By Rochelle Kopp (From PHP)

When working with Japanese, there are many situations where persuasion is important. However, there are certain things that Japanese tend to respond to and other things that they tend not to respond to. Today’s column will look at both of these, with the aim of helping you prepare to better persuade Japanese.

When working with Japanese, there are many situations where persuasion is important. However, there are certain things that Japanese tend to respond to and other things that they tend not to respond to. Today’s column will look at both of these, with the aim of helping you prepare to better persuade Japanese.

Group solidarity.
When making your case to Japanese, be sure to emphasize that your view is shared by the others in your team or company. In other words, stress that your group has reached a consensus, and what you are presenting to the Japanese is that consensus. This appeals to the group orientation of Japanese and their respect for teamwork. Japanese feel that “many heads are better than one” and like to see that you have had many heads involved.
What not to do: Many Americans tend to emphasize their own personal opinion, in their role as experts. This will be less persuasive to Japanese than a group approach, and also could be a direct turn-off if the individualistic emphasis is too strong, Japanese tend to discount someone they view as being a “lone wolf.” Also, if your opinion differs from others in your work group or the company, this will eventually come out and you could lose respect for not having done nemawashi (consensus-building).

Repetition.
Repetition is a way to both create the illusion of group solidarity, and also to help build it. Japanese tend to be more persuaded by something if they sense that there is a critical mass of opinion supporting it, or that things are inevitably moving in that direction. For this reason, just hearing about something one time may not be sufficient to make them feel persuaded. Thus, you can often be more effective if you bring up the same topic or theme on more than one occasion. Also, if it’s not just you bringing up this topic, but rather
What not to do: not to do: Be careful not to overdo it. If you mention the topic in every communication and seem unable to discuss anything else, you could cause people to tune you out.

Thorough research and analysis.
Japanese love data. When making a decision, they tend to want to get as much information as possible. The more research and analysis you do, and thus the more data that you can present, the more likely that you will be successful in persuading Japanese. And be sure to present the nitty-gritty detail, not just a high-level summary.
What not to do: Spending time on extra-fancy presentations is usually not worthwhile. Put your effort on marshalling the data rather than being flashy. I have seen many instances where Japanese are turned off by an overly slick approach. Also, many Japanese are suspicious of how glib and polished many Americans are when giving presentations, and start to fear they are going to get the wool pulled over their eyes if they get caught up in a lot of hype.

Corroboration from respected sources.
Name-dropping is the name of the game here. For example, when you say that something is a commonly accepted trend in your field, can you quote a prominent expert talking about it, or a well-known trade or general publication that has mentioned it? Americans tend to look at themselves as being specialists in their area, and believe that their word should be sufficient. However, with Japanese the truth is that they often tend to discount the opinions of people on the inside, and are more easily persuaded when information comes from a recognized name. Use of a well-known name is particularly helpful when the person/people you are dealing with need to go to higher levels in the company. Those people at higher levels are likely to know of the famous names and publications in your field but may not know very much about you.
What not to do: Many Americans say things along the lines of “I’m the expert so you should take my word for it.” No matter how much your Japanese colleagues like and respect you, you’ll be more successful if you show how your views are shared by others, particularly respected people.

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