Waterbe

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the marketing manager for a retail company with a new office in Seoul, Korea. We sell mobile device accessories and other lifestyle accessories.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe Marketing?

We were opening our office in Korea, and we wanted to start doing digital marketing to sell our products there. Therefore, we needed an agency that could help us and was able to communicate with us, as well as with other foreign team members.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Waterbe has helped us with Naver digital marketing, SEO, PPC, and influencer marketing. After signing the contract, we provided them with our imagery and logos. We’ve also provided them with the documentation needed for them to create ads and other marketing content.

On the digital marketing side, Waterbe has been mainly focused on account creation, content creation, and ad management. They’ve created our Naver account and provided us with two different marketing strategies. One strategy is focused on creating Naver ads targeting people who already know our brand or search for relevant keywords related to our products. The other strategy revolves around creating display ads in Korea to improve our brand awareness and make people interested in buying our products.

As for SEO, Waterbe first provided us with a list of keywords that were performing well on Naver, as well as data on how competitive each keyword was in the space. They also explained which keywords we should work with, and we worked together on selecting the ones we would focus on.

During this process, I learned that Naver advertising works differently than Google Ads. We needed to set a price for each keyword and enter a bidding competition for each one so that we could be listed on top of search results. Thus, Waterbe initially adjusted the keyword prices daily. After our performance stabilized a little bit, we changed the pricing adjustments to once per week.

In addition to the PPC campaigns, Waterbe has also helped us create display ads on Naver, for which they’ve designed some banners. Currently, they also help us design content for Instagram and write content for our press releases and blog.

What is the team composition?

I initially worked with Waterbe’s general manager and their COO. After that, the general manager was in charge of the project and my main point of contact. Still, they’ve let me know that they have a 3–4-person team assigned to our project.

How did you come to work with Waterbe Marketing?

Our leadership wanted to hire an agency that could speak both English and Korean. Most of the Korean companies we approached couldn’t work in English, so we moved our search to Google and found Waterbe. We ultimately chose them because they knew the Korean market, especially using Naver.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend about $4,500 per month on their services. In total, we’ve spent less than $30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We signed the contract in January 2022 but started the marketing campaign by the end of February 2022. We’re still working with them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

On the PPC side, we’ve reached 10 million impressions per month. We’ve also been able to increase our click-through rate, achieving the highest rate of 1.3%. In Korea, most click-through rates are less than 1%, especially for B2C brands. Additionally, thanks to the blogs that Waterbe is managing for us, we’ve seen a 40%–50% increase in our website traffic each month.

How did Waterbe Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Waterbe has stayed within budget, and they haven’t had any problems with meeting deadlines. They share performance data with us each month, detailing our ad spend and how much they bid on each keyword. We use KakaoTalk for ongoing communication and urgent matters. We also communicate via email and have monthly Google Meet meetings with our leadership to report on results.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The fact that Waterbe can speak both Korean and English differentiates them from their competitors. I reached out to over 10 different agencies through Naver, and none of them was capable of working with English speakers.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. So far, I haven’t found anything that I’m not satisfied with.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would recommend Waterbe to other multicultural companies that have their headquarters in a Western country and are opening an entity in Korea. If they need service in both English and Korean, Waterbe is a good choice.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing head of an online shopping mall.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe Marketing?

We needed a company that could handle our digital marketing initiatives.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started the engagement with a consultation meeting to discuss our goals and budget for this project, after which Waterbe Marketing provided us with a quotation and a strategy proposal. They then helped us create and set up our business account.

Waterbe Marketing suggested that we focus on the Naver platform, which is where we sell our products and is like the Korean version of Google. They’ve also encouraged us to collaborate with Naver directly and with various YouTube influencers.

Aside from that, Waterbe Marketing is in charge of creating our search ads, shopping ads, and display ads on Naver and Google. They use the basic branding materials we provided them to create these ads and other marketing collateral. They’re also in charge of writing copy.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked directly with one person from Waterbe Marketing.

How did you come to work with Waterbe Marketing?

