#426 - 亚马逊日本站成功策略

今天，我们将全面探讨亚马逊全球第四大市场——亚马逊日本，以及两位长期居住在日本的专家为何认为这对卖家来说是一个绝佳的机会。

Today, we're gonna talk all about the fourth biggest marketplace for Amazon in the world, Amazon Japan, and what an incredible opportunity is for sellers out there with two experts who've been living in Japan for years.

我觉得这非常酷。

Pretty cool, I think.

Helium 10 的 Black Box 拥有除亚马逊自身之外全球最大的亚马逊产品和关键词数据库。

Black Box by Helium ten houses the largest database of Amazon products and keywords in the world outside of Amazon itself.

我们拥有超过20亿个产品，以及来自美国、澳大利亚、德国等多个亚马逊市场的数千万个关键词。

We have over 2,000,000,000 products and many millions more keywords from different Amazon marketplaces from USA to Australia to Germany and more.

使用我们强大的筛选功能，在这个数据库中搜索你可能想进入的商机，无论是你的第一个还是下一个在亚马逊上销售的产品。

Use our powerful filters to search through this database for pockets of opportunity that you might wanna get into with your first or next product to sell on Amazon.

如需更多信息，请访问 h10.me/blackbox。

For more information, go to h10.me/blackbox.

别忘了，使用我们的专属代码 ssp10，即可终身享受 Helium 10 10% 的折扣。

Don't forget you can save 10% off for life on Helium ten by using our special code s s p 10.

大家好，欢迎收听 Helium 10 推出的卖家播客系列的又一期节目。

Hello, everybody, and welcome to another episode of the series sellers podcast by Helium ten.

我是主持人布拉德利·萨顿。

I am your host, Bradley Sutton.

这是一档完全不扯淡、非脚本、非排练的真诚对话节目，探讨电商领域各个层级卖家的实用策略。

This is the show that's a completely BS free, unscripted, and unrehearsed organic conversation about serious strategies for serious sellers of any level in the ecommerce world.

在我们开始与嘉宾对话之前，你知道，现在是2023年。

And before we get started here with our guest, you know, the this is 2023.

有些人会谈论文化挪用之类的问题。

People think some people do cultural appropriation and whatnot.

所以我要为在YouTube上观看的朋友们解释一下，我身上这件日本浴衣——现在太平洋时间快晚上11点了。

So I have to explain for those of you watching on YouTube, my my Japanese yukata here, which is actually, this right now, it's 11PM almost Pacific time.

我通常在这个时间段工作，为其他时区的听众做播客，这就是我每天晚上在家穿的衣服，各位。

And so, like, I usually work around this time and do podcasts for people who are in other time zones, and this is what I wear, guys, in my house every, you know, every night.

对于不了解的人，我曾经是一名相扑选手，不是职业的，而是业余的。

For those who don't know, I actually used to be a sumo wrestler, not professional, but amateur.

在美国排名第三。

Ranked number three in United States.

我非常喜欢相扑，所以我现在穿着这件日本浴衣。

I've been loving sumo wrestling, so I have my Japanese yukata here.

这就是我在家里穿的衣服。

This is what I wear in my house.

我们的嘉宾实际上在日本，这就是为什么我在这个时间（晚上11点）做播客。

And our guests are actually in Japan, is why I'm doing a podcast at 11PM my time.

总之，加里和尼克，尼克。

Anyways, Gary and Nick Nick.

太棒了。

Excellent.

是的。

Yeah.

这意味着我们好久没见了，因为尼克其实之前来过我们的播客，朋友们。

That means kinda kinda like long time no see because Nick actually has been on the podcast, guys.

所以我们不会过多讲述他的背景故事。

So we're not gonna go too much into his backstory.

如果你们想了解他的成长故事，一定要收听《Serious Stars》播客的第178期。

If you guys wanna check out his origin story, make sure to check out episode 178 of the Serious Stars podcast.

第178期，然后你们就能了解他了。

178, and then you could learn about him.

然后，加里，我想这应该是你第一次参加这个播客吧？

And then, Gary, I think this is the first time you've been on this podcast, perhaps?

没错。

Correct.

没错。

Correct.

我非常兴奋，终于能和你们一起参加这个节目了。

I'm super excited to to finally be on here with you guys.

你也在日本。

You too are in Japan.

你知道，你不是日本人，那你能解释一下你的背景故事吗？

Now, you know, you're not Japanese, so can you explain how your what's your origin story?

你在美国哪里出生的？

Like, where were you born in America?

你出生在哪里，又是怎么来到日本的？

Where were you born, and how did you make it to Japan?

当然。

Definitely.

好吧，我不会讲我的完整人生故事，但简而言之，我出生并成长于加利福尼亚州洛杉矶。

Well, I won't give you my life story, but long story short, I was born and raised in LA, Los Angeles, California.

