If you are a technology or gadget company trying to enter the Japanese market, there are some things you need to understand before you begin.
Even the most successful companies, like Apple, had difficulty penetrating the Japanese market with their products at first. Japanese consumers are known to be very selective with high expectations. We will discuss below some of the many things they look for in a tech product.
Desgin
As more Japanese consumers actively search for the most unique tech products, it is important for your product design to not only look aesthetically pleasing but for it to have significance as well.
You will find a lot of Japanese designs and packaging have a purpose.
For example, an onigiri from the conbini or convenience store has a specific way of peeling off the plastic wrapping.
This same or a similar concept applies to design in technology. You always want to hold the consumers’ interest right until the very end. Whether it be fun and quirky or sleek and sophisticated, there should be a meaningful purpose behind it. Check out some of these products we think fit that criteria:
Usability
Another thing that Japanese consumers look for its usability. Usability is defined as “the ease of use and learnability of a human-made object such as a tool or device.” So, your product has to be good for people to continuously come back to it.
Before you finalize your product, make sure you check off these 3 things:
Even though Japanese people love to find new products to integrate into their everyday lifestyles, they don’t like having their lifestyles changed drastically. As a result, they look for products that can help improve their way of living. You want to make sure your product has a familiarity aspect to it that Japanese consumers can relate to.
In terms of the art design, Japanese aesthetics tend to lean more towards minimalistic, and simple designs. You don’t want to include irrelevant elements in your product because that would take away from the purpose of your product. Keep in mind that Japanese people believe in the Zen philosophy of less is more.
You should rigorously be user testing your product so that you produce the best possible results. It should be optimized properly with no bugs that would ruin the user experience. These tests and proper guidance will lead to a more effective goal for the product. You also want the user experience to be as pleasant as possible so that they hold a positive image of your product.
New Ideas
Japanese consumers are one of the most tech-savvy consumers in the world, therefore they are constantly looking for cutting edge ideas/products. So they are interested in new technology developments when you give them an incentive to take part in it. Competition can be tough especially in Japan because they are used to seeing new products being launched all the time. For that reason, having a fresh new idea can generate interest among the public.
