Meanwhile, after arriving in Hong Kong, Kim Yoon-sun and other Hallyu stars like Clones have had a busy schedule.
Fan signings, concerts, and even TV appearances.
They were already stars enjoying immense popularity in the Greater China region.
So this time, when they wore T-shirts with the 【Jungle】 logo, sang songs, and gave interviews and TV appearances, it felt tangible.
People were getting to know 【Jungle】.
Even in the comments section of an article featuring them on 【Yaho China】, 【Jungle】 was mentioned.
Naturally, there were comments hoping for the launch of 【Jungle China】.
Moreover, in Hong Kong, we rented a large business space, and people were expressing their interest there.
“It’s amazing that we can find 【Jungle】 on this site.”
“Yes, there are comments on 【Yaho China】 hoping for 【Jungle】 to launch in Hong Kong soon. Hahaha.”
“This is almost embarrassing. 【Yaho】 is setting up the ecosystem, and 【Jungle】 seems like it will just take over later.”
Lee Hyun-woo couldn’t help but laugh.
Listening to the conversation between Kang Dong-ho, who resembled his own composure and confidence, and the employees.
Kim Ah-young, who was beside him, felt the same.
‘People in this company never think they will be losers in the market.’
She also considered this a virtue of the top executive.
Because the confidence of always being the market leader seemed to multiply work efficiency.
It was also impressive that they were fervently promoting 【Jungle】 even before its launch.
However, Kim Ah-young was curious.
The launch date of the 【Jungle】 website had not been set yet.
It would have been better to align the concert promotion with a set date.
‘Why did they do that? Wouldn’t it have been better to time it perfectly?’
She wanted to ask all these questions, but no matter how close their relationship was, she couldn’t pry into another company’s strategy.
Fortunately, she was able to learn the strategy when they moved to the concert venue that day.
Specifically, it was from Kang Dong-ho’s response to a question from CEO Hyun Chang-soo.
“According to the CEO, he wants to start with the ‘influencer’ effect and later finish with a ‘viral’ marketing strategy. This time is the test stage.”
It wasn’t an unfamiliar term to Kim Ah-young.
She had already heard about influencers and ‘viral’ marketing from Lee Hyun-woo.
However, for Hyun Chang-soo, they were unfamiliar terms.
Seeing his expression, Kang Dong-ho quickly explained.
“An influencer is someone who has an impact on others. Hallyu stars are incredibly popular in Hong Kong.”
In fact, Kim Yoon-sun’s popularity was beyond question, and since the end of last year and the beginning of this year, Clones’ popularity had peaked.
Additionally, Perfect Pitch was also gaining popularity these days, and other Hallyu stars were establishing their own niches.
“People who like those stars are very likely to follow what they do.”
“Okay, so?”
“Later, I’ll ask you to create SNS accounts when our 【Jungle】 launches in Taiwan and Hong Kong. ‘Make Friends,’ an SNS, will soon be launched in Korea.”
“SNS? Make Friends? What is that?”
He seemed to know very little.
Hyun Chang-soo looked embarrassed.
But Kang Dong-ho kindly explained until the end.
“It’s similar to a blog. ‘Make Friends’ will be launched in Hong Kong and Taiwan by the end of the year.”
“Oh, a blog-like thing? I roughly get it. But what’s the difference?”
Hyun Chang-soo’s questions were endless.
It was a situation where everything had to be explained from one to ten.
But Kang Dong-ho, without showing any dislike, slowly resolved his curiosity.
This was necessary to receive his help.
To be precise, to get help from the entertainers Hyun Chang-soo was managing.
Hyun Chang-soo was asking in detail to help.
Meanwhile, while listening to the conversation between the two, Kim Ah-young was drawing a picture in her mind.
‘This marketing using SNS could be applied to hotels as well.’
She also learned the definition of SNS from Lee Hyun-woo.
She knew that blogs were a type of SNS and had confirmed their effectiveness through her younger sister, Kim Na-yoon.
But if celebrities use this SNS for social activities, sharing thoughts and daily lives?
‘The public will think they are communicating with the star and will follow them. The products they use, the hotels they stay in.’
Although they were already doing this through blogs, they hadn’t extended their influence overseas.
But now, if they are attempting this marketing?
‘Does this mean they will launch SNS first instead of a portal site? Or simultaneously?’
Maybe it was because of love.
Honestly, these days, Kim Ah-young often shared thoughts with Lee Hyun-woo.
‘Anyway, I should try this marketing method as soon as I return to Korea.’
At this point, she heard the concluding explanation from Kang Dong-ho.
“…So combining it with ‘viral’ marketing can draw attention to the launch of 【Jungle Taiwan】 or 【Jungle Hong Kong】 in half a month. It would have been great to do this during the 【Jungle Japan】 launch, but there was no SNS back then.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Since Son Jung-yi manages that site, it was difficult for us to intervene. But he poured a lot of money into TV and newspaper promotions, so the initial interest was huge. Our company doesn’t yet have that level of financial power, so we’re trying to mix the two strategies.”
