While modern website designs have trended towards minimalism worldwide, Japanese websites retain a distinctly unique look. Colourful and dense with information, they seem out of place in an era of clean, simplistic UX. But what really sets Japanese web design apart, and why has it resisted globalization? To understand, let’s get into the factors behind the weird Japanese website designs.
Table of Contents
Examples of Japanese Websites
Japanese vs. Western Websites
Below are some of the key differences between Japanese and Western websites
1. Layout
Japanese designs are considered “busy” with little empty space due to the influence of the culture of utilizing all available resources efficiently. Elements are squeezed close together.
2. Images
Western sites emphasize large, high-res images, but Japanese counterparts use smaller, lower-quality pictures primarily for performance and to ensure fast loading.
3. Text amount
Japanese websites tend to use much more text compared to Western sites, which prefer fewer words. This is due to the dense nature of Japanese characters, and consumers needing extensive details.
4. Aesthetics
“Kawaii”, or cute characters and fonts, are commonly applied in Japan, reflecting the cultural emphasis on cuteness. Flash animation is also more widely used.
5. Colours
Japanese websites employ a wide range of bold, contrasting colours compared to commonly limited Western colour schemes. Vibrant hues grasp attention.
6. Navigation
Information tends to be layered more subtly in Japan, adhering to high-context communication norms, unlike direct Western approaches.
The Factors Behind Japanese Different Website Designs
1. Linguistic Factors
The unique linguistic properties of Japanese also influence web design approaches. Japanese uses three separate character systems: kanji (adopted Chinese characters), hiragana and katakana. Supporting all these characters in fonts and online text requires massive file sizes compared to alphabets.
With fewer font options available due to the technical challenge, designers have limited typographical tools for creating a visual hierarchy. The lack of capitalization also reduces the ability to distinguish important information at a glance.
2. Cultural Factors
In collectivist societies like Japan, conveying reassurance and avoiding uncertainty for others are highly valued. Research shows Japanese users associate convenience with reducing inconvenience for others, not just self-effort savings. The Japanese concept of “anzen“, which means safety or reassurance, plays a significant role in web design.
This manifests as providing extensive information to avoid surprises and displaying multiple options upfront to give users a sense of control. Designers prioritize information density over minimalism. While intimidating to outsiders, intricate websites satisfy Japanese expectations of nuanced, thorough exchanges.
3. Technological factors
Another factor was the faster pace of Japanese mobile and internet advancement in the 1990s-2000s. While websites globally streamlined UX for smartphones around 2007, Japan was less pressured – domestically popular phones had already supported advanced features years earlier. Japanese designers thus avoided the “mobile-first” minimalism trend that standardized global website aesthetics.
Legacy software attitudes also contributed. Japan saw hardware as prestigious but software as second-class, directing innovation focus. Adopting new digital practices requires time and planning in a structured, low-risk culture. Combined with stable domestic markets, these factors slowed changes to established Japanese websites conventions.
Does This Difference Still Apply Today?
While the factors discussed helped shape Japanese web design norms early on, have things changed in recent years under the influence of globalization and mobile trends?
To an extent, yes – many Japanese websites have adopted responsive designs and streamlined some intricacies for international users on smartphones and tablets. E-commerce giants like Rakuten now offer global storefronts optimized globally.
However, domestic Japanese websites still tend to provide richer details, layer navigations more subtly, and rely more on text than visuals than their Western counterparts. The influences of culture and Japan’s history with technology are still evident, even as designs evolve with the times.
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