The first Viet Nam Advertising Festival was held late last month in HCM City. Viet Nam News reporter Hoang Nam spoke to Nguyen Quy Cap, vice chairman of the Viet Nam Advertising Association (VAA), about the country’s advertising industry.

Can you please comment on the current state of Viet Nam’s advertising industry?

Presently, there are 7,000 companies licensed to do business as advertisers throughout Viet Nam. However, only around 100 companies are actually making advertisements, along with 30 foreign ones. In the near future, due to the country’s commitment to global integration, more foreign companies will come to Viet Nam and competition will be fiercer.

Viet Nam’s advertising industry has been developing for 20 years. However, due to the fact that the industry has been managed by various governmental authorities, it has not met its full potential. Total turnover for the Vietnamese advertising industry is currently around US$500 million. This is a small amount when viewed in the light of the size of the country’s population. Therefore, the industry needs to be developed further.

Right now, Viet Nam is dealing with the current international financial crisis. Over the next two years, however, the economy should continue to grow at a remarkable pace. The advertising industry will have the important task of establishing brandname recognition for 200,000 Vietnamese companies to both local and international customers.

Can you please comment on the quality of advertisements?

To determine the quality of advertisements, the VAA has an annual Golden Bell prize. This year’s awards ceremony took place last Sunday. In general, the quality of ads has improved compared to the last few years, but ad products from foreign companies still dominate the Golden Bell. Those companies have a long history in advertising and are very professional. Most Vietnamese advertising companies work as ad agencies for foreign enterprises. Additionally, until recently, there have not been any universities that offered training in advertising.

How can we increase the quality of ad products, meet customers’ demands and expand the local ad market?

The VAA is establishing the Advertising Research and Training Institute in co-operation with some universities. We are looking for foreign partners who have experience in ad training.

The first Viet Nam Advertising Festival is part of the VAA’s activities to create an environment in which young advertisers can express their talent. It also presents some of the best international ads.

The VAA co-operates with Sun Flowers Media, a partner of Cannes Lions’ organisation board. Cannes Lions is the world’s largest festival for the ad industry. One of the purposes of our partnership is to bring best Vietnamese ad products to the Cannes Lions festival in France. (Viet Nam News)