We found Waterbe Marketing through a referral.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend $10,000–$15,000 per month on their services, so I’d say we’ve spent somewhere around $50,000–$75,000 in total so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2022, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We’ve seen a 10x increase in our site traffic — we hit around 11 million traffic per month on Naver after we started working with Waterbe Marketing. We’ve also seen a 1%–1.5% increase in our click-through rate.

How did Waterbe Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Waterbe Marketing has performed well in terms of project management. They always deliver on time and within budget, and they provide us with detailed monthly reports, which we share with our headquarters in New York.

We primarily communicate through KakaoTalk, Zoom, and Google Meet. We also have a shared Google folder where we upload the content and files that we need.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re most impressed with Waterbe Marketing’s knowledge and experience in the Korean market and ability to work in both English and Korean.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we have no complaints.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing manager for an interior company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe Marketing?

Since we were a newly founded company, we didn’t have many in-house resources. I had to take care of everything and required someone to help with our branding, blog posting on Naver, and Facebook marketing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We have a Naver blog, and they post two articles every week. Based on the basic logo files, objectives, and competitor data that we provided them, they've also been able to suggest ideas on our positioning and strategy.

In terms of social media marketing, we only run Facebook and Instagram ads. To begin, we gave Waterbe our brand guidelines and concepts, and now they post content that's linked to those properties.

What is the team composition?

I am in contact with the COO and the general manager of Waterbe. I assume they have a few other people on the team including a designer and technical support.

How did you come to work with Waterbe Marketing?

Someone referred them to us. We needed someone who could do search ads, blog arrangement and management, and who could create image designs, like thumbnails. The provider also had to be an expert in the Naver blogging platform.

As Waterbe are Naver platform experts, including search ads and influencer marketing, we went with them.

​​​​How much have you invested with them?

We've spent around $60,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working together since January 2021. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

 What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Their quality of work is good. Waterbe is quite aware of our brand and product, and they worked really hard to understand our technology in the beginning.

Their thumbnail designs are good, and our visitor rate for each month has been rising continuously. This is especially true for our Naver blogs. The incoming data is great.

How did Waterbe Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

They are perfect at meeting deadlines, which are set in the project schedule for each month. Their team tells us what they are posting and when in advance, and blogs are always posted on time. We communicate via a Kakao chat technology and email, but we've also visited their offices and done Zoom calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their feedback comes in fast, and they’re always very friendly and kind. Waterbe has made sure that they understand us throughout the whole process, including our motivations behind certain actions. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They have a minimum budget, so if they could lower that, perhaps other brands could use their services as well.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You need to work with someone who knows the market really well.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a local marketing manager for an educational platform. We create educational videos for B2B companies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe Marketing?

We needed a company that could provide us with influencer marketing and video production services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

aterbe Marketing produced a series of videos for our educational video program. They also helped us with our live videos by hiring teachers, booking studios, and handling all production work. Aside from that, they create video ads for our Instagram channel.

Waterbe Marketing also helped us with influencer marketing. They helped us hire YouTube influencers, who did video reviews of our classes and videos. They also helped us hire Naver blog influencers, who wrote articles and reviews for our programs.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with a project manager and three other people from Waterbe Marketing.

How did you come to work with Waterbe Marketing?

We found Waterbe Marketing through a referral.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $80,000–$100,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2020, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We’ve seen an increase in our conversion rates and click-through rate because of the video ads that Waterbe Marketing produced for us. Waterbe Marketing also consistently provided us with great ideas that helped us further maximize the project’s results.

How did Waterbe Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Waterbe Marketing has performed well in terms of project management. They’re responsive, accessible, and accommodating, and they always meet our deadlines.

We primarily communicate through email and KakaoTalk.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m most impressed with Waterbe Marketing excellent communication and listening skills. They quickly understood our objectives and the concepts that we showed them for the videos. I also really appreciate the ideas that they gave us. For instance, it was their idea to switch from static ads to video ads for our ad campaigns on Instagram.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I have no complaints.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the sales and marketing manager of a beauty products company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe Marketing?

