2024年6月1日
2024 Latest Version] Top 5 Popular SNSs in South Korea｜Tips for Successful Marketing
What kind of SNSs are likely to attract attention in Korea?
Are there any differences from popular Japanese SNSs?"
Social media is indispensable for overseas business expansion. With more and more people using SNS not only for private use but also as a source of information, SNS has become indispensable for many people.
In this article, we will introduce some popular SNSs that are effective for online business in Korea. If you are considering SNS marketing and online marketing in Korea, please refer to this article.
2024 Latest Version] Top 5 Popular SNS Platforms in Korea
First, we will introduce five popular SNS platforms in Korea in a ranking format. The following ranking is based on the "Current Status of SNS Usage by Generation" by the Korea Institute for Information and Communications Policy Institute (KISDI), released by KOREA WAVE on May 29, 2012.
Ranking | SNS | utilization rate |
|---|---|---|
No.1 | 48.6％ | |
No.2 | 16.7％ | |
No.3 | BAND | 13.1％ |
No.4 | KakaoStory | 10.2％ |
No.5 | X/former Twitter | 7.7％ |
Quote: KOREA WAVE, "Half of SNS users in Korea are 'Insta' users."
Referring to the above survey results, it can be seen that about half of the Korean SNS users who participated in the survey are using "Instagram.
The second-ranked "Facebook" had a usage rate of 28.6% as of 2021, but currently about half of its users have been absorbed by Instagram.
Meanwhile, the survey results for Japan are as follows.
No.1 | LINE | 93％ |
|---|---|---|
No.2 | You Tube | 88％ |
No.3 | 49％ | |
No.4 | X/former Twitter | 46％ |
No.5 | 33％ |
(Citation: "2022 Survey Report on Information and Communications Media Usage Time and Information Behavior," Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications)
In South Korea, the popularity of Instagram is concentrated on Instagram, while in Japan, users are concentrated on the messenger application LINE and the video sharing platform YouTube. It is important to keep in mind that SNS usage differs between Japan and Korea.
From here, we will provide detailed explanations of the above five SNSs that are attracting attention in South Korea, as well as KakaoTalk, which boasts deep-rooted popularity.
Instagram" is an image-sharing application released in 2010. It mainly features media such as photos and videos instead of text, allows anonymous registration, and has the advantage of being linked to Facebook, another social networking service.
With more than 1 billion monthly users, Instagram is an application that is attracting attention not only in Korea but also around the world. The number of Instagram users in South Korea is said to be 1.6 times that of Japan, and in recent years there has been a trend toward an influx of middle-aged and older people in their 40s and above.
Facebook" is one of the world's largest social networking services, released in 2004. Its main feature is real-name registration, and it has the advantage of more privacy features than other social networking sites.
Facebook application usage has decreased by 35% between 2019 and 2024. While the overall number of users is decreasing, it is said that this is due to the departure of the MZ generation, which is the main group of users. Conversely, older generations, such as Generation X and the baby boom generation, tend to use Facebook more.
The Facebook usage rate in Japan is 33%, with users in their 30s and older being the main demographic.
Reference: KOREA WAVE "Instagram in the 50s and 60s" increasing in Korea... Facebook users are decreasing in all generations.
BAND
BAND was created in 2012 as a "closed social networking service" for specific members to interact with each other, and was absorbed by NAVER in 2018.
Originally designed for a community of university students, it is now a small-scale community app, supported mainly by users in their 30s and older. It is also used as a business communication tool, and is available in seven languages including Korean, English, and Japanese.
While LINE, a familiar name in Japan, can be used as a private person-to-person social networking service, BAND is suitable for small group communication. The service was launched in Japan in 2013.
KakaoStory
KakaoStory is a posting-type SNS established in 2012 by Kakao, the company that operates KakaoTalk, a free mobile messenger service in South Korea.
The general functionality is similar to Facebook, but the service is characterized by its Instagram-like service content, as it is mainly for posting photos. It is slowly gaining popularity due to the convenience of being able to post, modify, and delete photos in a few simple steps and the ability to process photos.
X/former Twitter
X" is a microblogging service established in 2006, which has been popularly known as "Twitter" for many years, and has grown into a globally popular SNS due to its ease of posting short 140-character texts, images, and videos.
In 2022, the company was acquired by its owner, "Elon Musk," and is now renamed from Twitter to "X."
X is not strictly speaking a social networking service, but because of its 300 million users and the fact that it is often categorized as a social networking service, it is treated as a social networking service in the broadest sense. Currently, the number of monthly active users of X is estimated to be 2 billion.
