Marketing in Japan:Section 2
Part 2 of 3: Marketing in Japan best practices and business insights.
Table of Contents:Page Name: Page Number:Business Practices 3
5 Steps to Marketing In Japan 4How to Launch a Product in Japan 11Tips to Marketing In Japan 28Symbolism in Japan 44
Business Insights 57Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions 58Business Facts 78Business Etiquette 98Business Differences: US vs. Japan
123
Work Cited 135
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Colors
BlackKuro
BlueAo
WhiteShiro
GreenMidori
RedAka Others
Compiled By author from japanese.about.com tofugu.com ehow.com
黒白 緑赤
青
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Colors
Black Represents:
Formality And Elegance:
Started because of the popularity of Western black tie
events
Death, Destruction, Doom, Fear And
Sorrow:
When used alone, it signifies mourning
and misfortune, and is often worn to
funerals
Dignity And Formality:
Used for the robes of Buddhist monks, as
well as for montsuki ( 紋付 ),
the kimono that bears the family
crest
Black Is A Powerful
And Foreboding
Color In Japanese Culture
黒
Compiled By author from japanese.about.com tofugu.com ehow.com
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Colors
Whi
te
repr
esen
ts:
Purity and cleanliness in traditional Japanese society, it
is seen as a blessed color
Used at weddings and other joyful life events
Appears on the Japanese flag
Godly and Pure:
Sacred places are strung with shimenawa( 注連縄 )
Sacred places are decorated with white shide ( 紙垂 ), or
strewn with white pebbles or sand
白White Has Been An
Auspicious Color In
Japan For Much Of Its
History
Compiled By author from japanese.about.com tofugu.com ehow.com
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Colors
Energy Vitality Heat Power
Love And
Intimacy
Sexual Desire
Life Force
In People
Energy In
People
赤
Compiled By author from japanese.about.com tofugu.com ehow.com
Red has been a powerful color in Japanese society, representing strong emotions
rather than ideas
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Colors
It’s The Color Of The Sun In: • It’s seen on the Japanese flag
Associated With Authority And Wealth:• As attested to by red-sheathed samurai swords and ornamental combs
Has Ties To Religion:• As demonstrated by the red torii ( 鳥居 ) of Shinto shrines• Shrine maidens are traditionally clad in red hakama ( 袴 )
赤
Compiled By author from japanese.about.com tofugu.com ehow.com
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Colors
Purity and cleanliness in
traditional Japanese culture
Largely because of the vast
stretches of blue water that
surrounds the Japanese islands
Considered a feminine color
Worn by young women to show
their purity
Calmness and stability
It’s a relaxing color
青
Compiled By author from japanese.about.com tofugu.com ehow.com
Represents:
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Colors
• Mostly sometsuke ( 染付け ) porcelainCeramics:
• Mostly the aizuri-e ( 藍摺り絵 ) woodblock printsFine Art:
• Flourished in Shikoku during the Edo period
Formed The Basis For The Indigo
Dyeing Industry:
青
Compiled By author from japanese.about.com tofugu.com ehow.com
Blue is Used For:
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Colors
Green shows Fertility and growth in traditional Japanese culture
Midori means green and vegetation
The color green
represents youth and
vitality
Green can also represent
eternity because
evergreen trees never lose their
leaves or stop growing
Green is fresh and youthful different from the negative
western connotations
of “green-eyed jealousy”
緑
Compiled By author from japanese.about.com tofugu.com ehow.com
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Colors
Other Colors:
The following symbolizes the rank and authority of the Japanese royalty and aristocracy:
Yellowish-brown Orange Purple Chairo Daidaiiro Murasaki
Compiled By author from tofugu.com ehow.com japanese.about.com
茶色 橙色 紫
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Numbers
Luck
y N
umbe
rs: • 8 (Hachi): its written as 八
in Kanji• 八 is considered 末広がり Suehirogari from its
shape which widens toward the end• Suehirogari is to
become more and more prosperous as time goes Lu
cky
Num
bers
: • 7(Nana): comes from Western culture• Japanese likes to choose
7 in any occasion
Compiled By author from discover-jp.blogspot.com
Marketing In Japan:Symbolism- Numbers
Unl
ucky
N
umbe
rs: • 4 is pronounced
yon or shi • Shi has the same
pronunciation with 死 which means die
• People are in the habit of not using 4 in hospitals and congratulations occasions
Unl
ucky
N
umbe
rs: • 9 is pronounced
kyu or ku • ku has the same
pronunciation with 苦 which means pain or suffering
• 49 yonjûkyu/shijûku is a super unlucky number because it means die with pain
Unl
ucky
N
umbe
rs: • The number 14 is
bad luck • It sounds like the
word shuh-shuh, which sounds like the word for death
Compiled By author from discover-jp.blogspot.com
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions-
Power
Distanc
e
Individ
ualism
Masculin
tiy
Uncerta
inty A
voida
nce
Long T
ern Orie
ntatio
n
Indulg
ence
5446
95 92 88
42
Japan:
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- Power Distance:The extent that less powerful members of institutions and
organizations within a country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally
This dimension deals with the fact that individuals in societies are not
equal – it states the attitude of the culture towards
these inequalities
Japan has a intermediate score of 54, which makes
it a borderline hierarchical society
They are conscious of their hierarchical
position but they are not as
hierarchical as other Asian cultures
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Power Distance:
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- Individualism:
The degree of interdependence a society keeps among its members
It has to do with whether people’s self-
image is defined in
terms of “I” or “We”
In Individualist societies
people are supposed to
look after themselves and their
direct family only
In Collectivist societies
people belong to ‘in groups’ that take care
of them in exchange for
loyalty
Japan scores 46 on the
Individualism dimension
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Individualism:
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions-
Reasons why Japan isn’t as collectivistic as other
societies:
They do not have an extended family system which forms a base of
more collectivistic societies such as China
and Korea
Japan has been a paternalistic society
Younger siblings had to leave home and make
their own living with their core families
Oldest son inherited the family name and assets
from his father
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Individualism:
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- They are
Individualist by Asian standards
Or
They are collectivisti
c by Western
standards
Japanese in-group
is depended
on the situation
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Individualism:
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- Masculinity:
What motivates people, wanting to be the best (Masculine) or liking what they do (Feminine)
A high score (Masculine) indicates that the society
will be driven by competition, achievement
and successSuccess is defined by the winner / best in field – a
value system that starts in school and continues
throughout organizational life
A low score (Feminine) means that the dominant values in the society are
caring for others and quality of life
A Feminine society is one where quality of life is the
sign of success and standing out from the crowd is not admirable
At 95, Japan is one of the most Masculine societies
in the world
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Masculinity:
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- Expression of
Masculinity in Japan that are seen in
every aspect of life:
The drive for excellence and perfection in their
Material Production- Monodukuri
Material Services- Hotels And Restaurants
Presentation- Gift wrapping and
food presentation
Notorious workaholism
Working hard and long hours makes
it difficult for women to climb up the corporate
ladders
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Masculinity:
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- Uncertainty Avoidance: The way a society deals with the fact that the future can never be
known: Should we try to control the future or just let it happen?