We needed help with SEO and PPC, especially for Naver. Our main goal was to improve our site’s visibility because our market is very competitive on Naver, so we needed help with keyword research and ad management.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Waterbe Marketing helps us with our organic SEO and PPC Naver shopping ads. They’ve also helped us create Naver-cured and influencer marketing content on a Naver blog, Instagram, and YouTube. For this, they’ve also helped us hire the influencers needed to increase our brand awareness. Their work focuses on allowing people to find us on the first page of Naver when they search for our site. 

What is the team composition?

We mainly communicate with the project manager.

How did you come to work with Waterbe Marketing?

I found Waterbe Marketing on a local Korean website.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $90,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2021, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Since we started working with Waterbe Marketing, we’ve seen great results regarding our lead generation and traffic. Additionally, working with influencers has also helped us increase our traffic lot, ultimately increasing our sales revenue. Now, people can easily find our website on Naver’s first page.

How did Waterbe Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Waterbe Marketing’s budget management is excellent. Considering our small budget, we’ve gotten great results. We use a schedule sheet that they set so that we can see which day they’re going to post content, as well as other tasks they’re doing. They provide us with a monthly report, and we communicate with them to find new solutions based on the monthly report data.

We have a weekly Zoom meeting where we can share screens, and we meet face-to-face every six months. Additionally, we communicate via email for official matters and KakaoTalk for regular communication.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Waterbe Marketing’s feedback is really fast, and they always reply promptly. They’re also very transparent and excellent at following up on the project’s status.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I’m satisfied with their work.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I can only suggest working with them because they’re transparent and realistic, and they provide excellent insight.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a research analyst at a research service provider.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe Marketing?

We were planning to launch a new service in South Korea, but we didn't have a local entity. We needed a company that could help us increase our brand awareness and introduce our industry to experts and other potential clients in the Korean market.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We hired Waterbe Marketing to handle our SEO, PPC, and social media marketing efforts. Their responsibilities include managing our social media sponsored ads, creating content for all of our channels, and localizing our blog articles. 

Our main objective was to increase our brand awareness and generate local leads through digital marketing. They handled everything, including consultation and project management.

We started the engagement by conducting market and competitive research, after which they came up with the keywords that we would use. Aside from that, they also helped us create a Google display ad and provided us with recommendations on which platforms we should implement our plans to maximize results and promote our brand.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact is a project manager from Waterbe Marketing.

How did you come to work with Waterbe Marketing?

I came across Waterbe Marketing through an online search. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested $120,000 for 12 months.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2022, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We have been able to secure some of the local experts and gain some new clients. That really shows how impactful their work has been in terms of our brand awareness.

How did Waterbe Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Waterbe Marketing has performed very well in terms of project management. They’re incredibly prompt and concise in responding to our questions and concerns, and they’ve also been able to meet all of their deadlines. I also like how they frequently provide us with progress updates.

We primarily communicate through Zoom, email, and WhatsApp.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m most impressed with Waterbe Marketing’s deep knowledge of the Korean market. They also showcase an extensive experience in the local platforms here, and they’ve helped us understand the ecosystem and how to localize our content. I am also impressed with their keen understanding of what our company does and what our business model is.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t have any negative feedback for them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure to clearly communicate the outcome that you want as well as your expectations from your engagement with them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m working for a distributing company in Korea, which distributes products from international companies. I’m in charge of digital marketing in the South Korean market, and I’m currently working on introducing a massage gun from the UK.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe Marketing?

The branded massage gun launched in South Korea last year, and since we were a distributing company, we didn’t have large human resources for the digital marketing part. As a result, we needed a partner to do the local digital marketing services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had basic images and assets that Waterbe Marketing needed to change to match the local market’s needs. The team’s work involved creating local-friendly designs and copywriting. They also produced video ads for Instagram, and they provided translation services. They also helped us in setting up our e-commerce website and gave us insights on some of the things we could do. They continue to handle our local digital marketing efforts.

What is the team composition?

We’re working with their four project managers, and they have a team that supports them. All of them know how to speak English, and they interface with the headquarters in the UK.

How did you come to work with Waterbe Marketing?

The person in charge in the UK found Waterbe Marketing, and he introduced us to them. We then had a meeting with the team and confirmed that they would be available for what we were looking to do. We thought they’d be perfect for us because they had solid experience and references from big companies in South Korea.

