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Elephants Can't Jump
Ensuring brand initiatives work in practice as well as in theory. To have marketplace impact, we believe every research assignment should consist of three elements consumer exploration or validation, within a competitive context, generating commercial outputs.
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Firefish Ltd
29 full time staff, operating in all corners of the globe, on all manner of projects. No methodology is squashed to fit. We approach each brief with fresh eyes and minds, to make sure you get the most out of your research, helping your brand move forward.
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Grass Roots
Grass Roots is one of Europe's largest performance improvement companies. Established in 1980, Grass Roots UK is the founding company of a group with offices and partners operating in 15 countries around the world.
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DIGITAL-MR
In addition to Social Media Research (Web Listening) DigitalMRs solutions also include community panels, access panels, Web usability and a distinct focus on qualitativeresearch online.
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An Introduction to Japan
An ancient society with a centralised state since the 4th century AD, Japan began rapid industrialisation and westernisation with the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Since then it has passed through periods of liberalism, imperial expansion and war, and most recently miraculous economic growth following the devastation of World War 2 - the economy grew tenfold between 1955 and 1990. See full country profile.Latest Research News from Japan
1 current Japanese job:
GOVERNMENT: Constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary government
AREA: 394,744 sq km
POPULATION: 127,420,000 (2010 est.)
MAJOR LANGUAGE: Japanese
Some business and general info
The Market Research Industry
Trade and Industry in Japan
An ancient society with a centralised state since the 4th century AD, Japan began rapid industrialisation and westernisation with the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Since then it has passed through periods of liberalism, imperial expansion and war, and most recently miraculous economic growth following the devastation of World War 2 - the economy grew tenfold between 1955 and 1990.
Despite several years of low growth in the new century, Japan still has the second largest economy in the world, and its people enjoy the highest life expectancy. Its population is expected to age rapidly during the next 30 years.
GDP: US$5,073 trillion (2009 est.) Per head: US$39,573
Religions Buddhism, Shintoism
Currency: Yen
Telephone Code: +81
MR Association(s):
In revenue terms, the sector grew about 45% in the five years from 2001-2006. Face-to-face methdologies have traditionally been strong in Japan, still accounting for 26% in 2000, but the rise of online research has eroded this and the share for most other quant methods - face-to-face represented 18% in 2006, while online has risen in the same period from 3% to 29%. In 2008, online research accounted for 33%.
Revenue comes mostly from domestic clients - projects for overseas clients accounted for Yen 6.7bn, 4.7% of revenue in 2006 and only Yen 1.6bn a decade earlier. Consumer research accounts for 82% of all expenditure. In terms of sector, manufacturing accounts for 30% and ad agencies for 18%.
Source: JMRA
Size: $USD 1,643m (EUR 1,078m), 2008 - net growth of 2.5% on 2007.
Source: ESOMAR
Japan consists of a chain of islands. The main ones are Kyushu, Shikoku, Honshu (the largest and home to Tokyo and Osaka) and Hokkaido. The land is mountainous and volcanic, and only 17% of the total area is cultivable.
Email me:
laurence@mrweb.com
Meanwhile, Japan has been losing foreign companies in the domestic market because of the declining population, the high corporation tax, and high yen against other currencies.
Some people may think that foreign companies completely lose their interests in Japan, but they do not. Ja'an remains to be an interesting place for foreign companies to get ideas for product innovations. We are still requested by foreign companies to share information about the latest trend in the Japanese market. Places like Akihabara, keep attracting foreigners as a shopping area for electronics and anime products, too. The visitors are fascinated with many latest consumer electronics at stores.
While the Japanese market is seen as shrinking, product innovations in the Japanese market are not shrinking at all.