1. Be authentic and Incorporate Culture

According to an article from Jtb Communication Design, “Japanese marketing strategies are built around staying true to your own culture… By embracing your own culture, you can enhance your marketing by attracting an international audience to your events in the same way. Getting a large, international audience to attend promotional events is the most effective way to market your product or business to possible clients from around the world. ”

Also, to connect with consumers, you have to learn and speak their language especially if you’re a foreigner. It is a legal requirement to contain some Japanese in even if it is a foreign advertisement.

“For example, KitKat’s localized Japanese name – “Kitto Katto” – sounds like “Kitto Katsu,” an inspirational Japanese phrase that means “you will surely succeed.” The brand capitalizes on this by releasing a special exam season product each year. The strategy is so successful that it’s now an annual tradition with 50% of students receiving KitKat bars as motivational gifts before university entry exams begin.

KitKat also created over 300 limited-edition varieties (like wasabi and melon). Some of these are seasonal, but others are unique to specific Japanese regions. They’re based on the fruits and food from specific areas and aren’t necessarily found elsewhere.

KitKat’s limited-edition strategy builds hype for the brand. Its regional localization, meanwhile, establishes an emotional connection with Japanese consumers. The result has made KitKat one of Japan’s favorite products.” –Wordbank

2. Updated Technology System | Advertising

The generation today is already into modern technologies including mobiles and computers.

In addition, “Despite being a bit behind the Western world on social media, Japan is now making huge advancements when it comes to social media marketing. This ever-changing form of marketing has really taken off in the last few years and has quickly become an integral part of its marketing strategies. It’s the most efficient way to reach a larger audience, making it a powerful form of international marketing…” as mentioned in Jtb Communcation Design article.

However, avoiding print like magazines and newspapers is one of the disadvantages. You also have to consider the avid paper readers particularly the seniors in Japan.

3. Build Relationships

“Relationships are important in business—especially in Japan, where individuals are defined by their social context. Business cards are exchanged at the meeting to establish identity and connection. You will need to build relationships with your Japanese counterparts: get to know your team which will consist of interpreters, translators, copywriters, and other experts. It’s unlikely you’ll achieve your goals without the buy-in from these local point people. Consider reaching out to affiliate marketers, too, to increase awareness with influential thought leaders.” stated Matt Schneiderman.

In order for a business to win the hearts of the consumers, it is always best to consider many types of marketing strategies. These are just some of the strategies that you might have to consider. There are still a lot and by reading and researching, that would actually help you choose what’s best for your business.

For more articles, please click here.

References:

*https://me.jtbcom.co.jp/blog/2576.html

*https://blog.btrax.com/8-marketing-mistakes-to-avoid-making-in-japan/

*https://www.wordbank.com/us/blog/international-marketing/marketing-to-japanese-consumers/

The post Top 3 Marketing Strategies To Help Your Business Grow: Japanese Market appeared first on Shourai Ltd..

First, let us discuss the similarities between these two.

Both SEM and SEO …
Both help a brand appear in search results.
Both are designed to drive more traffic to a website.
Both require knowing your audience.
Both use keyword research to uncover popular search terms.
Both target specific keywords.
Both require testing and continual optimization.

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) vs Search engine optimization (SEO) Definitions

“Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing your online content so that a search engine likes to show it as a top result for searches of a certain keyword.” A definition from Neil Patel.

According to an article in WordStream, “Search engine marketing (SEM) is the practice of marketing a business using paid advertisements that appear on search engine results pages (or SERPs). Advertisers bid on keywords that users of services such as Google and Bing might enter when looking for certain products or services, which gives the advertiser the opportunity for their ads to appear alongside results for those search queries.”

Now, let us differentiate these two marketing strategies to find out which one is better to help you reach your marketing goals.

Below is an infographic from Delhi School of Internet Marketing showing a comparative study of SEO vs. SEM:

Search Engine Optimization

• Organic
• Cost-effective
• Steady
• Time Consuming
• Difficult to Measure
• User Friendly
• Dependent
• SEO = Google

Search Engine Marketing

• Paid
• Expensive
• Inconsistent
• Instant
• Easy to Monitor
• Lack of Trust
• Independent
• SEM = Google + Bing

Another image from Alexa Blog shows the differences between SEM vs. SEO

In Radd Interactive website, they differentiate these two as “In simple terms, SEO focuses on just optimizing for search results traffic – usually by optimizing website content. SEM involves the entire range of search marketing opportunities available including those that go beyond SEO, like paid-ad spots on search engines and paid social media marketing.

SEM involves using the full range of search marketing tools including SEO, Pay-per-Click advertising, social media advertising and Google or Bing shopping campaigns. SEO is still considered a part of SEM since it’s a valid method of marketing in the world of web search. One that exploits search engine algorithms to naturally rank higher on search results pages.”

Overall, the main difference between SEM vs. SEO is that SEM is a paid strategy and SEO is an organic strategy.

For more articles to read, please click here.

References:

https://neilpatel.com/what-is-seo/
https://www.wordstream.com/search-engine-marketing
https://raddinteractive.com/seo-vs-sem-marketing-infographic/
https://dsim.in/blog/2017/01/31/infographic-seo-vs-sem-comparative-study/

https://devrix.com/tutorial/sem-vs-seo-in-depth-review/ (Grabbed Photo)
https://blog.alexa.com/sem-vs-seo/

The post SEM vs SEO: What’s the difference? appeared first on Shourai Ltd..