Inquivix Insights No.32 – April Issue 2022

Welcome to the April edition of Inquivix Insights. In this issue, we take a look at how AI is changing marketing as we know it. From chat-bots to predictive analytics, AI is transforming the way businesses interact with customers and prospects. We will take a look at the latest trends in digital marketing and how you can use them to reach your target audience. I hope you find this issue of Insights informative and useful!

1. Musinsa Launches Video Content Curation ‘Short TV’ 

Next month, Musinsa will launch “Short TV,” a content curation service. It’s a 10- to 30-second video that displays the Musinsa Store’s major brands and products to users. Musinsa said that it wants to launch a short form-based video service, noting that people’s viewing habits are evolving.

2. Naver Cream Introduces Brokerage Commission for the First Time

Naver’s Cream, a limited edition resell platform, plans to charge a fee for brokerage services. This is the first time that consumers will be charged a commission to use the resell platform. From the 21st of next month, Naver Cream will charge a 1% commission on brokerage services.

3. Distribution Industry Sales – Offline Decreases as Online Increases

Online sales increased by 14.2%, while offline sales decreased by 3.8% in February 2022, according to major South Korean retailers’ market data. Despite the overall increased sales of department stores (9.3 percent) and convenience shops (7.4 percent), large discount stores’ sales (-24.0%) and SSM’s sales (-8.4%) offline sales have dropped significantly.

4. Skb’s “Channel Z” Becomes Popular with Ad-Supported Free Streaming

The MZ generation is flocking to “Channel Z,” SK Broadband service offering popular videos for free. “Channel Z” is a FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV) service, and if you buy a Playjet terminal, you can watch paid broadcast channels and free streaming material for free. 

5. Naver and Line Will Be Equipped with AI Technologies for Better Service

Naver revealed that it has integrated shopping-related search features such as product suggestion, search, and catalog to Line Shopping service in Japan. The brand-new AI search, product suggestion, catalog production, and matching capabilities have been introduced to the Japanese market. Naver is working on implementing integrated shopping search, search optimization by query, and AI recommendation technologies in a step-by-step approach.

6. South Korean Government Helps Small Businesses Enter O2O Platform

The Small and Medium Business Corporation (SMEs) will work with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups to hire small company owners for an O2O platform support project to help them expand their online presence and sales avenues. It will collaborate with four businesses, including SK Planet, Baemin, Carrot Market, and KT to help small business owners in a variety of sectors. Small business owners may select one of these businesses and receive service assistance worth around 300,000 won.

7. Launch of Lg U+ ‘Consumer Analysis’ Platform

LG U+ will launch “Data Plus,” a platform that caters to consumers’ lifestyle information, targeting firms that have begun the digital transformation. It’s a service that gives business insight and marketing channels by analyzing customers’ overall lifestyles, such as media usage data and movement patterns.

Conclusion

In this issue, we looked at how Naver is making progress in Japan by integrating AI technology with LINE.  Many South Korean businesses are using social media content for their businesses and the South Korean government continues to help improve small business owners.  We also saw how new technology has evolved to change the marketing landscape of South Korea. Inquivix Insights helps you stay updated on the latest happenings in the Korean business world. Make sure to check back next month for more!