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COMM2386 11/11/2019 02
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Interdisciplinary Communication Project Professional Communication
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Dr. Lena Bucatariu

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Family name Given name Student number Student signature Date

Dinh Gia Khanh s3634249 Khanh 10/11/2019
Nguyen Thu Van s3695803 Van 10/11/2019

Tran Nguyen Tuyet Ngan s3740813 Ngan 10/11/2019

Huynh Ngoc Hoang Lan s3678520 Lan 10/11/2019

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www.rmit.edu.au/browse;ID=11jgnnjgg70y​ and ​Academic Policy: ‘Plagiarism’
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 Assessment #1
Research Report Paper - HONOR

HONOR X-series smartphone product’s wallpaper (Adapted from Notebookcheck

2018)

Word count: ​2235 (excluded citations & references)

Table of content

1. Background

Market overview & Brand Performance

Brand issue: Brand Awareness

2. Research objective & Methodology

3. Key findings:

A - Target Profile

B - Insights

● Google’s concern

● Game interest: Arena of Valor and PUBG

● Camera interest (quality & design)

● Kirin chip: good but not enough for game

● Direct competitors: Xiaomi and OPPO

● Other findings:

- Interaction on social media

- Regional interest

4. Recommendations

5. Reference list
I - Background

A - Market Overview & Brand Performance

Market overview

Vietnam is a fertilized land for mid-price smartphones as this "playground" becomes more

exciting than ever. Specifically, the market share of mid-range smartphones in recent years

has increased by up to 30% according to GfK statistics (cited in Dan Tri, 2019). From 2017

to 2018, the market share of mid-price smartphones in Vietnam had skyrocketed from 34%

to 51% (Ha & Anh 2019) . In this segment, the market is narrowed due to the drastic

competition, which provide both the choices of most appealing design and quality at

affordable prices. The brands such as Samsung, OPPO and Xiaomi are paying their efforts

in developing the most advanced technologies for mobile devices i.e AI system, full-screen

display,... which surrounding the consumers with the most attractive offerings. In which,

Counterpoint Research (cited in BrandsVietnam 2019) suggests that within the second

quarter of 2018, Samsung and OPPO is dominating the market share with 37% and 22%

respectively.

Brand Performance

Owned by “the electronic giant” HUAWEI Technologies, HONOR is a smartphone company

that has been successful in the Chinese and Western markets. Since 2018, the brand has

made a great effort to expand its business to Southeast Asian countries. The brand has
been famous for its innovation in technology and the quality of camera. Additionally, GPU

Turbo is considered at a unique selling point of HONOR with the outstanding advantages for

processing graphics. At the moment,​ HUAWEI (include HONOR) is occupying 5% of the

market share, according to​ ​Counterpoint Research (cited in BrandsVietnam 2019).

B - Brands Issues

In 2018, HONOR launched​ a line of mid-range smartphones named X series that focused on

the best ratio of quality including power spec, design, and price (average VND5-8 million). At

present, HONOR is going to introduce its next generation of X-series, called Hulk (Client's

brief 2019). However, as the market of mid-price smartphones is in fierce competition, the

brand awareness of HONOR is hindered by the competitors brands. It​ is necessary to raise

brand awareness and to refresh the image of the brand​.​ Consequently, the purpose of a

communication plan to consumers is extremely important as it helps to bring consumers

through the cluster of information to the choice of HONOR X-series.

This research report is conducted to exploit the informative and useful data to properly savvy

the portrait of the target consumers for the X-series of HONOR.

II - Research objectives & Methodology:

A - Research objectives:

● To understand the consumers' demands and opinions over Product Features and

Functional Benefits of HONOR X-series.

● To identify the position of HONOR X-series in the market among the competitors.
 ● To reveal the gap between HONOR and competitors and to understand the reasons

behind the gap.

B - Research questions:

● Which functions of an HONOR X-series are receiving a significant level of attention

from consumers?

● How do the consumers assume the quality of HONOR X-series?

● Where is the position of HONOR in the market of the mid-price smartphone?

C - Methodologies:

To properly understand the insights of consumers, this paper is conducted as a secondary

research report, which aims to exploit the qualitative data and information that are available.

In which, NodeXL and Netlytic are adapted to spot the significant online discussions on

Youtube Channels, besides, SocialBakers and Google Trends are adapted to gather the

information of competitors. After being collected, the data will be analyzed by the method of

content analysis to properly visualize and interpret the insights.

