Space is 'Movie Music'

Jooyun Kim's 

Spacebranding vol.02

“Like the music in a movie, space implies the character of the brand and conveys the business values ​​through the first impression through the atmosphere."

<Don't understand. Just feel it.>

JTBC's* 10th anniversary drama 'Sisyphus', which is about time travel, has come to an end. 
The August 2020 film "Tenet," directed by Christopher Nolan of "Inception," was also based on time travel. It's a story that changes the past against future attacks to prevent World War III. The story of the movie moves back and forth between the passage of time. The music stays to the minimal melody and immerses itself in the story with minimal emotion. 

The director of 'Tenet' says, "Feel it, don't understand it." The orchestra tune sounds continue then cut off, and the music with a strong beat like a warning sound creates a tense atmosphere. The music of Tenet has become a character. The different music and beats for each forward and backward in time give a completely different personality.

<Space is 'movie music'>

Space is also film music. If music is missing from melodrama or horror movies, it will be difficult to enjoy the movie itself. This is because background music implies the sweet atmosphere of male and female characters or the atmosphere of tension that seems to occur. Like the music in the movie, space implies the character of the brand and conveys the values of the business as the first impression through the atmosphere.

Fashion is similar. First impressions are made by the clothes people wear and their overall feelings about the person. The overall appearance through fashion refers to the person. Of course, the office building and the store are also the talks about the company. This is why companies need to be careful about what and how people feel in a space.

What is Spacebranding?

'Spacebranding' is the activity that builds an impression of a business with space or expands and manages the value of a brand through that impression of space.

<Space is empathetic consumption of experience.>

The role of space in business is as follow: First, its role as a problem solver focused on product sales and service delivery for functional resolution. Second, the role of establishing identity through direct and indirect brand image delivery. Third, experience-oriented role in providing experience space and contents. Fourth, it is a value-oriented role in securing publicity and expressing corporate social responsibility by providing cultural space.1)

They are creating empathic 'experiences', not just buying products in the space. These experiences are both intangible and symbolic. The experience plays a major role in the brand's success because it is stored in the customer's unconsciousness and has a long-term impact on purchasing behavior.2)

<Five Sense Appeal Message_Space>

The most effective way to deliver a corporate message is to appeal to the five senses beyond visual and auditory advertising. According to research, an experience involving multiple senses at the same time is more effective in enhancing brand awareness than just one sense.3) The reason supermarkets put a flower at the entrance is to create a positive image of the store with the scent of flowers when entering the store. 

The same reason why department stores have a perfume section on the first floor. Since space is experienced through the five senses, it makes us think once more about the importance of space in branding. Nothing stimulates the human senses like plants. The recently opened Hyundai Department Store in Yeouido has taken the name of a department store, aiming for a cultural and rest area. It is THE HYUNDAI SEOUL.

‘Glass Haus’ THE HYUNDAI's Mokdong Branch © Jooyun Kim

Along with the naming, it is repositioning the brand by providing an eco-friendly space. It is an expression of sincerity that considers customers' health through plant therapy. Hyundai Department Store's Mok-dong branch opened ‘Glass Haus’ in April with the concept of ‘European yard and Greenhouse’ on the entire 7th floor. It became a place of gathering and socializing by creating reasons for visiting department stores as a healing space through plants. 

‘Glass Haus’ THE HYUNDAI's Mokdong Branch © Jooyun Kim

A study of human sensory memory conducted at Rockefeller University found that people remember 1% of touch, 2% of hearing, 5% of sight, 15% of taste, and 35% of smell.4) Tom Peters advises not to chase "customer satisfaction" but to focus on providing a wonderful, comprehensive, dramatic, and novel "customer experience".

A memorable and wonderful experience for customers is the true 'value-added' offered by companies. Customers visit the space to experience that added value. The ‘experience’ is far more holistic, inclusive, emotional, and powerful than a simple ‘service’. ‘Experience’ is an event and an adventure. ‘Experience’ is a phenomenon that resonates with the soul and awakens the mind.5)

<Space impression of the first two seconds.>

Malcolm Gladwell mentioned the power of the first two seconds in <Blink>. It takes only 2 seconds for customers to make an assessment. The two seconds that trigger a behavioral response determine a company's market share. Those two seconds are the sensory clue that determines the success or failure of a company.6) We experience a whole personal sensory in space. If that experience is connected to a company or brand philosophy, is there any other powerful communication method or device for a company?

Peters organizes the words and phrases that appear related to ‘experience’ as follows: Except for "episode", "event", "encounter", "adventure", "perception", "life", "existence", "taste", "feel", "experience", and "taste", all words are related to "space".

Branded customer experience is the most powerful factor in increasing customer loyalty. Branded customer experience is created in space, and the company's differentiated space creates an impression of a company or service.7) After all, space branding is an activity that builds a business impression as a space that is a contact point with customers, or expands and manages the value experience of a brand through the impression of the space.

<Summaries>

“Like the music in a movie, space implies the character of the brand and conveys the business values ​​through the first impression through the atmosphere."

"Customers don't just buy goods in a space, they have empathic 'experiences'. These experiences are stored in the customer's unconscious and have a long-term effect on their buying behavior."

"A memorable experience for customers is the true 'value-added' that companies provided. Customers visit the space to experience that added value."

“The ‘experience’ is far more holistic, inclusive, emotional, and powerful than just a ‘service’. ‘Experience’ is a phenomenon that resonates with the soul and awakens the mind.”

"Branded customer experience is the most powerful factor in increasing customer loyalty."

*JTBC is is a South Korean nationwide pay television network.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JTBC

1) Kim, Ji Hyun, ‘A Study on Value-driven Spatial Design Marketing’, Hongik University Ph.D, 2016., pp.76-77.
2) Catharine Slade-Brooking, Creating a Brand Identity: A Guide for Designers, Laurence King Publishing, 2016, pp.64. 
3) Catharine Slade-Brooking, Creating a Brand Identity: A Guide for Designers, Laurence King Publishing, 2016, pp.51-53. 
4) Catharine Slade-Brooking, Creating a Brand Identity: A Guide for Designers, Laurence King Publishing, 2016, pp.51.
5) Tom Peter, Tom Peters Essentials Design, DK, 2005, p.70-73.
6) Dan Hill, Body of Truth: Leveraging What Consumers Can't or Won't Say, Wiley, 2003, p.253.
7) Kim, Ji Hyun, ‘A Study on Value-driven Spatial Design Marketing’, Hongik University Ph.D, 2016., p.31.

Jooyun Kim

jykim@hongik.ac.kr