Japanese Customer: Japanese lifestyle - Jido hanbaiki - Japanese for convenient product access

Jido Hanbaiki - "Automatic vending machines"




Source: Book: Living Japanese Style
JTB, 18th edition,2000,
ISBN: 4533013503 page 49





Buy the book

Japanese consumers represent the fourth largest market of smokers in the world according to research

"The Japanese market, about 26m smokers, or 25 per cent of those over 20, was the fourth largest in the world in 2007, according to data published by ERC Group."

Source:Japan Tobacco reacts angrily to tax rise

By Michiyo Nakamoto in Tokyo

Published: December 22 2009 16:32

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e6d8d432-ef0a-11de-92d8-00144feab49a.html?nclick_check=1

Further reading:

See Japan in 2010

Visit Motorcycle Japan

Japan has been a space nation since 1970 when it launched its first satellite - Japanese customers in space

"Japan has long been one of the world's leading space-faring nations
— having launched its first satellite in 1970"



Source:Japan scores first commercial satellite order,
By MARI YAMAGUCHI, The Associated Press,
The Japan Times: Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2009
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/print/nn20090114a6.html





Further reading:




Book - Japan's Space Program












See Japan at Motorcycle Japan

Wall Street Journal launches new Japan coverage in English and Japanese

Since the Hatoyama government was elected in September this year, the Wall Street Journal's coverage of Japan has expanded considerably. This has been most notable on their Asia news sections with a daily round of news stories being covered. Prior to this Japan had scant coverage and was overshadowed by China and India coverage. The change in political party has also seen new media opportunities with a new energy shown by the Hatoyama government to open press conferences to a wider audience. Japanese customers are avid newspaper readers and in the past have been very loyal to printed newspapers. But the recent economic downturn has seen newspaper subscriptions for hard copy newspapers shrink. As the Dankai no Sedai generation settle into retirement, newspaper readership online is seen as a potential growth area. Combine the dankai generations love of information with their love of electronic gadgets (the Internet), interest in foreign language and travel. Wow, a new market for news. A news company could build a new loyal base of readers with the right message and content.

The new WSJ Japan page in English has a nice layout, high definition graphics, easy to read headlines and a range of stories that easily get a readers attention. Could we expect a new online News Hub about events in Japan in English or Japanese?This would be fantastic. News Hub is a fast paced video format that would do well in Japan. Their is very little English video content of Japanese news stories by English commentators, so this could be a great opportunity to get new viewers and subscribers, particularly the expats who live in Japan or do business with Japan.

The new WSJ Japanese page in Japanese is here. Lots of visuals, short catchy headlines and a range of interesting content with clickable topic folders at the top of the page and USA news and current Japanese stories.

The new Japanese website in Japanese hits a unique market. It covers local Japanese news and it broadens coverage of international news which will be of great interest to Japanese readers who are hungry for online world content in Japanese. Expanded international news coverage in Japanese we believe will do well. The timing is right as Japan is just about to undertake another cultural shift.

We look forward to the expanded coverage and wish the WSJ Japan the best in their new venture.

Japanese Customer: What traditional foods do Japanese customers eat in Japan?

1

Osechi ryori -

"Food for the new year is distinctly traditional"


Source: Japanese Family and Culture
JTB, 4th Edition, 2000,
ISBN: 4533020208, Page 74





Learn more about Japanese culture





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Learn about study in Japan at Study Abroad Japan

Japanese Customers:Are Japanese children shy compared to the children of other cultures? Research shows differences?

According to research

"Israeli children are said to be the most confident in the world, 

while Japanese and Taiwanese youngsters are the shyest" 

But what is shyness?

"Dr Bernardo Carducci, director of the Shyness Research Institute at Indiana University,.. explains: “Shyness is characterised by three major features: 


1.excessive self-consciousness,
 2. excessive negative self-evaluation and
3. excessive negative self-preoccupation."

Other factors that are said to affect shyness include 

"Bullying, the presence of domineering siblings, overprotective parents..can all lead to shyness"

Source:Why we are shy

From The Times, by Anjana Ahuja

July 24, 2007

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/

life_and_style/women/the_way_we_live/article2125575.ece

Further reading:

Need for Japanese couples to have children after marriage decreases according to new survey

"A record high 42.8 percent of Japanese people do not feel the need to have children after marriage, with more than 60 percent of women in their 20s and 30s saying so, a government survey showed Saturday."


