How to act on the trade fair
As we know the trade fair we are going to attend is full of other international companies trying to
get there foot on the Japanese market. Due to this we need to take in consideration that there will
be also other than Japanese visitors visiting our stand. This also gives us a valid way of networking
with other companies that attend to to the fair and acquire other lucrative deals than only the
Japanese ones.
Considering the dress code for the trade fair we should be using conservative suits on men and
women should avoid wearing high heels and keeping their jewelry to a minimum. The reason not
to wear high heels is to not offend the male Japanese counterpart by being taller than them. To
further take this women shouldn’t be using pants and the dress they use has to be conservative.
Also if we are to wear a kimono on ourselves, they are supposed to be wrapped left over right,
apparently only corpses have them the other way.
One thing to be careful about on the fair is not to hard sell. Such an approach isn’t ideal in Japan
and it should be replaced with a more gentle way that showcases what we are really proposing to
the clients. While not hard selling we should direct our focus on building trust and relationship.
Also the Japanese do not use large hand gestures so we shouldn’t use them or unusual facial
expressions as these could distract the Japanese counterparts. We need to avoid blowing our nose
in public as it is considered poor taste in the Japanese culture, if we have a need to blow our nose
we should walk out to do so.
In case our company has caught the interest of the Japanese distributors on the fair, we are to
greet the most senior person first and also hand our business card to them first. The Japanese
often have the age be synonymous to the rank in business setting.
We had an idea of doing a raffle at the stand during the trade fair but it can also be a problem for
ourselves. The Japanese are not comfortable with giving personal information especially on the
first encounter and attending the raffle would involve giving personal information to us so that we
could send the prizes.
If we are given a business card, we are to not put it in our pocket but gently place it in business
card holder. Also a way of showing respect to the Japanese counterpart is to make a photocopy of
the name and title of the individual in your mind, so examine the card carefully.
There can be situations when we are greeted with a bow, in these situations we are to return a
bow aas low as the one we received. While bowing, our palms are next our thighs and eyes kept
low.
Avoid using ”Sayonara”, by saying sayonara you can basically terminate a deal because you
haven’t taken in consideration what the word actually means. It doesn’t mean ”good-bye”, it
actually means ”farewell.”
Sources:
http://www.businessinsider.com/6-things-to-know-about-business-in-japan-2014-6?IR=T
http://www.cyborlink.com/besite/japan.htm