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ThingsComeAround
Joined: 07 Nov 2008
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 Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 5:24 am Post subject: BBC: Selling South Korea: No 'sparkling' brand image |
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ATTN: Mods- I didn't create the title!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16713919
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Word association games are easier with some places than others.
Japan: sushi, cherry blossom and Mount Fuji. America: hamburgers and Hollywood. Paris: romance, croissants and the Eiffel Tower.
Now try with South Korea. If you are struggling to get past economic powerhouse and computer chips, you are not alone.
South Korea's government has been trying to change the country's international image - or rather its lack of one - for years.
And even those involved - like Peter Kim, brand manager for the Seoul government - admit it has been a tough sell.
"We're among the world's 13 largest economies," he said. "But we still don't have our own unique brand."
Partly, he said, that is because for the past 50 years, South Korea has been focused on building the country, not marketing it.
But now it is starting to think about its national brand, it is facing some unique challenges. |
I found myself agreeing with pretty much the entire article- when you think of Japan you don't think about one adjective.. unfortunately Korea's "experts" used to telling people what to do are also telling foreigners what to like 
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'Let people decide'
In fact, branding often works best when consumers themselves decide what's iconic, said a senior marketing official at one of South Korea's most recognised international companies. |
I think Korea has much to be proud of- the caves in Jeju, Gangwon-do mountains, cuisine, Jindos, etc are things Korea can start introducing as world-class to foreigners. Please lets not turn this into a flame war guys! |
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northway
Joined: 05 Jul 2010
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| Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 5:34 am Post subject: |
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| I actually think Korea needs to take a step back from emphasizing its mountains, as they really don't stack up at all when compared to what you can see in China and Japan. This will never be an international skiing destination, nor will its mountains ever really bring in a lot of tourism. The most interesting mountain in Korea is Baekdusan, and none of us are going to see that place any time soon. |
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cazzy3
Joined: 07 May 2008
Location: kangwon-do
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| Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 5:51 am Post subject: |
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"Many people think Britain has the best intelligence agency just because of James Bond," Mr Cho explained. "In M*A*S*H* Korea was portrayed as worn-down, third-world: a hopeless country."
I don't mean to upset Mr. Cho, but NO ONE I have ever met in my life thought James Bond represented reality, and in the 1950s Korea WAS a third world country!
I think the bigger problem has a lot to do with the inner problems of Korea. Their development has been so fast that a. It hasn't had time for an identity to manifest, and 2. Younger people forget how poor Korea really was only 35 years ago.
Let time decide what your legacy will be...or if you decide to force it upon the world, they'll mock it and criticize. (Personally, I do think that K-pop is not the best idea!! haha.) |
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Kimchifart
Joined: 15 Sep 2010
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| Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 6:07 am Post subject: |
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| northway wrote: |
| I actually think Korea needs to take a step back from emphasizing its mountains, as they really don't stack up at all when compared to what you can see in China and Japan. This will never be an international skiing destination, nor will its mountains ever really bring in a lot of tourism. The most interesting mountain in Korea is Baekdusan, and none of us are going to see that place any time soon. |
I remember seeing a picture outside the palace in Seoul of this huge mountain pass with an epic dam on it and thinking to myself 'Got to see that!', checked the map: DPRK. Seems a lot of the more interesting stuff is up North. |
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The Floating World
Joined: 01 Oct 2011
Location: Here
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wishfullthinkng
Joined: 05 Mar 2010
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| Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 5:59 pm Post subject: |
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korea has developed (maybe unintentionally) a reputation for being on the cutting edge of tech and having high standards of public education. i think they should focus on the tech part and make korea the tech mecca of the world and steal that image away from japan. i think it is very possible, and with the meteoric rise of samsung and lg i think it's not an impossible goal to reach within the next two decades. korea has already leapfrogged japan in some areas, especially in communications tech and constructoin where they are world leaders, and i don't see it ending anytime soon, especially with the strange paradigm shift the disasters in japan have created in terms of opportunities for korea to take market share in various fields.
sadly korea doesn't have much in the way of natural resources to brag about in comparison to other countries, nor is their culture easily accessible. even their general cuisine is not easy to jump immediately into. |
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Yaya
Joined: 25 Feb 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 3:09 am Post subject: |
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| That brand guru Simon Anholt said you can't brand a country but coined the term "Korea, Sparkling" anyway. Guess he got paid a pretty penny. |
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