Japan boasts the third largest ecommerce market in the world together with an outstanding logistics infrastructure. The country clearly offers huge sales potential for any brand.
Japanese consumers have certainly embraced e-commerce. But the unique culture of the country has ensured that those consumers have certain expectations of brands and their eCommerce sites. A failure to meet those expectations would be a serious impediment to achieving online sales growth in Japan. An ecommerce website must be properly localised if it has any chance of gaining traction.
What are the key factors in Japan's online shopping localisation?
Inspiring trust
Japanese consumers prioritise transparency and trust. They are far more sceptical of marketing messages than consumers in the West. E-commerce sites must, therefore, feature suitably detailed information including lengthy product descriptions.
Informative content and product descriptions
Keen information seekers, Japanese shoppers have serious appetites for technical data. This has led to a greater amount of information being showcased on Japanese websites and in related marketing materials, when compared to what is displayed in the West.
Technical, advanced or innovative products must be listed with informative content rather than content that focuses on the benefits of the product or inspiring emotional responses. Japanese consumers want to know how things work, what they are made from and how reliable they are.
High-quality images should be featured and show as much detail as possible. It is preferable to include examples of people using the items. Videos and/or 360 degree interactive images are hugely effective.
All product descriptions should be fully localized. Product weights, sizes, measurements, and categories need to be adapted to Japanese standards.
Japanese models and location settings should be utilised whenever possible. This will demonstrate to customers that your products are truly for them, and are not designed for a Western target audience.
Reviews for the Japanese market
When localising e-commerce in the Japanese market, it is vital to ensure that customer reviews are prominent. It is important to understand that Japanese consumers take a different approach to reviewing products and services than those in western countries. Review scores tend to be lower overall as grading begins with the concept that the midpoint (3/5 or 5/10) reflects a satisfactory experience. Points are added for especially positive aspects of the purchase or deducted for negatives. For this reason, a midpoint score does not represent dissatisfaction and wouldn’t necessarily put off potential new clients.
Of course, excellent reviews will inspire trust and drive sales but to gain those reviews, attention to detail is required to ensure that every aspect of the shopping experience impresses.
Website presentation
Gaining trust begins with a properly localised eCommerce site as this demonstrates that a business is in tune with local customs and expectations. Consumers will feel understood and will be far more likely to feel confident in making purchases. When the language used, the content and the look of a website align with Japanese preferences, shoppers will browse for longer and will be more likely to engage.
The highest quality translation and localisation are required to properly present a brand’s value to its Japanese audience and to prevent misunderstandings. That is why relying on machine translation may harm your localization efforts in the long run. Japanese customers prefer seeing relevant content in their native language. To enhance user experience, some companies improve their eCommerce localization strategy by hiring freelance translators or agencies that can find specialized translators who are tailored to your brand and understand your target market.
Japanese ecommerce web pages can look very different from those in the West. Important characteristics to accommodate include:
A greater amount of text and detailed information
Less white space on pages
Informative content rather than content designed to inspire emotional responses
The use of multiple scripts and both vertical and horizontal texts in Japanese
Smaller graphics but more of them
Data, reviews and statistics positioned prominently on landing pages
Multiple and contrasting colours and design features
Clean, straightforward layouts with ease of navigation
It is worth noting that while younger people in the Japanese market are generally accepting of western web designs, older consumers often favour sites that are more typically Japanese. This is crucial because in Japan, it is those over 30 years of age that are most likely to shop online.
AI and personalisation
The integration of AI and personalization in e-commerce platforms enhances the shopping experience and can drive both higher engagement and conversion rates. Japanese consumers favour personal recommendations and use them to inform purchasing decisions. It is worth leveraging data analytics tools and AI-powered recommendation engines to enhance customer satisfaction and to drive sales.
Optimise for mobile
Mobile phones are preferred for online shopping in Japan and so it is crucial that eCommerce sites are optimised for mobile. Brands need mobile-friendly websites or dedicated apps or both. Research suggests that mobile internet penetration in Japan will reach 95% by 2025. Japan has one of the highest mobile internet usage rates on the planet and so a quick-loading, responsive mobile site is essential.
Influencers not offers
Brands looking to attract consumers in Japan will gain better results from collaborating with trusted local influencers than from posting special offers. Japanese shoppers are amongst the least likely to be seduced by content promoting special offers.
Just as it is important to invest in a localised website, it is equally crucial to exploit social media. Influencers provide a highly effective way to do that.
