Encouraging users to gain interest in traveling to Korea through contextual information from watching their favorite K-contents.
Encouraging users to gain interest in traveling to Korea through contextual information from watching their favorite K-contents.
I established KWander as an inclusive and informative platform exposing K-content to Gen-Z and Millennials. As most of my friends and family come from various countries to visit South Korea, they inspired me to analyze what initially attracted them to Korea. This project explores how international users gain interest in traveling to Korea, stemming from Hallyu.
MY ROLE
Ideation
User Flows
Wireframing
UI Design
PERSONAL PROJECT
Browser Extension / Plug-in
TOOLS
FigJam
Figma
TIMELINE
11 weeks
CONTEXT
CONTEXT
What is Hallyu?
What is Hallyu?
The Korean Wave, also known as “Hallyu”, refers to the global popularity of South Korea’s food, pop culture, entertainment, music, TV and movies. Through globally recognized K-pop artists and K-content, such as the musical pop groups BTS and Blackpink, the film Parasite, and Netflix’s Squid Game, Hallyu promotes international interest and increases tourism.
The Korean Wave, also known as “Hallyu”, refers to the global popularity of South Korea’s food, pop culture, entertainment, music, TV and movies. Through globally recognized K-pop artists and K-content, such as the musical pop groups BTS and Blackpink, the film Parasite, and Netflix’s Squid Game, Hallyu promotes international interest and increases tourism.
PROBLEM
PROBLEM
Hallyu plays a significant role in influencing people to travel to Korea. However, when K-content is shown on streaming services, some viewers feel these contents limit people in fully understanding the context and do not lead to a good discovery experience.
How might we provide users with accessible, context-rich information derived from K-content?
How might we provide users with accessible, context-rich information derived from K-content?
How might we provide users with accessible, context-rich information derived from K-content?
SOLUTION
SOLUTION
A seamless, interactive, and customizable experience, empowering users to navigate and engage with information like never before.
A seamless, interactive, and customizable experience, empowering users to navigate and engage with information like never before.
How does Hallyu content impact tourists to travel to South Korea?
How does Hallyu content impact tourists to travel to South Korea?
I started with secondary research to understand what kind of Hallyu contents attract tourists to travel to South Korea.
Hallyu-related tourism, including K-pop, K-stars, K-beauty, and Korean food, accounts for 55.3% of inbound tourism to South Korea.
Hallyu-related tourism, including K-pop, K-stars, K-beauty, and Korean food, accounts for 55.3% of inbound tourism to South Korea.
Hallyu-related tourism, including K-pop, K-stars, K-beauty, and Korean food, accounts for 55.3% of inbound tourism to South Korea.
The total spending by tourists in this sector is estimated at US $1.1 trillion, with a resulting economic production ripple effect of US $2.1 trillion.
The total spending by tourists in this sector is estimated at US $1.1 trillion, with a resulting economic production ripple effect of US $2.1 trillion.
The total spending by tourists in this sector is estimated at US $1.1 trillion, with a resulting economic production ripple effect of US $2.1 trillion.
In 2023, 2.8 million visitors to South Korea were aged between 21 and 30 years old.
In 2023, 2.8 million visitors to South Korea were aged between 21 and 30 years old.
In 2023, 2.8 million visitors to South Korea were aged between 21 and 30 years old.
Source: The Korean Foundation / Statista / Korea JoongAng Daily / Journal of Tourism Insights.
USER RESEARCH
USER RESEARCH
User Interview
User Interview
To find out about Hallyu's impact on tourists, 3 Millennial and Gen-Z travelers were shown clips of K-Content and interviewed on their experiences. I showed the interviewees clips of K-dramas and documentaries from Business Proposal, Itaewon Class, and Jeong Kwan's Chef's Table.
To find out about Hallyu's impact on tourists, 3 Millennial and Gen-Z travelers were shown clips of K-Content and interviewed on their experiences. I showed the interviewees clips of K-dramas and documentaries from Business Proposal, Itaewon Class, and Jeong Kwan's Chef's Table.
USER RESEARCH
USER RESEARCH
From these interviews, I derived 3 root causes that signify why they did not have a good discovery experience.
From these interviews, I derived 3 root causes that signify why they did not have a good discovery experience.