In Japan, 46% of all SNS users use X, making it as popular as Instagram. However, the number of users in South Korea is not so large compared to other SNSs.
In the past, it was thought that the purpose of the service, to tweet to oneself, might not fit the national character, but in recent years, it is known that there is a certain level of demand for the service.
KakaoTalk
KakaoTalk is a messenger application developed by Kakao, the same South Korean company that developed KakaoStory. It has almost the same functions as LINE, but since it is such a major platform in South Korea that it is called the "national SNS," we will introduce it as well.
KakaoTalk was released prior to LINE and quickly became popular in Korea. Features of KakaoTalk include the display of the number of unread messages instead of read messages, and a wide variety of character stamps favored by Koreans. The reason for its popularity is that its specifications are suited to Korean people's skin.
Although the application originated in Korea, it is also widely used in Japan. It is also popular as a useful application when traveling in Korea, as it offers a cab dispatch function and information on intercity buses and trains.
SNS and Internet Situation in Korea
Let's take a closer look at the SNS situation and usage in South Korea. We will introduce the country's overall infrastructure, SNS usage rates, and SNS usage trends by generation, so please use this information for your own SNS marketing in South Korea.
The Internet in South Korea, a Digitally Advanced Country
South Korea is a digitally advanced country where most of the population is Internet-savvy, and is known for being one of the first countries to develop high-speed Internet infrastructure.The next-generation communication standard "5G" service was already introduced in April 2018, followed by Japan in March 2020.
According to Data Reportal, a global digital trends report, South Korea has one of the highest SNS usage rates in the world in 2023, with 92% of the population using SNS. The average number of SNSs used is 4.5, indicating that people are using a variety of media.
SNS Use by Generation
The following is a ranking of SNS usage in Korea by age group as of 2021.
No.1 | No.2 | No.3 | |
10's | BAND | ||
20's | BAND | ||
30's | BAND | ||
40's | BAND | KakaoStory | |
50's | BAND | KakaoStory |
We can see that Instagram is already the most popular as of 2021, followed by Facebook and BAND in the top 3. In addition, Instagram seems to be popular mainly among young people in their teens to 30s, and BAND among those in their 30s and older.
Reference: INFO CUBIC "What is BAND, the SNS rising in popularity in South Korea? -Major functions and comparison with LINE".
Tips for Successful SNS Marketing in Korea
In order to succeed in Korean SNS marketing, the following three points must be kept in mind.
Understand the trends of Korean SNS and Internet users
Operation of your own account utilizing popular SNS
Use of Korean influencers
The first step in marketing is to conduct market research. It is advisable to set up personas based on a thorough understanding of the characteristics and preferences of SNS users in Korea. It is also necessary to devise ways to attract a larger target audience.
Understanding the trends of SNS/internet users in Korea
Trends and characteristics of Korean SNS/internet users are as follows.
Almost all generations are familiar with the Internet
They tend to actively view media in video format
YouTube is used as a search site
In South Korea, the Internet penetration rate is higher than in Japan, and all generations are familiar with smartphones and the Internet. Therefore, it can be said that marketing through SNS and the Internet is effective for people in their 50s and older, an age group that does not receive much attention in Japan.
In addition, since they have a better communication environment than in other countries, they tend to view video media more actively. Furthermore, many people use the video sharing platform "YouTube" as a search engine like "Google.
Using popular SNS to manage your own account
When conducting web marketing in South Korea, it is also important to utilize popular SNS in the country. It is important to set up your own accounts on popular social networking sites such as Instagram and Facebook and operate them on a regular basis.
In Korea, people of all ages are familiar with social networking sites, making it relatively easy to reach out to all age groups. Of course, it is also effective to use SNS means that are likely to attract the attention of your persona's age group.
Use of Korean Influencers
Influencer marketing is effective not only in Japan but also in Korea. In Korea, it is common to purchase products in large quantities and share them with friends and family, so the online culture of "joint purchase with influencers" is well established.
By using Korean influencers to promote products and services, sales channel expansion via influencers can be expected.
Conclusion
In Korea, people of all ages are familiar with the Internet and SNS, so marketing through SNS is effective. Determining the right platform for your services and products is the first step to developing a strategy that will resonate with your target audience.
In a digitally advanced country like Korea, marketing techniques change rapidly, and new trends emerge one after another, so it is important to keep up to date with the latest information. Please refer to the popular SNSs and marketing tips introduced here and make use of them for your company's promotion.
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