我去过南加州大学。

Went to USC.

在那里住了

Lived there for,

像特洛伊人一样。

like Trojan.

首先。

First.

是的。

Like yeah.

南加大特洛伊人。

USC Trojan.

在座各位如果能看到我的话，我头上戴着道奇队的帽子。

I got my Dodgers cap on for those of you guys I can see.

然后，你知道的，我在2000年代中期就开始做电商了，当时eBay还是最大的平台。

And then, you know, I got started in e comm in the mid two thousands, very very early on back when eBay was the biggest player.

我当时在做批发。

I was selling, you know, was wholesale.

我的产品是从洛杉矶的一家本地批发商那里拿的。

I got my products from a local wholesaler in LA.

我从中国进口商品。

I imported from China.

我一开始卖的是女鞋。

I started selling women's shoes, women's footwear.

那是我在eBay时代卖的第一个产品。

That was my first product back in the eBay days.

我于2008年搬到了亚洲。

I moved out to Asia in 2008.

我搬到中国是因为当时中国正因北京奥运会而蓬勃发展，同时美国又遭遇了金融危机。

I moved out to China because at that time, China was blowing up with the Beijing Olympics, and then at the same time, financial crisis hit The US.

所以我决定行动起来。

So I wanted to make a move.

我只是对上海的繁忙喧嚣感到着迷。

I I was just, like, fascinated with all the the hustle and bustle in Shanghai.

就像纽约市加了倍的兴奋劲儿。

It's like New York City on steroids.

嗯。

Mhmm.

但我为什么会在日本呢？

But why am I in Japan?

是的。

I Yes.

我的意思是，快进到2019年。

I mean, fast forward, 2019.

好的。

Okay.

那年11月在中国，我在从事采购工作。

So through that November in China, I I was working in sourcing.

我为一家咨询公司工作。

I was working for a consulting firm.

我是为外国客户从中国获取报价的对接人。

I was, like, the point person for foreign clients sourcing price from China.

我亲自走访了数百家中国工厂，有好的，有差的，也有糟糕的。

So I literally visited hundreds of Chinese factories in the good, the bad, the ugly.

你知道，我通过我的一个网站‘8020采购’记录了这些经历。

You know, I blog about it through my one of my websites, 8020 sourcing.

然后我就转战亚马逊了，因为大约在2015、2016年的时候，我听到了那些老一辈的播客，就是我们以前常听的那些人。

And then I, you know, pivoted to Amazon because, you know, back in about twenty fifteen, sixteen, you know, I heard the podcast, you know, like all the the old the OG guys that we used to listen to.

我当时在中国实地，所以自然而然地把这两件事联系在了一起。

And I was on the ground in China, so I kinda put two and two together.

于是我在中国把采购和电子商务结合起来。

So, I put the sourcing and the e comm together in China.

时间快进到2019年，那时候我结婚了，有了一个年幼的孩子。

Fast forward to 2019, it was, you know, got married, had a young child.

我们觉得上海太冷了，所以想搬到东南亚。

We were we we were too like, too freezing in Shanghai, so we wanted to go to Southeast Asia.

所以在疫情爆发前，我们就离开了中国。

So we left China before the pandemic.

我们根本不知道接下来会发生什么。

We never knew what was gonna happen.

疫情来了，简而言之，我们太害怕回去了。

And pandemic hit, long story short, we were too scared to go back.

我们离开了日本文化。

And we left, you know, the Japanese culture.

你知道，我妻子是中国人的。

You know, my wife is from China.

她有日本签证，我们每年都会去日本一趟。

She had a a Japanese visa, you know, and we visited Japan, like, yearly.

所以我们想，为什么不直接去日本呢？

So we're like, why not go to Japan?

你就等着，熬过这段时期。

You know, just wait it out.

于是我们最终在日本冲绳待了两年半，哦，真的吗。

So we we ended up waiting in Japan, in Okinawa for two and a half years Oh, wow.

在疫情期间。

During the pandemic.

但冲绳是个美丽的地方，当地人非常友好。

But, I mean, Okinawa is a beautiful place, super friendly people.

它就像是日本的夏威夷。

It's like the Hawaii of Japan.

我不确定，布拉德利，你去过那里吗？

I don't know if, Bradley, if you've been there.

那是个很棒的地方。

It's it's an awesome place.

去冲绳？

To Okinawa?

你知道，在那期间，是的。

You know, during the Yeah.

那就是，

That that's,

我曾经住过的地方，我小时候住在东京附近。

one of the I used to live in I've lived, near near Tokyo and then you know, when I was when I was little.

后来还住过最北边的青森，但从来没去过冲绳，也没在那里住过。

And then in all the way north in Aomori, but never never have lived, visited, or anything to Okinawa.

所以我 definitely 想去。

So I definitely wanna go.

是的。

Yeah.

