[Finance Insider] "Pet communities are ultimately about people... We created a 'fun' space"

Kim Haewon Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Digital Promotion Team PD
Implementation of Comprehensive Pet-related Community 'OmoOmo'

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"We wanted to create a space where both current and prospective pet owners could gather, share stories about life, and have fun."

The pet community 'OmoOmo,' created by the industry-leading non-life insurance company, started with this idea. Rather than focusing solely on selling pet insurance products, the goal was to build a space for open and enjoyable interaction. Kim Haewon, PD of Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance's Digital Promotion Team, explained, "Pet owners don't just talk about animals; ultimately, they talk about life. We designed the service so that users can share their affection and identity related to their pets while also showing how they live thoughtfully."

'OmoOmo' is an information-sharing community service for current and prospective pet owners. From the name itself, efforts were made to remove the stiff image of an insurance company. When you turn 'OmoOmo' sideways, it resembles 'MeongMeong' (the Korean onomatopoeia for a dog's bark). Another fun element is the characters. Users can interact using an 'avatar' similar to their own pet dog. They can choose from 29 dog breeds and 15 cat breeds, then customize various features such as eyes, nose, tail, patterns, and colors to create a unique character.

With these pet characters, users can move through a 3D space and communicate with others. They can decorate their own homes and visit plazas or parks to chat with other characters. This is similar to a 3D online game. This approach differentiates it from existing pet online communities, which are mainly centered around bulletin boards on large portal cafes or web pages. To achieve this, they utilized Unity's 3D rendering engine, a leading game development software company dominating the global game market. Kim PD said, "We focused on allowing users to express their unique pets by adjusting 3D designs and the proportions of eyes and nose. Also, since we created a web bulletin board space like traditional communities, users can enjoy the service in whichever way they prefer."

Since this was pioneering work in an area previously unexplored by insurance companies, there were many challenges. Because it was not a business aimed at immediate profitability, requesting collaboration from various departments was not easy. Nevertheless, what attracted people was the identity of dog and cat lovers. Kim PD shared, "At first, it was very daunting, and we didn't know where to start, but when we held an idea contest among in-house pet owners, the response was surprisingly enthusiastic. We even sought advice from people at guide dog schools, and everyone helped with a shared love for pets."

Communication with external parties also went more smoothly than expected. OmoOmo has a 'market' space where various pet service and product companies are tenants. Initially, sourcing pet products for this space was challenging. Kim PD revealed, "When the insurance company suddenly approached them, they were suspicious, wondering if we were trying to sell insurance. But after explaining the purpose of 'OmoOmo,' dog and cat lovers readily agreed and decided to participate."

With this affection and effort combined, OmoOmo is gradually gaining momentum. Since its launch in November last year, the membership has reached 180,000. Meanwhile, the government has announced measures to foster pet-related businesses. These include expanding safety evaluations and registrations of pet food ingredients and supporting various facility funds. For pet healthcare, value-added tax exemptions will be applied to essential and frequent medical services, and medical procedures will be standardized. Regarding pet insurance, partnerships between animal hospitals and insurance companies will simplify insurance claims, and the development of new insurance products will be encouraged.

Kim PD stated, "We want to create a space where you can find not only Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance's insurance products but also all products, services, and information related to pets?a place every pet owner should visit at least once." He added, "We will develop it as a space for pet owners to share their worries about life, where people and animals live together."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.