facebook.com/EUGICASongXANHmoiCHAT http://eugica.vn/ [...]... review of its marketing campaign in 2015 12 - To identify awareness of Eugica nationwide and differentiating values through engagement-oriented activities - To propose the solution to enhance brand awareness of Eugica in term of social media strategy 1.4 Scope and limitation of the study The purpose of the thesis is to analyze the current situation of Eugica in depth and focus on ways to raise brand awareness, ... uplifting Eugica s market status Due to scale of this study, the study will focus to analyze Eugica communication strategy through the campaign implemented in 2015 in order to know what Mega We Care did to improve Eugica s brand awareness; then, coming to the social media plan for the year of 2016 based on the success of this campaign 1.3 - Objectives of the study To analyze the Eugica s brand situation,... customer insights 2.3.5 Social media tracking tool One of the most important parts of social media is engagement When people are talking about brand, or topics that interest the brand, it‟s an opportunity to engage These social media tracking tools allow company to track these conversations as they occur, giving the chance to leverage each brand Most applications will provide the necessary tools to. .. 2012) The branding strategy is to help consumers identify products, to say something about product quality, to protect legally, to segment the market and to command a premium for better quality brands (Palmer et al 2012) 2.2 Social media Social media is a form of internet marketing that implements various social media networks in order to achieve marketing communication and branding goals Social media. .. understand how to harness the power of social media to help them meet their specific business goals There are a number of very real benefits to using social media for business, including: - Reputation monitoring and management - Branding - Building customer loyalty - SEO benefits 19 - Website referral traffic 2.2.2 Social media strategy Meyerson (2015) implies that a basic social media strategy based... audience into community members, brand apostles and customers Acknowledge the revolution of Social Media that impacts directly to brand communication, large pharmaceutical companies in Vietnam as Sohaco and Sanofi establish a solid grasp of the uses and benefits of social media for their brands They understand that their target market is using social media, and that they need to interact with customers... ensure the effectiveness of his strategy (Kerpen 2013)  Understand your goals: the first step in creating a social- media marketing strategy is to understand where you want to go What is the purpose of your social media marketing efforts? Do you want to create or raise awareness of your brand? Are you looking to increase sales, or website traffic, or both? Is your goal to build customer loyalty and increase... of social media to enhance the brand awareness of Eugica 25 CHAPTER 3: EUGICA PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION In this section, the study analyzes the situation of Eugica through the market oview and some activities done in its marketing campaign in 2015 From these findings, the thesis will evaluate its achievement and failure in term of the way of delivering communication objectives and strategy to build brand. .. ones and competitors To be successful in the market, brand awareness plays an important role In fact, the more aware consumers are of the brand and its products, the more likely customers make a purchase from that brand When the company itself builds high brand awareness, it translates into customer loyalty If the customers‟ positive associated with their knowledge of the brand, customer loyalty will... companies understand that using social media for marketing can enable them looking to further their reach to more customers Customers are interacting with brands through social media, therefore, having a strong social media marketing plan and presence on the web is the key to tap into their interest If implemented correctly, marketing with social media can bring remarkable success to business (Meyerson 2015)