Insights & Guides
Practical knowledge on Japan market entry — from company setup and visas to trade logistics and branding.
Why Does 'Disrupting the Market' Language Fail With Japanese B2B Buyers? (2026)
Direct translation of Western hype language, "disrupting the market," "revolutionizing X," "10x your Y," reads in Japan as unverified ad-tech jargon rather than confidence. Japanese B2B buyers...
What Date Format Should a Japan-Market Website or App Use? (YYYY/MM/DD vs MM/DD/YYYY)
Use YYYY/MM/DD (or the full-form YYYY年MM月DD日) as the default date format for any Japan-facing website or app. This is the convention Japanese users read without hesitation. Western MM/DD/YYYY and...
Why Do Some Japanese Names Show as Boxes on Your Website?
A Japanese name displays as an empty box, blank square, or "tofu (豆腐)" placeholder when the web font loaded on the page is a subset font that only bundles the few thousand most common Han...
Does a Foreign Company Need a Japanese-Style Company Profile (会社案内) to Sell to Japanese B2B Buyers? (2026)
Yes. A kaisha annai (会社案内), literally "company information" or "company profile," is a distinct Japan B2B convention that a Western one-pager or pitch deck does not replace. It functions as a...
Does Japan Business Etiquette Change Your Email Signature? (2026)
Japan business etiquette does change an email signature, but the changes are practical rather than mandatory. Name order can follow the government's 2019 recommendation for family-name-first in...
Does Product Packaging Need a Japanese-Language Label to Sell in Japan? (2026)
Yes, for most retail categories. General merchandise (textiles, plastics, household electrical goods) falls under the Household Goods Quality Labeling Act (家庭用品品質表示法), and food falls under the...
Is Website Accessibility Legally Required for Businesses in Japan? (2026 Guide)
No single law makes private-sector website accessibility a direct legal mandate in Japan, but two related developments change the risk calculus. Since April 1, 2024, the Act for the Elimination of...
Why Does Your Website Need a Separate Japanese Font License From Your Global Type System? (2026)
Because the Latin web font a company already licenses for its global site almost never includes full Han (kanji) character coverage, and even when a CJK (Chinese-Japanese-Korean) variant exists...
How Should a Foreign-Owned Company Design a Business Card (名刺) for Japan? (2026)
Design the card as two single-language faces rather than one bilingual face: Japanese on one side, English (or the counterparty's language) on the other. Match the printed title to a Japanese...
Which Colors Should You Avoid in Japan B2B Branding? (2026)
No color is universally off-limits in Japan B2B branding, but several colors carry a different connotation than they do in a Western brand book and need re-testing before use. Red reads as...