Listening service

Just need someone to listen

At the end of a working day, instead of resting, Nguyen Hai A. (25 years old, import-export sales staff, living in Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City) chose to connect online via phone with a stranger, just to relieve some of his pent-up emotions. Hai A. chose a 1-hour chat service package with a fee of 300,000 VND, connecting online and not seeing each other's faces.

A conversation between two strangers, no questions, no advice, no judgment… The other end of the line simply listens, communicating at a moderate level, enough for the person wanting to confide in to know that they are talking to a specific individual, not an automated software or an AI (artificial intelligence) application.

After finishing the service and rating the experience at 5 stars (the highest level of satisfaction), Hai A. said: “My work has been quite stressful recently, many contracts have been broken at the last minute, so I want to talk to someone to relieve stress. I don’t need advice because my problem can only be solved by myself. I also have friends and relatives but I can’t share with them because they probably won’t understand, making me even more worried. I don’t want to be a burden to anyone.”

Hai A. also added that often after speaking, he doesn't remember exactly what he said, and the listener probably doesn't understand anything either, but that's even better, the important thing is to be able to vent, that's all mental care service needs.

Phan Thi Minh H. (29 years old, accountant, living in Tan Phu district, Ho Chi Minh City) turned to the listening service because she did not have close enough friends to confide in about her love life. “I did not want my parents to worry, so when I called home, I only told funny stories. I also did not have close friends to whom I could share my personal love life. Another part of me felt that I was too obsessively careful, afraid that if I said I was sad about my love life, my friends and acquaintances would judge me, so I chose this service, the listener did not know who I was and I could share whatever I wanted.”

A safe space to be yourself

At a time when he felt lonely, stuck and didn't know who to share with, Vu Duc Anh (born in 1997, currently living and working in Hanoi ) realized that not only he, but many people out there were also feeling the same way: having something to say but not knowing who to say it to, or even if he said it, no one really listened and understood.

From that experience, Vu Duc Anh started to build Need A Friend LLC in March 2025, providing a listening service so that customers can freely express their thoughts and feelings of sadness and happiness.

Young man Vu Duc Anh started his listening career by establishing Need A Friend LLC.

Need A Friend is registered to operate under industry code 9329 - Other entertainment activities not classified elsewhere (according to Appendix II of Decision 27/2018/QD-TTg of the Prime Minister issued in 2018 on the system of economic sectors of Vietnam), which means: Services not in the field of medicine, psychology, psychotherapy or mental health professional consulting.

Duc Anh shared: “Registering under industry 9329 is to ensure: No misunderstanding about the therapeutic and healing functions. No violation of regulations on practicing in the medical or psychological fields and protecting both customers and companies from unnecessary legal risks. This is a very new job in Vietnam, not only lacking a legal corridor, even when I went to register the company, I had to work very hard to explain to the relevant parties, most of whom did not understand what this service was.”

Before starting to listen to customers, members of Need A Friend must undergo professional training, as a way to distinguish customers who only need a form of emotional entertainment, a chance to relieve psychological pressure, and not who need a higher solution such as a doctor or psychologist. The presence of Need A Friend or services related to spiritual care and "healing" has become a necessary and real trend for many people today, especially young people, who are considered to have a large gap in connection, empathy and safety in communication.

“Young people today have many channels to talk, but lack people who truly listen without judgment. And because they have to hide their emotions for too long, many people burst into tears right from the first minutes when they came to Need A Friend. I think the worrying thing is not that young people have problems, but that they do not have a safe space to be themselves,” Duc Anh expressed.

RED SUNFLOWER

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/dich-vu-lang-nghe-tam-su-post800880.html