The Brief

People of South Korea, like other countries, were going through a tough period from the global financial crisis and high unemployment rate. Frustration and hopelessness took over the society, exhausting reality made people lose their passion for life. Our challenge, was to restore hope and positive energy to the despaired society.

Describe how the promotion developed from concept to implementation

The idea was to fill the Street of Seoul with Hope. On the Busiest of Seoul, 90 modern flying lanterns, named Wish-balls, were set up on street and collected people’s wishes for the upcoming year directly and by Facebook. TV advertisement was aired to motivate participation. On New Years Eve, we turned Gang-nam street into a party. Building walls were used to exhibit media art projects, combined with laser show, media façade, and the wire performance. As a finale, exactly at 12 o’ clock, Wish-balls, with everyone's wishes, flew up into Seoul’s sky, brightening up the street.

Describe the success of the promotion with both client and consumer including some quantifiable results

105,405 people visited the campaign’s Facebook site, contributing 5,195 wishes. More than 45,000 wishes were written on the Wish Balls. On New Year’s Eve 30,000 people participated live on Gangnam Street with another 200,000 joining in the event online. Brand preference towards Hyundai have increased by 170%. Furthermore, people are now asking for this event to become an annual New Year’s Celebration. We created an unforgettable event to cheer up people.

Explain why the method of promotion was most relevant to the product or service

As a motor company that takes up 50% market share of Korea, Hyundai was obliged to cheer people in such tough period. In order to do this, we came up with modern flying lanterns. Koreans have a tradition of flying lanterns up into sky to get rid of bad fortune and pray for their wishes to come true. We adapted this concept into modern flying lanterns for people to write their wishes, and filled the streets with it. This triggered warmth in people and filled the streets with positive energy.