IntaSect Communications, Inc. (headquartered in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Tan Yufeng, President; hereinafter “IntaSect”), which provides support for overseas promotion and inbound travel to China, Taiwan, and other countries, conducted a survey of Chinese visitors who have traveled to Japan in order to find out the latest trends amid the recovery trend in inbound tourism from China. In order to find out the latest trend of inbound tourism from China, we conducted a “Survey on SNS communication during travel to Japan” among Chinese who have traveled to Japan. In this news release, we present the results of the survey.

This survey was conducted in June 2024 using the survey function on WeChat, a messenger application provided by Tencent, targeting those living in China who have traveled to Japan (607 respondents in total, of which 318 were eligible for this survey).

<Summary of the findings of this survey>.

• More than 50% (56.0%) of Chinese travelers share their travel experiences and reviews on SNS at least once a day during their trip to Japan.
• WeChat Moments, RED, and other social networking sites are the most popular destinations for sharing travel experiences and word-of-mouth.
• Nearly 80% of respondents have experienced difficulty finding the page for a store or facility when trying to write a review on a review site or travel information site.
• Cherry blossoms” was selected by two out of three visitors as the No. 1 spot where they “often share” photos and videos on social networking services during their trip to Japan!
  In addition, spots related to nature such as “snowy scenery” and “rivers/sea” were popular, while “spots featuring anime characters” and “temples/shrines” were not high on the list.
• Regarding feelings that made them want to share during their trip to Japan, many of the feelings were positive, such as “when I felt beautiful or artistic” and “when I felt I saw something for the first time,” with only a few negative feelings.

<About the demographics of the respondents

The survey was answered by 607 respondents (40.9%: 248 males, 59.1 %：359人）。年代は10代が2.8% females) living in Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Chongqing, Beijing, and Tianjin. In terms %：359人）。年代は10代が2.8%: 17 were %：359人）。年代は10代が2.8%, 54.0 %：328人、30代が33.9% in their 20s %：328人、30代が33.9%: 206 %：328人、30代が33.9%, 5.9: 36 in their 40s, 2.0 %：12人、60代以上が1.3% in their 50s %：12人、60代以上が1.3%: 8 in %：12人、60代以上が1.3%.

Of the total, 52.4%: 318 respondents (breakdown: 26.0 %：158人、経験なしが26.4% have traveled to Japan since January 2022 %：158人、経験なしが26.4%: 160 respondents %：158人、経験なしが26.4% had traveled to Japan before, which is the target of this survey. Regarding the number of times they have traveled to Japan, 52.5 %：167人、2回が29.6% respondents have traveled to Japan only once %：167人、2回が29.6%: 94 respondents have traveled %：167人、2回が29.6%, and 17.9 %：57人。約半数の47.5% traveled three or more times %：57人。約半数の47.5%%：57人。約半数の47.5% had traveled to Japan more than once.

<Detailed survey results

■”When you travel to Japan, how often do you share your travel experiences and reviews of Japan on social networking services?” (Number of respondents: 318 who have traveled to Japan, single answer)

During their trip, the largest number of respondents (29.2%: 93) said they would share about once daily, followed by 16.7 %：53人、「毎日3回以上頻繁にシェアする」と回答した人が10.1% who said they would share about twice daily %：53人、「毎日3回以上頻繁にシェアする」と回答した人が10.1%: 32 %：53人、「毎日3回以上頻繁にシェアする」と回答した人が10.1%. More than half of the respondents (56.0%: 178) said they post about once or more every day, indicating that many Chinese travelers use SNS to share their experiences every day during their stay in Japan.

On the other hand, %：18人にとどまり、「2日に1回程度シェアする」（17.3% 5.7 %：18人にとどまり、「2日に1回程度シェアする」（17.3% respondents answered that they do not share their travel experiences on SNS. %：67人）を含め、旅行中に旅行体験や口コミをSNSにシェアする人は全体で94.3% they %：18人にとどまり、「2日に1回程度シェアする」（17.3%:55) and only once throughout the trip (21.1 %：67人）を含め、旅行中に旅行体験や口コミをSNSにシェアする人は全体で94.3%: The total number of respondents who shared their travel experiences and reviews on social networking services during their trip to Japan amounted to 94.3:300, indicating that most Chinese travelers used social networking services to share information during their trip to Japan.

■Please select the SNS/review site/travel media with which you mainly share your travel experiences and reviews. (Number of respondents: 318 who have traveled to Japan, multiple answers)

Regarding the main medium for sharing travel experiences and reviews, “WeChat Moments” (a service that allows users to view posts by connected friends and share posts with friends), a function of the communication application WeChat, also known as the Chinese version of LINE, was the most popular sharing medium, with 89.0 %：283人でした。次に多いシェア先は、「RED」（中国版インスタグラムと称されています）で51.3%. The %：283人でした。次に多いシェア先は、「RED」（中国版インスタグラムと称されています）で51.3%:163, followed by “Douyin” (Chinese version of TikTok) with 42.1 %：134人、「Weibo」（中国版X、旧Twitterと称されています）で35.8%:114, making SNS the mainstream. SNS became the mainstream.

On the other hand, only 16.0 %：51人、旅行サイト大手の「Ctrip」への投稿は11.0% ‘s largest review site, Popular Shop Review, %：51人、旅行サイト大手の「Ctrip」への投稿は11.0%:35 %：51人、旅行サイト大手の「Ctrip」への投稿は11.0%.

■Have you ever tried to write a review on a review site/travel information site and could not find the page of the target store or facility? (Number of respondents: 318 who have traveled to Japan, single answer)

When asked if they have ever been unable to find the page of the target store or facility when they tried to write a review, 78.9 %：251人（「よくある」は18.2%:58 for %：251人（「よくある」は18.2% and 60.7%:193 for “sometimes”), or nearly 80% of Chinese The result shows that nearly 80% of Chinese travelers have experienced difficulties in posting their travel information on word-of-mouth websites and travel information websites as they expected.