你知道，我一直在举办在线峰会，比如七位数卖家峰会，因为那时候人们不能旅行，而你当时非常幸运。

You know, I continue doing the online summits, the Seven Figure Seller Summit, because at that time, people couldn't travel, and you were just very fortunate.

你知道，我们当时有两三千人参加我们为亚马逊卖家举办的线上活动。

You know, we we got, like, two, three thousand people to come on to our online events for Amazon sellers.

然后我们赢得了不少最佳亚马逊会议奖项。

And then you we won a number of awards for favorite Amazon conference.

但快进到现在，你知道，世界正在重新开放，你刚才提到，Bradley 几个月前刚去过日本，而日本的各类会议现在都全面恢复了。

But, you know, fast forward to today, you know, now the world's opening up and you were just talking, you know, Bradley was in Japan just a few months ago and, everything's opened up in Japan, you know, conferences.

我和 Nick 聊过。

And I was talking to Nick.

我的意思是，Nick 被称为‘日本通’。

I mean, Nick is known as the Japan guy.

他在日本卖货已经很多年了，是个七位数销售额的卖家。

He's been selling in Japan so many years, 7 figure seller.

我们把两个人凑到了一起。

And we've put two of two together.

我们觉得，亚马逊日本市场这里有很大的机会。

We thought, you know, there's a big opportunity here in Amazon Japan.

你知道，它是全球第四大亚马逊市场，但几乎没人谈论它，这简直有点荒谬。

You know, it's the number four biggest Amazon marketplace, but almost nobody is talking about it, which is, you know, it's kinda ridiculous.

人们总在谈论一些更小的市场。

You know, people are talking about, like, know, smaller markets.

我不是有意冒犯，但像阿联酋、荷兰或者波兰这些地方。

I mean, no disrespect, but like UAE and, you know, like, you know, Holland or Poland.

对吧？

Right?

我的意思是，日本比那些市场大得多。

I mean, Japan is much bigger than that.

但很多人只是感到畏惧，所以我们想，为什么不就在东京本地举办一场亚马逊大会呢？让人们能亲临现场。

But a lot of people are just intimidated, so we thought, you know, why not do an Amazon conference in Japan, like, on the ground here in Tokyo where people can, you know, be on the ground.

他们会从像尼克这样的七位数日本卖家那里学习，我们还有一些八位数的卖家，以及许多专家。

They'll learn from these 7 figure Japan sellers like Nick, and we have some 8 figure sellers, and we have a a lot of experts as well.

所以，这就是我们举办这场大会的初衷——为了帮助大家在亚马逊日本市场销售，我们知道，这现在是一个巨大的机会。

So, that's kind of our story, you know, to to put together this conference to to sell in Japan, which, you we know, think is a huge opportunity right now.

现在，尼克，我记得你上期节目时说过，你当时一无所有。

Now, Nick, you know, when you were on the episode, I remember, you know, you had no.

那是骗人的。

That's a lie.

我什么都不记得了。

I I don't remember anything.

我正在看以前播客的笔记。

I'm looking at the my notes from the old podcast.

我连上周的事都记不清了，更别说两年前的那期节目了，所以我没撒谎。

I don't remember what I did last week, let alone an episode two two years ago, so I don't lie.

所以我要说，我正在看我的笔记，你知道，那时候你已经卖出了数十万美元的产品。

So I'm gonna say, I'm looking at my notes and, you know, you you had sold hundreds of thousands of dollars at that time.

我想这大概是2020年。

I think this was about 2020.

你知道，加里刚刚提到了一个数据，我也听说过，日本是亚马逊第四大市场，我认为是这样。

You know, Gary just mentioned one of the figures, which which I have heard too that Japan is is the fourth biggest, like, Amazon marketplace, I believe.

你知道，排名是美国第一，然后是德国，第三和第四名有时是英国，有时是日本。

You know, it goes US and then Germany and then kind of, you know, sometimes UK, sometimes, you know, Japan for three and four.

关于日本的电子商务或亚马逊在日本的其他数据或事实，你还能补充一些吗？这些信息能帮助人们意识到，日本的电子商务确实是一个值得关注的重要领域？

Are there any other, like, facts and figures about just, you know, ecommerce in Japan, Amazon in Japan that you could throw out that that helps kind of, like, set people's minds that, hey, you know, ecommerce in Japan is definitely a thing and something that people should be paying attention to?

正如你所说，对于亚马逊卖家来说，亚马逊日本市场是第四大市场，或者说是第三大市场。

So, I mean, as as you mentioned, for an Amazon seller, Amazon Japan is the fourth largest marketplace or the third mark largest marketplace.

基本上，去年日元大幅贬值。

Basically, the yen has taken a dive or took a dive last year.

所以当你看亚马逊的销售数据时，由于汇率变动，销售额大约下降了20%。

And so when you look at the Amazon figures, the currency, it dropped about, I think, about 20%.

