Japan for Business is a guide to getting your product or service into the Japanese market, primarily relevant for small to medium businesses. It is available free, just send an email to: stephenpeterson@iprimus.com.au and I’ll send it to you
What’s in the full guide?
Below is the full table of contents contained within the eBook, with links to various sample chapters provided on this site:
- Introduction
- About the author
- Why target Japan as an export market
- A. The current economic situation in Japan
- B. On a positive note
- Japan as a nation
- A. A brief look at Japan’s history
- B. Japanese culture
- C. Social trends prevalent in Japan
- D. Societal concepts
- 1. The group
- 2. Group relationships
- 3. Sense of obligation
- 4. Feelings
- 5. Pretence
- 6. Harmony
- 7. Personal dignity and keeping face
- 8. Reverence of age
- 9. Slow movement
- The Japanese people
- A. What they’re like as individuals
- B. What they’re like as consumers – purchasing trends in Japan
- The use of English in Japan
- Doing business in Japan
- 1. Language
- 2. Unfamiliarity
- 3. Finding customers
- 4. Tariffs and import duties
- 5. Customs clearance
- 6. Government regulations
- 7. Distribution
- 8. Packing and documentation
- Some principles and practices of business in Japan
- 1. The relationship
- 2. The personal approach
- 3. Reliability, dependability and trustworthiness
- 4. Suitability for the Japanese market
- 5. Faulty and sub-standard products
- 6. The expectations of Japanese consumers
- 7. Delivery
- 8. Japanese people are non-confrontational
- 9. Percentages
- 10. Cash
- 11. Personal signatures
- 12. The Japanese language
- 13. Regular greetings
- 14. Meetings
- 15. Women in business
- 16. Protocol and etiquette
- a) Greetings
- b) Gestures
- c) Attire
- 17. The use of business cards – meishi
- 18. Business entertaining and socialising
- 19. Home entertaining
- 20. Gift-giving in Japan
- 21. Consensus
- 22. Negotiations
- Local conditions in Japan
- 1. The ageing population
- 2. Social and product trends
- 3. Seasonality
- 4. Packaging
- 5. Size
- 6. Consumer attitudes
- 7. Japan’s employment system
- 8. Sense of colour
- 9. Fads and booms
- 10. Imitations
- 11. Diet
- 12. Housing
- 13. Regional segmentation
- 14. Demographics
- The retail scene in Japan
- What you need to do to get your product into Japan
- 1. An established business
- 2. Commitment
- 3. Funds and staff
- 4. Background information about the market in Japan
- A. In Japan and other countries, from JETRO
- B. In Australia, from Austrade
- 5. A trip to Japan
- A. What to take
- B. Who to meet
- C. What to look for and where to go
- D. What to bring back
- 6. Back home
- 7. Taking steps to enter the Japanese market
- 8. The direct approach
- 9. The Internet
- 10. International trade fairs
- Establishing tie-ups with Japanese companies
- Maintaining business connections in Japan
- An office in Japan
- Author’s concluding remarks