US‐based Japanese firms: sales strategies that succeed

Abstract

The tremendous growth of Japanese investment in the USA continues, but US vendors often lack the sales strategies needed to take advantage of this growing market. Recommends specific strategies based on the author’s extensive consulting experience with Japanese‐owned manufacturing firms and US sales managers who have had experience with Japanese firms. Discusses, among other topics, social and cultural differences between Americans and Japanese and their effect on business practices, differences in sales strategies required by cultural differences, developing sales managers who are immersed in Japanese culture and business practices, the importance of top management support for long‐range sales efforts directed at Japanese‐owned firms, team support for US vendors, the benefits of doing business with loosely worded contracts, and the internal practices of Japanese firms regarding the evaluation of sales proposals. Makes specific recommendations within each area to help the practitioner make the leap from general concepts to concrete experience.

Citation

Oh, T.K. (1996), "US‐based Japanese firms: sales strategies that succeed", Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, Vol. 11 No. 1, pp. 55-65. https://doi.org/10.1108/08858629610112292