Japan Music Marketing - Sales Promotion and Advertising in Japan for the Music Industry

Selling and Promoting Your Music in Japan
Japan Music Marketing Resources for foreign record labels, bands and artists

Music Promotion in Japan (Sales Promotion, Marketing)

Promotion comes in 3 basic forms:

1. Advertising
2. Publicity
3. Live Shows/Tours

Scenario 1: You have a deal with a Japanese record label that is committed to doing and paying for significant sales promotion for you in Japan.

Scenario 2: You have a deal with a small indie Japanese record label that does not have the financial resources to devote to your marketing/promotion plan. You negotiate a higher share but agree to pay for more promotion in Japan.

Scenario 3: You do not have a deal with a Japanese record label, but you have managed to get your music distributed to some Japanese shops using an indie distributor or a DIY method. You have a budget for promotion in Japan.

*If you need distribution in Japan, please click here.

Of course, Scenario 1 is the best situation for you, but not everyone can be in this scenario. Most will be in Scenario 2 and 3. If this is the case, you will have to do and pay for promotion in Japan. The good thing is that we can help you to do promotion in Japan. Another good thing is that the population of Metro Tokyo is 35 million—more than many countries. All the buzz starts in this city and spreads across the whole country which is only about the size of California state but has a total population of 127 million. Your promotion budget goes further in Japan because you only have to concentrate on 1 city—Tokyo—unlike in the USA where there are many fragmented markets (mainly due to geographic region and demographics).

Advertising (Print, Internet)

There are numerous places for advertising your music in Japan. Your ad campaign will depend on your genre, target audience, and budget, and if possible, should be planned with the release of your CD and/or live tour in Japan. Also, if you are a foreign artist/band/record label, then you should have established distribution in Japan for your products since the ultimate goal of the advertising campaign is to promote sales of your music. If Japanese consumers cannot purchase your music in Japanese online or traditional shops then it is pointless to do advertising.

Advertising Methods in Japan

Print Advertising - 1 Color to Full Color Ads in Magazines and Free Papers/Magazines

There are numerous music-related magazines covering many genres such as jazz, hiphop/r&b, dance/club, Latin, rock and pop (a few are shown below). Most have circulations of 100,000 to over 300,000. There are also some popular free music-related papers/magazines which have over 100,000 printed and distributed in places such as music shops (HMV, Tower Records, etc.), live houses (venues), fashion shops, clubs, bars, restaurants, convenience stores, music festivals, etc.

The cost of a single ad in a popular magazine ranges from about $1,500 to well over $20,000. Ad production can add another 10% to 30% to costs.

Since ad dimensions are limited, showing a QR Code or link to a Japanese website (LP) is the norm for directing consumers to more info, sample music and shops that sell your music. (LP=Landing Page)

Below are some popular music magazines targeted to Japanese music listeners/consumers. There is a publication for almost every genre of music.

Japanese Music Magazines

Quick Links

Get distribution in Japan

Find a Japanese record label to release your music

Send your demo to Japanese record companies

Do a live tour in Japan

Create a Japanese web + mobile page

Links to Live Houses (Venues) in Japan

See what foreign artists are "Big in Japan"

Below are some of the most popular free magazines/papers in Japan that have 100,000 or more circulation per monthly issue.

Japanese Hip Hop Free Paper

*There are also special advertising packages in Hip Hop Insider (ad rates from $90 per issue) available.

Jungle Life is a free music magazine that has a monthly circulation of 150,000. It is mainly for pop and rock genres.

Single Ad Budget: $1,500 to $15,000

Internet Advertising

Popular Japanese websites, blogs and email newsletters targeted to music consumers offer advertising space. The most popular websites get well over 1 million page views per month. Most internet advertising rates are based on pay per 1,000 impressions (ad views) or pay per click on your ad. Some are based on a simple flat rate per month.

Tower Records Japan Tower.jp has about 22 million page views and 2.5 million unique users per month.
Barks.jp has about 7 million page views and 1.5 million unique users per month.

Image ads in these popular Japanese websites start around $3,000. You can get over half a million to well over a million ad views with 1 ad.

You can also drive traffic to your Japanese web page using text and/or image ads (i.e. listing ads, sponsor ads, content ads) in Google Japan (Adwords), Yahoo Japan (Overture) and their respective networks of partner sites. Since advertisers can pay per click on their ad, the campaign can be customized to any budget—from $1/day. Costs per click typically range from $0.15 to $0.60.

The Google Japan Adwords network reaches over 85% of all Japanese internet users and includes some of the most popular sites for music marketing in Japan (e.g. Tower.jp, Barks.jp, YouTube.jp, Bounce.jp, Listen.jp, etc.).

A Facebook ad campaign that targets Japanese Facebook users is also possible.

Outlined in red below are examples of text ads in the Google Japan and Yahoo Japan search pages. For music marketing in Japan, we use a strategy based on creating and placing image ads in the most relevant content sites to maximize clicks on your ad and drive traffic to your Japanese web page. Click here for sample image ads in the Google Adwords Network.

Regardless of text or image ad, you can set your maximum budget from $1 per day ($30/month). If you want more traffic to your web page, simply increase your maximum daily budget to whatever you can afford. This is an excellent method of music marketing for indie record labels, artists and bands with limited advertising budgets. Contact us for more info and to get started with a Japanese ad campaign.