所以这可能也是一个因素。

So that probably factors into it.

所以它的规模和英国差不多。

So it's about the size of The UK.

所以你想想，它的规模和英国差不多。

So if you think about it, it's about the size of The UK.

所以它排第三或第四，但人口是英国的两倍。

So it's third, maybe fourth, but it's double the population of The UK.

这相当不错。

So that's pretty good.

所以我们来谈谈未来的潜在销量。

So we talk about future or possible sales.

如果你已经在英国销售，那么你在日本拥有的潜在客户数量是英国的两倍。

You've got double the number of people to sell to if you're already selling in The UK.

而且，它不仅仅是第四大亚马逊市场。

And, also, it's not just the fourth largest Amazon marketplace.

它是全球第四大电子商务市场。

It's the fourth largest ecom marketplace in the world.

我的意思是，如果这还不能让你意识到你至少应该关注一下，那我真的不知道什么才能了。

So, I mean, if that doesn't, you know, give you an idea that maybe you should at least be looking at it, then I don't know what.

好的。

Alright.

基本上是这样。

Basically.

所以是的。

So yeah.

简而言之，我就是说，嗯。

In a nutshell, I've just yeah.

第四大市场，第四大电子商务市场，全球人口第三大经济体，人口是英国的两倍。

Fourth largest marketplace, fourth largest ecom marketplace, third highest GDP in the world population, double the size of The UK.

我的意思是，这些大概是我第一时间能想到的主要数据。

I mean, those are probably the main stats that I would think of off the top of my head.

我能补充一点吗？

Can I just add to that?

因为我几乎是带着全新的眼光来看日本的。

Because I I'm coming to Japan almost with fresh eyes.

你知道，我在冲绳住了两年半。

You know, I lived in Okinawa for two and a half years.

我们几周前刚到东京。

We just landed in Tokyo a few weeks ago.

你知道，在东京，亚马逊有Prime配送服务。

You know, here in Tokyo, Amazon is, you know, they have the prime delivery.

他们甚至有当日送达服务。

They have, like, same day delivery.

所以你可以订购任何东西。

So you can order anything.

你可以订购，比如杂货。

You can order, like, groceries.

你知道，我们正在布置新公寓。

You know, we're furnishing our new apartment.

你们可能知道，布拉德利大概也清楚，搬进新公寓时，通常只有光秃秃的木地板和两台空调而已。

As you guys may know as Bradley probably knows, when you move into a new apartment, it's just like a bare wooden floor and two air conditioning units and that's it.

所以我正在订购冰箱、电视、架子，还有床单之类的东西。

So I'm ordering, like, a refrigerator or TV, you know, shelves and, you know, like linens and stuff like that.

你可以订购任何东西。

You can order everything.

亚马逊是日本最大的在线购物平台。

Amazon's the biggest marketplace online in Japan.

你知道，它已经超过了乐天。

You know, it's they overtook Rakuten.

所以它非常普遍。

So it's prevalent.

你到处都能看到亚马逊的快递员。

You see like the Amazon drivers, you know, like delivery guys everywhere.

所以，你知道，它发展得非常快，无处不在。

So, you know, it's it's very, you know, you know, it's growing very quickly and it's, you know, it's everywhere.

现在，让我感到兴奋的一点是，关于亚马逊日本的卖家，从文化上讲，这让我觉得非常奇怪，因为绝大多数卖家根本不用任何工具。

Now now one of the things that gets me excited, when I think about the Amazon Japan opportunity is amongst the sellers, culturally, it's very strange to me because they pretty much don't use tools, the the the great majority.

当然，Helium 10 已经为亚马逊日本提供功能好几年了。

Now now there's, you know, Helium ten has had functionality in in for Amazon Japan a couple years.

还有一些来自中国和其他地方的小型工具公司也在做，但无论是大型卖家还是小型卖家，大多数都不用，这挺有意思的。

There's other smaller tool companies from China and other places who do it, but, like, the majority of the large and, know, from small to large, it's funny.

在美国，亚马逊美国的卖家从很久以前就开始使用工具了，Helium 10 绝对不是美国第一个工具。

Like, you know, people in America for Amazon USA has been using tools since you know, Helium 10 was definitely not the first tool in America.

早在 2015 年、2016 年 Helium 10 还没出现的时候，人们就已经在用其他工具了。

People have been using other tools, you know, since before Helium 10 was around even in 2015, 2016.

但这就像是，我不知道是不是因为信任问题，他们觉得不需要这些工具。

But it's almost like like you know, I don't know if it's a trust thing where they don't they don't think or they don't think they need it.

