CONTENTS 1 – THE MARKET
1. Market Snapshot
2. General Market Conditions
•Population / Languages
•Interest in UK University Education
•Economics / Politics
3. Access Overview
•Political, Passport and Visa Issues
•Gateways / Access to Britain
•Holidays / Annual Leave
4. Market Size / Share
•Current and Forecast Overall Market Size / Britain’s % Share
•Current Volume / Value Statistics and Trends for UK
•Key Competitor Destinations – Actual and Aspirational
5. Market Shape / Dynamics
•Purpose of Visit
•Length of Stay
•Seasonal Spread
•Type of Accommodation – Where Do They Stay?
•Regional Spread / Regional Awareness
6. Britain’s Brand Image in South Korea
•The Bigger Picture - Britain as a Nation Brand
•Britain as a Tourist Destination Brand - DEPTH, HEART, VITALITY
7. Product / Market Fit
•What did overseas visitors actually do during their visit to UK?
•Products / Experiences identified as attractive
8. Who is the South Korean Visitor to Britain?
•Demographics
•Travelling Companions and key Travelling Group types
•1st Timer / Repeat Markets
9. Reaching South Korean Consumers
•Caring for the South Korean Customer
•Deciding, Planning and Booking Patterns for Travel
•Online Environment / Internet Access
•Media Habits
CONTENTS 2 – THE TRADE / B2B
10. The Trade
•Overview of Trade Structure
•Reaching the Trade
11. Business Visits and Events
•Statistics and Trends
12. VisitBritain in South Korea
•Working in Partnership with VisitBritain
•Overseas Contacts
•London Contacts / Further Information
•Information Sources Used to Compile this Report
SOUTH KOREA
Market & Trade Profile
Updated January 2008
South Korea
1) Market Snapshot
2
www .visitbritain.com/ukindustry
Who visits
32% aged 25-34,52% male.64% travelledto UK with “otheradults” - likelyto be members
of a tour group.SINGLEJOKS are a keytarget market - single,urban menand particularly
women in their20s and 30s
What motivates them to visit
The most popularactivity in 2006was visiting museums /galleries (54%of Holidayvisitors).
Built heritagewas enjoyedby 43% of these.
South Korea
Total Visits 2006
153,000 (up3%,rank34th) Total Spend 2006
£81m (up 16%,rank42nd) Average SpendperVisit(AEV) 2006
£532(up 13%,rank38th) Average LengthofStay(ALS) 2006 10 nights
Market Population2007
49 million Outbound MarketSize 2006
12.8 million UK’s Market Share2006
1.2% (rank 17th)
Top 5 actual competitors
1. China 2. Japan
3. Thailand 4. USA
5. Hong Kong
Top 5 aspirational competitors
1. Switzerland 2. France
3. Australia 4. Netherlands
5. Italy
South Korea has their very own “Bridget Jones”
demographic - known as the
“Singlejoks” - a key target for UK tourism
Market shape
Purpose of Visit
66% Holiday, 17% Business, 9% VFR Length of stay
Three quarters stay for less than 8nights(halfonly1-3 nights - likely to be on a European tour)
Quarter of visit
Almost half (48%) visited in July-Sept
Internet access
34 million users in June 2007 67% population penetration
Population / Languages
The US Census Bureau puts the population of South Korea at 49 million in 2007. The population is forecast to grow to 50.3 million by 2017, but start to decline between 2027-2037 - down to 46.2 million in 2047.
Long-term, the proportion aged under 55 is forecast to decline, whilst the proportion aged 55+ is forecast to increase. In 2007, over 55s make up just 19% of the population but by 2047 they will represent 45% of it.
81% of the population is reckoned to be urban (ETC 2007) Korea has one of the lowest birthrates in the world (1.2 children per capita) reflecting this generation’s change from previous family responsibility to a new desire for greater freedom in their own lives.
The government promotes a “one child” culture.
Language: Korean. English widely taught in primary school, junior high and high school. Koreans take satisfaction in being able to speak and be understood in English.
Interest in UK University Education
520 South Korean students were accepted to study at British universities in 2006 (from 3515 applicants - a 15% acceptance rate) (UCAS) - with Business & Admin, and Creative Arts / Design the most popular subjects.
Economics / Politics
Geo-political tensions with North Korea continue to ease as progress is made on managing the North’s nuclear ambitions – indeed South and North Korea recently agreed to restore cross border rail services after a fifty year gap.
The improved relationship, and warmer relations between North Korea and the West in general, should help boost international investment in South Korea.
Pre-election political manoeuvrings in South Korea in the autumn of 2007 produced an unexpected twist.
