Digital Marketing Trends in South Korea [2024 Edition] | The Latest Information Based on Data

South Korea is an Internet superpower with an Internet penetration rate of over 97%.

In order to expand sales in the Korean market, digital marketing is an inseparable part of the business.

This article explains the trends based on the latest data.

If you are considering entering the Korean market, this is a must-see.

If you are interested in data not only for digital marketing but also for business in general, please refer to "Digital Marketing Consulting Company Explains! How to Do Business Successfully in Korea?" article is recommended.

[2024] Overview of Digital Marketing in South Korea

[Summary

• The number of Internet users in South Korea as of January 2024 is 50.3 million, with a penetration rate of 97.2%.

• The number of social media users as of the same date will be 48.34 million, 93.4% of the total population.

• The total number of mobile subscriptions at the same time was 66.39 million, equivalent to 128.3% of the total population

South Korea has 50.3 million Internet users with a penetration rate of 97.2%. Considering that Japan's Internet penetration rate is 84.9%, it is clear that South Korea has a higher Internet usage rate than Japan.

The usage rate of social media users is 93.4%, which is very high compared to 78.1% in Japan.

This indicates the importance of implementing online as well as offline marketing initiatives in South Korea.

However, the cell phone penetration rate is 128.3%, which is low compared to Japan's 153.6%.

There are multiple possible reasons, but it is possible that cell phone penetration in rural and suburban areas is less advanced than in Japan.

The ownership rates by device are also shown below.

Compared to Japan's device ownership rates below, the tablet ownership rate is higher.

When creating websites and landing pages for the Korean market, it is necessary to create them not only for smartphones and PCs, but also for tablets.

Internet usage in South Korea in 2024

As mentioned above, the Internet penetration rate in South Korea is higher than in Japan.

As well, it has been found that the Internet usage time is also longer than in Japan.

The average time spent using the Internet in South Korea is 5 hours and 19 minutes. Japan averages 3 hours 56 minutes.

The most notable feature of the Internet usage is the device used during the Internet usage.

In South Korea, 60.48% of users access the Internet from their smartphones.

In Japan, on the other hand, 62.25% use PCs.

This means that smartphone-optimized digital marketing measures are important.

SEO Trends in Korea [2024 Edition

The situation for SEO in the Korean market is different from that in Japan.

• Google ranks first in terms of usage.

• Naver is ranked in 2nd place

• Usage rates for Bing and Yahoo!, which occupy the top positions in Japan, are low.

As mentioned above, Google is the most used search engine as in Japan.

Basically, there is no problem with SEO in Korea as long as the site is managed in a Google-optimized manner.

At the same time, however, the usage rate of Naver is also important to keep an eye on.

Naver is an Internet service provider that originated in Korea and has its own search engine.

This Naver tends to be used by older users.

We have been doing SEO in Korea for many years, and depending on the service, Naver optimization may be the main focus.

Thus, Korean SEO requires a different perspective than Japanese SEO.

For more information on search engines in Korea, please refer to "The Top 4 Search Engines in Korea!

[2024 Edition] SNS Trends in South Korea

As of January 2024, there are 48.34 million active SNS users in South Korea.

By age group, SNS usage rates are high among 10, 20, and 30 year olds, indicating that SNS is an effective channel to reach the younger generation.

Looking at usage rates by platform, KakaoTalk (hereafter "KakaoTalk"), an unfamiliar SNS in Japan, is the most used.

KakaoTalk is a LINE-like communication application.

It is used not only for conversations with friends, but also as a business chat tool, and has become an indispensable channel when discussing digital marketing in Korea.

Since it can be linked to websites and to e-commerce sites, it can be used for both BtoB and BtoC businesses by distributing coupons and linking with various CRM tools.

The SNS situation in Korea is explained in detail in "[2024 Latest Version] Top 5 Popular SNS Ranking in Korea｜Tips for Successful Marketing".

Reference: "How to Use Korean Hashtags on Instagram｜Tips for SNS Operation with Inbound Marketing in Mind".

Purchase Paths in Korea

In digital marketing, the "user's path to purchase" is an important element.

According to the survey, the following are the sources of information on the Internet that users refer to before making a purchase.

Sources of information at the time of purchase in the Korean market

*This data was translated and processed by our company from datareportal.com's survey data.

A characteristic of user behavior in the Korean market is that "information gathering via TV" is rare.

For example, in Japan, "TV commercials" and "TV programs" rank next to online searches.

Sources of information at the time of purchase in the Japanese market

*This data was translated and processed by our company from data provided by datareportal.com.

The results show that digital information dissemination is more important in South Korea than in Japan.

Summary of Digital Marketing in Korea

In this report, we have summarized the state of digital marketing in South Korea.

South Korea is a country with a high Internet usage rate, and digital marketing is highly important.

If you are considering entering the Korean market in the future, please contact us, professionals in Korean digital marketing.

We always provide consultation and information free of charge.

We will be happy to share our knowledge and experience with you to help you expand your sales in the Korean market.

Reference: "[Useful for Marketing] 5 Popular Video Streaming Websites in Korea｜Characteristics and Trends of the Korean OTT Market".