III - Findings:

A - Target Profile
Figure 01: The target profile of HONOR X-series consumers
B - Insight

Part I: Result of Data Analysis

1. NodeXL to spot the most related channels on Youtube.

By applying NodeXL Pro to identify the most significant discussions about the key

term “dien thoai HONOR X (HONOR X smartphone)" on Youtube in Vietnam, the top

videos of the discussion about HONOR X with the most comments of numbers had

been recorded.

Figure 02: the most significant discussions about HONOR X Vietnam on Youtube

(adapted from NodeXL Pro 2019)

2. Netlytic to analyze the demands of the consumers toward a typical mobile phone

such as HONOR 8X.

To select the videos for analyzing data in this research report, all of the videos in the

top results were audited by Netlytic via the word-clouds to spot the most informative

and useful content. By this phase, the videos of technology reviewers of Vat Vo

Studio and Duong De are selected.

● Search Engine:
 Figure 01: The discussion of Google in the Youtube video of reviewing HONOR 8X by

Duong De channel. (adapted from Netlytic 2019)

According to VNExpress (2019), due to the result of the US-China Trade war, Google - the

most popular search engine in the world, has ended up its ties with HUAWEI. Actually,

despite being a product line of HUAWEI, HONOR's smartphone will only have difficulties in

updating the newest version of the Android system by Google. However, this was incorrectly

assumed by the Vietnamese community as they think that every product line of HUAWEI will

be out of Google’s service and become inaccessible to Google. This is identified as the main

concern as consumers are worried about the availability of Google via comments. For

example:

“​Có ảnh gì đến Google k?” means ​“Is there any impact on Google usage?”

“​Điện thoại không có Google thì mua làm gì?” means “​Why I need to buy a smartphone

without Google?”

“Không có Google cứ cảm thấy thiếu thiếu" means ​“I feel incomplete if I do not have Google"

● Game
 Figure 02: the discussion of games in the Youtube video of reviewing HONOR 8X

Duong De channel.

Consumers who care about HONOR X-series will care about the function of playing games

also. In which, their favorite game on mobile phones are PUBG & Arena of Valor (Liên

Quân) and PUBG (Player's Unknown BattleGround). They are discussing the ability of a

smartphone to run these online games. For example:

“​Máy này chơi Liên Quân được không?” means “​Can I play Arena of Valor on this device?​”

“​HONOR chip Kirin 710 này chơi PUBG có lag không nhỉ?” means “​Is this HONOR with its

chip Kirin 710 lag if I play PUBG on it?​”

“​Ai mua để chơi game như Liên Quân thì có thể mua con HONOR này hoặc Xiaomi Note là

ok​" means “​For anyone want to play the games like Arena of Valor, you can buy this

HONOR device or Xiaomi Note. They should be ok!​”

Figure 03: Mockup of “Arena of Valor” game on mobile phones. (Adapted from APK Pure

2019)

Figure 04: Mockup of “Player's Unknown Battleground" game on mobile phones. (Adapted

from Techspot 2019)

Particularly, those arcade games provide the players the realistic and appealing experience

of fighting with teammates against enemies in the stimulated battleground, which attracts

them to join the game and tend to invite their friends to be teammates in the battles (The gioi

di dong 2019). On the side of smartphone functions, players of both the games are likely to

require the strong connection between servers through the internet, high quality of graphic

resolution and effective cooler parts for the more interesting experience of gaming.

● Camera

Figure 05: the discussion of the camera in the Youtube video of reviewing HONOR 8X by

Vat Vo Studio channel. (Adapted from Netlytic 2019)

Besides the game, people are also having attention towards the camera of the X-series

phones. Particularly, camera performance is not only having its attention toward the quality

of images but also the design style. People are being inspired by the fashionable design

style of the camera. To their mind, the camera is extremely important as it decides the

attraction of a smartphone's appearance. Some most popular comments for this section are:
“​Camera xấu thế? Có lẽ điện thoại chơi game nên không chú ý chuyện này" means “​The

camera's shape is so ugly. Probably it's a gaming phone and this is not a priority​"

“​Camera xấu ớn đúng là được này mất kia" means “​The camera's shape is so ugly. Win

some, lose some"​

“​Camera của Nokia x7 Pro thiết kế ổn hơn" means “​Design of Nokie x7 Pro's camera is

better"​

3. The opinions of the consumer over the Functional Benefits of HONOR X-series.

● Kirin chip.