Timing is crucial
Japan boasts a number of events that significantly impact shopping behaviour. Many of these are unique to the country. It is vital to understand Japanese culture and to build eCommerce marketing campaigns accordingly as doing this will drive sales.
Christmas and Oseibo: Overlapping winter events that feature the giving of gifts to loved ones and people who have shown kindness.
Ochuugen: A summer tradition where people present gifts to colleagues, bosses, and those close to them such as family and friends. Many workers receive summer bonuses which are often spent on luxury goods.
Hatsu-uri (New Year’s Sale): This is the first sale period of the year when many retailers release their Fukubukuro (happy bags or lucky bags) filled with a range of heavily discounted products.
Shichi-Go-San: A Japanese festival that takes place on November 15. It celebrates the well-being of boys who are three and five years old, and of girls who are three and seven years old.
Golden Week and Children’s Day: Golden Week is a popular holiday week for locals. It is a time when Japanese people like to shop and sometimes invest in gifts for loved ones.
Valentine's Day and White Day: Events during which Japanese people give presents to their romantic partners.
In addition to these national holidays and event, numerous local festivals and events provide excellent opportunities to increase sales and should certainly inform both marketing campaigns and web content in the Japanese market.
Price differentials
Japanese shoppers often expect online prices to be lower than those in physical stores. While online shopping is growing, many Japanese consumers still favour shopping in person. This has led retailers to offer cheaper prices online to entice potential customers, thus creating an expectation of lower prices. In addition, Japanese consumers are frequent users of price comparison platforms such as Kakaku and this has ensured that online pricing remains incredibly competitive. Online pricing has also been influenced by resale platforms including Yahoo! Auctions and Mercari.
Almost half of all products in Japan have lower prices online and this is a serious consideration for brands when localising their ecommerce sites.
Speed of delivery
Fast and flexible shipping is a major priority for Japanese consumers. The standards expected are high and so swift deliveries must be emphasised in ecommerce site content. The delivery information provided must be clear and precise. Businesses must then ensure that they live up to any claims they make.
Returns policy
Unlike in many countries worldwide, returns and exchanges are not assumed in Japan. However, customer expectations are changing due to the influence of Amazon.
Retailers in Japan are not legally obligated to accept returns or exchanges. But they are required to display a clear returns policy on their websites. If conditions are not stated, consumers are then entitled to return a product within 8 days without having to give a reason.
Surveys have suggested that many Japanese online shoppers are dissatisfied with return experiences when purchasing from eCommerce sites. Most shoppers check the returns policy before purchasing. The inability to return goods and short returns deadlines are significant factors in consumers deciding not to proceed with purchases.
A generous, simple and streamlined returns policy could be key to attracting and retaining customers.
Payment methods
While most online shoppers in Japan now favour credit card payments and other digital options, the more traditional payment methods remain popular. E-commerce sites could gain greater traction by offering convenience store (konbini) payments or cash on delivery. Familiar payment options inspire trust, enhance customer loyalty and minimise shopping cart abandonment. It should also be noted that buy now pay later options and instalment payments are becoming increasingly attractive to Japanese shoppers.
Checkout process
Japanese consumers definitely value convenience and efficiency. For this reason, there is a noticeable preference for streamlined checkout processes.
Loyalty programs
Loyalty programs tend to work well in Japan where many shoppers are drawn to websites featuring reward systems such as Rakuten Points. These offer incentives for repeat purchases and assist greatly in customer retention. Any eCommerce site would benefit from the addition of a loyalty program.
Search engine optimization (SEO)
E-commerce sites should be optimised specifically for Japanese search terms. This will include localising both the content generally and keywords to achieve higher ranking in search engines. In the West, SEO strategies tend to be focussed only on Google rankings, but Yahoo! Japan remains popular amongst Japanese search engines in the country and so sites should also be optimised with Yahoo! Japan in mind.
Adding the right keywords to eCommerce descriptions and product titles is crucial. The simple addition of just one top-ranking intent-based keyword to a product title can dramatically increase the number of click throughs to that product.
Effective e-commerce platform Japan localization
To effectively engage a Japanese audience, eCommerce businesses must fully localize their websites. This will involve focusing on trust, creating appropriate design features, using the right language, and including sought-after functionality such as popular payment options and AI powered recommendations. A brand’s Japanese eCommerce website could ultimately become something entirely different to the sites the brand displays in other countries. Japan is a unique marketplace that demands a similarly unique approach to eCommerce.
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