For months polls had been predicting that Lee Myung-bak, the candidate of the conservative Grand National Party (GNP), would cruise to a comfortable victory in the December 19th presidential election, ending an unprecedented ten years of rule by the centre-left. But on November 7th 2007 Lee Hoi-chang, a veteran conservative politician and the losing GNP candidate in the past two presidential elections, announced that he will stand as an independent. Lee Hoi-chang's move threatens to split the conservative vote while boosting efforts by the centre-left to unite behind a single candidate.
South Korea is the third largest economy in Asia, and 12th largest in the world. Export performance has continued to be strong and domestic demand has remained resilient. Unemployment remains low, as does inflation, which has remained below the Bank of Korea's target range.
Private consumption has been increasing, suggesting an improvement in consumer confidence, which had gone through a period of relative weakness. The Bank of Korea's consumer sentiment index survey has also suggested an increasingly upbeat outlook.
South Korea’s economy remains buoyant, with the International Monetary Fund forecasting only a modest slowdown in growth from 4.8% in 2007 to 4.6% in 2008, but one cloud on the horizon is that a ‘hard landing’ in the US could hit the vital South Korean export market.
During the first half of 2007, South Korea was the 24th most valuable trading partner for the UK in terms of imports and the 27th most important partner in terms of the value of exports.
Inward foreign direct investment has been sluggish since early 2005 and has not recovered yet while outward investment has been increasing continuously. The government has been trying to attract more foreign investors by providing a friendly business environment, giving tax benefits and streamlining regulations.
2) General Market Conditions South
Korea
www .visitbritain.com/ukindustry 4
Political Situation
No political issues currently exist to restrict travel to Britain from South Korea.
Passport and Visa Issues
South Korean visitors do NOT require a visa to visit the UK for visits of less than six months.
Gateways / Access to Britain
In 2006 (IPS), 63% of visitors from South Korea travelled to the UK by air, 29% by Tunnel and 8% by sea.
This high proportion of departures by Channel Tunnel suggests that a large number of South Korean visitors are on a European tour. However, the proportion has decreased slightly compared to 2005. This decrease reflects the fact that Korean consumers' tastes have been slowly changing from multi-Western Europe destination package tours to mono- destination tours.
The average flight time (direct service) between South Korea and UK is about 11 hours.
Two national carriers operate flights from Seoul to Heathrow. Asiana Airlines offer five flights per week, having increased the number of flights from three in 2006, with Korean Air operating a daily service.
Holidays / Annual Leave
Koreans have ten days holiday per year, but each year this increases by one day for each worker and the maximum annual leave entitlement of the average Korean company is 20 or 25 days depending on the company.
Generally speaking, Lunar New Year (late January or early February), July and August and Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving - late September or early October) are the peak times to travel for Koreans. The Korean
Thanksgiving Day in 2006 was the busiest time last year.
3) Access Overview
LHR – Direct flight from Seoul (Korean Air - daily service & Asiana Airlines – 3 flights per week) Main Gateways Servicing South Korea
South Korea
Current and Forecast Market Size
Global Insight’s “Global Tourism Navigator” estimates that there were 12.8 million outbound visits from South Korea in 2006. There are forecast to be 19.2 million such trips by 2011 (a 50% increase).
In 2006, UK’s market share was 1.2% of outbound trips from South Korea and this is forecast to remain the same in 2011.
Current Volume and Value Statistics / Trends
2006 set new records for South Korea - the best ever-recorded year for both visits and total spend.
Key Competitor Destinations – Actual
Global Insight’s “Global Tourism Navigator” shows us that UK was 17th in the actual ranking of top destinations (short and long haul included) for South Korean outbound travel in 2006. This is a drop of 3 places compared with 2005.
Key Competitor Destinations - Aspirational
According to the Anholt-GMI Nation Brands Index (Wave 2 2007), which surveys a representative n=1000 sample of the online population in South Korea, UK is ranked 3rd (up from 6th in 2006) out of 38*
destinations that would be likely for a leisure visit “if money were no object”.
There are six key European competitors here – and we know, given their port entry / exit patterns, that South Korean visitors to UK are likely to be on a wider European tour. Our challenge is to ensure that UK is always an essential part of such a tour and that the experience is such that South Korean visitors want to return to the UK and do more here as a single destination.
* Note: Not all potential destinations were asked about in this survey.
4) Market Size / Share
IPS 2005 2006 Change
year on year
Total Visits 149,000 153,000 +3%
Visits Rank
(League Table No. Outside of Top 30 rankings n/a Visitors to UK)
Total Spend £70m £81m +16%
Spend Rank
(League Table No. Outside of Top 30 rankings n/a Visitors to UK)
Average Spend £469 £532 +13%
per Visit (AEV)
AEV Rank Outside of Top 30 rankings n/a
Average Spend £57 £52 -9%
per Day (AED)
AED Rank Outside of Top 30 rankings n/a
1 China 6 Philippines
2 Japan 7 Singapore
3 Thailand 8 Vietnam
4 United States 9 Italy
5 Hong Kong 10 Australia
1177 UUKK
1 Switzerland 6 Italy
2 France 7 Canada
33 UUKK 8 New Zealand
4 Australia 9 Germany
5 Netherlands 10 Greece
Purpose of Visit
South Korea is a Holiday market - representing two thirds (66%) of all visits in 2006, having increased in share over time from 56% in 1999.