01
Discrepancy in Language and culture
The discrepancy in language and culture causes disruptions in understanding the cultural context of the story becauseit is not only difficult for users to 100% understand K-content but also limits receiving travel inspiration or ideas.
“I know basic korean dishes that I've tried in my home country, but I didn't know that there were even more authentic korean dishes from this video.”
01
Discrepancy in Language and culture
The discrepancy in language and culture causes disruptions in understanding the cultural context of the story becauseit is not only difficult for users to 100% understand K-content but also limits receiving travel inspiration or ideas.
“I know basic korean dishes that I've tried in my home country, but I didn't know that there were even more authentic korean dishes from this video.”
01
Discrepancy in Language and culture
The discrepancy in language and culture causes disruptions in understanding the cultural context of the story becauseit is not only difficult for users to 100% understand K-content but also limits receiving travel inspiration or ideas.
“I know basic korean dishes that I've tried in my home country, but I didn't know that there were even more authentic korean dishes from this video.”
02
Stereotype & Limited Information in K-Content
We found our viewers searching with different queries multiple times. But, it is difficult to find the right information because the media does not help users narrow down their search intention.
“Google gives you choices of what your looking for, but there are too many options.”
02
Stereotype & Limited Information in K-Content
We found our viewers searching with different queries multiple times. But, it is difficult to find the right information because the media does not help users narrow down their search intention.
“Google gives you choices of what your looking for, but there are too many options.”
02
Stereotype & Limited Information in K-Content
We found our viewers searching with different queries multiple times. But, it is difficult to find the right information because the media does not help users narrow down their search intention.
“Google gives you choices of what your looking for, but there are too many options.”
03
Online research (Travel blogs, social media, influencers)
K-Content features limited context within the story that may stereotype Korean characters. While the content provides direct context, there is more unknown information for the international tourist beyond what’s in the K-Content.
For example, a K-drama features the Han River and it only shows 잠원지구 (‘Jamwon District’). They will not have information about other areas of the Han River, e.g., 뚝섬 (‘Ttukseom’), 4대강 (4 major rivers) or 멍때리기 대회 (Spacing out contest) and what more the Han River has to offer.
“My favorite place was Han River. I always wanted to visit here because I saw it on KDramas.”
03
Online research (Travel blogs, social media, influencers)
K-Content features limited context within the story that may stereotype Korean characters. While the content provides direct context, there is more unknown information for the international tourist beyond what’s in the K-Content.
For example, a K-drama features the Han River and it only shows 잠원지구 (‘Jamwon District’). They will not have information about other areas of the Han River, e.g., 뚝섬 (‘Ttukseom’), 4대강 (4 major rivers) or 멍때리기 대회 (Spacing out contest) and what more the Han River has to offer.
“My favorite place was Han River. I always wanted to visit here because I saw it on KDramas.”
03
Online research (Travel blogs, social media, influencers)
K-Content features limited context within the story that may stereotype Korean characters. While the content provides direct context, there is more unknown information for the international tourist beyond what’s in the K-Content.
For example, a K-drama features the Han River and it only shows 잠원지구 (‘Jamwon District’). They will not have information about other areas of the Han River, e.g., 뚝섬 (‘Ttukseom’), 4대강 (4 major rivers) or 멍때리기 대회 (Spacing out contest) and what more the Han River has to offer.
“My favorite place was Han River. I always wanted to visit here because I saw it on KDramas.”
USER JOURNEY MAP
USER JOURNEY MAP
Visualising the User Experience
Visualising the User Experience
I conducted a corresponding user journey map to pinpoint when the user had dissatisfying experiences while watching K-content. One of the main points to highlight was users were intrigued by the locations they saw, which motivated them to search their queries on the search engine, but it did not narrow down their discovery.
OPPORTUNITY
OPPORTUNITY
How might we help users get contextual information derived from K-content?
How might we help users get contextual information derived from K-content?
I put together the main factors as to why KWander can better help the Hallyu community by providing contextual clues from the live wiki.
Hallyu takes 55.3% of travel discovery
Hallyu takes 55.3% of travel discovery
Hallyu’s total market is $1.1 Trillion
Hallyu’s total market is $1.1 Trillion
There is a discrepancy between K-drama content and tourists interest in contextual information about traveling to Korea.
There is a discrepancy between K-drama content and tourists interest in contextual information about traveling to Korea.
