Tokyo street at night … And not the main one !!!
Japan is an amazing country, whose undeniable authority is recognized throughout the world. Japanese cars and Japanese video equipment are the dream of all connoisseurs-consumers. And how much pleasure is the contemplation of the Japanese rock gardens, which are a UNESCO World Heritage Site; Japanese ikebana - truly a visiting card of the miraculous art; amazing Japanese chrysanthemums, sakura and irises! We must not forget about the extraordinary Japanese paintings on silk: exquisite, luxurious and at the same time delicate.
Used underwear vending machine.
If the product says “made in Japan”, then it unambiguously means (in terms of estimated points): “excellent”, “excellent”, due to which Japan occupies a leading position in many respects.
One more. There is a richer choice in it!
But, oddly enough, this was not always the case. Only 70 years ago, in 1950, this country in terms of living standards and level of production stood on the same stage of development with semi-colonial Egypt. It's hard to believe, but at that time “made in Japan” meant “it's terrible”, since the quality of everything that was produced in Japan left, to put it mildly, much to be desired, which was the subject of ridicule that was constantly heard from TV screens and cinemas in the USA.
However, in a vending machine in Japan you can even buy a car and … live snails. Alive!
Japan in American comedies was represented by that “stupid country” where it doesn’t shoot … a pistol, where a car doesn’t start, where something always doesn’t work or breaks down very soon …
Vintage Japanese beer advertisement. Americans at that time never dreamed of this !!!
But already in 1975 (a quarter of a century passed - not a very long period in history) in the United States, no one else laughed at the Japanese and Japan. Moreover, in 1985 in the movie "Back to the Future" in the dialogue between the main characters Marty McFly and Dr. Brown the following phrase sounded: "All the best is done in Japan."
Beer advertisement. Women drink - men drink too!
Japan won such authority not only thanks to the national pride of the Japanese, not only because of their concentration, perseverance and hard work. The breakthrough came also because the Japanese, turning to their traditions, created modern and highly effective advertising.
Another Tokyo street at night.
As you know, Japanese traditional culture is based on the art of calligraphy, the art of ikebana and the sacrament of the tea ceremony, and the spirituality and morality of the Japanese is based on "Shinto" (which means "The Way of the Gods"). Shinto is not a religion (the Japanese profess two religions - Shintoism and Buddhism - which, without disputing each other, peacefully coexist), but a kind of philosophy of being, which, however, determines the essence of the Japanese way of life, his thinking and the rules of his behavior. Is it not true that the thought written in the Shinto commandments sounds philosophical: "Act according to the laws of nature, while sparing the laws of society"?
Modern advertising "Pepsi".
That is, Nature, beauty and naturalness of everything that surrounds a person is put at the forefront in Shinto, the understanding that there is nothing superfluous, insignificant in nature, and this allows the Japanese to see unprecedented beauty even in the smallest …
It is this understanding of beauty that allows the Japanese to create it, moreover, bringing into it something completely different, new, modern, but, without fail, relying on the same beauty.
An example is Japanese advertising.
Onomatopoietic words of the Japanese language that reproduce the sounds of wildlife (the voices of birds and animals, the lapping of the surf, the fury of a thunderstorm, the rustle of foliage, the rumble of the wind in the forest, the crunch of snow, the crackling of a fire, the noise of city traffic and actions) are widely used in it.
Japanese McDonald's. Only Chinese is funnier …
Invented by the Japanese, such an advertising element as "shizuru" - a visual and auditory image - awakens physiological needs in the consumer, i.e. the viewer watching the advertisement not only observes how, for example, a steak is being fried, but also hears the sound generated during its frying ("juu-juu"), which leads the viewer to the desire to buy and eat this steak.
