Answers: A and B
The language of business
South Korea's official language is Korean. It is not entirely necessary to know Korean to do business or live in Korea, although a grasp of basic terms is helpful. If you are not a fluent speaker, it is wise to carry cards with your home, office, and other important addresses printed in Korean.
Communicating in English
English is taught in most middle schools and high schools, but for the most part the focus on teaching grammar and vocabulary, rather than the spoken language. Therefore, many South Koreans can read and write English, but conversational skills may be less well developed.
Executives who do not speak English usually have interpreters available.
Business communication
Koreans begin business correspondence with the salutation, "To my respected," followed by the person's title and first and last names. For example, "To my respected President Kim Dae-jung." If the person does not have a title, use an honorific.
Date format
Dates are written with the YYYY/MM/DD format.
Email
When initiating a new contact, a certain degree of formality should be observed in written language with a formal salutation and title. As the business relationship progresses, take your lead from your correspondent and use an appropriate tone in response.Keep sentences short and clear. Use a subject line that is quickly understandable. Your signature should include your business title, contact information and an email address, in case a message is separated from the header.
Messaging apps
KakaoTalk is the most popular app for texting, and if you have a business contact saved, they will likely automatically show up in your contacts on the app. However, apps are generally not used for business correspondence. Do not message a business contact unless specifically invited to do so., and stick to e-mail or phone calls. Among friends, however, messaging is more common than a phone call or text.
Excerpted from Living Abroad's South Korea Report: Business practices / The language of business
Written by Michael Cadden, SGMS-T, VP International Operations