但对我来说，如果我去日本，能使用像 Helium 10 Cerebro 这样的工具，或者直接输入竞争对手的 ASIN，就能立刻知道他们排名的所有关键词之类的信息，这显然会让我拥有一个很大的优势，而在其他市场，卖家整体上似乎更专业，我却没有这样的优势。

But to me, like, if I go into Japan and and and I have access to, like, you know, let's say, Helium ten Cerebro, or I can just instantly put in my competitor's ASIN and know all the keywords where they're ranking for and stuff, it seems like I can have a nice advantage that I don't have necessarily in these other marketplaces where I think the sellers overall seem to be more sophisticated.

我这种说法是过时的信息吗？还是说，根据你的观察，这大致准确，尼克？

Am am I completely is this old information or is this kind of accurate from what you've seen, Nick?

你说得对。

So you're right.

针对外国人的工具非常少。

There aren't very many tools for foreigners.

有一些针对日本本地人的工具在被使用。

There are tools for Japanese people that are used.

它们并不特别好，而且价格相当贵。

They're not particularly good, and they're rather pricey.

但亚马逊日本平台上一半的第三方卖家都是中国人，他们确实有使用工具。

But half of the sellers on Amazon, Japan, the half of the third party sellers are Chinese, and, and and and they certainly have tools.

所以他们是懂行的。

So they know.

这个问题想问问你们两位，关于在日本销售，以及谈到中国卖家或其他像大工库津这样的外国卖家时，你们怎么看？

Now this question is for either of you, you know, along the same topic of of selling Japan and and talking about Chinese sellers or other, you know, Daiko Kujin sellers, you know, foreign sellers.

我记得在文化上，虽然这不一定是某种恶劣的种族偏见，但人们是不是对外国制造的产品有一种抵触情绪呢？

I remember culturally, not that it's necessarily some bad racist thing or something, but there isn't there kind of like an aversion for like may foreign made products?

比如，日本人不是在文化上更偏爱日本制造的产品吗？

Like, don't the the culturally, don't Japanese people favor heavily made in Japan products?

所以如果他们看到商品列表，明显能看出不是日本制造的——比如来自中国或美国，这可能就不是什么好事了。

And so if they see listings that where it's maybe obvious that it's not, you know, like it's done by a you know, like whether it's China, whether it's USA, maybe it's not that great of a thing.

因为你知道，在美国，我们也有这种情况。

Because, you know, like in America, we we have that.

当然。

Of course.

作为买家，我们早就习惯了，看到某个商品列表时，会发现英语都不正确。

We're used to you know, as a buyer, you look at some list and you're like, like, ah, the the this the English is not even correct.

但其实我们并不在意。

Like, but don't care.

我还是会买它。

I'm still gonna buy it.

你知道，它有五颗星，而且很便宜。

You know, it's got five stars and it's cheap.

我会买它。

I'll get it.

但在日本也是这样吗？还是说他们更偏爱国产产品，比如相比美国或德国之类的？

But is that the same in Japan, or or do they really favor more domestic products more than, like, say, USA or Germany or something like that?

日本人非常喜欢国产产品。

The Japanese love domestic products.

他们钟爱日本制造的产品。

They love Japanese made products.

但日本可以说三十年来都没有真正增长，我倒不说是衰退，但国家经济确实停滞了。

But Japan has been I wouldn't say been in a recession for thirty years, but the the country hasn't really grown in thirty years.

所以日本人并没有人们想象中那么富有。

So Japanese people aren't as rich as people think they are.

他们三十年前很富有，但现在差不多还是那样。

They were they were rich thirty years ago, but it's pretty much the same now.

日本人追求高品质。

Japanese want high quality.

他们想要最好的产品。

They want the best products.

他们想要日本制造的产品，同时也想要便宜的产品。

They want Japanese products, and they want cheap products.

但不幸的是，这两者很难兼顾。

And, unfortunately, that just doesn't match up.

所以，我不会说他们不喜欢外国品牌。

So and I wouldn't say that they don't like foreign brands.

他们很喜欢外国品牌。

They love foreign brands.

说实话，如果让他们在两个品牌之间选择，大多数情况下他们会选日本品牌。

I think if they were to choose from a Japanese brand, they would choose a Japanese brand in most circumstances, to be honest.

但老实说，在亚马逊上竞争的日本品牌并不多。

But there aren't very many Japanese brands that are competing on Amazon, to be honest.

价格不幸地太高了。

The price is just unfortunately too high.

所以外国品牌，他们真的很喜欢。

So foreign brands, they do really like.

他们最最讨厌的是中国制造。

What they really, really hate is made in China.

我认为在美国，比如，如果产品是美国制造的，美国买家就会喜欢。

And I think the difference in America, for example, if it was made in America in America, American buyers would like that.

但如果他们知道某样东西是中国制造的，他们也不会多说什么。

But if they knew something that was made in China, they wouldn't really say too much about it.

在日本，他们往往会购买明显是中国制造的便宜产品，然后直接给最差的评价。

In Japan, they tend to buy the cheap product that is clearly made in China, and they'll just they'll just, you know, they'll just leave it the worst review.