How much have you invested with them?

The marketing campaign costs around $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in August 2021, and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

We’ve been able to secure a 0.8% click-through rate (CTR) through their work. We’re very happy with that result because South Korea is a competitive market, and most of the projects only secure 0.2% CTR. In addition, we’ve received increased customer inquiries.

How did Waterbe Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

They always meet deadlines, and one of the satisfying points is that they work really fast and they give immediate feedback. Whenever we send them an email, they’ll reply within 1–2 hours.

We also have weekly meetings where they present to us the project’s metrics to make sure we’re doing well. In addition, they send us a monthly schedule and our projected spending each month. We mainly communicate through Zoom, but we’ve been able to meet them face-to-face during our contract signing. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

There are many digital marketing companies out there, but their advantage is that they speak English. On top of that, they specialize in managing international projects geared towards the South Korean market.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. They’re really helpful.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I’d recommend Waterbe Marketing if you’re looking to enter the South Korean market because they excel at implementing localized strategies.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a marketing manager at a game company that sells games for mobile and PlayStation platforms.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe Marketing?

Last year, we didn’t have any offices in Korea, but we wanted to expand our reach into this market since quite a lot of our customers were Koreans. We set up a small branch in Korea for distributors, and we needed a marketing agency that specialized in the Korean market to handle our campaigns and strategies. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

In the beginning, we gave Waterbe our guidelines for the campaign, and the team gave us a proposal. After having a conversation about how we could implement it, we started the collaboration by sending them the basic content that we already had. After that, they edited the content and localized it for the Korean market before publishing it. 

At present, we market heavily on social media platforms. We’re using NAVER — a local internet platform in Korea — to run SEO and PPC campaigns. We’ve also listed our products on a shopping platform. On top of that, we’ve used influencer and YouTuber marketing, along with Facebook and Instagram sponsored ads. Our teams have also published press releases, too. 

What is the team composition?

Waterbe has set up a dedicated team for our company. We work with 4–5 people; we have one main contact person, which is also the project manager. Other team members include a content manager and an SEO specialist. 

How did you come to work with Waterbe Marketing?

We looked for a marketing company that specialized in the South Korean market — we needed a team that truly understood the market and the NAVER platform. Our team found many agencies, but they didn’t have a deep understanding of the platform. 

In the end, we chose Waterbe because they knew about the market and were quite flexible. We asked them many questions, and they always answered in a nice and convincing way, explaining to us how the platform worked. They seemed to be trustworthy, so we engaged them. 

How much have you invested with them?

Our campaign budget is around $200,000, while their service fee is $6,000 per month. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2021, and the engagement is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

We’ve been able to generate new leads in South Korea, and our CTR is good. We’re hitting more than 1% conversion, which is difficult to achieve in South Korea, so we’re happy about that. 

Waterbe also has local partners, and they’ve helped us through that, too. We’ve struggled in the Korean commerce field, but they’ve given us many recommendations and strategies on how to navigate the market. As a result, we can do business well in Korea. 

How did Waterbe Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management has been great. They meet deadlines and always respond to us promptly. The team is available 24/7 for us. Their resources are truly trustworthy, and our London team can talk to them any time. 

In terms of tools, we conduct weekly video meetings via Zoom. I also always chat with the project manager if I have inquiries. The Waterbe team also gives us a monthly report about the status of everything.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Waterbe works fast, and I feel comfortable communicating with them. If problems arise, they always explain and solve them. Moreover, the team always informs us why we’re spending any amount of money on our campaigns. Their service fee isn’t also high when compared to other big agencies in Korea. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there aren’t any. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Trust Waterbe’s strategy. Be open-minded and talk to them because they know the Korean market. 

In our engagement, we initially couldn’t understand some parts of their strategies and recommendations. However, after we received their explanations and started to understand the Korean market, we understood what they were doing. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing manager for a software and beauty company. Although we’re based in the US, we provide services in Korea and other countries. We have an AI system that customizes and recommends the best cosmetics items for people based on the product’s ingredients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe Marketing?

