CJ's home shopping channel strengthens influencer commerce to attract smart customers

SEOUL -- CJ O Shopping, the home shopping wing of South Korea's entertainment giant CJ ENM, will strengthen its marketing to attract customers who rely on reviews and product introductions by influencers who use knowledge and popularity through social media to affect the purchase of goods.

CJ O Shopping operates "Pick the Cell," a home shopping commerce channel with dozens of influencers. The home shopping channel said in a statement on November 23 that it would scout more influencers to sell private-label (PB) products, which are manufactured by one company and sold under other brands.

"We will discuss partnerships with multi-channel-network (MCN) companies to scout more influencers," a CJ O Shopping official was quoted as saying. An MCN company is an entertainment agency for influencers.

Influencer marketing is growing at an average annual rate of 32.4 percent to reach $22.3 billion by 2024, according to global market research firm Markets and Markets. A 2020 survey of 1,200 people aged between 19 and 49, conducted by the international market research firm Embrain, showed that 78.6 percent of consumers check online reviews or content before buying any product.

Other South Korean companies have also strengthened influencer marketing capabilities. In early November, Amore Pacific, the country's leading beauty product maker, invested 30 billion won ($26.9 million) in DMIL, a beauty creator network startup that creates beauty video content for creators who introduce and compare new products through social media using video content.