Using social networks to target demographics in Japan

September 30th, 2017

In recent years, social networks have become an integral part of the lives of Japanese consumers and indispensable tools for the companies looking to communicate with them.

But each SNS has its own specific set of advantages and drawbacks, which are important to know.  And these are constantly changing...

 

Instagram powers ahead in Japan

Last week Nielsen released the latest figures on mobile SNS usage in Japan.  The big news is the explosive growth in Instagram usage during the the previous year. 

Instagram’s year-on-year growth (+43%) far outstripped that of the other popular SNS platforms Twitter (+19%) and Facebook (+7%):

Twitter and Facebook still have more overall users than Instagram suggesting that the photo sharing app still has much room to continue growing.

In terms of targeting, it is clear that Twitter is highly skewed towards younger consumers (under 30s), while an interesting aspect of Facebook is its actual lack of skew by age.  Facebook is a great way to bring your message to all age groups in Japan.

Where Instagram becomes interesting, is when the question of gender targeting is considered. So while the usage of both Twitter and Facebook is well balanced, 50/50 by gender, Instagram is different in being more skewed towards females (58%) and younger females at that.

The conclusion for companies engaged in Ecommerce in Japan is that Instagram has now become an important addition to marketers' social media toolbox.

And this is particularly true in product design orientated categories, such as apparel and accessories, where its quickly becoming a powerful way to visually activate large segments of Japanese target consumers. 

But things can change very quickly in this dynamic sector... So be sure to check in regularly to get the latest updates!