Source:Over 40% Of Japanese See No Need To Have Children: Survey
Sunday, December 6, 2009
http://www.nni.nikkei.co.jp/e/fr/tnks/Nni20091205D05JF385.htm



Further reading:








See Japan on two wheels



Visit Motorcycle Japan

Japanese consumers to get low interest mortages, 1.6% for 10 years on a 35 year loan starting 2010

"The Japan Housing Finance Agency reportedly charges a fixed annual interest rate on the loan, which was developed jointly with private lenders. As the rate stands at 2.6% per annum now, those who participate in the program will have to pay only 1.6% interest on their loans for the first 10 years..The Japanese government is planning to set aside about JPY 260 billion for the program in its second supplementary budget, which is now being drafted."

Source: Japan To Introduce Low-interest Mortgage Program In 2010: Report
12/6/2009 9:27 AM ET
by RTT Staff Writer
http://www.rttnews.com/Content/USEconomicNews.aspx?Id=1148604&Category=Economic%20News&Node=&SimRec=1

Japanese husbands in Hokkaido spend the most time doing housekeeping in Japan according to survey at 54 minutes a day

"According to the survey, husbands in Hokkaido spend the most time doing housekeeping, at 54.0 minutes daily, ahead of those in Osaka at 49.7 minutes and Tokyo at 48.4 minutes."



Source:Househusband not such a bad gig, one-third of men say, By MARIKO KATO
The Japan Times: Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2009
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/print/nn20090114a5.html







Further reading:



Book - The New Japanese Woman













Study Japanese in Japan? Visit study abroad Japan

Clean cash from a sterilized ATM, cleanliness leads to removing germs from currency in Japan

"Are there ways to make cash cleaner? One approach: ATMs that sterilize your money. Some years back, just such a machine was marketed in Japan, where cleanliness can be something of a cultural obsession. These "clean ATMs" were manufactured by a Hitachi subsidiary, Hitachi-Omron Terminal Solutions."




Source:Can You Catch Swine Flu From Money?,
Consumer Action by AnnaMaria Andriotis and Aleksandra Todorova , Published April 30, 2009
http://www.smartmoney.com/Spending/Travel/Can-You-Catch-Swine-Flu-from-Money/




Further reading:







Study Japanese in Japan? Visit Study Abroad Japan

Book review - A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Sentence Patterns - Self Study Japanese

Book Review – A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Sentence Patterns








Reviewed by JapaneseCustomer.com

Copyright, 2009, All Rights Reserved

Author: Naoko Chino
Publisher: Kodansha, Tokyo, Japan.
Published: 2000.
ISBN: 4-7700-2608-0
Pages: 309.
Rating: 4/5　


Tags: Naoko Chino, Japanese sentence patterns, studying Japaneseself study japanese, japanese grammar, japanese reference book, book review japanese language, japanesecustomer.com


Concise, structured & practical

This book is primarily a sentence dictionary for native English speakers learning Japanese and is aimed at the JLPT level 4 and 3 student. It is based on a formula approach that aims to get students on completing the book to be able to speak in a range of situations using the patterns used which is an important and useful skill in gaining competence and confidence.

Sentences appear as entries & are written as they appear in full Japanese script with an English equivalent, so students get the full benefit of being able to see, and read sentences as they normally appear without the aid of romaji.






Pro's

The reader gets a lot of useful side benefits while studying, for example, throughout the book a wide range of Japanese names are provided male, female and family names which allows the student a cultural insight. The content is excellent and well balanced and shows a wide range of situations in which polite, informal sentences used by male and female speakers and those between adults and children. The use of single sentences, question and answer, descriptions, conversations and a variety of locations provide a wide scope for the student to learn and understand the use of different patterns. The cultural insights the book provides are clearly its strongest points.

The book will help with reading skill; add new vocabulary, including verbs, adjectives and phrases used in everyday speech. From a grammar perspective the sentences show the correct usage and application of common particles. The book can be used as a stand alone guide or in combination with a course of study as a reference book.

Cons

The book starts out by showing three basic sentence patterns, noun sentences, adjective sentences and verb sentences patterns but quickly jumps into a structure that is not clearly explained and that mixes forms and patterns together. The grammar can be followed but the goal and direction are not clear.

A number of conjugation tables are given at the end of the book for verbs and adjectives but how to best use them is not explained. Unfortunately, from the student’s perspective, the book falls short on how to gain maximum advantage. For example: the student is left wondering how to best learn the sentences (i.e., read them allowed, cover and guess endings or memorize and repeat aloud?), how to best review them, how to practice them, how the sentences fit into the English grammar patterns already known and where does the student go after the book has been studied.





Summary

Japanese study self study books are hard to find so this book is a useful reference and provides important cultural insights into sentence structure and usage by sharing a range of situations by gender. However, the student will have to devise their own study plan on how to best use the book for their own study goals.

Rating: 4/5 ****


Reviewed by JapaneseCustomer.com

Copyright, 2009, All Rights Reserved