Byeon Woo-seok Tops South Korea’s Most Influential Advertising Models in May 2025

According to a recent analysis by the Korea Corporate Reputation Research Institute, actor Byeon Woo-seok has ranked No. 1 in South Korea’s advertising model brand reputation for May 2025. Over a period from April 2 to May 2, the institute analyzed a massive dataset of 27,165,322 pieces of brand-related big data, assessing consumer behavior across participation, media, communication, and community indices.

Byeon Woo-seok’s outstanding performance is highlighted by a remarkable 91.42% positive sentiment ratio. Keywords linked to him include corporate partnerships such as NongHyup Bank, Paldo Bibimmyeon, and job platform JobKorea—indicating his image as a trustworthy and relatable brand figure.

The link analysis of Byeon Woo-seok showed high associations with phrases like “revealed,” “wish come true,” and “breakthrough,” demonstrating his strong cultural footprint and growing celebrity appeal. His rise to the top outpaced other major names including Lim Young-woong, who maintained a strong third place position and is noted for his consistent popularity.

Baseball player Lee Jung-hoo claimed the second position between Byeon Woo-seok and Lim Young-woong, showcasing the diversity in the list. Other prominent figures rounding out the Top 10 include Son Heung-min, Cha Eun-woo, BLACKPINK, Kim Do-young, BTS, Psy, and Park Bo-gum.

The survey, which tracked brand data for 50 public figures, reflects shifts in consumer sentiment and online behavior. Compared to April 2025’s dataset of 29,777,146 items, May’s figures show an 8.77% decline, yet notable increases in brand consumption (+26.02%) and brand issue engagement (+10.11%), while brand communication and dissemination decreased by 21.07% and 17.99% respectively.

Following the top 10 rankings, stars such as Park Eun-bin, Lee Byung-hun, IVE, Jun Hyun-moo, Gong Yoo, SEVENTEEN, Lee Chan-won, Lee Jung-jae, Young Tak, and Yoo Jae-suk placed in the 11th to 20th positions.

With its focus on the influence of online consumer habits on brand engagement, the study reaffirms the growing importance of celebrity endorsements in digital marketing and confirms Byeon Woo-seok as the new face of Korea’s most bankable stars.