17% came for business in 2006. Only 9% came for the purpose of visiting friends and relatives (VFR), and 5% for short-term study. Long-term study is not included in the IPS but the Foreign and Commonwealth Office estimate that around 20,000 students from South Korea attend English Language courses in Britain annually.
Length of Stay
Average (median) Length of Stay (ALS) was 6 nights for holiday and 4 nights for business visitors in 2006. Three quarters of visits from South Korea are under 8 nights in duration. Exactly half of all South Korean visitors (and 55% of Holiday visitors) stayed in the UK for 1-3 nights in 2006. This suggests that the majority of South Koreans are visiting UK as part of a wider European or world tour.
Seasonal Spread
In 2006, the summer months July-September were an even more popular period than in 2005 (where they covered 39% of visits) for South Korean residents to visit the UK. 48% of all visits in 2006 were July-September.
Accommodation Type
Over two thirds (68%) of South Korean visitors stayed in hotels / guesthouses during their trip to UK. This was true for 76% of the key Holiday market, and 84% of Business visits. This type of accommodation accounted for 1 in 5 nights overall.
Regional Spread / London-centricity
97% of visitors from South Korea stayed in England, 82% in London, 10%
in Scotland and 0% in Wales in 2006 (IPS). There is not a lot of regional spread in this market – most likely due to the very short length of stay for most visitors.
VisitBritain’s Online Best Prospects research (March 2005) highlighted that South Koreans were most likely to want to take part in activities related to Built Heritage (49% extremely likely) and Museums/Galleries (46%) – both areas that London covers in abundance. Koreans are very much attracted to destinations that are rich in icons and images of popular culture. London is the most high profile offering this.
Visiting literary, music, TV and film locations was fairly high on the list (29% extremely likely) of interests in our online Best Prospects survey.
This could offer an opportunity to extend outwards from the capital – depending upon the location of interest.
Regional Awareness
In the Anholt-GMI Nation Brands Index Wave 3 2006, we asked 1000 South Korean participants how well they felt they knew the regions of Britain – giving a score of 1-7 and taking into account any of the ways they had learned or heard about each region. 1 = never heard of the region and 7 = know the region very well.
Participants were more aware of Britain overall than any of the individual regions. However, awareness of London was almost as strong. South Koreans were least aware of Wales. Looking at the 14% of South Korean respondents who had ever visited Britain, awareness of all the regions increases, particularly awareness of London (up to 5.47).
1st Timers and Repeat Visitors
According to IPS 2004, only 30% of visitors from South Korea have previously visited the UK (in last ten years).
5) Market Shape / Dynamics
6
www .visitbritain.com/ukindustry
The Bigger Picture – Britain as a “Nation Brand”
The Anholt-GMI Nation Brands Index (Wave 2 2007) is an online panel survey of 1000 SOUTH KOREAN respondents. The 6 points of the hexagon are made up of several different questions, which compare 38
countries as Nation Brands.
In terms of INVESTMENT (a combination of wanting to live or study in the UK), the UK is ranked in 1st position (ahead of Canada and Switzerland) by Koreans. It is also ranked as the number one nation for CULTURE (ahead of France and Italy). On top of this, Koreans rate the UK as the top foreign country for PEOPLE. Only Switzerland is ranked above the UK for GOVERNANCE. Korean respondents react well to the UK’s EXPORTS, ranking the UK as the 5th best country for this attribute, due to positive perceptions of the UK’s products and contribution to science. The UK was rated as the 5th best country for TOURISM by Koreans, whose top foreign destination was Switzerland, followed by France, and Greece.
Culture
Korean respondents ranked the UK as the 4th best nation for
contemporary culture (eg. music, films, art, and literature), with France, the USA, and Italy ahead. Meanwhile, Egypt, Greece, and China are rated as the best nations in terms of having a rich cultural heritage – the UK is ranked just behind in 4th.The UK is perceived to be very good at sports too, in 3rd spot behind the USA and Brazil.
People
The UK was ranked 1st by Koreans as the foreign country they would most like to have a close friend from (ahead of Canada). Koreans would also be very positive about employing a UK national (ranked 1st ahead of Germany), and they would be fairly confident of getting a warm welcome if they visited the UK (ranked 10th). Turkey, Netherlands, and
Switzerland were seen as the countries that would provide the warmest welcome.
