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LOCAL SEO · JAPAN
Local search in Japan runs on both Google Maps and Yahoo Maps. Customers search in Japanese and English. If your listing isn't optimised for both platforms and both languages, you're only reaching part of the market.
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/ This is for you if
Google Maps + Yahoo Maps
Japanese + English listings
Tokyo · Osaka · Kyoto · Fukuoka
GBP build-out included
/ What's broken
Yahoo Maps remains widely used in Japan, particularly among older demographics and in certain industries. A business invisible on Yahoo Maps is invisible to a meaningful share of Japanese local searchers. Most international businesses entering Japan focus only on Google and miss this entirely.
Japanese customers searching in Japanese won't find an English-only GBP listing in their results. A Japanese-language business name, description, and service listings are required to appear in Japanese-language local searches — which represent the majority of local searches in Japan.
Tokyo is divided into 23 wards (ku); Osaka into 24 wards. Local searches in Japan are highly district-specific — "歯科 渋谷区" (dentist Shibuya ward) rather than "dentist Tokyo." Without district-level targeting, you're competing against the whole city and ranking for none of it.
Japanese local SEO requires presence on Tabelog (restaurants), HotPepper (services), Jalan (hospitality), and other Japan-specific platforms alongside Google. Ignoring these directories leaves citation authority gaps that suppress local rankings.
Businesses in Japan serve two distinct audiences — Japanese-language customers and international visitors or expats seeking English-friendly services. If your GBP doesn't clearly signal which you are (or both), you're ranking poorly for both audiences.
/ What we engineer
Each workstream is built by the team that audits it, and wired into the rest of your growth system.
What it means: Both major Japanese map platforms built out in Japanese and English — not just Google. Why it matters: Focusing only on Google in Japan misses a significant portion of local searchers. Yahoo Maps has maintained strong usage particularly in Japanese-language search contexts. What you get: Full audit and rebuild of your GBP listing, plus Yahoo Maps setup and optimisation — bilingual content, correct categories for the Japanese market, photos, services, and an active posting schedule.
What it means: Mapping the Japanese and English search terms customers use when looking for your service in your district. Why it matters: Japanese-language local searches use different structural patterns from English ones — combining service terms with ward or district names in Japanese. Missing this structure means missing the searches. What you get: A bilingual keyword map covering your main service categories, district-level targets in Japanese and English, and competitor ranking terms.
What it means: Getting your business listed on the Japanese-market directories that carry local authority in your sector. Why it matters: Japanese local SEO citation signals come partly from platform-specific directories (Tabelog, HotPepper, Jalan) rather than generic Western directories. Building the right Japan-specific citation footprint is different from other markets. What you get: Audit of existing citations, correction of inconsistencies, and new listings built on the Japan-market platforms relevant to your industry.
What it means: A review collection approach that works within Japanese customer behaviour norms — where unsolicited direct requests are less well-received than subtle in-person or card-based asks. Why it matters: Japanese customers are less likely to leave reviews spontaneously than customers in Western markets. A thoughtful, culturally appropriate system makes a real difference to review accumulation. What you get: Review request process designed for Japanese market norms (table cards, receipt inserts, or subtle post-service QR codes), response templates in Japanese and English, and monthly monitoring.
What it means: Pages targeting the ward and district-level searches your homepage can't capture — in Japanese and English. Why it matters: Tokyo's 23 wards are each distinct search markets. A single homepage won't rank for "cafe Shibuya" and "cafe Shinjuku" and "cafe Harajuku." What you get: Written and published local landing pages for your top 2–3 districts, in Japanese and English, with local keyword targeting and schema markup.
What it means: Monthly reporting on GBP performance, Yahoo Maps visibility, local pack positions, and Japan-specific citation health. Why it matters: Tracking local SEO performance in Japan requires monitoring both platforms and both language search patterns. What you get: Monthly report covering GBP insights, Yahoo Maps performance, local keyword rankings in Japanese and English, citation health, and review growth.
/ What changes
/ Common questions
Straight answers on scope, timelines and cost. Anything else, ask us directly.
Ask us directlyMost businesses in Japan see measurable movement in Google Maps rankings within 60–120 days of a full bilingual GBP optimisation and Japan-market citation campaign. Tokyo's ward-level competition varies significantly — a cafe in Shibuya faces more competition than a clinic in Setagaya ward. Yahoo Maps rankings often move faster.
Yes — if you want to reach the full local search audience in Japan. Yahoo Maps is still used regularly in Japan, particularly in contexts where Yahoo Japan is the default search engine. Ignoring it means missing searches that your Google Maps listing simply won't capture.
We build and optimise bilingual GBP listings with separate Japanese and English service descriptions, and build landing pages that target both language search patterns. The GBP primary name and description lead in Japanese for ranking purposes, with English content layered in for conversion with international visitors.
The most important Japan-market citation platforms depend on your industry: Tabelog and Gurunavi for restaurants, HotPepper Beauty for salons, HotPepper for general services, Jalan and Rakuten Travel for hospitality, and Ekiten and Machicomi for general local businesses. We identify the platforms relevant to your sector and build citations accordingly.
Google has the largest market share overall in Japan, but Yahoo Japan — which uses Bing's search index but its own map data — maintains meaningful usage, particularly for certain demographics and in certain search contexts. A local SEO strategy that ignores Yahoo Maps is leaving rankings and visibility on the table.
Yes. Building from zero in Japan is straightforward in terms of GBP setup — but it requires correct Japanese-language content from day one, as errors in the initial listing setup take time to correct. We handle the full build-out in Japanese and English, including citation seeding on Japan-market platforms.
We don't publish pricing because scope varies by the number of platforms, languages, and districts being targeted. A single-location business entering Tokyo needs different work from a multi-location chain covering Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya. The diagnostic scopes the work accurately — pricing follows in JPY or USD.
Yes. Google requires a verifiable physical address in Japan to create a standard location-based GBP listing. Virtual offices and registered addresses are generally acceptable for verification purposes. For businesses without a physical Japan address, service area business settings are an option, though ranking in the local pack without a verified local address is significantly harder.
Start here
The diagnostic covers your GBP and Yahoo Maps score, citation health across Japan-market platforms, local keyword rankings in Japanese and English, and what your top 3 district-level competitors are doing that you're not.
Google Maps + Yahoo Maps · Japanese + English · Tokyo · Osaka · KyotoIgnited Nepal
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