An advertisement for a man who quenches his thirst with a sip is accompanied by the sounds of "goku-goku"; droplets of moisture drip down the glass of beer to the sound of "fuwa-fuwa"; eating traditional ramen rice noodles is accompanied by the sounds of "zuru-zuru"; cooking on live fire - to the sounds of "gutsu-gutsu"; biting off something juicy - to the sounds of "hrum-m". But a person biting off, for example, a slice of pizza, occurs according to a visual (not sound) image, when you can see how thin threads of melted cheese stretch to his lips … Appetizing, isn't it?..
Along with visual and auditory images, Japanese advertisements attach great importance to color, because color for the Japanese is a way of expressing the soul. Moreover, Japanese buyers believe that the essence of a product is love, and buying a product (i.e. knowing its essence) is like falling in love!..
The Japanese know that money has to be made on everything!
In Japan, red has always been banned in advertising for alcoholic beverages, but with its introduction on the Asahi beer label, the company's sales skyrocketed (the company, of course, drew attention to the red logo of the Coca-Cola brand and did the right thing …).
But in relation to some flowers in Japan, there is still a "taboo". So, for example, the Japanese never use shades of dark green in the color scheme of their packaging (according to statistics, this color causes, sorry, nausea in 27% of the population), and pink in floor coverings (research has shown that some people think that as if pink floors are sagging …).
Does everyone understand what they are advertising? And the text is not needed, is it ?!
According to the Japanese, the main thing in color is its "natural beauty". They even believe that every element of nature has its own color. So, blue ("trees blue in the haze of the morning" - green) color corresponds to their tree; red - fire; yellow (brown) - earth; white - metal; black - water.
These five colors (including their shades), according to the conviction of the Japanese, express all nature, which is very competently used by the company "Siseido" in its new brand of cosmetics "Sinoadoa", which has suddenly become very popular since 2002.
Early ad for Siseido. Who can tell you that "Shisheido" spit in his eyes! He is ignorant!
Siseido specialists understand blue (green) color as intelligence and wisdom; red as happiness, destiny and life; yellow as worship; white as purification, peace and eternity; black as chaos, omnipotence, but also admiration. This palette of colors, in their opinion, allows you to know the harmony of nature. They are sure that the consumer will be able to know it in this way. Proceeding from this, the specialists promote their goods (I must say that they are very successful).
Along with the main colors, they also widely use golden and silver colors, which can be seen on the elegant black and gold packaging of this company.
The export specialists at Siseido do not overlook the fact that every country that cooperates with it has its own favorite colors. And, if, for example, marble-blue and marble-white shades are popular in China, then the packaging of the company's cosmetics seems to be exactly this color range.
This is the national motive in the Siseido ad.
Everyone knows that Japan is a geographically poor country, as a result of which the Japanese are forced to "fit" outdoor advertising into the city's landscape, making it their style of life: advertising adorns the gray streets of cities, creating a kind of comfort in the fast pace of life of the Japanese.
Advertising is present in shop windows, on the buildings of institutions, and you can see it on transport.
A special place is occupied by a unique advertisement for the "subway". At stations and crossings, its static and auditory forms are presented, and on the walls of the tunnels, huge advertising posters represent a storyboard video sequence, viewed from the window of a carriage of a moving electric train, like a video clip. This is the so-called "tunnel advertisement".
This is an international motive in the Siseido ad. Does your wife use Siseido? This look asks.
All types of advertising in Japan work very efficiently and purposefully, "not letting out" potential consumers of the goods they are promoting from their field of vision.
Well, where can you go without sakura?
If people are the engine of historical progress, then advertising is the engine of commerce. Trade is an important source of income in the economic section of the budget of any country. Its role is very important, and Japanese advertising specialists, realizing this, make it visible, “tasty” and effective.
And this is our Russian book about Japanese advertising, but, unfortunately, it was published in Germany …
And yet, advertising is advertising, even if it is excellent, but the main thing in selling a product is still its quality (this is all right in Japan). After all, the purchasing interest and purchasing power of the population depends on the quality of the products.
By the way, the mentality of Russians and Japanese is in many ways similar. The Japanese also like Cheburashka, but the Americans do not understand its charms!