Tourism
If money were no object, Koreans would be most likely to visit
Switzerland or France, followed by the UK. The UK is seen as being rich in built/historical heritage (5th position), but is not seen as being quite as rich in natural beauty (15th position). Switzerland, New Zealand, and Australia were seen as the foreign countries richest in natural beauty.
Governance
The UK is ranked 4th by Koreans as a country that is competently, honestly, and fairly governed and 2nd as a country that respects the human rights of its citizens. The UK’s foreign policy is generally viewed very positively by Koreans; it is ranked 1st for behaving responsibly towards international concerns over the environment and world poverty, and also ranked 1st as a country that behaves responsibly in the areas of international peace and security.
Exports
The USA, Japan, and Germany are viewed by Koreans as the nations making the biggest contribution to innovation in science and technology,
with the UK in 5th place. Koreans are also very positive about purchasing a product originating from the UK (4th place).
Investment
Koreans rate the UK as the best place to study for educational qualifications (ahead of Canada and Germany). They are also positive about wanting to live and work in the UK, ranking it as the third best destination behind Switzerland and Canada.
Britain as a Destination Brand – DEPTH, HEART and VITALITY
The Anholt - GMI Nation Brand Index (NBI) for Wave 3 2007 included questions to measure Britain as a holiday destination on attributes related to Britain’s brand values. VisitBritain’s brand questions were also asked in Wave 3 2005 and Wave 3 2006.
It should be noted that as most participants in the survey have NOT visited Britain these opinions are based on PERCEPTIONS and NOT experience.
In the NBI Wave 3, 2007, 1000 South Korean participants rated Britain on a scale of 1-7, where 1 was “poor” and 7 was “excellent” and overall they gave a range of mean scores from 4.30 (friendly) – 4.99 (natural scenic beauty) across the 16 attributes.
This is a simplified diagram showing the relative strengths on the different brand attributes. Respondents were asked to rate Britain on each attribute
using a scale of 1-7 (where 1 =poor and 7=excellent). As no country rated below 3, the diagram has a mid-point of 3 and an outer rim of 7. Basically, the closer the shading to the outer rim, the better the perception of Britain on that attribute.
For South Korea, four of the five top brand perceptions all fall into the DEPTH brand value – a destination that is traditional with an interesting history, lots of cultural events & attractions and fascinating stories behind the sights.
Being beautiful and relaxing are stronger HEART dimensions for Britain than the explicitly human ones of friendly, welcoming and sense of humour. On the VITALITY side, Britain is perceived as fun, energetic and offering lots of different experiences in one destination.
Weaker areas of the brand in South Korea include a sense of humour, being sociable and energetic and that our cities are not perceived strongly as vibrant or exciting.
6) Britain’s Brand Image in South Korea South K
orea
8
What did South Korean Visitors actually do during their visit to UK?
In the IPS 2006, visitors were asked if they had taken part in certain activities during their visit to UK. The chart below shows the percentage of visitors from South Korea who said they did each of the listed activities during 2006, compared to the average inbound visitor to UK.
Although popular, Shopping doesn’t dominate amongst visits from South Korea, as it does in many other markets. The most popular activity in 2006 was visiting Museums / Galleries - an activity pursued by 43% of visitors overall - and rising to 54% for Holiday visitors.
Holiday is the dominant visitor type in this market and other popular activities in 2006 for Holiday visitors were Built Heritage (e.g. castles) at 43%, Shopping (40%) and visiting Parks / Gardens (32%).
Products / Experiences identified as attractive
Britain’s Classic Trinity
History/Heritage/Culture and Natural Scenic Beauty make up the classic trinity of attractions for visitors in Britain, and South Korea appears to be no exception. The Anholt-GMI Brand Index research confirms that these are still drivers – ¾ of Koreans who are most likely to visit Britain said there was a strong likelihood that they would visit places associated with the royal family, 2/3 said they would visit castles and 72% museums. The South Koreans rate Britain’s natural beauty highly, but a slightly lower proportion said they would participate in these activities compared to respondents from other countries; around 42% of the Koreans likeliest to visit Britain said they would go walking in the British countryside while just over half intended to visit British gardens. This is to be expected given the focus of most tours is a whistle-stop trip to London. The landscape element may be something to play upon when attracting repeat visitors and more independent visitors from South Korea.
Well-being Travel
The well-being boom of people pursuing a healthy and happy life, not only physically but also mentally has been growing alongside the implementation of the five-day working week. The consumption of organic foods and an emphasis on fitness through activities such as Yoga demonstrate this. Beauty centres, spa and travelling for spa treatments are beginning to feature prominently. Well-being is becoming a measure of a luxurious lifestyle and luxury products, such as spas or golf holidays and castle stays are getting popular, particularly among high-class consumers.