■What kind of photos and videos do you share on SNS, word-of-mouth sites, travel information sites, etc., when you are traveling in Japan? (Number of respondents: 318 who have traveled to Japan, single answer per item)

Cherry blossoms, which can be said to be the symbolic scenery of Japan, were the most popular photo spot for sharing on SNS, with two out of three respondents (65.7 %：209人）にのぼり、「たまにシェアする」（28.9% saying they “often share” them %：209人）にのぼり、「たまにシェアする」（28.9% when combined with %：209人）にのぼり、「たまにシェアする」（28.9%: 92 people), 94.6% of the total number of respondents (301 people) said they %：209人）にのぼり、「たまにシェアする」（28.9%. The next most common response was “share often” (65.7:209). The next two most frequently shared items were “snowy scenery” and “rivers/sea,” with spots related to Japan’s natural environment coming out on top.

As for cityscapes and buildings, “traditional cityscapes” was the most frequently shared (56.0 %：178人、「たまにシェアする」が35.8%:114), while “modern cityscapes” was the most frequently shared (48.4 %：154人、「たまにシェアする」が38.1%:121). On the other hand, “Anime and other character spots” such as pilgrimages to sacred places and “Temples and shrines,” which are said to be popular among foreign visitors, did not rank high in this survey targeting Chinese travelers.

■What emotions make you want to share when you are traveling in Japan? (Number of respondents: 318 who have traveled to Japan, single answer per item)

Regarding feelings that made them want to share during their trip to Japan, “When I felt beautiful or artistic” was selected the most by 92.1 %：293人（「非常にあてはまる」は43.7% respondents %：293人（「非常にあてはまる」は43.7%:139 for “very applicable” and 48.4 %、154人）でした。また、「初めて見たと感じた時」も90.2% for “applicable”). More than 90 %、154人）でした。また、「初めて見たと感じた時」も90.2%:287 respondents (48.4 %：154人、「あてはまる」は41.8% for “very applicable” %：154人、「あてはまる」は41.8%:133 for ” %：154人、「あてはまる」は41.8% “) %、154人）でした。また、「初めて見たと感じた時」も90.2% indicated that ” %、154人）でした。また、「初めて見たと感じた時」も90.2% was a feeling they wanted to share, with more than 90% of respondents saying it was a feeling they wanted to share. Other positive feelings included “When I feel it tastes good,” “When I feel it is cute,” and “When I feel it is nice! More than 80% of the respondents answered “very applicable” or “applicable” to positive feelings such as “when I feel delicious,” “when I feel cute,” and “when I feel nice.

On the other hand, with regard to the negative “When I felt disgusted,” less than half of the respondents (14.2 %：45人、「あてはまる」が28.3% ) answered “Very applicable” %：45人、「あてはまる」が28.3%:90 %：45人、「あてはまる」が28.3%.

Commentary by our representative
Deputy General Manager, Overseas Advertising Promotion Group Japan Promotion Planning Office
Masahiro Shimokawa, Deputy General Manager, Osaka Branch Office

The survey found that more than half of Chinese travelers actively post their own travel experiences and reviews on SNS and other social networking services at least once a day during their stay in Japan. WeChat Moments” and “RED” were the most popular SNSs for posting information.

The most popular spots for photos and videos to be shared were places related to Japanese nature. In particular, natural landscapes that symbolize Japan, such as cherry blossoms and Mt. Fuji, are very popular, with over 450,000 Chinese visiting Japan during the cherry blossom season in March and over 530,000 in April this spring*.

Most respondents indicated that the content of their posts was positive and that they posted things that moved them emotionally, such as “beautiful, artistic,” “I saw it for the first time,” or “cute,” and a minority of respondents indicated that they posted negative experiences, etc.

China has a UGC (User Generated Content) culture, and there are many cases where people who see such SNS visit the same places themselves and post on SNS, which naturally leads to increased awareness. Based on the results of this survey, we believe that SNS promotion and measures will continue to be very important in China inbound policies.

IntaSect Communications can provide a full range of services from operation to promotion of China’s major SNSs, and we look forward to hearing from you if you are interested.

*By Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO)
April 17 , 2024 https://www.jnto.go.jp/news/20240417_monthly.pdf
May 15, 2024 https://www.jnto.go.jp/statistics/data /20240515_monthly.pdf

■Company Profile
Company Name : IntaSect Communications, Inc.
Representative : Tan Yufeng, President
Location : 2F, B-M Bldg. 3-1 Kanda Ogawamachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-0052, Japan
Established : November 2000
Business Activities : Overseas promotion and inbound (inbound to Japan) support mainly in mainland China and Taiwan
Cross-border EC for China, Affiliate management, Affiliate site patrol,
System development, etc.
Capital ：98.56 million yen
URL ：https://www.intasect.com/

Established in November 2000. We provide one-stop support for domestic and international web promotions and inbound business for overseas markets, mainly China and Taiwan, based on the four pillars of web marketing in Japan and overseas, comprehensive support for settlement and inbound business, system-related services, and corporate innovation.

Specifically, we provide customer attraction support such as “IntaPay,” a multi-payment service including WeChat Pay and Alipay+, core agency for Baidu advertising, and official general agency in Japan for Mafengwo, the largest travel information site in China. We also provide other services such as cross-border e-commerce support in China, work style reforms such as electronic contracting and business process improvement, healthcare IoT-related R&D, offshore development, Affiliate management services, and eateat, a mobile ordering service for restaurants, etc.