An important part of any market entry strategy is how to go about your branding. You know how you want consumers to perceive your brand, but how do you get there in an unknown market like Japan? As it is predicted that over 100 million Japanese people will use social media in 2022, using social media is a surefire way to create brand awareness and a good opportunity to influence your brand’s image in a new market. But how should you go about it in Japan? There are differences in social media usage that need to be kept in mind, and content needs to be optimized for the Japanese market. Let’s go over some important elements of the use of social media for branding in Japan!

Uses of Social Media

Social media can be used in a myriad of ways to not only help you bring your brand to the attention of your target audience but also to bind your audience, interact with them, and even solve customers’ issues with your products or services. With branding it is important to decide on your brand’s tone of voice, image, and who you want to attract that will turn into your customers. Consistency is important, as you want the people who keep coming back for more to get the same experience they got attracted to in the first place. This means that your social media management should be handled properly to get the best results. Here are the most important uses of social media in relation to branding in Japan:

• Social media profiles: you should have a presence on all social media platforms where your audience can be found. These profiles should have a clear house style, a consistent and localized short description of your brand and its products or services, and preferably several means of contacting you including links to your website

• Sharing news and updates: besides email marketing, social media channels are a great tool to update your follower base with news regarding your services and products. Just like in many other places, Japanese consumers love novelty and often have the means to try out the newest of what’s available. So a brand that regularly updates its products and services and keeps its potential customers in the loop will win out in the end

• Interaction with customers: this is where your brand can shine in comparison with the many Japanese companies who don’t manage their social media accounts meticulously (yet). Social media are a preferred means of communication for many people, and if you answer inquiries and comments on social media promptly and satisfactorily, it will rub off positively on your brand’s image

• Social listening and response: in Japan, people tend to be hesitant to share their negative opinions with their names attached. This means that Twitter, that can be used anonymously, is a very useful tool for social listening in which you monitor what’s being said about your industry and brand. If negative opinions are expressed that could hurt your brand, it is important to interact with the people who expressed their displeasure and do so in a positive way. If done well, this can keep your brand’s image positive and even help boost popularity

Digital Marketing Strategy for Branding

Now we went over the various ways in which social media can help you with your branding, let’s have a closer look at what a strong digital marketing strategy can do for a brand. First of all, you have to have a clear idea about what you want your brand’s identity to be and which audience you want to target. If you are trying to enter the Japanese market, you may have to make some tweaks to your brand’s identity to fit better in the Japanese market.

Examples of brand identity facets that have been important recently are sustainability and inclusivity. You have to propagate your brand’s identity clearly across your social media profiles to attract the right audiences. This can be achieved by having the same fitting logo everywhere, and using graphic designs, pictures, and videos in the same style. As mentioned earlier, your ‘About Us’ section should also have a good description of your brand and what it stands for without being too long-winded. 

Next would be the ongoing management of your pages; you should post new content regularly (but not too often) to keep your audience engaged with your brand, you have to respond to comments and inquiries in a timely and proper manner in line with your brand’s image, and you should have an adequate advertising strategy. Nowadays, organic reach, the number of views that are reached by unpaid distribution, is declining as the number of posts you’re competing with is greater than before. This means that paid advertisement is becoming an indispensable part of any social media marketing strategy. The good news is that ads on social media are generally inexpensive and can give your views, engagements, and by extension website visits and sales, a great boost.

Content Creation

Advertisement will only pay off when your content is compelling, though, so you should still invest heavily in content creation. Traditionally, most content consists of posts with text and one or a few images, but it looks like social media users are increasingly turning to videos as their preferred content, especially younger Japanese women who are an interesting demographic for many brands. Moving images tend to capture the interest of the average younger person much easier than static content like text, making them stop scrolling past your content. Great images can also aid in catching and holding attention.

Not all your posts have to be videos, of course, and creating interesting short articles about subjects that you know interest your target audience are still a great way to keep your followers coming back for more. Content, whether it is video, text, or image, has to be properly localized to have maximum impact in the Japanese market. If you are not well-versed in Japanese language, culture, and current trends and don’t have access to local models, you may want to consider hiring a digital media agency that is specialized in bridging the gap between the Japanese market and foreign companies. They can leverage their knowledge and experience to make your market entry in Japan as smooth as possible and provide you with the chance to profit from this interesting and large market.

Your Digital Media Partner in Japan

Hashi Media is Japan’s go-to content marketing and social media company. If you are planning on entering the Japanese market and don’t know where to start, we’ve got you covered.

• Content creation
• Social media management
• Digital marketing strategy
• Brand localization

If you enjoyed what you read today and found it valuable, contact us today and let’s talk about your project.