Although Koreans do see international travel as a way to rest and relax (to escape the pressures and stress of working life), for the majority of Koreans this is NOT something you acheve by lying on a beach doing nothing. Instead, they relax and rejuvenate by participating in activities that would not be possible in everyday lives. Therefore, it is likely that Korean travellers are starting to seek out destinations that offer a range of well-being experiences.
Shopping
Korean travellers are keen on shopping, especially brand-named goods and outlet shopping centres such as Bicester Village; sales particulary appeal as they are smart consumers who try and purchase products at the lowest price. Generally, it is a tradition for Koreans to buy gifts for their family and friends when they travel abroad. According to KNTO, duty-free shops are the favourite place to do shopping, followed by shopping malls and souvenir stores. Favourite shopping items for the Korean tourist include cosmetics, luxury brand goods, local specialities and branded alcoholic beverages.
The young Korean has to look good physically. Being attractive and well groomed is key to self image. Therefore, fashion and beauty-related shopping appeals to this group. London could be specifically marketed for discovering new trend-setting fashions that people cannot find in Korea.
Koreans’ favourite British brands are Burberry (the most popular), Aquascutum, Vivienne Westwood, and Wedgwood.
Qualitative research indicates that young, single Koreans are drawn to the eclectic nature of items, in particular fashion items such as Zara, H&M, FCUK, etc. available to buy in Britain and which are not available in Korea although they are not British brand goods, unlike Top Shop. This presents a good opportunity in attracting this sector to Britain.
Sport
Koreans enjoy watching sport and this includes live football or golf tournaments. There is increasing interest in golf holidays in Britain.
Most of all, owing to four famous Korean football players playing in four premier league teams in the UK, Koreans' interest in the FA Premier League and Britain's football heritage has been sharply increasing since 2006. Manchester and London are Korean tourists' favourite tourist attractions for football.
Several major travel agencies have created football-related UK tour products including Manchester and London since 2006. According to the Anholt-GMI Brand Index, 58% of Koreans most likely to visit Britain have a strong desire to watch a football match when visiting Britain English as a Foreign Language
Nation Brand Index research shows that learning English on a course whilst visiting Britain continues to be important. Young and single Koreans like to be able to speak English and be understood in English when travelling.
Film Locations
"Harry Potter" and "Da Vinci Code" have proved a great hit in South Korea, making the connection between the book and Britain in the minds of South Koreans. Movie locations featured not only in "Harry Potter" but also other films such as "Bridget Johnson's diary" or "Miss Potter" are becoming popular, IPS figures show that films may act more as an inspirational tool for visiting Britain rather than for particular locations seen in the films.
7) Product / Market Fit
www .visitbritain.com/ukindustry
Demographics
In 2006, almost a third (32%) of visitors from South Korea were 25-34.
Overall, 52% of visitors were male and 48% female.
Travelling Companions
In the IPS 2006, we asked visitors to tell us more about their travelling companions. We asked who accompanied them on their visit, excluding UK residents they may have visited during the trip.
The chart below shows the percentage of visits which included each category of travel companion (multiple responses allowed as the categories are NOT mutually exclusive). The profile for South Korea is compared to that of the Total World i.e. the average overseas visit to UK.
Compared with the world average, South Korean visitors are slightly less likely to be travelling alone or with a spouse / partner, and much more likely to be part of a tour group.
CAUTION: The results do need to be treated with some caution, as even if a respondent says they are travelling with “Spouse/Partner” and
“Child(ren) aged 5-11”, we don’t know from this how many children were in the group, or even that the children were those of the respondent (e.g. they could be grandchildren, nieces / nephews, or even no blood relation at all)...
Key Travelling Group Types
To overcome the fact that a mix of different travel companions could be in each group, five mutually exclusive “group types” have been created.
In South Korea, the proportion of visitors in each type are as follows:
(A) TRADITIONAL FAMILY OF SPOUSE / PARTNER & CHILDREN - 2%
(B) SPOUSE / PARTNER BUT NO CHILDREN IN TRAVEL GROUP - 8%
(C) CHILDREN IN GROUP BUT NO SPOUSE / PARTNER - 3%
((DD)) NNOOTT AALLOONNEE,, BBUUTT NNOO CCHHIILLDDRREENN OORR PPAARRTTNNEERR IINN GGRROOUUPP -- 6644%%
(E) TRAVELLING ALONE - 24%
Almost two thirds of South Korean visitors travelled to UK with other adults - most likely as members of a tour group.
VisitBritain Key Market Segments
SINGLE JOKS
Comprising 6.42million people. Single Joks are single men and women in their 20s and 30s living in urban areas of Korea. They account for 15.7%
of the population and have been the most active consumers during the economic slowdown in the recent past. They first began to come into the spotlight in 2003. Since then, this segment has been growing in numbers as there is currently an increase in working women who don't want to get married or intend to marry later in life. For them, marriage is optional and not essential anymore (Korea National Statistical Office).