This brings anxiety and different cultures have learnt to deal with this
anxiety in different ways
The score takes into account:
How members feel threatened by an
ambiguous or unknown situation
As well as the created beliefs and institutions that they use to try to avoid those situations
At 92 Japan is one of the most uncertainty avoiding
country on earth
Uncertainty
Avoidance:
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- Fr
om c
radl
e to
gra
ve, l
ife is
hig
hly
ritua
lized
and
they
hav
e a
lot o
f ce
rem
onie
s:Every school year, they have an opening and closing ceremony
that is conducted the same way everywhere in Japan
etiquette books suggest in great detail what people wear and how
people should behave at weddings, funerals and other
social events
School teachers and public servants are hesitant to do things
without precedence
In corporate Japan, a lot of time and effort is put into feasibility
studies: all the risk factors must be worked out before any project
can start
Managers ask for all the detailed facts and figures before making
any decision
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Uncertainty
Avoidance:
This high need for
Uncertainty Avoidance is one of the
reasons why changes are so difficult to
realize in Japan
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- Long Term Orientation:How societies have to maintain some links with its own past while
dealing with the challenges of the present and futureSocieties prioritize these two existential goals differently
Normative Societies- Scores are low, prefer to
maintain time-honored traditions and norms while viewing societal
change with suspicion
Pragmatic Approach:
Scores are high, they encourage
thrift and efforts in modern education
as a way to prepare for the future
At 88 Japan scores as one of the most
Long Term Orientation
oriented societies
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Long Term Orientation:
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- In corporate Japan, long term orientation is seen in:
All of these examples serve the durability of the companies:
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Long Term Orientation:
The high rate of
investment in R&D even
in economicall
y difficult times
Higher own capital rate
Priority to steady
growth of market
share rather than to a quarterly
profit
Companies are not here to make money every quarter for the
share holders
They are to serve the stake holders
and society at large for many
generations to come (e.g. Matsuhista)
Marketing in Japan:Hofstede Cultural
Dimensions- Indulgence:
The extent to which people try to control their desires and impulses, based on the way they were raised
The degree to which
small children are socialized is a factor of
this dimension
Without socialization we don’t
become “human”
Relatively weak
control is called
“Indulgence”
Relatively strong
control is called
“Restraint”
Japan has a low score of
42,it is a culture of Restraint
Compiled By author from geert-hofstede.com
Indulgence:
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<http://voicebunny.com/blog/heres-need-know-marketing-japanese-consumers/>. "International Business: Marketing in Asia by the Numbers: Numerology Affects International
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"Japan Business Etiquette, Culture, & Manners." Japan. Web. 01 Mar. 2016. <http://www.cyborlink.com/besite/japan.htm>.
"Japan: It's Better in Color - Tofugu." Tofugu. 2012. Web. 01 Mar. 2016. <http://www.tofugu.com/2012/06/28/japan-its-better-in-color/>.
"Japanese Colors Vocabulary - Learn Japanese Colors Vocabulary." About.com Education. Web. 01 Mar. 2016. <http://japanese.about.com/od/japanesevocabulary/a/Colors.htm>.
"Launching a Product in Japan: 5 Action Points Dos & Donts."� MarketingSherpa.com. Web. 01 Mar. 2016. <https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/interview/5-action-points-dos-donts>.
Mathers, Cassandra. "What Is the Meaning of Color in Japanese Culture?" EHow. Demand Media. Web. 01 Mar. 2016. <http://www.ehow.com/about_6658499_meaning-color-japanese-culture_.html>.
Martinuzzi, Bruna. "Doing Business in Japan: 10 Etiquette Rules You Should Know." American Express, 5 Aug. 2013. Web. 1 Mar. 2016. <https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/doing-business-in-japan-10-etiquette-rules-you-should-know/>.
"What about Japan?" Japan. Web. 01 Mar. 2016. <http://geert-hofstede.com/japan.html>.