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Major players in the business sector, such as Samsung Electronics and SK Telecom, are concocting marketing strategies targeting the Red Devils generation, mainly youngsters from 15 to 25 who colored the streets red and are expected to make an extensive influence on the consumer market after the World Cup. The business sector is paying attention to the strong bonding and sense of community that they showed during the games, an unexpected quality of youngsters who were formerly considered highly individualistic.
SK Telecom launched a 20-men 'Post-World Cup Project Team' within its Marketing Strategy Headquarters on June 14, when Team Korea proceeded into the second round. The taskforce will analyze the newly found behavioral patterns of the Red Devils and are conjuring basic marketing concepts and more specific plans for after the World Cup. Lee Seok-hwan, SK Telecom’s head of marketing, said that the company will bring out patriotism and contribute to the soccer development, with minimum amount of commercialism.
Samsung Electronics translated the Red Devils fashionable use of the national flag as preferring vivid colors, and plans to add colorful products to the current mainly black-and-white electronics market.
Fashion and Apparel sectors wish to set a trend with the Taegeuk pattern and the color red. Jeil Industries, Inc. decided that the consumer group of its casual brand FUBU exactly coincides with members of the support group, and made a last-minute change to the production plan for this year's second-half, beefing up the red-colored products by 10%.
Fashion brand Ssamgji added Taegeuk mark on its character brand Ddalgi, and is reviewing to utilize the traditional pattern on its SSAM brand clothing line.
Restaurants are also adjusting their marketing strategies according to the taste of the Red Devils. TGI Fridays is planning a campaign event that can induce voluntarily participation and organization after the World Cup. While the restaurant chain concentrated on individual marketing, such as giving out special coupons and prize giveaways, marketing chief Choi Jong-pil says that underlining the "me" concept no longer applies to the younger generation these days.
Korea University Professor Seong Yeong-sil, who is also the chairman of the Society for Consumer Psychology, said that the Red Devils let out their hidden sense of community through experiencing the World Cup and made patriotism in to everyday life, advising the businesses to attack positive aspects to domestic brands by setting up marketing strategies that satisfies the generations’ desire to make a bigger community.
(Cho Jung-sik, jscho@chosun.com )
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