Why does the Korean capital Seoul want to change its slogan? (Advertisement)

Seoul, more than 600 years of history as capital, and in recent years, it has become one of the largest cities in developed countries in the world, after becoming one of the leading technological hubs that are indispensable.

As in developed cities, Seoul does not stop keeping pace with developments in various fields, in order to maintain its progress not only in serving its citizens, who number nearly ten million people, but also in order to enhance the position of The city as one of the most important destinations attracting tourism and investment around the world.

For this reason, the Municipality of Seoul is currently working on designing a new slogan for the city that enhances this position and expresses its contemporary identity and ancient history at the same time.

 

In 2015, the city’s logo entitled I·SEOUL·U was launched. The slogan was chosen based on the opinions of a large group of Korean citizens as well as people of other nationalities. They saw this sentence as expressing vitality and enthusiasm, as it brings together young people and each other in a sense of humor that harmonizes with the charming atmosphere of Seoul, but this slogan was criticized for its ambiguity and lack of ability to communicate between Koreans and foreign citizens.

Stages of the slogan evolution

The idea of developing a slogan for the city went through several phases, the first of which began with South Korea’s participation in the organization of the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

In 2007, the idea of developing the logo came by adding a new sentence to the original logo “Hi Seoul/SOUL OF ASIA”, expressing that the city of Seoul is the true spirit expressing the culture of the Asian continent in its contemporary form.

The slogan development began to continue further over the following years with the participation of citizens in a unique scene, in which citizens themselves participate with the government in choosing symbols that express their culture and identity.

City slogan. Why is it important?

It wasn’t just South Korea that realized the importance of slogans and brands in urban promotion of cities.

Singapore, for example, launched a promotional campaign in 2004 called “Uniquely Singapore”, which increased the number of tourists to Singapore by 36%.

Germany also developed a promotional campaign called “Be Berlin” in 2008, which was very successful and made Germany the fifth best business destination in the world in 2010.

Seoul has lunched an online survey to choose its new logo and slogan 

Why does Seoul need a new logo now?

 Since 2012, Seoul has become a city visited by more than 10 million tourists. With the target of reaching this number to 20 million tourists, raised the need for the importance of launching a new slogan for the city that professionally embodies the dynamism of Seoul and its charm as a leading global city, which reflects positively on tourism and economic activities.

For that reason, the Seoul Municipality plans to develop a new slogan in order to replace the old one, building on experiences and polls conducted in this regard.

The designers of the new slogan chose to be simple this time, and understandable to everyone alike, especially that once the new slogan is adopted, it will be circulated to all facilities, means of transportation in the city.

In order to create a professional slogan that meets international standards, a five-week opinion poll was launched from (December 28, 2022 to January 31, 2023). The survey will take into account the opinions of both Koreans and foreigners alike, so that the slogan meets the aspirations of both locally and globally.

It is worth noting that the new logo, once adopted, will be circulated in the communication media of the Seoul Municipality locally and internationally, and as an international brand in the city’s tourism marketing activities, in addition to its application in various public transportation and cultural facilities of Seoul.

Take part in the survey at the following link:

https://english.seoul.go.kr/new-city-logo-and-slogan-survey/