"Growing Brands in Japan - DECODED" - ACCJ Presentation 2014-11-13
In this presentation I try to unravel one of the marketing industry’s most enduring mysteries: why Japanese ad agencies have succeeded in holding on to such a dominant position in the Japanese market, despite all the efforts of the major global agency networks. I believe the answer lies in a fundamental difference between Japanese and western audiences and the models the agencies use to approach them. The account planning model first emerged from JWT London in the 1960’s and from there became the default paradigm for planning brand communications in the marketing empires that emanated from the UK, US and Europe. It is not designed to remove creativity from advertising, rather to impose structure and authority on an otherwise potentially chaotic and subjective process, and hence give these advertising agencies a process around which to scale up in a way that combines both business rationality and creativity. By defining the creative task through a rational process, and then letting the best creative ideas compete with each other to be executed, the client can feel confident that the idea finally chosen is going to be the right one for her brand, right here, right now. It also gives the creative teams the freedom of a tight brief, as opposed a long rope with which to hang themselves. Rationality & creativity combined The model goes something like this (with the role that takes the lead in each step shown in brackets): Unearth relevant target insight (account planner, possibly working with researchers) Clarify the unique thing about the brand or product that needs to be communicated (account planner) Come up with a concept that ties these two together (account planner) Based on the concept, create multiple communication ideas, pick the best one (creative team) Execute the chosen idea in a contemporary style (creative team & production) It works because the worst that can happen is that the ad says the right thing but fails to get noticed much. When it goes really well, communications get made that jump off the medium and strike the viewers’ consciousness with a thwack and everyone involves gets to go to Cannes to pick up the awards. Based around this model, western advertising agencies have colonised every developed economy and are well placed in developing ones too. Every one except that is for Japan, where they have captured a small sliver of a huge market and if anything are getting weaker at this point. So what happened in Japan? I have heard numerous explanations for this state of affairs, the most common being that local competition is so historically strong and immovable with local media monopolies, particularly DENTSU, that there is not shifting them; the challenge of hiring top talent as a foreign company in Japan (even though foreign companies in other industries manage it); nepotistic relationships between domestic brands and agencies…. There is some truth to all of these, but the argument that the ... (se
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"Growing Brands in Japan - DECODED" - ACCJ Presentation 2014-11-13
- 1. Growing Brands in Japan -‐ DECODED ACCJ Event :: Nov 2014
- 2. How did I get here? JamesHollow.com:
- 3. My Japan Timeline Physics, Oxford University WPP Marke9ng Fellowship -‐ Ogilvy&Mather London -‐ OgilvyOne Tokyo -‐ Ogilvy AcGvaGon Tokyo Alien-‐Eye, Inc + Growth Hacking Japan + GHJ University + 500startups mentorship Profero TYO Lowe Profero 2001 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2012 2012 2012 2013 LoweProfero 2014
- 4. 2005~2014 Insight Social PR Events Strategy Identity SEM Display SEO Campaigns Websites Apps Funnel optimisation POS Video CMS • Japan’s most successful viral campaign ever • World’s biggest brand hero character • Marketing technology licensed globally by Apple • First twitter-based promotion in Japan • First iPhone app-based promotion in Japan • First YouTube channel with in-video navigation • First care app for epilepsy sufferers in Japan
- 5. High context messages translate into a culture that will cater to a group that has similar experiences and expecta;ons, from which inferences are drawn. ! In a higher-‐context culture, many things are le@ unsaid, leAng the culture explain. Words and word choice become very important in higher-‐context communica;on, since a few words can communicate a complex message very effec;vely to an in-‐group ! While in a low-‐context culture, the communicator needs to be much more explicit and the value of a single word is less important ! 1976 book, Hall, “Beyond Culture” High Context Cultures
- 6. • TV • Print • OOH • PR • SEO / SEM • Display (content match) • YouTube • Facebook • Twitter • LINE • Instagram • (Social) Retargeting • Native ads Media evolution Gutter Portal Webmail Early SNS Micro-‐blogging Omni-‐channel Internet-‐of-‐things 1.0 Smart Phones + Apps Social graph Chat apps Digital epochs:
- 7. Western Agency’s: Account Planning Model Stephen King Stanley Pollitt Brand truth x Target insight = Communica;on concept Adver;sing crea;ve
- 8. What is a “communication concept” ? What was the communication concept?
- 9. What happened in Japan? Japan Market 2013: ¥5.9 trillion / $52bn
- 10. CDoEnNtTeSnUt s:: Monopoly • Boss TV commercial from c. 2003 • Spaghetti Western set • Features HAMASAKI Ayumi • AKEBONO (Sumo wrestler) • Kono Sisters (famous escorts?) • Mifune lookalike • “Boss -‐ always by your side” !
- 11. Goliath! ! ! What do they have in common?! ! ! David?
- 12. Exceptions that prove the rule?
- 13. CLoOnTtOe 7n t:s: Hanashi-‐ga-‐kawaru
- 14. • Corporate vs Product brands! • R&D / new product cycles! • Trade / channel influence! • TV culture of escapism! • Audience is wired differently! What is a brand? ! Is it the same in Japan?
- 15. Contents “An extremely important part of the JWT approach was insistence that, since all advtg set out to achieve responses, and since only responses were measured, all communications objectives should be set not in terms of input or 'propositions' but in terms of desired response: specifically from the senses, the reason and the emotions. ! ! This gave (gives) creative people total freedom to devise the stimuli most likely to elicit those responses.” Jeremy Bullmore Design for a desired response
- 16. Account Planning Model Adapted for Digital Brand truth x Target insight x Context opportunity = User experience concept Crea;ve & technical development
- 17. The social graph epoch: British Council Study Abroad
- 18. Thank you! Any questions? JamesHollow.com @jameshollow
- 19. CHoYnBtReIDn tTsEAMS + PHILOSOPHY • Hybrid culture keeps team sharp • > Creates low context culture! • SPECIALISTS vs GENERALISTS • >Umbrella-‐shaped talent • Fit to local context • > contribute to Japan society