Figure 06: the discussion of the Kirin chip’s performance in the Youtube video of reviewing

HONOR 8X by Vat Vo Studio channel. (Adapted from Netlytic 2019)

Kirin is the core technical part of HUAWEI in general, features in supporting the operations

of the phone (reflects in the speed of the download, reload pages. running apps,...). Kirin is

good at running the operating system and saving battery, however, it does not receive the

positive comments in regards to supporting game online on mobile phones while chip
Snapdragon of Xiaomi is having its direct comparison in better game support. This means

the functional benefit of HONOR X-series, at the moment is standing by far the needs of

consumers, which is indicated via the loop comments in the review video on YouTube

channel. For example:

“​Nói về khoản chạy game thì Snap 636 mạnh hơn Kirin nhiều" means “​Snap 636 chip is

much stronger than Kirin in running games"​

“​Ai mà bảo Kirin chơi game tốt thì chưa thử Snapdragon bao giờ" means “​For anyone who

suggested that Kirin is the best support for the games, you have not yet tried the

Snapdragon"​ .

“​Kirin tiết kiệm pin thì tốt chứ chơi game mượt không giật lag thì cứ phải nói đến Snap của

Xiaomi Pro​" means “​Kirin may do good in saving battery, however, chip Snap of Xiaomi Pro

is the most effective solutions against lagging images in game"​

4. HONOR’s direct competitors:

● Xiaomi and the series of Xiaomi Note Pro:

Be able to see through the loops of comments, HONOR X-series phones are being directly

compared with the Redmi Note Pro series of Xiaomi in many aspects i.e prices, game

performance, operations,... Generally, the overall performance of every part of HONOR

X-series is considered to be satisfied. However, in the gaming experience, according to

some comments of customers with Redmi Note Pro, is better than HONOR 8X.

For example:

● “​Tầm giá này mà chơi game ổn hơn nữa thì mấy con Redmi Note của Xiaomi không

có tuổi" means “​If it still keeps this price range and upgrades its ability to play the

game, I think it will be much better than the Redmi Note devices of Xiaomi"​

● “​Cái này khá ổn nếu nhìn chung, nhưng chức năng cụ thể thì Xiaomi vẫn tốt hơn"

means “​Overall I think it is quite good, however, Xiaomi is still better in some

particular functions​".
 ● “​Camera đẹp hơn Redmi Note nhiều. Không có gì để chê" means “​Its camera is

much more beautiful than Redmi Note devices. Nothing to reprobate!"​

Figure 07: the discussion of the Xiaomi Note Pro in the Youtube video of reviewing HONOR

8X by Duong De channel. (Adapted from Netlytic 2019)

 Figure 08: the segment of the discussion about Xiaomi Note 8 Pro among the other

contents. (Adapted from Netlytic 2019)

● OPPO and the series of OPPO Realme Pro​:

OPPO Realme Pro is also being compared with HONOR 8X through the comments.

However, people seem to slightly prefer the HONOR 8X than OPPO Realme Pro.

Throughout all comments about both phones, camera feature is the only thing of Realme 2

Pro that better than HONOR 8X.

Examples:

● “Phân vân con này với con Realme 2 Pro. Khó chọn quá!” means “​It’s so difficult to

choose between this one or Realme 2 Pro.”

● “​Realme 2 pro thì camera ổn hơn nhưng hiệu năng HONOR ok hơn” means ​“While

the camera of Realme 2 is more stable, the overall performance of HONOR is better”

● “​Camera Realme thì ổn hơn nhưng chip HONOR mạnh hơn. Ai quan tâm chơi game

thì mua HONOR!”​ means “​Although the camera of Realme is more stable than

HONOR, the chipset in HONOR is better. Anyone who care about game experience

should choose HONOR phone​.”

○
 Figure 09: the discussion of the OPPO Realme Pro 5 in the Youtube video of reviewing

HONOR 8X by Duong De Studio channel (Adapted from Netlytic 2019)

Figure 10: the segment of the discussion about OPPO Realme among the other contents.

(Adapted from Netlytic 2019)

5. Other findings:
After identifying the direct competitor of HONOR X-series phones is Xiaomi Note Pro series

through the loop comments by Netlytic. SocialBakers is applied to measure the effects of the

online activities of Xiaomi on social media and to sufficiently understand the particular gap

between us and Xiaomi.

