Engage Your Audience: The Planets Most Savvy
How well do you know your global technology markets? Let’s find out. In which country was the first MP3 player invented? Hint: the iPod was not first! Where was the retina display invented? Which country ranks number two for smartphone adoption with a 73% adoption rate (only 0.8% behind number one)? Which country has the highest internet speed globally? Which country launched the world’s first question-and-answer site? Think you know the answers to these questions? Read on.
Were you right?
The answer to all of the above questions is South Korea. That’s right. Apple was not actually the first to market today’s most prolific music product. The first-ever MP3 player was launched in 1997 by Saehan Information Systems and known as the MPman. And while Apple did coin the phrase “Retina display”, the first such product was actually developed by South Korean company LG Display. With worldwide leading Internet speeds of 14.2 Mbps and maximum smartphone usage among residents, South Korea stands strong as a technology leader.
As for the first question-and-answer site, yes, that too was the brainchild of a South Korean company. Knowledge Search debuted in 2002 thanks to search portal giant, Naver.
More than just Q&A
In addition to owning a robust question-and-answer site, Naver is the leading search engine in Korea. Boasting a 73% market share, Naver is clearly where South Koreans turn for online searching. The level of sophistication among Korean consumers is something of which global companies should take note. The country sees three times the average global amount of online content digested and has one of the highest rates of online purchases worldwide.
Source: http://www.techpolicydaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Internet-and-IP-traffic-per-user-2013.jpg
How do you spell opportunity in South Korea?
Leveraging the power of Naver is one of the most critical channels to promote your company, products and brand to Korean customers. This means more than simply crafting Korean-focused content, although that is important as well. By making full use of Naver to distribute conten, it enables you to reach a highly active and engage your audience online of tremendous sizes, with a willingness to buy. BridgeEdge’s CEO, Jim Yu, wrote a powerful article on Search Engine Watch that outlines some key ways that savvy global marketers can take advantage of this tremendous opportunity known as Naver. In 'Naver Optimization: 5 Best Practices', Yu outlines the importance of these key activities:
Create a true Korean language site
Translations are not enough when you want to make the most of an engine built around a specific language and culture.
Register on Naver and use associated services
Show Naver that you are serious and become part of the network as a way to get more bang for your buck.
Participate in Naver’s user-generated content sections
Content is important and in more ways than one. Make use of Naver’s built-in functionality to develop your credibility and increase your results.
Leverage Cafe, Naver’s social media network
If you are going to engage yourself in the leading South Korean search engine, go all the way and expand your social media presence here as well.
Apply key SEO best practices to Naver
While Naver has some features that are very different to those you may be familiar with on Google, that does not mean that you should forget everything you have ever learned about SEO. Be smart and make sure that you apply the search basics here as well. Taking the time to learn more about Naver and how it is similar or dissimilar to Google will be important as you build an effective strategy for this market.
We can help you track and expand your success on Naver
At BrightEdge our top value is customer success and helping you to engage your audience, and we constantly innovate to help you keep up with the rapidly changing search landscape. Engaging with users in South Korea is a massive opportunity and there is no better place to do that with than Naver. Following the Naver optimization best practices sets you on a solid path, but you still need a way to track, monitor, and report on your progress with Naver. BrightEdge Global SEO coverage now includes support for Naver, which includes:
- Naver analytics across result types - Track your keyword performance for Naver across the top search results categories - images, videos, shopping, places, blogs, cafe, and knowledge
- Blended rank - Gain a comprehensive view of your actual placement in the SERP with Naver
- Competitive analysis - Track your competitors performance across all Naver categories
- Trended impact of optimizations - View changes in performance over time, and understand the impact of optimization efforts
Please contact us to learn how you can leverage Naver Reporting in BrightEdge.
The Bottom Line
Global brands have the opportunity to think beyond Google, and optimize their search marketing efforts for Naver, South Korea’s leading search engine. With BrightEdge’s Naver Reporting brands can gain insights and optimize effectively on Naver and engage your audience. Those that take on this challenge will find great rewards for their global brands and bottom line.