If we provide a viewing platform that gives live Wiki during the viewing experience, it will help potential travelers to get authentic travel ideas.
BENCHMARKING
BENCHMARKING
Examining existing platforms to understand the different levels of context shown in streaming services
Examining existing platforms to understand the different levels of context shown in streaming services
To ideate the potential features of KWander, I started by referencing the design principle of ‘users like mindless choices’ from Steve Krug’s book Don’t Make Me Think. The concept of ‘users like mindless choices’ in web design explains how users favor clear and effortless options that don’t require a lot of thought or decision-making because users want to complete their tasks quickly and productively with less number of clicks and usage of straightforward language.
Through this principle, I examined the different levels of context shown between music and video streaming services to benchmark my design. In analyzing the different platforms, I noticed that many of the streaming services that allow users to ‘watch together’ provide more social features than the context shown to the user.
Contextual
Contextual
Social
Social
HYPOTHESIS
HYPOTHESIS
Validating my observations and research
Validating my observations and research
If we expose contextual information to users watching K-content, they will be able to understand the culture and enhance their interest in traveling to Korea. They will get a closer idea of what life is like in Korea without the hassle of doing additional research through Google to find travel information.
This will be informative, inclusive, and personalized to the user.
CORE USER STATEMENT
CORE USER STATEMENT
“As a user, I would like to understand Korean culture, food, fashion, beauty trends, and Korean lifestyle so that I can get travel ideas when I go to Korea.”
POTENTIAL FEATURES
POTENTIAL FEATURES
01 Contextual Panel Feature
01 Contextual Panel Feature
This will prevent users from constantly searching on external websites or search engines for contextual information.
02 Social Interaction Feature
02 Social Interaction Feature
Users can connect with other online users by sharing experiences and insights.
03 Exposed Contextual Info
03 Exposed Contextual Info
Similar to Spotify’s exposed artist’s biography and merchant goods, users can have accessible context sourced from external websites.
USER FLOW
USER FLOW
Streamlining the Journey
Streamlining the Journey
By summarizing the insights, the user flow demonstrates the interactivity of how users can get contextual information through different social and informational user experiences.
BRAINSTORMING & EARLY CONCEPTS
BRAINSTORMING & EARLY CONCEPTS
Contextual Panel
Contextual Panel
The information is designed as widgets on the right panel. Users can personalize by category through filtering.
Social Interaction
Social Interaction
One of the many ways users get information is through interacting on communication platforms. Preview of discussion posts will pop up on the video timeline where users can connect with other online users by sharing experiences and insights.
Exposed Contextual Information
Exposed Contextual Information
Contextual information will pop up as notifications where users can have accessible context sourced from external websites. If users want to see previous information, they can view it by toggling a button on and off in the control panel.
WIREFRAMES
WIREFRAMES
Variations in Wireframing
Variations in Wireframing
The wireframes showcases multiple variations of early-stage design concepts and aims to refine the user experience through iterative processes.
FINAL DESIGN
FINAL DESIGN
Bringing the wireframes to life visually
Bringing the wireframes to life visually
Contextual Panel Feature
Contextual Panel Feature
The contextual panel consists of different widgets for users to easily consume all information at glance. Users can also use the filter to narrow down their interests.
Social Interaction Panel
Social Interaction Panel
Users can view previews of threads posted by other users and will be able to expand the thread on the side panel where they can interact with other viewers watching the show and share information.
Exposed Contextual Information
Exposed Contextual Information
Users can toggle between an expanded view and closed view of the contextual information. Users can view all information sourced from external websites and filter out information through a timestamp.
RETROSPECTIVE
RETROSPECTIVE
Takeaways and Next Steps
Takeaways and Next Steps
From this project, I opened a new perspective on user research because I realized that not all research methods are required to find a solution to a problem. Instead, it is important to take the necessary research methods to understand the problem and how to approach the problem to come up with a solution. With frequent user interviews and usability testing, I developed a stronger direction on how I can bring an authentic and unique experience to the users.
If I had another round of iterations, I would focus more on the go-to-market strategy by identifying the Total Available Market (TAM), Serviceable Available Market (SAM), and Serviceable Obtainable Market (SOM). I would also evaluate how KWander can build more brand awareness in the target market.
