II.

MARKET RESEARCH
1. ANALYSIS OF THE DEMAND FOR THE AIR CONDITIONER DISTRIBUTION
IN VIETNAM

To better understand the demand of customers and the industry market, our team surveyed
"Demand to buy and use air conditioners in Hanoi", a survey about consumers' habits when
buying and using air conditioners in Hanoi. We surveyed the Hanoi area because Hanoi is a
city with a large population and most households in Hanoi use air conditioners. We surveyed
over 128 people from different districts to get the most accurate data.

1.1 Evolution of the demand (the trend in expenditure)

The needs of the people are collected by us through the chart of the common needs of
customers when participating in buying, we have drawn the main points about the change in
customers' demand for air conditioners when the economic and social situation changes. The
results, up to 43.5% of Panasonic air conditioner users, 28.1% of Daikin air conditioner users,
are all brands from Japan. The reason is that Japanese air conditioners have good quality,
stable operation, fast cooling, can filter dust, disinfect, deodorize well, ...

1.2 Evolution of the consumer’s segment

Segment 1: Low (Customers with income below 10 million VND/month)

According to the survey, at this income level, the segment targets young customers such as
students or fresh graduates. They are quite interested in technology and learn very carefully
about the features that the product can bring. Due to limited income (still of school age), this
group is often interested in low-cost air conditioners (71%) priced at about VND 6-10 million
and durability and stability (71%). They only pay attention to 1-way air conditioners and they
care more about product quality than the air conditioner brand. It is also for this reason that
air conditioners will not have too many features due to the low-priced segment.

 Young, thrifty segment. Manufacturers can pay attention to this segment because this is a
potential market with the young population of Vietnam today.

Segment 2: Average (Customers with income from 10-30 million VND/month)

In this segment, customers have stable jobs, are preparing, or have families. Therefore, they
tend to products of famous brands, with good quality, high safety, health protection, and
excellent after-sales service, rather than the price of the product. Therefore, they do not
hesitate to experiment with different brands to get the best product. With a distinctly hot and
cold climate, consumers at this income level will tend to buy 2-way air conditioners for year-
round and long-term use.

 This segment is aimed at high-end air conditioners, many features, and good after-sales
service. Customers in this group are different in choosing to buy air conditioners, they are
often not loyal to one brand and can change if other brands bring higher value to them, so
companies aim to In this segment, it will often develop more features for the product to
attract customers in this group.

Segment 3: High (Customers with income over 30 million VND/month)

This high-income group is usually people over 40 years old, already married. They also pay
special attention to durability and stability, health safety, and after-sales services to ensure
that they will be supported promptly when the air conditioner has problems. Like the middle-
income group, they tend to use 2-way air conditioners (80%) for a long time, so they often
spend 10-15 million to buy air conditioners similar to the customers in the average-income
group.

Therefore, brands should aim for high-end air conditioners, with good after-sales and safe
for human health to be able to serve this segment.

1.3 Analysis of their buying behavior (5 steps of the buyer decision-making process)

Step 1: Need recognition

At this initial stage, the need may arise from within (customers now have needs) or from
external influences (such as friends, relatives, colleagues...). The earth is getting warmer, so
the temperature of the Hanoi area is also increasing. In 2019, the temperature reached 38.9
°C, the highest on record in more than a century. This has boosted consumer demand for air
conditioners, they buy more air conditioners to cool down and protect their health.

Step 2: Information searching and processing

According to the survey, when customers decide to buy an air conditioner, they will search
for information about it, such as price, brand, energy-saving features through "website of air
conditioners", "Google, Facebook", "Relatives, Friends", "Salesperson's introduction", "on
TV",... In addition, finding information is very simple, customers can see all the information
they need to choose the best item. Therefore, brands need to advertise on more media
 According to the survey
channels, use effective marketing tools to attract customers for their air conditioner products.
With the advancement of computer innovation, promoting on friendly stages is also an
important part of brands. Any brand that provides all the basic data to accommodate
customers while selecting items is also huge

Step 3: Identification and evaluation of alternatives

Currently, there are many choices of air conditioners for each user's needs. Therefore, at this
stage, users will evaluate and compare products to choose the most suitable product.
Customers who have used different brands of air conditioners will have a high level of
appreciation. In contrast, people with low engagement will only consider a single brand,
based on the image of that brand in their mind. After that, consumers will choose an air
conditioner based on its use and features. For example, Toshiba air conditioners are durable,
energy-saving, sleek, but expensive compared to other brands. In contrast, Samsung air
conditioners have low prices, advanced technology, 2-year warranty, but unstable quality,
cooling longer than other brands. In the end, consumers will choose an air conditioner
product that suits their needs.

Step 4: Purchase decision

 According to the survey
This will be the step for the customer to make the final purchase decision. Customers will
choose to buy the “best” product, or they may change their minds because of objective factors
such as other people's attitudes or environmental surprises. According to the survey, up to
41.5% of buyers are influenced by reviews of previous buyers, 26.5% of buyers are
influenced by viewer reviews on Facebook groups and fan pages when participating in
buying. customers, these people are mostly 18-25 years old, they trust the shared experience
reviews a lot. However, most buyers are influenced by relatives and friends, they also think
that friends and relatives are always the people they trust the most, so this is the most
influential factor. to the purchase decision of buyers (82.8%). Besides, the advice of the store
staff also significantly affects the buying decision of customers, helping them choose the
right air conditioner for their family.

Step 5: Post-purchase decision

According to the survey

After customers have purchased the air conditioner they will continue to rate it after
purchase. Therefore, the after-sales factor is always a problem for the seller. According to the
survey results, up to 80% of buyers rated the product quality and service attitude of the staff
after purchasing. In the majority of people aged 18-25 years old, they paid great attention to
the attitude of the customer. employees, while those from 35-40 years old pay more attention
to product quality. However, in general, they are all satisfied with their air conditioner.

CONCLUSION

Air conditioners are gradually becoming an indispensable household item in the life of every
Vietnamese family when income has increased significantly in recent years. The needs of
customers when choosing air conditioners are very diverse, so the competition in the market
is becoming more and more fierce. However, the brand of air conditioners with a long history
originating from Japan has always captured a certain position in the hearts of consumers in
terms of quality assurance through decades of market research. Over time, the long-standing
air conditioning brand has proven its product quality to customers. In addition, new air
conditioning companies from Thailand, China, other countries, and even Vietnamese air
conditioning companies have appeared and created an extremely high frequency of
competition. has a novelty suitable for modern life, anticipating the consumption trends of
customers. In general, air conditioners now offer many product lines from low to high to
meet the needs of customers with 3 criteria: durable, energy-saving and economical.

Based on a survey to collect information from people in 12 inner districts of Hanoi, the
majority of customers are interested in price, technology and energy saving as the 3 main
factors to choose the right product. In addition, to promote and help domestic air conditioner
manufacturers, the state levies a higher consumption tax on imported air conditioners than
domestically produced air conditioners. According to statistics in the last few years, statistics
from the General Department, Vietnam's air conditioner market is very competitive, but still
has a lot of potentials. In the future development of the air conditioner market, they have
made great and clear steps to affirm their position as well as expand their influence in the
market.

Completing this research paper has helped us gain many valuable lessons from reality.
Having just placed ourselves in the position of wholesale and retail distributors, looking at
the market in the industry as well as understanding what needs to be done to maximize the
effectiveness of trade policies, we also stand as a consumer to understand the needs and
desires of the customer, use the customer's point of view to see the problems when buying in
reality. The research paper has a great meaning, we are very proud to have tried to best
present the research and judgment of the group about distribution in the air conditioner
market in Hanoi.