He had already explained the definition of ‘viral’ marketing.
A strategy that promotes through word-of-mouth, spreading like a virus.
It made sense why Lee Hyun-woo and the employees were closely watching the comments on 【Yaho】.
Kim Ah-young came to a sudden conclusion.
‘For sure, these marketing methods seem applicable to us.’
However, she wanted to seek Lee Hyun-woo’s advice.
So she subtly asked him at the concert venue shortly after.
“Maybe hotels will benefit more. And it wouldn’t be bad to mix in blog promotions as well.”
He didn’t hesitate and gave an immediate answer.
It was meaningful in many ways.
Noticing this, Kim Ah-young said.
“So you mean to push both portal sites and SNS simultaneously.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“To my knowledge, SNS hasn’t been launched in Korea yet.”
“It will be launched right after we arrive. This time, it will be launched simultaneously in all places where 【Jungle】 is or will be expanding, including Korea, the U.S., Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.”
“Ah, so you’ve been preparing for that all this time?”
“Not exactly me, Min-woo has put in a lot of effort.”
“Wow, you two are amazing.”
Kim Ah-young was in awe.
‘No matter how I think about it, Hyun-woo seems to be a business genius.’
It might be because of her affection for him, but she had never seen anyone surpass Lee Hyun-woo in terms of ideas and execution.
The more she saw, the more she admired him.
Decisive and bold, yet calm.
Even her father, compared to Lee Hyun-woo, was cautious and meticulous.
He also gave her advice without hesitation.
“Oh, and it might be better to give gifts to guests who write good content on blogs or SNS.”
He even suggested a more advanced promotional strategy.
It wasn’t just because she liked Lee Hyun-woo; the more she saw, the more she wanted to emulate him.
Perhaps Lee Hyun-woo was Kim Ah-young’s true influencer.
Shortly after, the concert ended successfully.
It was unclear how much the sponsors like 【Jungle】 were promoted, but with this level of interest, Lee Hyun-woo thought the promotional effect was sufficient.
Now, they just had to return to Korea and wait for the results from Hong Kong and Taiwan.
No, with Hong Kong and Taiwan wrapped up, it was time to set another plan.
He began discussing this plan with key aides on the flight back.
“After Taiwan and Hong Kong, we’re aiming for China.”
“China? Wow, the infrastructure there must be the worst.”
“Yes, there are still many places without internet access.”
Listening to the concerns of Kang Dong-ho and Han Se-jin, Lee Hyun-woo nodded.
“Think about it. We’re starting early. Even the U.S. and Japan, latecomers, haven’t fully connected ADSL nationwide. China is the same. Of course, many places don’t even have modem-based internet, but we should approach it with the mindset of pioneering.”
“But we’re not the ones laying down the internet.”
“That’s why we should enter together. Currently, Korea has 【Dae Han Telecom】, 【Dae Han Electric】, and 【Samjin Network】. We should partner with one of them. By the way, when entering China, it’s much better to use a segmented strategy.”
“Segmented?”
“Are you suggesting we focus on provinces or cities?”
“Yes, exactly.”
As they said, China’s internet ecosystem was still poor.
However, it wasn’t bad in certain cities and provinces.
“Since we’ve entered Hong Kong, it seems good to start nearby. That is, Guangdong province, more specifically, Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province.”
Hong Kong is the gateway to China.
Lee Hyun-woo had planned to enter from the beginning, considering this.
Even though it’s segmented, expanding north from Guangzhou to the east and west could cover China.
The reason for setting up such a plan was simple.
‘Jamie Wang seems to have come to his senses.’
Jamie Wang, whom he met recently, had shown a significantly improved and matured side.
He even talked about cooperative competition and fair competition.
The moment he heard that, he felt a mix of anticipation and excitement.
It felt like a grand duel over the continent.
Lee Hyun-woo had always enjoyed competition.
He was used to winning fiercely competitive battles.
While he had fallen into work addiction, this time he intended to enjoy competition while balancing work and life.
‘If we conquer the Chinese market, early retirement seems possible.’
As thoughts of post-retirement life popped up, his gaze naturally turned.
Of course, towards Kim Ah-young.
Coincidentally, she was also looking at him.
He felt admiration and respect, not affection, in Kim Ah-young’s eyes.
‘What is this?’
In fact, Kim Ah-young was inwardly exclaiming.
‘Hyun-woo’s grand plan included China. He plans to expand north following Taiwan and Hong Kong!’
If so, she would follow.
In her mind, she envisioned the 【Seorabeol Hotel】 chain expanding north following Taiwan and Hong Kong.
There was no law preventing her from establishing a global hotel chain.
With an excellent mentor like Lee Hyun-woo by her side, she was even more motivated.
