1) The Birth of a Hook Sentence — "What the heck, T... Money?!"
- The copy development team focused on overturning the stereotype of "T-money = transportation." The initial draft was "T-money does it all," but after determining that information overload would reduce recall, they restructured the song with a reactionary exclamation as the core structure.
- The final hook was finalized during on-site rehearsals by listening to Park Bo-young's tone and fine-tuning the beat. It's said that adding a 0.3-0.4 second pause after "What the heck, T...," created an intentional pause, creating a catchy chorus.
2) Details of "Lifestyle Acting" — 15-Degree Wrist Angle
- The payment gesture was determined by dozens of tests, with the staff actually holding it against a convenience store reader the day before filming. The gesture felt most natural when the wrist was bent at about 15 degrees, allowing both the screen and the reader to be seen simultaneously, and the camera captured the functionality clearly.
- Park Bo-young maintained the same rhythm (two beats: enter - click) throughout filming to solidify her gestures. This "motion consistency"—continuity of movement even when cuts changed—became the basis for the editing rhythm.
3) 3-Second Strategy: Preserving the First 3 Seconds — Subtle Changes in Facial Expressions
- To capture the initial hook, we repeatedly practiced the three-part reaction of "eyebrows - corners of the mouth - nod." Even with the same line, raising the eyebrows one frame earlier conveys curiosity rather than surprise, and slightly raising the corners of the mouth reduces the tension.
- The director adhered to the principle of "emotion precedes information," delaying the functional subtitles by 0.5 seconds to avoid disrupting emotional immersion.
4) Unsung Hero of Sound Branding — On-Site Foley Recording
- The ad's liveliness is supported not only by music but also by everyday sounds. We captured real-life sounds like the "beep" of a reader, the "click" of a traffic gate, and the "click" of a cup lid on-site as separate Foley recordings.
- During the editing stage, we synchronized the "beep" sound with the consonant timing of the hook dialogue. This overlapped the dialogue and sound, increasing memory retention. This allowed the hook to linger in the mind for longer.
5) Costumes and Props — "The Aesthetics of Ordinaryness"
- The styling was themed around "a model-like everyday life." Instead of overly trendy elements, we chose a neutral palette that wouldn't stand out in any setting, whether it's at work, a cafe, or a convenience store.
- The props team minimized scenes of card and cash possession to demonstrate the actual payment process. We boldly removed elements that obscured the "hands-free payment" message.
6) One-Take Illusion Editing — Handoffs Connecting Cuts
- The video features multiple locations, but the visuals flow almost as if it were a single take. The secret is "action handoffs." The lowering hand in one shot is edited to match the raising hand in the next, creating a seamless movement.
This technique visually reinforced the message, "Payment is the same everywhere," through repetition.
7) Emotional Links of Security and Peace of Mind — Trust, Not Exaggeration
- Financial messaging can easily become rigid. The filming approach was to "make it feel, not just say." While the authentication and transaction confirmation screens briefly flashed by, Park Bo-young's expression remained stable and unexaggerated.
- The subtitles also used words related to "peace of mind" instead of harsh words like "security," reducing emotional friction.
8) The Charm of B-Cuts — Ad-libbed Smiles
- During filming, Park Bo-young briefly whispered "Done!" after passing through the convenience store checkout machine, drawing laughter from the staff. While not included in the final cut, this tone served as a reference for refining the cheerful ending.
- In the cafe scene, a subtle nod was used, where she lifted her cup after paying. The director chose it as the best take, saying it conveyed a "small sense of accomplishment" through a single expression.
9) Optimizing the Filming Route — The Art of Physical Distribution
- Because the concept involved frequent location changes, scheduling was crucial. By structuring the route to a cafe with beautiful natural lighting in the morning, a convenience store at noon, and an indoor set in the afternoon, we managed both the changing lighting and the level of congestion.
- For the traffic gate scene, we avoided actual peak hours for sufficient rehearsal, then shot short, intense scenes to reduce the number of takes.
10) Message Verification — Reaction Research
- During a pre-screening, we repeatedly exposed hooks and gestures to a variety of age groups, and conducted a free recall survey the next day. The phrases "It's all done on mobile" and "It's easier than you think" showed high spontaneous recall rates, and model favorability significantly correlated with perceptions of "secure payment."
- It was particularly striking that the 40-50 age group showed a similar increase in willingness to "try it too" as the younger generation.
11) Brand/Model Sync — Why Park Bo-young?
- Trust, likability, and a sense of everyday life. We had to be able to tie these three keywords into a single character's tone. Park Bo-young was a rare talent who could simultaneously convey both "convenience" and "peace of mind" with her understated comedy and delicate emotional delivery.
- Furthermore, her "cross-generational likability" made her ideal for lowering the barrier to adoption. As a result, we were able to layer the branding and conversion goals into a single narrative tone.
12) Ending Tag Optimization — The Rule of Three
- The last two seconds were boldly stripped down, leaving only the logo, a simple call-to-action, and the app icon image.
- To maintain the rhythm, the background music was slightly reduced in volume instead of fading out, maintaining a lingering effect. The blocking was carefully adjusted to ensure the actor's gaze was naturally drawn to the app icon.
13) Small Rules of the Set — "Experience, Not Explaining"
- All information on the screen was aimed at "convincing," not "understanding." We prioritized cutting-edge cuts that convey the feeling of "one click and you're done" like an experience, reducing complex functional explanations.
- Ultimately, the design aims to help viewers achieve a "I can do this too" mentality, even without knowing the specific features.
14) Summary of Insights for Marketers
- Question-type hooks create a sense of extensibility, and rhythmic elements increase spontaneous recall.
- Unified gestures reduce learning costs, and scene transition handoffs enhance experience consistency.
- Security messages are "show, don't tell" to minimize resistance.
A two-second ending, organized around three elements (logo, simple CTA, and icon), consistently yields conversion rates.