评论者会用日语简单地说：‘当然了，这是中国制造的。’

And the reviewer will just say basically in Japanese, of course, it's made in China.

这句话在日语评论中，我不断看到，一遍又一遍。

That phrase in Japanese, I just keep seeing again and again and again in reviews.

对于我自己想买的产品，人们总会说，当然了。

For products I'm looking to buy myself, people say, of course.

它，坏了。

It like, broke.

当然了，这是中国制造的。

Of course, it's made in China.

你知道，它也没那么好。

You know, it wasn't that good.

当然了，这是中国制造的。

Of course, it's made.

这种对中国制造的贬低简直疯狂至极。

It's just this this China bashing is absolutely insane.

但他们还是在购买。

So But they're still buying it.

这正是

Which is

你不想翻译产品列表的原因。

the reason why you don't wanna translate your listing.

但他们还是在购买。

But they're still buying I

因为他们买了便宜的那个。

know because they bought the cheap one.

如果他们想买好的，本可以买日本的，但他们不愿意花钱。

If they wanted to buy the good one, they could have bought the Japanese one, but they didn't wanna pay the money.

所以，一个很好的机会可能是：嘿，不管我们来自哪里——中国、美国、德国、英国，我们都从中国同一家工厂获得相同的产品，但我们可以想办法为日本消费者优化产品描述，比如请母语翻译，他们甚至可能根本不知道这是中国制造的。

So so then so then would a kind of great opportunity be like, hey, let let's you know, regardless of where we're from, whether we're from China, whether we're from USA, whether we're from, you know, Germany, UK, we get that same product from that same factory in China, but we figure out how to make a nice optimized for the Japanese people listing where maybe I use a native translator or something and they might not even know it's made in China.

那这会是机会吗？

Would would that be the opportunity then?

是的。

Yes.

这就是机会。

That's the opportunity.

所以，本质上，你是想用品牌营销。

So, basically, you want to you want to use branding.

你永远不希望有一个糟糕的listing，因为即使你是美国品牌，但如果listing做得很差，读起来像是中国卖家写的，那就不好了。

So you don't ever want to have a bad listing because if you if you even if you're like an American brand and you have a listing done badly and it kind of reads like it was written by a Chinese seller, that's not good.

但如果你展示自己是中国品牌——抱歉，是美国品牌、英国品牌、德国品牌，他们就非常喜欢。

But if you if you show that you're a Chinese brand if you're Japanese sorry, an American brand, a UK brand, a German brand, they love that.

这很好。

That's good.

做一个规范的listing。

Have a proper listing.

确保它写得专业，这样你就稳操胜券了。

Make sure it's written properly, and then you are you are well away.

回到刚才的说法，日本人确实喜欢日本品牌，但在亚马逊上价格有竞争力的日本品牌其实很少。

As I come back to the fact, Japanese people do love Japanese brands, but there really aren't very many competitively priced on Amazon.

所以他们并没有太多选择。

So they don't have that choice.

但他们愿意为品牌支付更多钱。

But they are willing to pay more for brand.

一般来说，亚马逊日本并不是销售高价产品的理想平台。

Generally, Amazon Japan is not a great place for expensive products.

老实说，它不是一个高单价的市场。

It's not a high kind of it's not a high ticket marketplace, to be honest.

所以产品的价格大约在40美元左右。

So products are around about the well, I'm gonna say about $40.

30美元左右，20到30美元这个区间在日本非常有竞争力。

Around the $30 mark is is 20 to 30 is is very, very good on Japan.

你有一个好产品。

You've a good product.

你有良好的品牌建设。

You've got good branding.

你展现出自己是外国品牌。

You show that you're a foreign brand.

真正有问题的只有中国。

It's really only China that's a problem.

我从没见过他们评论说，哦，这当然是英国品牌，或者当然是外国品牌。

I never see them comment, oh, of course, it's a UK brand or of course, it's a foreign

他们到底说了什么？

What what do they actually say?

我打印了一大堆这些评论。

Printed out a bunch of these reviews.

我只是在自己找产品的时候发现的。

I just found looking for products myself.

很明显，这是一款中国产品。

I mean, it's clearly it's clearly a Chinese product.

很明显，iPhone方面，我认为日本的iOS市场份额仍然是最高的。

It's clearly and iPhones, I think Japan still has the highest share of iOS to Android.

人人都知道它们是在中国制造的，但因为它是美国品牌，所以完全能被接受。

And everybody knows they're made in China, but still, because it's an American brand, it totally passes.

所以，如果你的品牌定位做得好，即使产品是中国制造，也不是问题，因为他们心里其实清楚。

So that would be a good example of if you got your branding right, it's not a problem if it's made in China because they do know that.

这就是为什么看到这些评论时我会感到恼火，因为这很明显。

And that's why it annoys me when you see the reviews because it was obvious.

