KB국민카드 Wins Korean PR Award For Small Business Campaign
KB국민카드 won the top prize in the digital channel PR category at the 34th Korea PR Awards for its small business support campaign titled National Theater, press9.kr reported on November 29. The campaign featured real-life stories of local merchants who continued community sharing despite difficult economic conditions, drawing over 10 million views on YouTube within 50 days of its launch. The Korea PR Association announced the winners on November 22.
The Stories Behind National Theater
The campaign consisted of three distinct episodes that reconstructed real experiences into stage plays in collaboration with the youth theater troupe Bului Jeoncha, as megaeconomy.co.kr noted. Episode one focused on Kim So-hyang, a restaurant owner in Pohang who has worked alongside deaf employees for a decade to support their social independence. Episode two highlighted Jang Young-hee, a Busan hairdresser who traveled to remote mountain villages to provide beauty services to elderly residents. Episode three featured Kim Nam-su, an 익산 (Iksan) vendor who donated 3.65 million won annually for 15 years by setting aside 10000 won daily from selling fish-shaped pastries.
Public Response and Special Posters
In response to the high engagement, KB국민카드 gathered the supportive comments to produce custom tribute posters, delivering them directly to the small business owners featured in the videos. Viewers left over 1500 supportive comments, including remarks such as watching this on the subway during my commute brought tears to my eyes
and this is such a warm shop that I would go out of my way to visit and boost their sales even if it’s far.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was the National Theater campaign launched and when did it win the award?
KB국민카드 released the first video in the series in July, and the campaign surpassed 10 million views 50 days later. The Korea PR Association announced the 34th annual award winners on November 22, and KB국민카드 formally announced the top prize in the digital channel PR category on November 29.
How many episodes were produced for the campaign?
The campaign comprised three episodes, each highlighting a different small business owner from a different region in South Korea: Pohang, Busan, and Iksan.
What physical item did KB국민카드 create from viewer engagement?
KB국민카드 collected over 1500 supportive viewer comments from the YouTube video pages to create special tribute posters, which the company then delivered directly to the three featured merchants.
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