Last year we started to penetrate the Korean market, but it was our first time. We were looking for a Korean marketing agency that specialized in Korean markets.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve done many campaigns with Waterbe Marketing. The campaigns are all based on social media platforms in Korea. We didn’t have any experience with Naver, but their team knew how it works. They’ve done SEO, PPC, keyword research, and influencer marketing in our Naver package. We’ve also used Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Google Ads.

Since we don’t have an office in Korea, we get all our help from Waterbe Marketing. Over the week, they create the content and manage the sponsored ads, allocating the budgeting and executing the strategies with us. Additionally, they do basic comment work.

For example, Waterbe Marketing handles our influencer marketing. First, they list the influencers and tools they’re in contact with. They do channel management — the team checks all the content for social media, including Instagram and Facebook. We discuss how we’ll deliver the message to the audience, and they create the video assets of people reviewing and recommending our app and do the paybacks.

What is the team composition?

When we started to work with them, Waterbe Marketing created a team for our company. We have 3–4 people, including a designer, a copywriter, and an SEO expert. Additionally, there’s a project manager as our main point of contact.

How did you come to work with Waterbe Marketing?

We searched on Google and listed 5–6 Korean companies, but some marketing agencies didn’t focus on Korea. However, we were looking for a specialized agency in the Korean market. Secondly, we wanted an agency that could recommend strategies and insights on the business market, especially apps. We needed someone to handle the project based on the basic understanding of our app.

Finally, we had two agencies in Korea and asked them for a proposal. In the end,  we liked Waterbe Marketing’s bid because they were very honest about what wouldn’t work in Korea.

How much have you invested with them?

Their monthly service fee is around $6,000, and the marketing campaign’s cost is $400,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began our partnership in January 2021 and started the campaigns in March 2021. We’ll continuously work with them during this year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We check the click-through rate, leads, conversion rates, and traffic. We try to increase the traffic every day, and we’ve done some campaigns for events, making landing pages just for the events to collect our customers’ data. The metrics have gone up and down throughout the 12 months, but they’re okay. Moreover, they aren’t expensive, and the quality of their work is pretty good. 

How did Waterbe Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

One advantage of working with them is that their response is swift. I’m satisfied because I can talk directly to the project manager and chat with her on WhatsApp. In general, communication is an essential part, and they’ve done well with that. When we’ve wanted to change strategies, they’ve been open-minded about it. We have discussions every month, and if we want to change something, we pivot.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have experience with e-commerce, so I think we’ll work this year on selling our products. Also, Waterbe Marketing has many local partners, and they’ve recommended us legal companies in Korea for content creation and video production teams. Therefore, it’s easy for us to handle other things besides marketing.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Overall, I’m satisfied with them. However, they could have partial or separate services with low budgets instead of the yearly-based service.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Check if the agencies really know about the Korean market. We had a hard time searching for agencies because we didn’t know what was going on there. You have to check the references and ask them about the local level.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there?

I’m the general manager of an IT and fintech company in Korea. We have some international projects, working with departments in China, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Waterbe?

We needed help with digital marketing and advertising.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Waterbe handles the digital marketing and advertising for the entire business, including PR, marketing, strategy, writing articles, copywriting, and more. They also help produce videos for YouTube to promote the company.

What is the team composition?

I work directly with the project and SMS channel managers, but around 7–8 people are on the team.

How did you come to work with Waterbe?

I found them online, and some friends recommended them to me as well. We liked that they spoke English and that they had experienced in the fintech industry.

How much have you invested with them?

 We’ve spent $10,000–$49,999 with them so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in October 2019, and the project is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

From a B2B perspective, we’ve been able to secure several partners in our industry. Several companies have contacted us since they took over the management of our SMS channels. The video uploaded to YouTube has had roughly 10,000 views — they’ve done a great job overall.

How did Waterbe perform from a project management standpoint?

Communication is good, and they do great at meeting deadlines. We are often presenting urgent projects, which they never complain about getting done. We speak daily via WhatsApp and a Korean domestic chat platform, and they visit us twice per week or as needed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They understand our business model and have worked to customize the marketing specifically to us. Other companies I’ve experienced are like robots, doing the same thing for everyone. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they can improve on.