Greece to Tokyo: Isobar Senior Copywriter reflects on Japan and her Dentsu Isobar experience
In 2013, a junior copywriter from a small independent agency in Athens represented Greece as a Young Lion.
It was me, trying to attend as many presentations as I could, setting my alarm clock at 7am every morning in order to be first in the Palais’ queues. That summer, in one of these presentations, I came across Dentsu Isobar for the first time, and I was impressed.
Fast forward to 2018, I travelled to Japan, ready to meet Dentsu Isobar again. This time, in order to spend the last two days of my summer holiday in their offices. Arriving at the office, I got a warm welcome as two friendly Isobar colleagues, Greg and Phil, became my main hosts. In an introductory chit-chat, I tried to understand as many things as I could about the Japanese market, advertising industry and the Japanese culture. My first question was a simple one, what made their eyes glued to their phones?
Greg introduced me to LINE, the most popular messaging app in Asia. With more than 50 million users, LINE is not your average mobile platform. Almost 30% of the 60-year-old Japanese population are on LINE, sending messages, stickers and GIFs, while at the same time, Greeks of the same age are trying to log in to Facebook for the first time. (It’s ok mum!)
I also wanted to know what the creative process was like considering the vast cultural differences between my homeland and Japan. Despite these differences, I was surprised to discover that the process is almost the same for both the Japanese and Greeks: We are problem solvers, looking for truthful insights.
As I continued to meet and chat to new people at Dentsu Isobar, Service Design came up, and how it impacts the creative process. Having the customers in the same room as product designers, brand managers and creatives to co-create a solution that fits everyone’s needs is brilliant, especially in digitally-mature markets like Japan. I’d love to use this technique in Greece, but it really made me wonder if Greece is ready for something like this.
The discussion inevitably moved onto technology. A Dentsu Isobar colleague, Fumi, told me that digital transformation is slow in Japan. Sounds crazy, right? Not really. The level of technology in Japan is already at the point where the rest of the world is trying to reach. Japan, a country where people barely know who the Kardashians are, is sixth in the world rankings for the highest number of internet users and with high-tech embedded into everyday life.
After lots of discovery, my trip came to an end. A visit to the Dentsu Headquarters with Phil was the best way finish my time in Japan. The amazing view from the sky lounge and the Advertising Museum worked as an inspiration boost. A souvenir to take back home.
On the plane home, I reflected on my time in Japan. It’s a place of inspiration, not only because of the technology achievements but also because of its culture. Even being there for just a few days, it made me want to learn more, get to this “future” direction faster, and come up with bigger ideas for my clients in Greece.
When I was at Cannes Lions five years ago, I had never imagined that someday I would visit Dentsu Isobar and spend time with people who share the same passion, and the same working routine as I do on the other side of the world.
In the end, it doesn’t come as a surprise that there is much more that unites us than divides us. Not only the loud Greeks with the Zen Japanese, but us, the Isobar people. And there is only one way to realise it: Let’s meet!
Zoi Oikonomopoulou, Senior Copywriter, Isobar Greece
