Booking Restaurants and Accommodations via KakaoTalk... Expanding into Reservation Platforms

KakaoTalk Reservation Launches... Linked with KakaoMap
Targeting Small Sellers with Reservation Demand... Ad Revenue Up

Kakao is adding a reservation feature to KakaoTalk and expanding its reach as a reservation platform. Starting with hotels and other accommodations, it targets places with reservation demand such as popular restaurants, leisure facilities, and hospitals. Users can make reservations, payments, and share everything within KakaoTalk. Since the reservation service ends with sharing among acquaintances, it is analyzed that it could shake up the online reservation market.

Kakao recently launched KakaoTalk Reservation and held a briefing session targeting accommodation providers. Since the 11th, it has started a promotion offering special prices for reservations.

Currently, users must add the 'KakaoTalk Reservation' channel on KakaoTalk to use the service. In the future, it plans to link with KakaoMap to provide reservation functions when searching for places. Displaying it in the KakaoTalk 'More' tab is also being considered.

The reservation service is connected with various Kakao services. It links from payment (KakaoPay) to checking reservation details (KakaoTalk Wallet), and location confirmation and navigation (KakaoMap). Since reservations can be made within KakaoTalk, sharing functions are also included. It is possible to send reservation details to acquaintances going together and share QR codes or mobile tickets.

KakaoTalk Reservation Screen [Photo by KakaoTalk Capture]

For now, only a few hotels and leisure facilities such as Seoul Shilla Hotel and Lotte World Aquarium can be reserved, but the scope will be expanded. Businesses using KakaoTalk channels can use the reservation function. This means it can expand to partners with reservation demand such as restaurants, accommodations, airlines, exhibitions, and performances. It is also known that through its subsidiary Kakao Healthcare, Kakao is pushing forward with hospital reservation services.

Kakao introduced the reservation feature to expand its domain as an online reservation platform. Since reservation services usually end with sharing among acquaintances, making reservations within the national messenger KakaoTalk itself is considered a competitive advantage. Although there are many online reservation platforms such as Naver Reservation, and accommodation apps like Yanolja and Yeogi Eottae, there is a prospect that demand could shift.

Through this, user dwell time can be increased and advertising revenue expanded. It attracts small and medium sellers with reservation demand as KakaoTalk partners and secures reservation fees or advertising revenue. From the perspective of tenant businesses, they can receive reservations on a platform used by the entire nation. Another advantage is that they can flexibly operate reservations, promotions, and customer management without going through other intermediary platforms.

The KakaoTalk Channel business, which focuses on corporate advertising, hinges on securing many small and medium sellers. Even if advertising demand from large corporations decreases due to economic slowdown, steady revenue can be generated from smaller-scale advertisements. Hong Eun-taek, Kakao CEO, also emphasized at the first quarter earnings announcement, "To continue growing without being affected by cuts in advertising budgets or the economy, marketing budgets rather than advertising budgets must be brought in," and added, "We will strive to make the Talk Channel a place where marketing activities such as discounts, mileage, and coupons can be well promoted."

A Kakao official said, "The areas where reservations are possible can expand depending on the choice of tenant businesses," and "We plan to provide reservation functions through KakaoMap in the future."