Is Japan Cool?

Read the campaign story

ANA introduced Is Japan Cool? in February 2012 as a destination-content website. Its launch announcement describes articles and videos about Japanese places and cultural experiences, with visitors invited to judge what they found interesting. ENJIN lists the programme in its portfolio; CINRA documents later multilingual content work with additional collaborators. The original launch and subsequent themes are kept together as one continuing platform rather than counted as separate cases.

Editorial interpretation: the question in the title makes the audience an evaluator instead of merely a recipient of tourism claims. An airline gains a reason to publish material about what happens after arrival, while the content can serve people who are still exploring rather than ready to book. The challenge is to make that exploration useful without reducing a varied country to a collection of exotic curiosities or treating popularity as cultural importance.

The opened sources establish the platform, its launch and selected production roles. They do not independently establish incremental tourism or ticket sales. Historical competitions and travel details are not presented as current offers. The useful lesson is how a brand can organise sustained interest around a destination, with editorial judgment, local context and practical travel information remaining distinct from the promotional promise.

Use a question to invite judgment rather than demand agreement

A genuine question allows different answers. If every interaction is designed only to confirm the brand’s preferred view, the invitation is superficial. Give people enough context to form an opinion and let them move on from subjects that do not interest them. For a destination, that might mean explaining the practice, its setting and how visitors can participate respectfully. The brand’s role is to open a path to discovery, not to declare an entire culture universally appealing. Useful disagreement can reveal which information is missing or which experiences need a more specific audience explanation.

Build a content structure that can survive the launch

A destination platform needs more than an initial batch of beautiful videos. Define themes, update responsibilities and the relationship between evergreen cultural material and changing practical details. Someone interested in a craft may need a map, access information or an explanation that a workshop is not open to visitors. Keep those facts current or clearly date them. Commission local voices who can add context rather than simply translate promotional copy. A consistent structure lets new material broaden the platform without forcing every subject into the same visual formula or turning each seasonal update into an unrelated campaign.

Separate inspiration from the decision to travel

A person may enjoy learning about a place without being able or willing to visit. Provide value at that stage instead of measuring every content interaction as a booking lead. When a travel route is offered, make costs, conditions and limitations clear through current official information. Avoid implying that a short film captures the complete experience or that a vote predicts future behaviour. The airline’s association can benefit from useful curation, but the practical decision involves time, money and individual circumstances. Respect that gap rather than filling it with an exaggerated conversion claim.

A bounded test for another brief

Proposed adaptation: a regional cultural centre could publish six original profiles of local practices, each reviewed by its contributors and paired with clear visiting information. Invite adults to choose which topic they want to explore further and explain why, with a neutral option for none. Compare the question-led introduction with a conventional list of attractions. Do not require contact details or offer a travel prize. Track which practical questions remain unanswered and whether contributors feel represented accurately. This tests discovery and editorial usefulness at a scale the team can maintain without copying ANA’s content or promising a tourism effect.

Measure topic discovery, contextual understanding, unanswered practical questions and contributor feedback. Keep stated interest separate from visits or purchases. Review whether popular topics crowd out less familiar but useful material before expanding the collection.

Stop if content stereotypes a community, presents outdated travel conditions as current or treats a popularity vote as evidence of cultural value or booking behaviour.