Sad Times
Ad agency Dentsu’s research division has been examining the effects of stress on consumer spending
Illustration by Phil Couzens
Japan’s largest advertising agency Dentsu invests extensively in its consumer research division. One particular unit studies and analyzes consumer behavior through the lens of ‘health.’ Its straight-to-the-point ‘Wellness Project’ is run by Yoko Ooya, an analyst who focuses on the stress that consumers have to deal with in modern society.
Through interviews with about 10,000 consumers, Ooya has discovered a deep relationship between ‘love relationships’ and stress. While we could say, “tell us something we don’t know,” Ooya says there are certain segments of society that fall into the category of “High Risk Care.” She says this demographic have particularly high risks of getting stressed and less chance of earning higher salaries in contrast to their healthier contemporaries.
What’s the catch?
Food sampling is common in Japan. A stroll around the depachika (department store’s basement food hall) often garners enough nibbles for a light afternoon snack, but now some retailers are giving away more than a bite.
Harimayama, a rice cracker maker based in Hyogo Prefecture, has employed this marketing tool, which encourages people to buy the actual thing. Its store inside Tokyo Station now sees between 1500 to 2000 people a day stopping by for a rice cracker free of charge, served with coffee or tea.
Harimayama’s prime location saw one ton of rice crackers given away during its first month of opening and an increase in sales by 50 percent due to people buying more crackers for themselves or as gifts.
Added Value
The new Plus Fiber Coca-Cola and Cheerio’s new Nanchatte Cola
It can be argued Japan is a value-added market in which many consumables include an additional benefit. Take tea, for example. Many best-selling beverages include a health claim. Most are said to aid slimming, digestion or beauty, justifying their purchase as more than just a drink but as an additional step in following a healthy diet.
Chocolate is rarely plain. Makers incrementally innovate flavors on a regular basis and for one brand; packaging can double up as post-cards. In that sense, consumers get an additional benefit to their purchases.
One recent launch in this value-added sector includes a new version of Coca-Cola’s plus series, containing fiber. Aimed at 20- to 40-year-old women, this product contains 1.7 grams of fiber and no calories. In addition, it also includes vitamins and buzzy new ingredient Catechin, which is derived from tea and is said to reduce aging, among other benefits.
Why not?
Advertising fulfills many useful functions. One aspect is conveying a simple message to consumers on what a product does. Turning that concept on its head is a new boom that we dub, ‘This is not…”
A slew of new products have hit the shelves with precisely that message.
One example is Nanchatte Cola, a soft drink by maker Cheerio that looks remarkably similar to Tabasco sauce.
Its packaging, color and graphics invoke something that we are familiar with, but in fact, this product is a cola-flavored soft drink. Sold as a limited edition, its key selling point is the bold message written in Japanese that says: “This is not sauce.”
Make-believe
The development behind JT’s (Japan Tobacco) Komezukuri drink is unique.
It’s the second in a series of beverages in its Japanese Kitchen series, launched last summer (2009). The idea is to develop products that seem rare, or perhaps have already existed, but actually never have. For example, it would seem intuitive that a sparkling rice soft drink has already been on the market, but apparently this is not the case.
Thus, the concept appeals to consumers seeking reassurance with their drink purchases, i.e., there is an element of knowing the product is going to taste good because the ingredients seem so familiar, but also surprise since it’s a first-time product. JT’s first launch in this series was Natsu Mikan, a drink made from summer tangerines.
This is an interesting take on innovation, creating potential new beverages based purely on beliefs about what products should be on the market, but are not yet available to the public.
Tokyo Sweets Collection
Japan‘s first “Sweets Collection” was held at Tokyo Midtown’s upscale mall in Roppongi in November, billed as a collaboration between sweets and fashion. It’s based on the better-known Tokyo Girls Collection (TGC), a massive fashion event that features an audience of 20,000 who literally buy the clothes off the models’ backs via mobile phone as they parade down the runway.
Fifteen Japanese patissiers took part, collaborating with well-known local fashion designers in an event that included models walking down the runway wearing designer desserts. The theme of the event, “Adult Fantasy,” positioned the event clearly at older demographics, not children.
Many of the edible creations went on sale at Daimaru department store after the event. Expenditures on little luxuries, including cakes and premium chocolate, now compete with the cosmetic and fashion industries, demonstrating that food is the new fashion in Japan.
Nicole Fall is co-founder of Tokyo-based innovation and trend-forecasting agency Five by Fifty. She can be contacted at nicole@fivebyfifty.com
