Tag: Marketing Seed

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[Marketing Seed 144: Edgy vs. Wabi-Sabi ③]

Colorful koi fish swimming in a quiet pond with red flowers
Colorful koi fish swimming in a quiet pond with red flowers

🎭 “Wabi-Sabi and the Beauty of ‘Ma’ (Pause/Space) are ‘Only Understood by Those Who Know'” A unique “high-context culture” breathes within Japanese music and aesthetics. Conveying without speaking, giving meaning to silence, creating a story from the margins—this is truly an “experience of reading the emotion.”

🌊 Wabi-Sabi is the “Power of Margins” For example, the tranquility of a Japanese garden or a tea room calms the human heart without grandiose staging. The structure in music is similar; the lingering resonance of emotion resides precisely in the nuances of the lyrics and the timing of the “Ma” (pauses).

🌍 Reactions from Overseas Listeners In fact, we hear voices like these from overseas fans:

  • “I feel like there’s a story here, but I don’t know what it is.”

  • “I wish I could understand the lyrics… it sounds emotional.”

They “feel something,” but cannot fully grasp the context behind it. In other words, they are sensorially attracted, but lack the key to interpret it.

🧩 “Participation in Interpretation” is the Hallmark of J-POP J-POP and Japanese aesthetics demand an “attitude to read between the lines” from the receiver.

  • Layering one’s own experiences between the lines of the lyrics

  • Supplementing emotions into an incomplete story

  • A hidden empathy that is “only understood by those who know”

This design, which is “only completed when the receiver participates,” builds a deeper relationship than a momentary stimulus.

📖 High Context as a Culture The “high-context culture” proposed by Edward T. Hall (a cultural anthropologist) refers to a society where mutual understanding is established relying on unspoken information and context. Japanese culture is the epitome of this, and J-POP is exactly an extension of it.

🕊️ A Beauty That Takes Time This is exactly why J-POP does not immediately generate flashy buzz. It requires [Time] to understand. However, because of this, it is also true that once fans soak it in, they are deeply loyal and hard to separate from. This is the Wabi-Sabi type of marketing effect: “Even if it doesn’t reach overseas audiences immediately, its intensity is exceptionally high when it finally does.” (To be continued) ■Related Article: Wikipedia “High-context and low-context cultures” ■Thank you for reading. Please check out the other articles in this series as well. →What Sustains Service Quality (3) – Seeds of Marketing No.52

 
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[Marketing Seed 142: Edgy vs. Wabi-Sabi ①]

A person in a cat mascot suit drawing attention with a surprised pose on a busy street
A person in a cat mascot suit drawing attention with a surprised pose on a busy street

🗓️ Day 1 📢 Personal View: “Why Does K-POP Sell Worldwide While Japanese Traditional Beauty Struggles to Reach Them?” K-POP’s “razor-sharp dance” and Japan’s “Wabi-Sabi”. Both are culturally beautiful styles, but global listeners and viewers often react more readily to the former. So, why does this difference occur?

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[Marketing Seed 140: URL and IRL ⑦]

The hands of an audience member holding up a smartphone to record a video amidst the excitement of a live concert
The hands of an audience member holding up a smartphone to record a video amidst the excitement of a live concert

— The New “Third Place” Created by URL x IRL — The relationship between URL and IRL is not merely coexistence; they are already deeply intertwined. Digital and real have become entities that shape people’s lives and culture while complementing each other. What is particularly noteworthy is the concept of the “Third Place” pointed out by Kotler.

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[Marketing Seed 139: URL and IRL ⑥]

A woman diving deep underwater, representing a fully engaging immersive experience
A woman diving deep underwater, representing a fully engaging immersive experience

— “Immersive Experiences” and the Re-evaluation of Real Spaces — Even as the virtual world continues to expand, people continue to seek experiences in real-world settings. Philip Kotler, a master of marketing, states in Marketing 6.0 that Generation Z strongly desires “Immersive experiences.” This means not just online interactions, but experiences where all five senses can be fully utilized. Experiences accompanied not only by sight but also by hearing, touch, smell, and taste lead to “memorable marketing” that cannot be obtained digitally alone. 📱👂👀👃👅

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[Marketing Seed 138: URL and IRL ⑤]

A young woman reading a burning newspaper, symbolizing fake news and the unreliability of information
A young woman reading a burning newspaper, symbolizing fake news and the unreliability of information

— The Role of “Real” in Supporting Information Reliability —

Through URLs, we can access a massive amount of information every day. With over 2 billion websites in the world (as of 2023), we live in an era where anyone can freely broadcast information. The convenience of getting an instant answer just by searching is truly a blessing of our digital society.

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[Marketing Seed 137: URL and IRL (4)]

The feet of runners wearing sneakers starting to run all at once, symbolizing real-world events like the Nike Run Club
The feet of runners wearing sneakers starting to run all at once, symbolizing real-world events like the Nike Run Club

— A Brand Strategy Fusing Digital and Real — While digital initiatives continue to evolve, companies are once again recognizing the importance of real-world experiences. It is true that a URL functions as an information gateway, but many brands are beginning to understand that what moves a customer’s heart is the “moment they actually experience it.”

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[Marketing Seed 136: URL and IRL (3)]

An illuminated Starbucks Coffee store sign glowing at night
An illuminated Starbucks Coffee store sign glowing at night

— The Interaction Between Online and Offline —

URL and IRL are not in an opposing relationship; they are entities that mutually influence each other. If either one is missing, the brand’s value cannot be fully conveyed.

For example, imagine a certain restaurant goes viral on social media. Stylish photos and comments like “Absolutely delicious!” flood timelines, and the number of people following the URL to visit the official page spikes.

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[Marketing Seed 135: URL and IRL (2)]

A portrait of a woman with her mouth taped shut with the words "Fuck reality," adorned with small white flowers on her face.
A portrait of a woman with her mouth taped shut with the words "Fuck reality," adorned with small white flowers on her face.

— Creating Culture Beyond Technology —

A URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is no longer just a technical mechanism; it has become an element that shapes culture itself. When the internet began to spread in the 1990s, URLs functioned as gateways to new information, vastly accelerating the expansion of human knowledge. In 1993, there were only about 130 websites in the world, but by 2000, that number skyrocketed to approximately 17 million.
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[Marketing Seed 134: URL and IRL (1)]

A monitor screen displaying HTML code that makes up URLs and sign-up buttons
A monitor screen displaying HTML code that makes up URLs and sign-up buttons

— The Role of the “Entrance” Connecting Digital and Reality —

A URL (Uniform Resource Locator) indicates the location of information on the internet. It is, so to speak, like an “address” or “coordinates.” We are now in an era where it is difficult even to reach specific information or services without a URL. In fact, it is said that there are over 2 billion websites in the world (as of 2023), and URLs are indispensable for finding our destinations among them.

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