These Single Joks are distributed into two groups - Gold Miss and Silver Miss in Korea. Gold Miss tends to have a good career such as high-salary office worker or professional with a high annual salary and financial assets. They enjoy high class hobbies such as overseas travel and golf.
70% of the SingleJoks in the travel market are considered to be Gold Miss; and the remainder Silver Miss (lower annual salary).
They like to make their own travel plans, often buying Airtel products that are not fully packaged tours. Some leading travel agencies are selling special tour products for Single Joks only.
VisitBritain did some qualitative research amongst SingleJoks in 2006 and some key findings are highlighted below:
Characteristics of SINGLE JOKS:
•They are relatively strong in terms of economic spending power
•They are Internet-savvy, so they look for information they want on the Internet and not on TV or in print media
•Prefer travelling to watching TV at weekends or during their holidays
•They are not stingy when it comes to spending money on themselves.
For instance, luxury branded goods are presently popular. They do not hesitate to buy once the desire is created
•Strong tendencies to spend time on their leisure pursuits such as fitness, shopping and travelling, particularly single working women Single Joks’ travel motivation
Key motivations for travel are self-fulfilment and self-development. In addition, they look forward to a relaxing and refreshing time. They want an active learning experience that can only be found in Britain such as sleeping in a castle, having afternoon tea, practising cheese making etc.
Single Joks tend to travel with friends or sometimes alone and travel frequently overseas (two or more times a year).
One of the pleasant surprises about Britain for the SingleJoks who have already visited is the modern side of British life - the quirkiness, the funkiness - and this strongly appeals to the Single Jok individualist mindset. Although this target visitor is interested in beautiful landscapes, culture, history and shopping - all things that Britain has in abundance - they currently have very little awareness of what Britain has to offer beyond London tourist attractions, such as Buckingham Palace and the British Museum. As a result of research, VisitBritain Korea will be focusing their communication activities to provide a clear and consistent story of what Britain has to offer, so Single Joks can see a Britain beyond the 'whistle stop' four day city tour.
8) Who is the South Korean Visitor?
Male Female
% %
0 -15 5 6
16-24 12 19
25-34 25 38
35-44 33 18
45-54 16 12
55-64 8 4
65+ 2 3
South K orea
10
Caring for the South Korean Customer
Koreans are seeing tourism as a creative and productive activity instead of a luxury. Travelling is a way of self-improvement and to experience different cultures. It is also a way for people to relax. Older travellers prefer to have a busy schedule during holidays, whereas the youth and Single Joks prefer a less busy schedule so that they can take time over the experience, even if this means they cannot see everything in each tourist destination. Related to this trend, the popularity of SIT(Special Interest Tour) amongst Koreans has gradually been increasing.
Deciding, Planning and Booking Patterns
Tastes are changing from package tours to independent travel. The proportions of FIT travellers and package tours in 2006 were 66% and 34%, respectively (Source: IPS 2006) The FIT market has increased sharply over the last few years owing to increased Internet use (for searching) and a five-day working week, which began overall from 2006.
Those with more travel experience and language advantages seek good value independent travel. VisitBritain's online Best Prospects Research (March 2005) indicates that group travel is not necessarily the preferred option,especially amongst 25-34 year olds (who made up 46% of Best Prospects in the survey, and who represent 32% of actual visitors according to IPS in 2006).
Best Prospects were most likely to travel as couples or with adult friends - classic SINKs/DINKs. 41% of Best Prospects would like to travel
"independently but with a customised itinerary arranged beforehand", and 39% "independently as a package" versus 13% who opted for
"escorted group tour".
By encouraging more independent travel, we can extend the length of time Koreans spend in Britain plus introduce elements to encourage regional spread out of London. This will also push spend up. Group travel, however, still makes up a relatively high proportion of seniors and empty nesters due to convenience, low price and language worries.
Most groups are multi-Europe although London is a core city in such tours. Koreans are not confident English speakers and require Korean language content on the Internet. The newly renovated VisitBritain Korea website which went live in mid July 2007 has more than 80% of content in Korean.
Decision to Travel Lead Times
In 2005, 40% of visits to the UK from South Korea were decided between one and three months before travelling to the UK. (IPS)
Online Environment
ETC New Media Review www.etcnewmedia.com/review has a wealth of further facts and figures on the Online Market in South Korea.
Some highlights from that and other sources are included here:
The Internet is an important resource for Korean travellers and this importance will continue to increase. South Korea is one of the fastest growing online travel markets in the APAC region.
There are 34.12 million Internet users in South Korea (representing 66.5% of the population), according to Internet World Stats in June 2007.
