E-Commerce in Japan: Tips to Thrive By

Japan is currently one of the world’s fastest growing e-commerce markets. Some of the factors attributed to the rapid growth of e-commerce in Japan include the single language culture, developed economy, and highly urbanized population.

There are three major players in the Japanese e-commerce market: Amazon, Rakuten and Yahoo! Shopping (Lohaco). Meanwhile, a continued rise of m-commerce, transactions completed via mobile device apps, brings more options and expands on the C2C environment. Coupled with a developed distribution infrastructure and small country size for convenient and expedient delivery, this ensures Japan’s rate of e-commerce growth will only continue.

From 2018 to 2022, it is expected that the annual growth rate for revenue will be 6.2% and that Japan will remain one of the top 5 largest e-commerce markets in the world.

Continue reading “E-Commerce in Japan: Tips to Thrive By” →

Marketing in Japan: A Digital Overview

Japan is the third-largest market in the world, representing about 10% of the world’s economy. As of March 2021, Japanese stocks have become the best-performing share market in Asia, according to Bloomberg. The country recently surpassed Taiwan as Asia’s top market for the year. The time couldn’t be any more perfect for a company to establish their efforts for digital marketing in Japan.

With 126.3 million people, Japan is lucrative for any local and international businesses looking to expand. However, many foreign companies find the challenges of marketing here to be quite intimidating. For one, there are certain complexities in traditional Japanese marketing and advertising that require solid local knowledge.

If you’re looking to gain exposure and traction in the Land of the Rising Sun— you’d better study effective market entry thoroughly. It is essential to formulate a localized marketing plan focusing on brand identity, public relations, digital or online media, and your brand value.

This article will discuss an overview of the Japanese marketing scene and effective digital marketing strategies to help you start.

Continue reading “Marketing in Japan: A Digital Overview” →

SEM in Japan: What Are Listing Ads?

Listing ads are one of the best ways to advertise your business online to people all over the world because they are inexpensive and allow you to target specific audiences.

In the DX (digital experience) era, listing ads can be considered an essential marketing tool that is crucial for innovative marketing campaigns such as introducing new brands to overseas markets and publicizing the debut of new products.

Today, it’s easy for anyone to send listing ads to overseas markets. However, if you know what you’re doing and take the right steps, it can be a very powerful marketing tool.

This time, we’ll go into great detail, from the fundamentals of what overseas listing advertisements are to the delivery processes and insider tips for effective overseas listing ads.

Continue reading “SEM in Japan: What Are Listing Ads?” →

B2B vs B2C: Web Design Differences

Is your company’s website aware of the distinction between B2B vs B2C website design? And is it strategically built and operated?

A B2B business website’s goal is to acquire leads and inquiries; as such, it has a significantly different structure than a B2C business website.

At Info Cubic Japan, we collaborate with various B2B businesses in the manufacturing and IT sectors. Therefore, the crucial components of a global B2B site’s fundamental design, which are commonly absent, are valued by many B2B organizations.

As a result, we’d like to discuss the differences between B2B vs B2C website design, particularly for digital marketers and global site managers in the B2B business. Continue reading “B2B vs B2C: Web Design Differences” →

Digital Marketing in Singapore

Singapore, a sovereign city-state located in Southeast Asia, is a global commerce, finance and transport hub. The country’s major language is English and its residents are deeply familiar with Western brands and media. Singapore is a fairly young city with a youthful population, thus digital is a very important channel for communication. The country’s high digital influence and social media penetration rate serves as vital indicators of how much information is spreading amongst the populace. In addition, the country also ranks ninth on the UN Development Index and is rated as the city-state that has the ninth highest GDP per capita. It also ranks high in terms of education, quality of life, personal safety and housing, making it one of the leading places for digital to grow.

This article will discuss Singapore’s digital marketing environment, its biggest channels, industry trends, as well as the best possible ways on how to reach the Singaporean audience.

Continue reading “Digital Marketing in Singapore” →

Understanding New Trends and Opportunities in Japan’s Luxury Industry

Japan is the third largest luxury market in the world – behind the United States and mainland China – with 3.01 trillion yen (about $28.6 billion) spent each year in luxury goods. The luxury industry encompasses various sorts of goods such as drinks, fashion, cosmetics, fragrances, watches, jewelry, luggage, and handbags. In the past few years, this market experienced a steady climb in Japan.
Continue reading “Understanding New Trends and Opportunities in Japan’s Luxury Industry” →

Top Lifestyle Influencers in Japan

Marketing in Japan could drive even the most reputable entrepreneurs up the wall. The branding, language, and cultural differences are the biggest hurdles for foreign companies to succeed in the country. Moreover, the Japanese consumer values reputation and quality before purchasing anything in the market. So how can a new product or brand become a household name in the country?

The Japanese use social media apps and sites every day. In fact, there are approximately 82.6 million social media users in 2019. Most of them signed up on popular social media platforms like LINE, Twitter, and Instagram to connect with their friends and favorite celebrities. Digital marketers see these frequent engagements as an opportunity to tap into Japan’s online consumers. Every recommendation or endorsement uploaded on celebrity accounts influences their followers’ buying behavior.

Nowadays, the influencer marketing arena is not only limited to celebrities as social media influencers entered the scene. Discover the most relevant lifestyle personalities and growing stars essential in today’s Japan’s digital marketing landscape.

Continue reading “Top Lifestyle Influencers in Japan” →

Your Guide to Baidu

The most populous country on Earth, China, has over 800 million internet users within an ever-changing landscape of innovation and evolution. This presents endless opportunities for both businesses and consumers.

For domestic and international businesses, or for anyone involved in the digital world, China should not be ignored. However, whenever China is mentioned, their complexity, cultural differences, internet censorship, and language barriers are the first things that come to mind.

This article aims to guide and inform anyone wishing to embark on a digital strategy in China with a series of useful insights on China’s search engine market, an introduction on the structure and features of Baidu, as well as the advertising options in it.

Continue reading “Your Guide to Baidu” →

Taiwanese Influencer Marketing

In today’s digital world, people are constantly being connected through the World Wide Web. The widespread use of online social media platforms has brought forth new opportunities in terms of marketing.

One of the recently emerged marketing trends is the collaboration with social media influencers. These influencers are not only exclusively celebrities since social media is accessible to almost everyone. Anyone can have a huge and loyal following by providing the right content to the right audience.

As markets continuously grow and change, people have become more particular with the products and services that they want.  The prevalent use of technology in their daily lives has also influenced their buying behavior. Furthermore, the endless influx of online content has shortened people’s attention spans.

Marketers now have to accept the challenge of creating content that stands out and engages the target audiences on a personal level. By collaborating with the right social media influencer, companies can effectively roll out their campaigns and achieve success.

Continue reading “Taiwanese Influencer Marketing” →

What’s Inbound Marketing?

For years, businesses have struggled to reach consumers online using traditional advertisements such as banners and embedded videos. These businesses are often unsuccessful in making an impact due to ad-blocking software that has become widely used. Additionally, numerous Internet users may find these forms of marketing to be more annoying than engaging because these are content that they did not choose to view. Rather than interrupt a user’s content with advertising, marketers can use inbound marketing as an alternative approach.

Inbound marketing is the strategy of engaging with potential customers through content and experiences in which they find value. This method is characterized by creating entertaining and informative content, using various media, which users will willingly seek out. This more personal approach to marketing has the extra benefit of reaching those who have already taken the initial step toward a purchase. This article will discuss and elaborate on what is inbound marketing, provide several examples, as well as enumerate current trends.

Continue reading “What’s Inbound Marketing?” →