The Importance of KakaoTalk

To the best of my knowledge, there is no piece of technology more important to hooking up with Korean girls than KakaoTalk.  KakaoTalk is a basic messaging service that it used all across Korea in lieu of regular text messaging.  It’s so pervasive that I have not talked with a girl through simple SMS messages in over 5 years.  The only time I get actual text messages, not through an app, are advertisements or notifications.

As men looking to get laid here, the why is actually not important, but rather how to use it to better your game.  Especially as a foreigner, Korean girls get weird about giving out their phone numbers.  I’m not entirely sure of the reason, but I guess they’re afraid that you’re going to call them incessantly and bother them.  Also, they tend to shy away from direct text messages because Korean phone plans still have limits on text messaging each month.  Kakao however, uses data rather than the limited texting budget, similar to other messaging apps.

Kakao also has all sorts of other garbage that Koreans love to eat up, like KakaoStory, which is basically a Facebook / Instagram style app for sharing photos, and different games and things to buy.  I don’t actually understand the magic appeal of these things, but I guess it’s just part of the consumerist mass that is the Korean hive-mind.

Back to the topic at hand though, why is this important to you?  From my own personal experiences, I’ve asked girls for their numbers using the best method, and almost been shut down.  They’ll say something along the lines of, “Oh, I don’t know…” or “Why do you need my number?” until I tell them it’s just so I can talk with them on Kakao.  Then they’ll delightfully plug in the digits with no qualms.

Once you have their number put into your phone and you’ve tested its accuracy and validity, it will show up in your Kakao list exactly how you put them into your phone.  At this point, I always change their name in the app to reflect when and where we met.  There are only so many Korean names, and if you’re doing the numbers game right, you will not remember one Minji from the other.  They also do stupid things like making their profile picture a flower or a dog, so you can lose track of who is who quickly.

Using the date and location name strategy, I’ve been able to come back months later for repeat business from girls who just faded away.  A simple, “Hey, it’s been a while. Do you still go to (place we met) these days?  Let’s grab a drink there Friday,” has proven enough to end a cold streak or just rehash some good times from before.

Bottom line: When you come to Korea, get KakaoTalk.  Not because it’s an especially great product, but for hooking up with chicks, no other app has even close to equal value.