如果你花10美元买一样东西，而另一个日本版本要40美元，你自然就能想明白。

If you if you spent, you know, $10 on something and the next and then, like, another, you know, Japanese version is $40, you'll be able to work it out.

你知道的。

You know?

是的。

Yeah.

如果我可以补充一点，我觉得日本消费者对中国产品的态度，最典型的例子就是大创，那个100日元或1美元商店。

And if I can just add to that, I I think the perfect example of, you know, Japanese consumers, like, their attitudes towards Chinese products is with Daiso, like, worth, like, the 100 yen or the dollar shop.

我的意思是，那些产品绝大多数都是中国制造的，但它依然是购物中心里最受欢迎的店铺。

I mean, most all of those products are made in China, but that's still the most popular shop in the shopping mall.

你知道，人人都在那里买厨房用品、浴室用品。

You know, everyone's getting all of their kitchen stuff, all their bathroom stuff there.

而且可能有些东西会坏掉，但大多数人还是完全满意的。

And maybe like, you know, some of them are gonna break, but, you know, most of them people are perfectly happy with.

所以我觉得，就像尼克说的那样。

So I think, you know, it's like what Nick said.

只要质量好，品牌和营销怎么样，其实中国制造与否都没关系。

And so long as, you know, the quality is good, like, the the branding, the marketing, I mean, made in China or not.

当然，人们更喜欢本国制造的产品，但我发现大家其实都很务实。

I mean, of course, people, like, would prefer their own, you know, made in their own country, but, like, people are very pragmatic, I find.

寻找性价比高的产品，我认为这是日本消费者心态的关键之一。

You know, like, looking for reasonable type products, I think that's that's, you know, one of the the keys to the Japanese consumer mindset.

说到商品列表，加里，你在这儿待了挺久了吧？

You know, speaking of listings, Gary, you know, like, you've lived there for a while.

你现在能看懂平假名和片假名了吗？

Like, are you can you read, Hiragana and Kanji now?

我还在继续学习中。

I'm I mean, I'm still working on it.

我还在学习中。

I'm still learning it.

但我认为在日本销售的美妙之处在于，即使我完全不会说日语，我依然可以在日本销售。

But I think that the beauty of selling in Japan is, you know, I'm selling on Japan even though I I'm totally not fluent in Japanese.

我的日语可能只够在餐厅点餐，但那些细微的差别，我还没掌握。

I mean, I'm maybe maybe I can know enough to order food in a restaurant, but, you know, those nuances, like, I'm still not there yet.

但我有一个日本虚拟助手。

But, you know, I have, a Japanese virtual assistant.

她帮我处理事务，我还聘请了一家机构来将商品列表本地化为日语。

You know, she helps out, and I've hired an agency to help localize the listings into Japanese.

所以，即使你像我一样不会说日语，依然可以在日本销售。

So even if you don't speak Japanese like me, I mean, you can still sell into Japan.

对吧？

Right?

我觉得很多人只是害怕这些挑战，但我觉得，我们总能找到绕过它们的方法。

I think it's like a lot of people are just, like, scared of these challenges, but I think, you know, we always can find ways around them.

作为创业者，如果你能克服这些挑战——正是这些挑战让其他人望而却步——那么你的业务就相当于筑起了一道护城河，因为大多数人并不愿意去克服这些困难。

As an entrepreneur, if you can get past these challenges, like the same challenges that kept everybody else out, you know, now it's like a moat around your business because most people, you know, they're not willing to to overcome that.

所以，是的，我还在继续提升我的日语水平。

So, but, yeah, I'm I'm still working on my Japanese, man.

我得把日语练得更好才行。

I I gotta get better with that.

我问这个问题的原因是，你刚才提到你正在搬新家，还在亚马逊上大量采购东西，为新家做准备。

Well, the reason I'm asking is, you know, you just mentioned, you know, you're moving into a place and you're buying tons of stuff on Amazon, you know, for your new place.

那你平时是怎么搜索的呢？

So how are you searching?

比如，日本有没有类似英文字符模式的功能？

Like like, is there, like, a, you know, English character mode of Japan.

比如，美国那边就可以。

Like, for example, America Yes.

人们可以把亚马逊.com切换成西班牙语之类的语言，然后

People can switch the amazon.com to Spanish or something and

然后翻译。

then translate.

所以，作为外国人或英语使用者，你是这样购物的吗？

So is that like how you as a foreigner or as an English speaker are shopping?

好的。

Okay.

好的。

Okay.

我在日本住了两年半，快三年了。

So I lived in Japan for, like, over two and a half, almost three years now.

我去亚马逊时，说来惭愧，尼克可能会笑话我，但我直接开启英文模式，用英语搜索。

When I go to Amazon, I'm ashamed of this and Nick is probably gonna laugh at me, but I just turn on English mode and I just search in English.

