Trends in Japan - CScout Japan Blog

“Blood type theory” best-selling book series, mobile site

Written by: Rebecca Milner on January 14, 2009 at 11:58 pm | In LIFESTYLE / FASHION | 2 Comments

The most talked about book at the end of last year wasn’t written first on a mobile phone but it’s author is no less mysterious than the infamous Mika (of Koizora fame). The book in the spotlight is “Self-explanation Book for B-type” and the unknown author goes by the name Jamais Jamais.

B-type refers to the blood type, particularly a blood type commonly associated with selfish or irresponsible behavior for those who believe in “blood type theory.” The idea that blood types can determine one’s personality is taken about as seriously in Japan as zodiac signs in the West—some people swear by it, others consider it nonsense, while the majority has what can best be described as a passing interest in the subject. Still, “what’s your blood type?” is a question that often comes up in social situations.

jamais jamais blood type book japan Editor’s Note: I snapped this picture a few weeks ago near Shibuya. The entire bus was branded just for this book series.

Countless books have been published on the subject, but what made this particular one stand out is that it offers pages of questionnaires that allow readers to actually determine for themselves if their personality matches the blood type’s characteristics—as opposed to just being told.

The anonymous male author is purported to be a B-type himself, though since the book’s initial success he has rounded out the series to include all of the other types as well. The four book series, from publisher Bungeisha, has sold a total of over 5 million copies in little over a year.

It has also, perhaps more interestingly, made the jump to the mobile internet, with the December 30th (2008) launch of “Self-explanation by everyone, the mobile phone version.”

This registration-based site from contents maker G-Mode offers similar questionnaires as the book series and allows users to create their own “self explanation.” The results, the user’s own explanatory “book” (ah, and now we are back to the user generated mobile phone novel!), can be forwarded as a text to friends and family.

Not only does this tie the traditional publishing world to the dynamic mobile one, but the site is also a nice example of the current trend of ultra-personalization.

Tags: Mobile, Personalization, Publishing
Category: LIFESTYLE / FASHION
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, DIGITAL LIFE, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS

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Pet Trends: Water purification and graphic stamps

Written by: Rebecca Milner on September 2, 2008 at 11:01 pm | In DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION | No Comments

It’s been awhile since we checked in on specialty products for pets, so here’s an update. While we aren’t seeing the same bombardment of items as we had in the recent past, a couple of interesting ones did catch our eye.

Kizna Co. has created a water purifying system especially for pets, called Peture (pet + nature). The high-grade system removes all chlorine and toxins from the water while maintaining traces of key minerals to create purportedly healthier, more balanced water for animals.

In addition to the drinking function, the Peture also has a shower attachment so pets can be clean and pure inside and out.

It only makes sense that the growing number of consumers demanding higher degrees of “pureness” and “wellness” from their food products and home appliances would apply these priorities to the products they buy for their pets. This level of purification doesn’t come cheap, however, including a two-year warranty the Peture comes to ¥155,400 (about $1,500).

Now on the gimmicky side (remember beer for dogs?), an Osaka-based hanko maker is offering a service to include an illustration of your pet onto your name stamp. Hanko are the personal stamps registered by individuals to serve as their signature and are used on official documents.

Interested customers are asked to send a photo of their pet, the image of which is simplified into a small illustration that accompanies their name. The process, which takes about two weeks, starts at ¥4,980 for a standard hanko and ¥3,900 for a smaller, self-inking type. A small price to pay for the ability to merge your identity with the likeness of your beloved companion.

Actually its not just for pets, you can have a person too. Some of the other designs, which aren’t created to resemble anyone in particular, are kind of neat.

In addition to demonstrating a little bit of personality, elaborate hanko are used to prevent fraud, though we’re not sure if the pet ones will pass at the bank.

Tags: Personalization, pets, Wellness
Category: DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS

Personalized life with manga, drama, and rice

Written by: Rebecca Milner on August 15, 2008 at 4:11 pm | In LIFESTYLE / FASHION, MARKETING IDEAS | 2 Comments

Ultra-personalized souvenirs of special occasions might be a global trend, but Japan has added it’s own unique approaches to the theme.

Sakura Comics has debuted a service that allows couples to turn their love story into an original comic book, called “Wedding Story Manga.”

The plot unfolds around a personal story (a first meeting or a proposal, for example) while the characters are drawn to resemble photos provided by the customers. Clients can choose the style of drawing from a variety of samples and the length of the comic, from a two page black and white leaflet (¥29,800) to a 16-page full color mini book (from ¥191,800).

The finished product is intended as a souvenir for newlyweds to give to guests at the reception.

Another example is the Koizora-themed souvenir photo campaign from Watabe Wedding. This limited time service invites couples into a studio designed to resemble scenes from the incredibly popular drama Koizora (“Love Sky”), allowing couples to act out their favorite moments and poses. The professional images are then compiled into a souvenir photo book.

A TV version of the drama, which originated as a mobile phone novel, will run on TBS from August through September, as will Watabe Wedding’s campaign (package price from ¥20,000).

Weddings aren’t the only example, Yoshimiya has created a service for announcing the birth of a newborn with a commemorative bag of rice.

Not only the does the bag have the babies face printed on it, but the rice inside measures exactly the same as the baby’s birth weight. The idea is that far-away relatives can simulate holding the new family addition.