Digital Marketing Services in Vietnam: A 2026 Market Overview

Digital marketing services in Vietnam are rapidly evolving into essential components of business growth strategies for foreign-invested companies, driven by a large, engaged online audience and increasing specialization among agencies.

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Digital marketing services are now a core part of market entry and growth strategy for foreign-invested businesses in Vietnam, rather than an add-on for branding. Vietnam’s online audience is large and highly engaged, with approximately 85.6 million internet users in October 2025 (84.2 percent penetration), alongside 79.0 million social media user identities (77.6 percent of the population).

Growth has coincided with greater specialization among agencies, as providers differentiate by channel and platform expertise. It is estimated that Vietnam’s digital marketing market reached US$1.64 billion in 2024 and projects it could reach US$4,651.2 million by 2033, pointing to sustained expansion across performance marketing, content, and commerce-led channels.

At the same time, the compliance bar is rising. Decree 356/2025/ND-CP took effect on January 1, 2026, and replaces the previous Decree 13/2023/ND-CP framework for personal data protection. Advertising rules are also being updated: Decree 342/2025/ND-CP (effective February 15, 2026) adds detailed requirements for online advertising formats and includes provisions on preventing and removing illegal online advertisements.

Market scale and trajectory

Vietnam’s digital marketing services market is expanding as brands allocate more budget to channels that are measurable and closely tied to sales outcomes. This growth is being driven by Vietnam’s large online user base, rising e-commerce activity, and intensifying competition in consumer-facing categories. The channel mix is also shifting:

• Paid social and short-form video continue to gain share;
• Influencer-led conversions are becoming more structured; and
• Marketplace advertising is increasingly important for brands selling through major platforms.

Service offering structure

Vietnam’s digital marketing agencies typically offer a mix of search, social, content, influencer, e-commerce, and analytics support, with scopes and commercial arrangements varying by channel and campaign objective.

How to choose the right agency

Vietnam’s digital marketing services market is typically organized around three provider types:

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• Global network agencies and integrated groups are often chosen for multi-market governance, standardized reporting, and coordinated creative and media planning, especially where regional alignment and brand consistency matter.
• Local digital-first agencies tend to deliver stronger Vietnamese-language execution and faster iteration for social and commerce-led campaigns, including platform-native creative and community management.
• Specialist firms focus on a single capability, such as search marketing, influencer programs, or e-commerce and marketplace growth, and are often used alongside a lead agency for deep expertise and rapid optimization in priority channels.

For foreign-invested businesses, selection should prioritize:

• Localization quality: Strong partners must demonstrate the ability to adapt messaging beyond literal translation, ensuring cultural resonance and market relevance for the Vietnamese digital audience.
• Measurement discipline: The agency should utilize clear frameworks for tracking performance and defining KPIs, ensuring that digital campaigns are continuously optimized based on objective data.
• Operational control: Selection should favor partners who provide transparent workflows and structured reporting mechanisms to maintain clear oversight of digital activities.
• Fee transparency: Partners must offer clearly articulated pricing structures that distinguish between agency fees and actual media spend to prevent hidden costs.
• Media management practices: Agencies should have documented processes for media planning and verification to ensure accountability and budget efficiency across local digital platforms.

Common pitfalls include:

• Unclear ownership of ad accounts, tracking assets, and audiences, which can create switching risk;
• Weak usage-rights terms for creative and influencer content, which can limit reuse and increase disputes; and
• Unadequately designed performance-linked arrangements, which can incentivize short-term tactics that undermine brand safety or compliance.

Regulatory environment

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Vietnam’s regulatory environment directly affects the design, delivery, and measurement of digital marketing campaigns. Compliance expectations extend beyond advertising claims and online content formats to how customer and prospect data is collected, used, and shared across marketing systems. Outreach channels such as email, SMS, and calls are also subject to anti-spam controls, increasing the importance of consent records and suppression practices.

In parallel, Vietnam’s cybersecurity framework and related data localization considerations can shape platform operations and vendor selection, particularly where marketing stacks rely on cross-border tools and data processing.

To maintain robust compliance management, each stakeholder should adopt the following strategies:

• Businesses should tighten internal review and approval processes for advertising claims, endorsements, and messaging in regulated categories.
• Agencies and platforms should be required to show how they meet online ad format rules and execute rapid removals when notified.
• Privacy controls should also be built into tracking and targeting from the outset, including:
  • Documented consent and purpose management;
  • Clear allocation of responsibilities across vendors; and
  • Practical cross-border data transfer procedures for campaigns that rely on offshore platforms, analytics, or CRM (customer relationship management) tools.

Key takeaways

Vietnam’s digital marketing market should continue to grow as mobile-first consumption, social discovery, and e-commerce shift more budget toward measurable, always-on campaigns. For foreign brands, digital marketing is less a discretionary branding expense and more a core market-entry capability, especially where acquisition depends on social video, creators, and marketplace conversion.

2026 should be treated as a compliance reset year. Decree 356 on personal data protection (effective January 1, 2026) marks a new phase of rules for how marketing data is collected, used, and shared, while Decree 342 on advertising (effective February 15, 2026) updates key requirements for online advertising and handling illegal ads. These shifts make partner selection more consequential: weak consent management, unclear vendor responsibilities, and non-compliant content can quickly erase performance gains.

Setting up a business in Vietnam requires navigating company registration, local approvals, and work permit processes. We help FDI companies by preparing and submitting documentation, coordinating with authorities, and ensuring compliance, so they can start operations smoothly and focus on growth.

Tam Nguyen

Senior Manager

Talk to an expert at vietnam@dezshira.com

Or request a consultation at +84 28 3930 2828

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