Suk Soo-sun's Design Management Story: Consumer Participation in Branding

연합뉴스 / 2025-03-21 16:22:28

*Editor’s note: The number of global Hallyu (Korean Wave) fans is approaching approximately 225 million, according to the 2024 report by the Korea Foundation. The surge in fans marks the dawn of the "Digital Silk Road" era, where communication transcends the limitations of time and space, enabling real-time interaction across the globe. Truly, we are in the era of "Hallyu 4.0."

Suk Soo-sun's Design Management Story: Consumer Participation in Branding

Contributed by Suk Soo-sun (professor at Yonsei Graduate School of Communication & Arts)

Design constantly evolves, advancing in step with changes in the times.

Traditionally, design has played a role in highlighting external value by emphasizing visual beauty and functionality.

Today, various factors such as the advancement of information technology, the acceleration of globalization, the expansion of the knowledge-based economy, and the advent of the hyper-personalization era are comprehensively and complexly transforming the paradigm of design.

In particular, artificial intelligence (AI) has brought innovation to the planning and production methods of the design process. It has also dramatically increased the speed of data research and analysis.

Amid these rapidly changing design and marketing trends, collaboration with AI has become an essential factor in producing creative and rich results that were previously unimaginable.

Design has moved beyond simply creating aesthetic appeal and now collaborates with technology to revolutionize user experience. It must respond to the challenges of a new era and shape the future alongside AI. The very concept and process of branding have changed.

◇ Heinz Elevates Brand Value Through Consumer Participation

Heinz’s "Draw Ketchup" campaign in 2021 was a marketing success story that led to a significant shift in consumer perception. It effectively solidified the idea that "ketchup equals Heinz."

▲ Heinz "Draw Ketchup" Campaign, screenshot from the Heinz Corporation Website. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

By conveying the message, "When you think of ketchup, you instinctively picture Heinz," the campaign clearly defined the brand's identity.

It was particularly effective in deepening the brand’s relationship with consumers. Heinz creatively leveraged the concept of "Top of Mind" (TOM) to ensure its brand was the first thing consumers associated with ketchup.

TOM is a traditional method for measuring the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.

It is based on the question, "What is the first brand that comes to mind in a given category?"

Heinz took this traditional approach and transformed it into an innovative campaign by asking, "Draw ketchup." Most of the images drawn by consumers resembled Heinz ketchup bottles, reaffirming Heinz's status as the leading brand in the ketchup category.

This campaign is recognized as an innovative example of visually expressing brand identity. It also successfully encouraged active consumer participation, fostering an emotional bond between the brand and its audience.

Inspired by the global success of "Draw Ketchup," Heinz Canada launched a campaign allowing consumers to create personalized ketchup bottle labels featuring their own drawings.

▲ Heinz "Draw Ketchup" Campaign, screenshot from the Heinz Corporation Website. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

The goal of this campaign was to generate customized packaging through consumer creativity while strengthening their emotional connection with the Heinz brand.

Consumers were given the opportunity to submit their hand-drawn ketchup images through an online contest for a chance to receive a personalized bottle of Heinz ketchup. The campaign was promoted through outdoor advertisements and online platforms with the tagline: "We asked people to draw ketchup. They drew Heinz," encouraging participation.

According to the U.S.-based marketing media outlet Marketing Dive, Heinz has recently been running various campaigns centered on consumer participation and customized packaging.

By utilizing online platforms such as the social video app TikTok, Heinz has encouraged engagement through intriguing content, including video sharing for limited-edition Halloween packaging.