我能找到我的电饭煲。

I can find my rice cooker.

我能找到，比如，我需要的任何东西。

I can find, like, you know, my whatever.

对吧？

Right?

但另一件事是我有一个日本虚拟助手。

But the other thing is I I I have a a Japanese, virtual assistant.

她是个日本妈妈，我可以问她，比如。

So and she's a Japanese mom and, you know, I can ask her, okay.

所以我们即将搬进一个小小的东京公寓。

So, you know, we're moving to a little Japanese Tokyo apartment.

你能推荐一款不错的冰箱吗？

Can you recommend a nice refrigerator to get?

我买不了特别大的。

I I can't get, a gigantic one.

它放不下。

It's not gonna fit.

对吧？

Right?

所以呢，她会跟她的朋友聊天，然后给我提建议。

So, you know, she she, you know, talks to her friends and she makes recommendations to me.

我就说，好吧。

I'm like, okay.

那就这么定了。

Let's just go with that.

你知道的，我可不想在这上面花好几个小时。

You know, I'm not gonna spend hours into that.

我的意思是，作为创业者，对吧，我们得跳出常规去创新，你知道的，而这就是我做的。

So, I mean, I think it's like, you know, as entrepreneurs, right, we gotta think creatively outside the outside the box, you know, and but, yeah, that's what I do.

PPC成本。

PPC cost.

我记得以前，每当我跟那些做日本市场销售的人聊起这个，他们都会说，天哪。

I remember, you know, back in the day, whoever I talked to who was selling Japan is like, oh my goodness.

相比美国，便宜太多了。

It's so cheap compared to, like, America.

我知道，美国的价格已经飙升了。

I'd you know, American prices have kind of skyrocketed.

那是Nick还是谁？现在情况还是这样吗？如果比较同类产品，日本的点击成本因为竞争较少而更低吗？

Is that Nick or or whoever is that still kind of, like, the case where if you're comparing apples to apples, cost per click is less in Japan due to less competition?

是的。

Yes.

我很高兴听到这一点。

I love to hear it.

是的。

Yes.

所以有几件事。

So a couple of things.

首先，PPC成本确实更低。

So one, PPC costs are definitely lower.

我在这个许多平台上销售，而日本绝对是 cheapest 的。

I sell in a lot of marketplaces, and Japan is by far the cheapest.

第二件事是，回到我们之前说的，一半的外国卖家是中国卖家，或者一半的第三方卖家是中国卖家。

And the second thing is that kinda coming back to what we were saying, half the foreign sellers are Chinese or half the sellers, half of the third party sellers are Chinese.

他们中的很多都不是品牌商，所以没有品牌展位。

A lot of them aren't brands, so they don't have the branded spots.

因此，我们运营的账户，第一件事总是投放品牌赞助广告，也就是头条广告，因为这需要品牌注册。

So the accounts that we run, the first thing we we always do is to run the the sponsored brand ads, a headline ad, because you have to have a brand registry for that.

很多卖家都没有这个资格。

And lots of, lots of sellers don't have that.

现在我想起几年前，有个小细节。

Now I remember a few years ago, there was just one small thing.

就像你说的，我不需要公司或银行账户，但我是否需要一个代理之类的，比如我的进口商或类似的角色？

Like like, I didn't I don't have to like you said, I don't have to have a company or bank account, but do I have to have, like like, an agent or something like that of of who's like my I don't know if it was importer of record or

类似进口商的角色。

something like of record.

对。

Right.

你能谈谈这是什么，以及获取它有多难或多容易吗？

Can can you talk about about what that is and and how difficult or easy it is to get that?

大约两年前，日本当局进行了一次大规模整顿，当时大量进入日本的商品被海关扣留，海关不是根据货运发票上的价值（即任何进口商的商品成本）来征税，而是根据商品的销售价格征税，因为他们声称这些商品是直接发给客户的。

So there was a big crackdown about two years ago, I think, where a lot of the goods coming into Japan, the customs office was stopping them and were charging sellers based not on the not on the shipping invoice value, which is obviously the cost of goods for anyone importing it, but they were they were charging duty based on the selling price of the goods because they they were claiming that the goods were basically going directly to the customer.

所以，在亚马逊上购买商品的客户本质上就是进口人。

So the customer buying on Amazon is essentially the person importing it.

因此，关税需要基于销售价格来缴纳。

So they so duty needs to be paid on the selling price.

如果税率是10%，那就是10%的30美元，不管你的商品成本是多少。

So if it's 10%, it's 10% of, you know, $30, whatever, not your cost of goods.

当时进行了一次大规模整顿。

So there was a big crackdown.

如果你在日本本地，那就没有问题。

If you were based in Japan, there wasn't a problem.

所以我们当时也被卷入了这次整顿中。

So we were kinda caught up in this crackdown.