How to Drive Online Sales in Japan Using Social Media

Japanese consumer behavior is one of the most fascinating things we’ve had the pleasure of understanding while working in Japan.

Why? Because marketing in Japan can be a little weird.

Don’t believe us?

Just take a look at all the mistakes here that foreign marketers deal with daily.

But these actions don’t come out of nowhere, they’re here because understanding Japanese consumer behavior online can be a little tricky.

For example, recently we learned that after doing some research that the average Japanese consumer would rather use a service that they have to pay for rather than one that is free.

Say, what?

Yes, services that cost a high premium to participate in are highly valued and often respected in Japan. To any foreigner reading this, we all know that the exact opposite is true in the states where the freemium economy is king.

So, what does this mean for a business in Japan that’s looking to increase its online sales growth and how do they use social media to achieve their objectives?

Well, if you want to get granular, register for our networking event this month to get some of our partner case studies.

But for now, you can get ahead with these three points below, enjoy.

Invest in strategic business content

Big secret, business content and business marketing are some of the top searched keywords amongst Japanese professionals.

In a market where consumers are trying to quickly adapt to new digital strategies and growth to keep their economy alive, learning new practices is key.

As a matter of fact, I went to one of the most awkward meetups last week where Japanese professionals sat around a projector struggling trying to figure out how to use video to attract new consumers.

Point being is that Japanese consumers are on the hunt for information and whether you’re in B2B or B2C such information is integral to your sales process.

So, are you providing enough information and content online around why someone should be buying your product?

To get started, there is a great strategy called the 50-rule you should practice. The way this works is you take time to think of 50 questions your core customer is thinking and then identify how you can respond or create content around each of them.

This type of content is bound to attract and drive traction amongst your core consumer demographic and if you’re actually giving them the value they deserve, you’ll be able to drive more sales too.

Oh, and if you still need help, we’re doing a New Years promotion here where you can get free YouTube videos. Gotta start somewhere, right?

Let’s move on.

Design a better buyer journey

Really, there are a million ways to use social media to drive sales and a lot of people like to jam about funnel marketing, which we can get into on another post.

However, since you’re reading this and most likely selling something online in Japan that needs to drive more sales, let’s start to think more about your buyers journey.

Imagine you meet someone at an event in Japan, what comes next? How do you link every interaction online or offline toward a purchase? This is the most important question you’ll have to ask yourself when increasing online sales or conversions, especially in Japan where offline activity is so integral.

To be successful and sell the most online in Japan, you should think about your customer journey and what the experience is like from the moment they meet you, read about you, or see one of your ads online. From that point, your best bet is to then literally design out what happens every step of the way from first interaction to closing interaction.

Truth is, I’ve built a million digital funnels but it wasn’t until I was reading Content Inc by Joe Pulizzi that I realized how important designing a sales journey was. It also gives you a chance to get personal about how your customer interacts online.

For us, we realized that we hadn’t been providing enough call to actions and so began to repurpose older blog posts that were getting traction with offers to opt-in to different programs.

The results have been great.

Seriously, spend an entire weekend optimizing everything for SEO

Okay, maybe not a whole weekend but how about a couple hours of research?

We’ve spent that last couple months researching specifically SEO in Japan and have found it to be one of the most crucial factors for conversion amongst Japanese consumers.

Reason being is this- even though most Japanese companies aren’t investing in digital marketing that doesn’t mean the consumers are not there.

They are there, every day searching Google, Twitter, YouTube and other social media platforms for a variety of solutions and now is your opportunity for just a few dollars to get your business right in front of them.

Think about it, for $5 you could be beating out a Dove or another major beauty brand working to thrive in Japan just through some strategic optimized YouTube videos?

For resources on how to do this, be sure to check out Neil Patel or the SEO experts over at MOZ.