● The distribution of interaction on Facebook:

Figure 12: distribution of interaction by Xiaomi Vietnam page. (adapted from Socialbakers

2019)

Figure 1x: distribution of interaction by OPPO Vietnam page. (adapted from Socialbakers

2019)
Figure 11: distribution of interaction by HONOR Vietnam page. (adapted from Socialbakers

2019)

From figure 11, 12 and 13, it is obvious to see the gap in the distribution of interaction

(Reactions, Comments, Shares) between the HONOR Vietnam, OPPO Vietnam and Xiaomi

Vietnam. Overall, the fan pages of competitors are receiving much more attention, which

reflects seriously the weakness of brand awareness.

To further investigate these gaps, the top promoted posts of attention from 3 fan pages are

captured as below to analyze the strengths of the online activities by the competitors.
 Figure 13: Top reached post by Xiaomi Vietnam fan page (care a lot about the camera of

Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro) (adapted from Socialbakers 2019)

The top post of Xiaomi with its caption: “High quality of photography on each image. Create

your moment of creativity by Redmi Note 8 Pro. The quadral set of cameras with 64MP

resolution”. It is able to see via this post, Xiaomi clearly promoted its value of the qualified

camera and the necessary specs, which significantly indicated the functional benefits.
 Figure 13: Top reached post by OPPO Vietnam fan page (care a lot about the camera

quality) (adapted from Socialbakers 2019)

The top post of OPPO Vietnam with its caption:” Through the lens of a camera by OPPO

Reno2, the quadral system that reflects the art of individuality. The creativity from the photos

gives you the exclusive style”. To promote the camera quality in taking photos, the

communication strategy by OPPO Vietnam is endorsing KOLs images via the platform of the

fashion magazine ELLE.

To the side of HONOR, the top post of attention by HONOR Vietnam with its caption is about

a mini-game to give away a free HONOR Band 5 smartwatch but not about the smartphone.
Figure 14: Top reached post by HONOR Vietnam fan page (HONOR Band 5 smartwatch is

the most concentrated post) (adapted from Socialbakers 2019)

Meanwhile, the post about HONOR about X-series smartphone is at 51th position with the

poor interaction.
 Figure 15: The post of HONOR 9X by the fanpage HONOR Vietnam (adapted from

Socialbakers 2019)

The post about HONOR 9X with its caption in English:” The Xtraordinary journey - HONOR

9X". The content of this post seems to be difficult to be approached.

Overall, while the posts of the smartphones by Xiaomi and OPPO had clearly stated its

functional benefit via camera quality, the promoted value of the post about X-series

smartphone by HONOR fan-page is vague and does not provide information sufficiently

about the product, which does not meet the requirement of consumers.

● The regional interest of our most potential consumers:

Figure 16: Top 10 provinces, regions in Vietnam with the most popular ratio of searching the

term “HONOR X" on the online devices. Hanoi & HCMC stay at 5th and 7th position

respectively (adapted from Google Trends 2019)

By applying the Google Trends to investigate the ratio of searching the key term “HONOR X"

on Google, it spotted that the highest ratios are in the sub-regions and provinces i.e Ca Mau,

Binh Phuoc,... This can be explained based on the economic shifts between cities. The
result proved that although the urban areas are considered as the main platforms for

communication activities, the profitable market are in the provinces.

Part II: The consumer journey:

IV - Recommendations:

+ Based on data from the research, HONOR X-series needs to get its images to the

selection as one of the most suitable products for gaming. Focus on communicating

and promoting the features that benefit the player's experience i.e long duration

battery, graphics processor, virtual reality supporter,...

+ Additionally, to facilitate the communication of games, the images of two games

Arena of Valor and Player’s Unknown Battleground are suggested to be adapted as

key visuals for the advertisement over platforms.

+ It is crucial to re-educate the mind of consumers over the wrong assumption of

Google. Through the channels of communication, an infographic is needed to release

to correct the wrong points of their thoughts.

+ The low interaction on Facebook can be the root of the brand awareness issue.

HONOR needs to re-audit the content and its performance in the posts. Like Xiaomi,

the posts should directly highlight the functional benefits that match the needs of

consumers when they see the posts.

+ Profitable locations are in the provinces and sub-regions as there are more

consumers in these locations care more about HONOR’s smartphone. HONOR may

need to re-adjust their marketing and sales plans to get their profitable sales. .
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