An estimated 67% of households have Broadband access (Telecompaper).
According to Eye for Travel (2007), South Korea leads the APAC region in terms of the proportion of the online population who purchase travel online (67% of them do so).
The representative Internet service providers already have a huge number of members and run personal homepages like Cyworld, search engines and blogs or online communities such as Café of Daum.
In VisitBritain’s Single Joks research (2006), online travel communities and knowledge search engines such as Naver are major sources of information.
Amongst online Best Prospects in research conducted in 2005, we found that national websites represented the most frequently used media (43%
used most often), followed by national TV (25%). 87% were accessing national websites daily, but perhaps due to language constraints only 37% accessed international websites daily.
The majority (80%) said they would consult the Internet if planning a trip to Britain – followed closely by Travel Agents (77% would consult).
Online direct sales are becoming more popular. Most airline companies including two national carriers have already expanded the use of e-ticket facilities from national routes to international routes.
Media Habits
Korea is a media-driven society and stars have a huge influence on public perceptions of places and current affairs. Since 2005, several NTOs have used Korean celebrities in their marketing activities. Particularly, the PPL (Product Placement) formula in TV soap operas is still seen as effective in marketing tourist destinations to Korean audiences.
There are 26 daily newspapers (ten major ones) of which four are in English and nine travel trade publications (mix of weekly, monthly &
quarterly) in Seoul. The number of daily newspapers nationwide is 192.
Most daily newspapers and monthly magazines have travel pages. Daily newspapers publish travel sections once a week mostly under the title of 'Travel & Leisure'. Internet newspapers newly appeared since 2005 and their number reached 606 in 2006.
There are 4,312 magazines, but only about 73 magazines have a wide circulation including four travel magazines and four national TV stations/
70 cable TV stations. There are about 20 leading high-class lifestyle monthly magazines covering fashion, beauty, living, travel and culture, which are free of charge and are distributed to high-class consumers and people who have spending power throughout the country. These magazines are also displayed at luxury hotels, department stores, restaurants, bars, beauty shops, banks, etc. The advertising reach of these magazines is stronger than normal lifestyle magazines or licensed fashion magazines like 'Vogue', which must be bought.
National Newspapers
The Chosun Ilbo, JoongAng Daily, The Dong-A Ilbo, Maeil Business Newspaper, The Korea Economic Daily, Kukmin Ilbo, Kyunghyang Daily Newspaper, Hankook Ilbo, Sports Chosun, Korea Herald Business, etc.
Major Ladies’ magazines
InStyle, Vogue, Elle, Elle girl, Marie Claire, Anan, Luxury, Noblian, Avenue L, Haute, Noblesse, Allure, Queen, Helen, Singles, Major Men’s magazines
GQ, Arena, Esquire Travel
The Korea Travel Times, Global Travel Times, Travel Media, Dove, Tour de Monde, AB_Road, Travie, Travel & Leisure, CURO, Repere In-flight magazines
Morning Calm, SkyNews, Asiana Culture
9) Reaching South Korean Consumers
% of Visits Day of/day before departure 1 2 days, less than a week 7 1 week, less than a month 24 1 month, less than 3 months 40 3 months, less than 6 months 12 6 months, less than a year 12
1 year or more 3
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Overview of Trade Structure
There are no clear differences between wholesalers and retail travel agencies in the Korean travel system.
There are tour operators both in Seoul and in London. Travel agents usually work with tour operators based in Seoul and the Seoul tour operators work with tour operators based in London. This means travel agencies control the relationships with Seoul tour operators under them.
London tour operators are under Seoul tour operators.
However, there are also some cases where London tour operators work directly with travel agencies. London tour operators work with several tour operators in Seoul. Tour operators both in Seoul and in London can develop tour products for travel agents (travel agencies also create tour products). The relationships are rather complicated.
In a bid to secure a bigger slice of growing FIT market pie, many travel agents here have restructured company divisions to cope with growing number of FITs in a departure from the paradigm focused on package tours Competition among travel agents which plan, or sell, FIT tour products such as hotel packs or Airtel (air + hotel) is becoming fierce.
Tour Operators and Wholesalers
The biggest tour operator is Gulliver Travel Association Korea. The majority of tour operators are small in size. There are only a few true wholesalers in the Korean travel industry such as Hana Tour, Mode Tour and OK Tour. They take 12% commission. Both Hana Tour and Mode Tour have their own offices in London.
Travel Agencies
There are three different types of travel agents depending on the type of licences they hold. These are general, overseas and domestic. From the legal term, overseas travel agencies in Korea include:
•General Travel Agency (GTA) dealing with inbound and outbound travel.
•Overseas Travel Agency (OTA) dealing with outbound travel only.
