International UX: Localization of French "Crows" in Japan
Photo Credit: Black Crows Website (link)
Some Background Information….
Black Crows is an independent French freeski brand that originates from Chamonix, France. The company was founded in 2006 by pro freeskiers Camille Joccoux and Bruno Compagnet when both co-founders were sorely disappointed with what the market had to offer in a “technical, big mountain ski that works in all kinds of snow conditions”[1] but is “simultaneously strong and playful”[2] too. With their mutually shared desire to collide both beauty and efficiency into a new ski design, the Black Crows brand was born. From its original conception in a Chamonix tavern, the brand had gradually grown and earned their reputation across Europe, and especially in Scandinavia, with their product’s focus in uncompromising performance and affiliation to modern and contemporary styles of skiing.
With their novel designs dedicated in recreating the senses of freedom and adventure, Black Crows had grown and evolved more than ever since its original conception and development. After 10 years the company/brand had begun expanding outside its local European markets and into other skiing communities around the world. In 2016, Black Crows had expanded slowly into North American markets, especially in the Washington, Oregon, Utah, Colorado, and British Columbia ski regional markets. Although they have yet to pointedly express their desire to continue expanding into other markets, it would not be a long stretch to expect them to grow into the Pacific and East Asian markets in the near future after Black Crows had gained some momentum and traction in their North American markets.
The Why….
From a marketing and user-focused perspective, one could predict that Japan would be the next international market Black Crows would hope to take their tools of pleasure to. Although Japan’s alpine slopes may not boast as steep of terrain as their western counterparts such as the European Alps or North American Rocky Mountains do, their constant dusting of dry, light powder throughout the entire ski season draws both the most avid skiers and snowboarders from all over the world as well as local riders throughout each season. However, through closer observation of Black Crows’ website, one can easily draw to the conclusion that in order for the company/brand to successfully assimilate into the Japanese culture, they would most definitely need to localize many of the websites’ design features.
In reality, Black Crows has barely done much localization for their international markets. In my opinion, Black Crows has taken advantage of the fact that they originated in Europe, specifically the heart of western Europe—France. This specific location allowed them the luxury to expand organically through an audience that is very multi-cultural and relatively borderless (in the sense that the skiing/snowboarding community travels often and across national borders for the sole purpose of seeking the best conditions to ride in without much governing hinderance). This general inattention of the cultural differences will not serve them well if they hope to expand outside of non-western/non-English speaking markets.
The Crux of the Redesign of Black Crows’ Site:
Using Hofstede’s Six Cultural Dimensions Model as a structural basis to understand and compare between the cultures of France and Japan, I would suggest the following design elements for the web designers at Black Crows to follow in order to create a virtual space that would resonate with the Japanese skiing consumer market.
Japan scores extremely high on the Masculinity Index. In fact, it’s actually one of the most masculine societies in the world. This is quite in contrast with France where it teeters more to a more feminine society. There is very little distinction between gender roles on their current webpage; in their context Black Crows’ promotes quite adamantly the interchangeability of their products between all skier types, no matter the gender, age or skill level. For Black Crows to be successful in Japan, they would have to redesign and readjust their website should create higher distinctions between whether their products are generally geared towards men or women specifically and the type of skier each set of skis would be a good all-around quiver for.
The Black Crows web-design team would want to exude how excellence and perfection in the sport can be achieved with their superior products. They would want to exhibit in their website that their skis can help their customers achieve recognizable and superior skills in time. The imagery used on the Black Crows’ website needs to show that with enough hard work and effort (and of course their product), skiing customers can cultivate their talents on the slopes effectively. This design choice also ties in with Japan’s borderline intermediate Power Distance Index score.
The Japanese scores as one of the most long-term oriented societies in the world (Long-Term Orientation Index). Like many of the Asian countries that are heavily influenced by Confucius philosophy over many thousands of years, Japan takes a much more pragmatic approach towards life and are guided by virtues and honorable practices in preparation for the future. France in contrasts, only scores moderately high in this cultural dimension, which shows on Black Crows’ current website which already requires visitors to slow down and explore in their navigational search on their website.
Like France who scores an 88 in this dimension, Japan also scores extremely highly on Hofstede’s Uncertainty Avoidance Index (92). The current Black Crows website certainly exemplifies elements associated with this cultural dimension. For the Japanese version of the Black Crows’ website I would suggest Black Crows’ web-design team to move the help system to the top right corner to make the feature more prominently situated. However, it is very important to stress the distinction between a clear and effective navigational scheme in the interface design, yet still provide enough reliable information that establishes trust and credibility with its target audience.
Color Palette | Photo Credit: Mika Baumeister via Unsplash (link)
Kanji Script | Photo Credit: Yifeng Lu via Unsplash (link)
The choice in Color Scheme and Typography on the website should also be very limited, yet well-defined such as a using a consistent palette. Currently, Black Crows’ homepage for all of European and North American markets has a very adage philosophy of “less is more”. There are bold and proactive imagery with very few options to choose from. The color choices for Black Crows’ website embodies their brand design-centered ethos, however, the colors are all over the place—random bold colors on par with most alpine sports. With color being “an integral element of Japan[‘s] culture”[3], the palette and content selection needs to be thoughtfully considered. I would highly recommend Black Crows’ visual designers to impress their Japanese audience with an unconventional and a bit offbeat color schemes that intends to both be beautiful and beguiling at the same time.
It’s also very important for Black Crows web-design team to re-work the specific manner in which they communicate with their target audience. Since Black Crows has only expanded and localized their online presence in western markets (Europe and North America), they have yet to encounter the problem of working with Linguistic Differences. The languages Black Crows has only translated accordingly for (French, German, and English), are rooted from the Latin alphabet. For the Japanese market, Black Crows will have to adapt their communication style dramatically as their target audience’s official and most-spoken language is Japanese, a logographic-based language[4]. In addition to adjusting the Black Crows website language offering for the Japanese market, the web designers should also consider display product and brand information using a vertical rhythm rather than its current horizontal design.
By following the suggestions provided, I believe that Black Crows will have made a substantial step in the right direction for its localization efforts, particularly outside the Western/English-speaking markets. This small, but ever-growing, French ski company has the capability and capacity to launch a highly successful expansion into the Japanese market; to do so, they would first and foremost need to take advantage of every possibility to elevate and align their online presence to the local market’s culture.
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References:
[1] “Our Story.” Black Crows Europe, 2018, www.black-crows.com/eu/fr_en/our-story/.
[2] Lutz, Catherine. “Small Brand Shoutout: Black Crows.” POWDER Magazine, POWDER Magazine, 19 July 2016, www.powder.com/stories/small-brand-shoutout-black-crows/.
[3] Birch, Nataly. “10 Distinctive Features of Japanese-Style Web Design.” Designmodo, 29 Oct. 2018, designmodo.com/japanese-web-design/.
[4] Sawe, Benjamin Elisha. “What Languages Are Spoken In Japan?” World Atlas, Worldatlas, 6 July 2017, www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-languages-are-spoken-in-japan.html.