Bandomall, an instrument accessories specialist that had not run online advertising since opening in 2008, has recently increased new online visitors by 66.4 percent. Return on ad spend (ROAS) was 296 percent. Bandomall cited Cafe24's Pro Marketing as the reason.

Pro Marketing is a model in which marketers at Cafe24's marketing center handle the entire process, from ad planning and creative production to media operations and performance analysis. It is designed so even businesses with no ad operations experience can start. Because ad costs are settled after sales occur, it also reduces the burden of having to spend upfront.

Bandomall was a shopping mall in need of that kind of support. It opened a store and an online shop in 2008 as a specialist retailer at Nakwon Arcade in Seoul's Jongno district, selling guitar strings and cables, various parts and performance supplies. Word spread among performers as it became known for letting customers see and buy overseas brand products that are hard to find in South Korea, such as Gotoh, Schaller and Shubb.

Sharing the experience of CEO Yoonjang Kang (강윤장), who plays electric and acoustic guitar himself, was the sales method. Beyond explaining specifications, the shop points out differences between products from a performer's perspective and recommends items suited to a customer's playing style. Kang said, "Even with the same guitar strings, the sound changes depending on the material and thickness." He added, "Bandomall's biggest competitive edge is being able to explain the pros and cons of products from a player's standpoint and recommend products that fit the customer."

The limitation was acquiring online customers. Kang said he had long judged that advertising was not necessary. He thought that, as a specialist market sought out by players and enthusiasts, people who needed the products would ultimately find it on their own. Another reason he put off the decision was that it was hard to gauge the scale and effectiveness of ad spending. Kang said, "I had a vague fear of marketing." He added, "I had no idea how much it would cost, and I worried it might just be money going out for nothing."

His thinking changed as he felt shifts in the commerce environment. He said he saw a trend of more consumers encountering products on YouTube and social networking services (SNS), then searching for information online and visiting offline stores again, and he felt a need to expand online touchpoints. But because he had run the business without ads, everything from which products to advertise first to creative production and performance management felt unfamiliar.

Bandomall then ran its first ads using Cafe24 Pro, which selects ad targets and creative based on product data. In a month, new visitors rose 66.4 percent and total visitors increased 45.4 percent, while ROAS came to 296 percent. Customers who had not known Bandomall also flowed in through the ads, showing that even in a highly specialised instrument market it could secure new customers through advertising.

In particular, the approach of running ads by entrusting ad planning and creative production to Cafe24 Pro proved effective. Kang said, "It was remarkable in itself that there were customers who said they came to the store after seeing the products being advertised." He added, "It was the first time I really felt that online could lead to offline."

The change online carried over to offline. A representative product was guitar cables. They sold steadily in the offline store but drew relatively little attention online. After starting ads, online orders came in, and some customers also began visiting the store in person after seeing the product in ads.

◆ Cafe24 Pro spreads to small specialist shops with no ad experience

Cafe24 presented the Bandomall case as showing that data-based ad operations can work even for small specialist shopping malls with no ad operations experience. In industries where the items are specialised and the customer base is narrow, many put off advertising because it is hard to predict the effect, but filtering ad targets first using product data reduced initial trial and error.

Cafe24 pointed to linking product and sales data accumulated in a shopping mall to advertising strategy as a feature. It goes beyond looking only at ad metrics by analysing which products sell steadily and which have strong growth potential, then sets ad targets and creative. For shopping malls that lack ad creative, it starts from producing creative, while for shopping malls where flagship products are unclear, it starts by resetting priorities based on product data.

Kang said Cafe24 Pro enabled Bandomall to bring out its character. He said he hopes it remains a specialist store where people who like instruments come to talk and choose products that fit their playing styles. Kang said, "I think music has the power to connect generations." He added, "I want to remain a company where people who like music can work happily, and a specialist store that performers trust and seek out."