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Where Japan visitors tweet from

Rather than the usual goo Ranking silliness, let’s instead have a look at a ranking from RJC Research and Nightley regarding where inbound tourists post to SNS from.

The survey mentions by name Twitter and Weibo (China’s local Twitter-like service), then “etc”, without going into details on what they might be. How exactly they determined who was a tourist is probably a trade secret, so there was no discussion of that either. It mentions the sample size was about 230,000 SNS entries.

The score reported was based on the number of SNS mentions, but weighted, presumably by how many followers or how many likes a post got. The raw SNS post count was about a third to a half of the weighted score.

The report contained one overall total and five sub-genres, but since the other genres (sights, leisure facilities, nature, and shopping) were partially covered by the main ranking, I’ll only report on the food genre.

Here’s a photo of edible Snoopys from USJ; probably meat (definitely not dog!) filled steamed buns.

USJ, Halloween style
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By Ken Y-N, ago

Tastes of summer in Japan, from vegetables to ice cream

Which do you prefer? graph of japanese statistics

There’s been a definite lack of good goo Ranking surveys recently, so today I’ll do a ranking and survey hybrid from @nifty looking at the tastes of summer.

I like my Häagen-Dazs, but as I eat it irregularly and usually choose their time-limited special flavours (I have mango milk and truffle sitting in the freezer) I cannot name a favourite flavour. However, I do find the Gelato Meister brand better – despite the naming, it is actually sherbet with high fruit content; I’m looking forward to the 25% Scilian lemon one more than the Dazs’ it’s sitting beside.
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By Ken Y-N, ago

Instagram used by over one in three young Japanese women

Teenage girls, do you use Instagram? graph of japanese statistics
COLOPAL’s SmartAnswer recently conducted a survey into Instagram use, finding it most popular with younger girls and women.

Instagram is another thing that I’ve never got into, so I don’t know what I’m missing, but I suspect it is nothing much… If any of my readers feel like trying to convince me, please suggest accounts worth following, and I’ll give it a try. A quick search for “Instagram cats” gave me this:


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By Ken Y-N, ago

Queueing in Japan

How do you feel when you see an unknown queue? graph of japanese statistics

I thought it was us British that were a nation of queuers, but the Japanese do take the same pride in their ability to stand in a line, so this survey from Research Plus took a look at queueing.

Demographics

Between the 13th and 18th of January 2016 760 members of the Research Plus monitor group completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 54.7% of the sample were female, 2.5% in their twenties, 5.7% in their thirties, 17.5% in their forties, 30.3% in their fifties, and 44.1% aged sixty or older. The sample was also split 50:50 between residents of Kanto (Tokyo area) and Kansai (Osaka area), although not too much difference was to be seen in the answers.

Queues in Japan, outside of the obvious places like Disneyland, are often found when foreign chains open their first branch in Japan, and last days if not weeks until the novelty wears off. Ramen restaurants are another favourite, but I avoid both these kinds of places as my stomach tells me waiting a couple of hours is not worth it! Thirty minutes is the most I’m prepared to wait for food.
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By Ken Y-N, ago

New Year established customs that Japanese no longer need

Around the New Year there are a lot of old and new customs or established events that perhaps no longer interest people; to see what they might be, goo Ranking ran a survey looking at New Year customs that people feel are no longer needed.

Demographics

Between the 6th and 11th of December 2015 goo Ranking ran an open survey on their web site, which got 767 votes. Since it was an open survey, no demographics are available.

I’d personally vote to get rid of Osechi, the traditional food for seeing in the New Year. It does look nice, I suppose:

OSECHI 2011

To give wives time off (yes, sexist, but it’s an old tradition) food becomes cold everything, with the only warm thing being miso soup with mochi (rice starch) balls. I have to commit the sin of dipping all the cold stuff into the warm soup to make it palatable. It’s enough to make you hanker for cold turkey, and indeed 9 (nine!) years ago I translated another survey on what people want to eat after too much osechi.
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By Ken Y-N, ago

Nostalgic toys that are still selling

Today I report on a survey by goo Ranking into what toys and mail order goods people are surprised to learn are still selling.

Demographics

goo Rankings asked iBRIDGE’s Research Plus to conduct this survey, where between the 1st and 3rd of June 2015 500 members, 50:50 male and female, of their monitor group completed a private internet-based questionnaire. No further demographics were given.

I’m surprised to learn about ball-bearing guns still being on sale, as I thought they’d be too dangerous!

I was trying to find pictures of Slime, but that only turned up photos of the monster from the Dragon Quest series of games, so instead here is a Whoopie Cushion.

Whoopee Cushion Macro May 09, 20112
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By Ken Y-N, ago

3.5% already reserved an Apple Watch

Which model of Apple Watch do you want, have reserved? graph of japanese statisticsICT Research and Consulting recently conducted a survey into Apple Watch buying intentions and found a reasonable number already interested in buying one.

Demographics

Over the 13th and 14th of April 2015 550 people aged from 20 years old completed a web-based questionnaire. No information was given on how the sample was collected, so it is a bit difficult to extrapolate these numbers.

I’m no Apple fan, and I’ve got almost zero interest in any sort of smart wrist device. My mobile phone works as a pedometer, and I cannot think of other features that I’d want. The health benefits of such devices is yet to be proven, and perhaps they might even make you more unhealthy by either giving you a false sense of security or inducing hypochondria.
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By Ken Y-N, ago

Easter in Japan

Japan’s largest recipe sharing site, CookPad, recently conducted a survey into Easter.

easter bunnies

Demographics

Between the 17th and 20th of February 2015 2,599 people subscribed to the CookPad email newsletter completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 89% of the sample were female, 11% male, 2% were in their teens, 13% in their twenties, 31% in their thirties, 33% in their forties, and 21% aged fifty or older.

I’m quite suprised, indeed I find it difficult to believe that according to Q1SQ1 almost one in four know that Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox; I doubt if you’d get that high a figure even in a Christian country!

Suprisingly, chocolate Easter eggs are not a thing here, but around my local station, a cake shop is selling cute bunny and chick-themed petit fours, and an ice cream shop similarly-themed ice cream novelties.
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By Ken Y-N, ago

Working women and drinking at home

How often do you drink at home? graph of japanese statisticsThe publishing company Sankei Living recently conducted a survey into drinking habits of working women.

Demographics

During January 2015 701 female members of the City Living email newsletter members completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 5.6% of the sample were in their twenties, 35.9% in their thirties, 45.8% in their forties, and 12.7% in their fifties. 25.1% were employed full-time in positions on a promotion track, 48.8% in ordinary full-time positions, 7.6% contract employees, 9.0% dispatch workers, and 9.6% in part-time or short-term employment. Furthermore, 25.0% lived by themselves, 29.2% were single and living with their parents, 23.1% DINKS, Dual Income No Kids, 16.1% with children, and 6.6% other.

That’s quite a lot of drinking, and more worrying, the number who drink on their own is quite significant. Fortunately, at worst there was just three people having beer for breakfast or a swift one at the office.

For myself, I have drunk exactly one can of beer at home since I moved to Tokyo, and before that I averaged about one or two a year.
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By Ken Y-N, ago