SaaS Entering Japan: Limited to Large Enterprises? Introduction Whether it’s creating a new revenue channel through focusing on a new territory or seeing demand from increased leads or customers, going after global revenue is a consideration for most businesses. There are tradeoffs to going after global revenue. Many parts need to be worked on which may distract teams from going…

SMEs Key to SaaS Adoption in Japan Introduction Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) make up 99.7% of all companies and employ 69.7% of the workforce. SMEs in Japan are a majority both in terms of number of companies and the number of they employ. Despite being the biggest portion of the Japanese economy, they are the most behind on IT…

SaaS Adoption in Japan Introduction Digital transformation (DX) has been a big focus for Japan, especially with the digital competitiveness ranking dropping three spots to 32nd in 2023. A part of the DX push is to increase the number of startups through the Startup Development Five-year Plan. One side of the story is increasing the  availiability of software services available.…

Options for SaaS Companies to Enter the Japanese Market: Why We Started Nihonium Introduction The Japanese market is highly nuanced. Both the language and processes are unique. The Japanese culture contributes to the unique processes that manifest in Japan-specific CTAs, a dependence on resellers/distributors, unique sales processes, and a Japan-specific growth strategy. Global companies shy away from entering Japan because…

SaaS Sales in Japan: Importance of Partners, Resellers, and Distributors Introduction Selling in Japan is pretty unique which manifests in ways like a unique CTA and the Ringisho process. The initial growth motion may start out with product-led growth, but those who have exposure to sales in Japan may know the growth strategy evolves with the company. Overtime working with…

Japanese SaaS Companies vs. Global Comps Introduction SmartHR, one of Japan’s unicorns, recently hit the 15b JPY ($100m assuming 150 yen to dollar exchange rate) mark, a huge milestone for any SaaS business. This got me thinking about SmartHR’s US comps and when they crossed the 100m USD mark. SmartHR offers cloud-based labor/human resource management founded in 2013. Workday, founded…

The Ringisho Method: Japan’s Unique Sales Process Understanding cultural nuances is crucial for the success of sales in Japan. Within the Japanese context, the Ringisho method and the Nemawashi concept are two integral components that shape the sales landscape, each contributing unique insights into the intricacies of doing business in Japan. The Ringisho method is a manifestation of Japanese business…

Insights on the Japan SaaS Market from G2 and ITReview G2 is a common place for buyers to go when evaluating software. It provides helpful reviews and an easy-to-interpret grid of the product’s position within its category. The Japanese equivalent of G2 is ITReview. Comparing these two review sites provides interesting insights into the state of software in Japan. Comparing…

Japan’s Unique Call To Action: “Download Documents” Landing pages in Japan have similarities with global landing pages, but parts of the landing pages are unique to Japan. There’s one CTA (call-to-action) that is unique to Japan. Calls to action vary based on who you’re targeting and the desired behavior you want the visitor to take. Depending on the product and…

A Possible Reason for Fewer Startups in Japan: Lacking Entrepreneurs Introduction There are many possible reasons that people may or may not pursue to be an entrepreneur. In this post, we’ll be exploring possible reasons that Japan has fewer startups than countries that have a robust startup ecosystem. From a global economic perspective, Japan is positioned to be a global…