The GTAs have a big influence on outbound marketing. There are around 671 GTA and 5,733 OTA travel agents nationwide. The GTAs are the most influential and important agencies for outbound business.
However, there are around 600 members of the GTA actively doing business; they also belong to the Korea Association of Travel Agents.
Generally, retail agents take 12%-15% commission (high season and honeymoon packages) and 7%-10% commission (low-season periods for major travel agencies only).
Reaching the South Korean Travel Trade
Sales Calls
Contact VisitBritain London office (International Partnerships) before your visit to get the latest information on the South Korean market, for example, to make sure that your products or services are suitable for the South Korean market.
Advance appointments are essential to ensure a meeting with senior staff.
Bring enough business cards to exchange and bear in mind that Koreans should not be spoken to by name without the appropriate prefix, e.g.
President, Professor, Mr, Mrs or Miss. Only if they use their given name should you do so.
Send promotional materials with your company’s website address by post beforehand so that your future partner can get more detailed information of your company. When these are not in Korean, a summary in Korean would be very effective.
Avoid visiting Korea during the summer holiday season from June to August and Korean Thanksgiving in September, as they are the busiest times.
Seoul, which dominates the tourism market in Korea, is the key city to visit.
10) The Trade
Business Visits Statistics
In 2006 (IPS), 17% of all visits to the UK from South Korea were for business purposes - and this accounted for 19% of spend.
Business visitor sample sizes are too small for meaningful further analysis.
11) Business Visits & Events
South K orea
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Working in Partnership with VisitBritain
There are many ways of working in partnership with VisitBritain in any of our 37 global markets. We deliver numerous marketing campaigns and produce various targeted guides and publications which are seen by millions of potential visitors throughout the world - offering excellent advertising and partnership opportunities.
We undertake both print and online advertising, and produce e-newsletters communicating with both consumers (via our substantial databases) and our trade partners on-territory whilst the exhibitions, workshops, sales missions and media events we organise provide the perfect platform to promote your product firsthand to trade, press and consumer visitors.
In some markets where the travel trade remains a crucial element of the booking process we produce Agents’ Sales Guides and offer Agents’ on- line training programmes to ensure both the destination and range of British tourism product is at the forefront of the travel agent’s mind.
For more details on these and other diverse opportunities in markets of interest to you, please visit our UK Industry Website and read our worldwide marketing prospectus, or contact your VisitBritain representative in London or overseas.
www.visitbritain.com/ukindustry
Overseas Contacts
Manager:Joo-yeon Song
Address: British Embassy, Taepyeongno 40, 4 Jeong-dong,
Jung-gu 100-120 Seoul South Korea
Main switchboard: +82 2 3210 5531 Fax: +82 2 720 4928
Email: jooyeon.song@visitbritain.org
Contact centre hours: 09:00 to 17:15 (Friday 09:00 to 17:00) Admin, Marketing and Press Hours:
09:00 to 17:15 (Friday 09:00 to 17:00)
London Contacts / Further Information
For any further information relating to the South Korean market, please contact:
Katie Johnson
International Partnerships Consultant – Asia Pacific E: katie.johnson@visitbritain.org
T: 020 8563 3176
Alternatively, visit VisitBritain’s dedicated website for the UK tourism industry and a searchable database of all VisitBritain’s Marketing Opportunities: www.visitbritain.com/marketingplanner Why not sign up to our Industry E-Newsletter, or register with VisitBritain to be kept up to date with all that’s new in South Korea and other markets worldwide?
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Information Sources Used to Compile this Report
•International Passenger Survey figures (IPS) 2006 (Office for National Statistics)
NB: Data from International Passenger Survey has been made available by the Office for National Statistics and has been used by permission.
The ONS do not bear any responsibility for the analysis or interpretation of the data reported here.
•Anholt-GMI Nation Brands Index – 2006 & 2007
•Eye for Travel Asia Pacific Online Travel Report 2007
•VisitBritain Single Joks Research - 2006 (Qualitative)
•VisitBritain Online Best Prospects Research - 2005 (Quantitative)
•VisitBritain Foresight – February 2006
•IMF / Economist / US Census Bureau
•CIA World Fact Book https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the- world-factbook/index.html
•BBC Websites
•Global Insight’s “Global Tourism Navigator”
•UNWTO (World Tourism Organisation)
•FCO (Foreign & Commonwealth Office)
•UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) http://www.ucas.com/
•ETC (European Travel Commission) and ETC New Media Review http://www.etcnewmedia.com/review
•Internet World Stats 2007 http://www.internetworldstats.com/
•VisitBritain South Korea Business Plans, Insights and Intelligence Reports
•KNTO (Korea National Tourism Organisation)
•KATA (Korea Tourism Association)
•KNSO (Korea National Statistical Office)
•http://www.tour2korea.com/
•http://www.koreanair.com/
