Entering a new market in a different country than your own is always a challenge, and the Japanese market is notoriously tough but potentially very rewarding. There are several ways to significantly improve your chances for success in your marketing strategy for Japan, though. Social media marketing offers many opportunities that are affordable and have a wide reach. Influencer marketing has a special place in social media marketing and can be extremely effective for certain products and services. Let us show you some of the advantages of using social media influencers in Japan and social media marketing in general.

Benefits of Social Media Marketing in Japan

If you consider the fact that almost three-quarters of the Japanese population is expected to be on social media in 2025, the ease of reaching your target audience through social media channels is undeniable. Of course, there are certain differences in social media usage to keep in mind when targeting the Japanese market, but the general advantages of social media marketing are similar to elsewhere in the world. Here’s an overview of the most important benefits:

• Cost effectiveness: because of the relatively low cost of advertising on social media compared to traditional media, the threshold for smaller companies to conduct their marketing activities on social media is much lower. 
• Wide and targeted reach: because of the simple fact that almost every consumer or business you want to sell your product or service to in Japan is on social media, it would be a wasted chance not to try and attract them to your profiles. Furthermore, you can also precisely target different audiences with social media advertising that helps you show up in people’s newsfeeds. This gives you the chance to experiment with slightly different audiences so you can find your niches.
• Easy tracking: because of an abundance of metrics and tools that are available both for free and for a price that can help you track the progress of any social media campaign, it is easy to track your progress. This, in turn, makes it straightforward to adjust your campaigns where necessary
• Valuable insights: social media can give you helpful information about your target audience, both about their behaviors and interests and about their opinions on your brand and products. In Japan, Twitter is the go-to medium for giving your unfiltered opinion about anyone and anything completely anonymously.
• Interaction: if sentiments about your brand or products are negative or if there is a problem, you have the opportunity to turn these opinions by having positive interactions with disgruntled customers on social media. You can show how you solve problems in real time and restore trust.

Social Media Influencers in Your Japan Niche

So where do social media influencers fit in your social media marketing strategy in Japan? They will be especially effective in reaching your target audience once you figure out who they are by trial and error in social media advertising. Of course, there are famous celebrity influencers in Japan like everywhere else, but they are very expensive. In spite of their very large reach, even if hiring them is within your budget it is usually not the most cost-effective approach.

One of the biggest advantages of hiring a smaller influencer (called a ‘tamago influencer’ in Japan) is that they often operate in a niche. If you find the right influencer for your brand’s niche, you will have interactive and direct access to your target audience, many of whom are likely interested in your products and services. The trick to make an influencer partnership work for you in Japan is to find affordable smaller influencers. It is important to note that they usually need to be helped on their way by telling them in detail what to do and having control over what exactly is said, written, and/or shot.

It is good to know that many smaller influencers in Japan, while they do have the audience, aren’t that well-versed in making stellar content that can help convert followers into customers. They also often lack technical SEO knowledge. This definitely doesn’t mean that smaller influencers aren’t worth the effort, but that a fruitful collaboration may require some extra work from your side. If done well, this strategy can pay off in the end.

Influencers for your Localization Strategy

Localizing your content means that you make sure that text, images, and videos fit the market they are intended for and are well understood by your target audience. In Japan, this means that not only your texts should be in Japanese but your images and videos should also show Japanese models and a Japanese environment. Texts also have to be free of foreign cultural references that will usually not be understood in Japan, and instead contain Japanese references and trends.

Japanese influencers can bridge this cultural and language gap perfectly, but of course, there will be the challenge of communicating effectively with the influencers who may or may not speak English. This is when the services of a digital media agency who is specialized in bridging the gap between foreign brands and the Japanese market may come in very handy. It is a little bit different when you are targeting non-Japanese speaking foreigners in Japan. In this case, you may want to look into expat influencers in Japan who have their very own niche. You should, however, not forget that foreigners in Japan also need localized content that needs to make sense in the environment that they live in.

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.