Japan Marketing News

Great Japanese train advertising: IKEA Japan

Congrats to IKEA Japan for generating some powerful buzz through one of the best "train jacking" ad campaigns I've seen in a quite a long time.

In Japanese advertising parlance, a "jacking" occurs when an advertiser purchases a substantial portion of all of the ad space available in a particular medium or within a geographic area (the term "jacking" is derived from the English word "hijack"). Most commonly it's seen on trains, when advertisers buy out the entirety of ad slots inside the cars, and often have tailor-made graphics or billboard-like posters placed on the exteriors too.

In this case, however, IKEA has really outdone itself by thinking outside the box. Why not leverage its expertise in interior design to deliver a genuine brand experience, rather than a mere barrage of posters and such? The company recently train-jacked Kobe' Port Liner Loop Line to celebrate the opening of its latest mega store in the city.

Take a close look (here, here, and here) and you'll see that IKEA has not only filled some of the standard ad frames with its own messages, it has replaced the train's standard window shades with those from its own stores, converted the seats to sofas with IKEA brand upholstery, and has added wall coverings in some cases, as well.

Naturally this approach is generating plenty of interest amongst those who've ridden this train. But better yet is the fact that this approach is new, and thus newsworthy, making it fodder for a number of traditional Japanese news outlets and plenty of blogs, as well.

Many thanks to Sue Sato and John Cathcart for tipping us off to this campaign (via the IKEA blog and Pink Tentacle).

A machine that sucks, with a design that doesn't

In Japan we've seen limited editions of everything from apparel, handbags and sneakers, to potato chips, cars and beer. But this is the first time I've ever seen a limited edition vacuum cleaner.

Just leave it to two legendary designers, James Dyson and Issey Miyake, to come up with one.

This is the Dyson D16 Cordless Handheld, which was created to celebrate Issey Miyake's Wind Collection. According to the Dyson website, the inspiration for the collection was the "geometry and clean lines" of Dyson's engineering. Pretty cool.

You can get the whole scoop on the collection and the cleaner here.

National hopes to clean up with self-cleaning toilet

When managers at National's housing products division* decided to develop a new kind of toilet, they knew they had to come up with something really different. Not only did they have to compete with dominant players like TOTO, they had to do so while fulfilling a company-wide mission: develop lifestyle enhancing products that lead consumers beyond a "wait-until-it-breaks" mindset.

They started with extensive research that revealed important insights into purchasing behavior. For instance, four of the five most important considerations in buying a new toilet have to do with cleanliness. When nature calls, Japanese consumers want to be certain that their toilets are clean. Moreover, they dislike the fact that some models have crevices and joints where germs can hide, and that porcelain bowls have a tendency to stain. Consumers also place importance on money-saving features and special amenities.

National decided it would invent a model that could address all of these concerns—and more. The result was the award-winning A-LA-UNO toilet.

Say hello to "robotic" air conditioning and heating

If you're a member of one of those households in which everybody wants the room to be a different temperature, I've got some good news. National (Panasonic) has just introduced the X Series (a.k.a "Air Robo") line of heater/air conditioners equipped with groundbreaking technology meant to individually optimize the indoor comfort of each person in a room. Apparently, thanks to infrared beams that can both identify where people are and what they're doing, and special flaps that can directionally release air of varying volumes and temperatures, those who are less active will feel a warmer air flow than those who are moving around. What's more, because the units aim air at people rather than trying to maintain the same temperature throughout the room, they use less electricity. The X Series goes on sale in November (2007).

Cool Interactive Advertising: Panasonic Viera

If you're into traditional Japanese imagery you might want to explore this award-winning website that Panasonic created to promote its Viera line of flat-panel televisions. Dubbed "experience color," it skillfully employs graphics, live action, color and lighting to create a sophisticated mood and give a sense of the high quality pictures you can expect from Viera.

Cool Japanese Products: Bearmax mini fridge

This faux-wood Bearmax cooler/warmer from Kumazaki Aim is a neat little indulgence for design-lovers who like to have food/drinks close at hand. You can set the temperature between five and 55 degrees Celsius (41-131 F), so it works for keeping both hot and cold items at their proper temperatures. It's just 24.2 cm wide, 27.2 cm deep, and 32.2 cm tall (9.5 x 10.7 x 12 inches) and it runs on both AC and DC power—which means you can plug it in anywere—even in your car.

Sure it holds just eight canned drinks (or maybe your lunch), but that's probably plenty for the office, a bedroom or a quick trip. Besides, how can you not fall in love with its smooth curves and tiny footprint? It wouldn't look out of place in a tatami room, either.

This model goes for ¥15,750 and the company offers a larger one for ¥21,000. Check them out here and here.

"Is your refrigerator running?" "No, but it sure is moving"

This new item from Mitsubishi Electric is a great example of Japanese product innovation and brand naming.

The Ungokun-dana refrigerator delivers a handy breakthrough in food storage.

Ever have trouble fitting a large pot or tall containers in your refrigerator? Worry no more.

Two of Ungokun-dana's three shelves are adjustable, with the mere shift of a lever (watch the video).

The name is clever too.

The first part, ungoku, means "move" in Japanese.

The second part dana or da na can have two meanings—depending on whether the syllables are joined or separate. Together they communicate both the functionality of the product, and the emotional benefit it provides.

The first meaning is "shelf," and conveys function. Thus, Ungoku-dana means "moving shelf."

The second interpratation communicates the idea of "it" and an exclamation point "!," so the phrase ungokun da na, means "It moves!" (alternatively "So it moves!", or "It moves, doesn't it!").

Thus the emotional benefit is delivered: "hey that's cool / great."

So given the dual meanings, the name conveys "[A] moving shelf [refrigerator]. Hey, that's great!"

Just how great it is depends on your needs. I certainly know one or two people who will be thrilled that they can now fill the entire top shelf of their fridge with tall boy beers.

Market insight: indeed, size matters

Here's a little reminder to those of you out there who hope to sell household products in Japan: Japanese residences are small, so your product had better fit smoothly into Japanese homes—or it doesn't have a chance of succeeding.

By way of an extreme example, consider a typical American product—the kitchen dishwasher. Many Japanese kitchens don't have enough room for stove, let alone a dishwasher. So, until about five or six years ago dishwashers were rare in Japan—there just wasn't any place to put them.

But things change. These days, Japanese home appliance manufacturers have made quite a few models available. What's eye-opening about them is that they're nothing like an American-style dishwasher. Designed to address the Japanese space issue, almost all are meant to sit atop kitchen counters.

The item shown here is the Sharp QW-SC1 which is just 46 cm (18 inches) tall, weighs about 55 kg (121 pounds) and costs about ¥40,000 (about $330). As you can see, its holds the number of dishes and utensils that two people might use in consuming two typical Japanese-style meals. Granted, this is on the small side, even for Japanese dishwashers—but even the larger models are still only a few inches taller (some can fit twice as many items as this model thanks to greater depth, but they're still designed to fit on countertops).

Obviously, this issue of size extends to washing machines, furniture, household fixtures, and even packaged goods. If it's "American size" it will be nearly impossible to sell in Japan.

* Need more information on this subject? Click here.