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A high-quality, long-lasting keyboard is a great asset to a brand.
Key feel, durability, design philosophy, support system, and user trust.
These are not things that can be made in a short period of time.
On the other hand, the long product life also makes it difficult to create reasons for replacement or additional purchases.
It is difficult to create the next growth by simply saying, “If it breaks, we’ll replace it.”
This challenge is especially clear for products such as keyboards, where perfection and attachment as a tool are important.
GreenEchoes Studio helps keyboard brands, distributors, and retailers in Japan and abroad to redesign the appeal of their products into a “reason to buy” that is communicated to the Japanese market.
A distinction should be made between being a good product and continuing to sell well.
Longevity is of great value to users.
However, from the brand’s perspective, the more satisfied a product is, the longer the replacement cycle will be.
The fact that users continue to use a product for a long time after purchasing it once demonstrates their trust in the brand, but also makes it harder to create opportunities for the next purchase.
This is not to say that the products are of low quality.
Rather, it is a challenge that occurs because of the high quality.
In order for a keyboard brand to continue to grow, it is necessary not only to create a “good product” but also to design a “reason to buy next” for the user.
In recent years, the keyboard market has designed “reasons to buy a keyboard even if it isn’t broken”.
In recent years, the keyboard market has become increasingly concerned with the design of the entire purchase experience, not just the performance of the product itself.
For example, the following elements
- Color variation
- Difference in case material
- Difference in keystroke feel
- Difference in layout
- Keycap and switch combinations
- limited model
- collaboration
- Opening Experience
- Stories you’ll want to tell in your community
- Information design that raises expectations even before launch
All of these factors are intended to make users feel that even if what they have now is not broken, they still want another one.
In other words, it is designed to be a reason to own, talk about, compare, and buy more than just the specs of the product itself.
In addition to making a good product, what is the context in which to deliver that product?
This design will have a significant impact on the growth of the brand.
It is difficult to reach new customers with only measures for existing fans.
The longer a brand has been around, the stronger the relationship with existing users.
This is a major strength.
However, messages directed only to existing fans may have difficulty reaching users who are not yet familiar with the brand.
What may be a natural attraction for existing users will not be understood by new users unless it is explained to them.
The deeper the brand’s ideology and history, the easier it is to close its value inwardly.
Therefore, what is needed is not to deny existing fans.
It is about organizing the values that existing fans have valued and translating them into language that can be understood by users who are new to the market.
Redefine “Who is the product for?
Reasons for purchasing a keyboard vary from user to user.
People who seek stability as a work tool.
People who want to enjoy the feeling of hitting keys.
People who want to set up a desk environment.
People who value portability.
People who find the array and customizability appealing.
You are about to purchase a high-end keyboard for the first time.
Even if it is the same product, the points that should be appealed will vary depending on who you are talking to.
Therefore, brand growth requires not only “what makes this product great?” but also the following perspectives
- Who is the product aimed at?
- What is the person’s problem?
- Why should you choose that product now?
- What are the reasons for choosing that product over existing products?
- What concerns do you have before you buy?
- What information is needed to proceed with the purchase?
- What makes you want to recommend it to someone else after you buy it?
The value of a product is not determined by specifications alone.
Depending on who you communicate that value to, in what order, and with what words, the user’s reception will vary greatly.
Challenges common to domestic and international brands
In the keyboard market, domestic and foreign brands face different challenges.
Domestic brands have long-established trust, quality, support systems, and relationships with users.
On the other hand, while the value of the brand may be communicated to existing users, it may be difficult for new users to see why they would choose the brand now.
Foreign brands are skilled at creating new reasons for purchase through design, materials, typography, sales techniques, and community building.
On the other hand, in the Japanese market, there are many factors that should eliminate concerns prior to purchase, such as Japanese layout, keycap printing, technical compliance, domestic warranty, sales channels, and provision of information in Japanese.
In other words, what both domestic and foreign brands need in common is not to convey the attractiveness of their products as they are.
The goal is to determine how the product will be received in the current Japanese market, and for whom, and for what reasons, it will be purchased.
Transform the history and quality of the brand into words that can be understood by new users.
To transform the novelty and individuality of the product into information that Japanese users can feel comfortable choosing.
Both of these are necessary for the growth of the keyboard brand.
Related Market Considerations
Greenkeys has published a market discussion article on the changing way keyboards are sold in Japan.
The value as “long-lasting tools” that long-established domestic brands have built.
On the other hand, “why buy it even if it ain’t broke” as designed by emerging foreign brands in recent years.
We sort out the differences and examine how keyboard brands should connect with users in the future.
This theme is not limited to a specific brand.
For domestic brands, it is a challenge to re-communicate value to new users, and for foreign brands, it is a challenge to gain acceptance in the Japanese market.
Related Article:
How Keyboard Sales Have Changed in Japan
How GreenEchoes Studio can help
GreenEchoes Studio not only checks and reviews the specifications of keyboard products, but also assists in designing appeals based on how they will be received in the Japanese market.
The target market is not limited to brands entering the Japanese market from overseas.
The program is open to domestic brands, domestic distributors, dealers, homebrew keyboard-related brands, keycap brands, peripheral accessory brands, and other businesses seeking continued growth in the keyboard area.
Specifically, these are the following areas
- Organize product appeals for the Japanese market
- Redesign of brand message conveyed to domestic users
- Product page information design
- Pre- and post-launch content lead design
- Contextual design of review articles, news articles, and comparison articles
- Advice on Japanese layout and keycap specifications
- Organize the presentation for crowdfunding, in-house e-commerce, mass retailers, and distributor sales
- Separate measures for existing fans from measures for new customers
- Organize FAQs and specification descriptions to eliminate pre-purchase concerns
- Localization into expressions that will be understood by Japanese keyboard users
The key is not to make the product look bigger.
The goal is to organize the inherent value of the product into a form that can be communicated to users in the Japanese market.
Turning quality into the next reason to buy
Being a good product is the starting point for a brand.
However, being a good product alone does not lead to continued growth.
Why would a user choose that product now?
Why replace it?
Why buy more?
Why would I want to recommend it to others?
By designing the why, brands can protect their relationships with existing fans while reaching new users.
GreenEchoes Studio will organize the “reasons to buy” for keyboard brands to grow in the Japanese market, in terms of both product specifications, market context, and user psychology.
About Consultation
GreenEchoes Studio assists domestic and international keyboard brands, distributors, and retailers with product appeal, information design, review leads, and content design at launch.
If you want to organize a “reason to buy” that will be communicated to new users while preserving the value delivered to existing fans, please feel free to contact us.