Required ad budgets for various advertising/promotion in Japan:
Adwords Ad Campaign - Google Japan and Partner Sites (Setup Fee: from $199; Min. Ad Budget from $1/day) more info
Overture Ad Campaign - Yahoo Japan and Partner Sites (Setup Fee: from $199; Min. Ad Budget from $1/day) more info
Facebook Japanese Ad Campaign (Setup Fee: from $99; Min. Ad Budget from $1/day) more info
Image ad in other Japanese website, blog or email newsletter (Min. Ad Budget from $2,000)
Print ad in Japanese magazine/free paper (Min. Ad Budget from $2,000)
Classified ad in Hip Hop Insider magazine - only for hip hop/rap/R&B genres (Min. Ad Budget from $270) more info
Image ad in TopMusic.jp website (Min. Ad Budget from $45) more info

*Min. budgets shown are approximate. Costs may vary depending on your genre, available ad space, ad/materials production costs, discounts, etc.
*Artists with TopMusic.jp FULL VERSION Japanese Web+Mobile Sites get a discount on setup fees for Adwords (Google), Overture (Yahoo) and Facebook Japan Ad Campaigns (basic startup campaigns).

Nowadays, most music purchases are made online or via mobile phone. If you need a custom marketing solution for Japan, contact us.

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Publicity

Publicity is not advertising. It is "free" (i.e. the publisher is not paid) and comes in the form of articles, reviews, and news about you published in media, your music or video played on radio or TV, or a radio interview or TV appearance.

A Japanese website is essential when seeking publicity so that not only fans, but media can readily get more info, contact you, watch your music videos, and download extras such as photos or MP3's. Japanese media will often include your website URL and QR Code in articles, news and reviews. (Click here to make a high quality music video just using your MP3 and some still images)

In Japan, "tie-ups" are how many larger record companies promote artists. A tie-up can come in the form of a song being used for a commercial or advertising campaign for another product or service (such as a new mobile phone, clothing, car, cosmetics, etc.), or a song used in a TV show, movie, or a bonus when someone buys a product. Usually record companies with close relations with advertising agencies and producers can make this happen. The "tie-up" marketing strategy can probably be viewed as a mix of advertising and publicity (although some may say that the song is used for "free", the money that actually changes hands between record company and ad agency/client is usually not talked about nor disclosed).

Sometimes a music or creative director may be looking for a particular sound (like a Hawaiian song or a Latin jazz/bossanova song) and will seek out and discover music from a foreign artist or band. Some music may come from foreign artists who are not at all popular in their own countries but due to the tie-up, may see a sudden rise in popularity and sales in Japan. These music and creative directors use the web to find music. So creating a Japanese website is very important. Click here to create an affordable Japanese web page without the need to read/write Japanese.

In Japan, FM/AM radio does not play an important role in the promotion of foreign indie artists. Unlike in the West where the more you pay for radio promotion the more your song is added or played on radio and the more your song appears in charts, in Japan, there are only a few FM/AM radio stations and their top 10 charts or playlists are not widely reported by mass media. (Mostly sales charts are reported.) Nowadays, the number of listeners of FM/AM radio in Japan represents only a fraction of the number of users of online and mobile media so targeting internet radio and podcasters makes more sense. You can still submit your song to some Japanese FM/AM radio stations to try get a little exposure. Check out the Members Resources for companies that will help foreign artists in this area.

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Live Shows/Tours

Live shows/tours are the best way to establish a loyal fan base in Japan and to promote your music. It also helps in getting publicity and motivates your distributor to push your product at stores. Do not rely on booking agents because there are none (unless you are a DJ or want to work as an entertainer in a cabaret/night club/theme park/attraction). Like Japanese indie bands, you have to audition, organize and pay for your shows. Doing a live gig in Japan is not a revenue-generating activity, it is a promotional expense.

The costs of touring in Japan will vary depending on the number of members and amount of tour support services required. In addition to everyone's transportation, accommodation, food, and other personal costs, the tour planning/management company must also be paid for its services.

If you are wondering about how much doing a Japan tour costs simply go to your local travel agency and ask them how much a standard tourist package would be for Japan (staying 7 days and visiting Tokyo and maybe Osaka) for the number of people in your band—then add some extra (the tour organizer/manager also takes a fee) to come up with a conservative budget for your tour! If you have that budget ready and at least 3 to 4 months leadtime (and valid passports with no criminal records) then contact the companies that specialize in the planning and management of live tours and concerts for foreign artists/bands and labels in Japan.

Click here to read more about doing a live tour in Japan and about Japanese "live houses" (venues). If you know a little Japanese or know someone who does you might be able to setup your own gigs. Click here to see a list of live houses throughout Japan.

Click here for contact information for companies that specialize in the planning and management of live tours and concerts for foreign artists/bands and labels in Japan.

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Articles about The Music Market in Japan - How to Make it "Big in Japan"

1. Japanese Market Opportunity for Foreign Music - If you are in the business of selling music, do not forget Japan!
2. The Music Business in Japan - Indie Music Culture and Record Companies in Japan
3. Playing Gigs in Japan - Promoting your music at Japanese "Live Houses" and other venues
4. How Much Does It Cost? - The activities and related costs of selling and promoting your music in Japan
5. Useful Tips On Visiting and Doing Business in Japan - Info and advice for visiting and doing business in Japan

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