While eBay’s success in the Western world is well known, in Japan eBay failed to make a good first impression and the online auction giant pulled out of Japan in March 2002. If you try to visit eBay’s Japanese website now you will find an apologetic message, and a link to another Japanese auction site called Bidders. Bidders has only a tiny fraction of current the Japanese online auction market.

The demise of eBay Japan is no great loss and Yahoo! Auctions is enjoying immense popularity. Even when eBay Japan was in the running, Yahoo! enjoyed a 95% share of the online auction market, compared to eBay’s piddling 3%.

Yahoo! has made great inroads in Japan, both through their Yahoo! BB broadband services and also the ubiquitous Yahoo web portal. Yahoo! has been very well accepted in Japan and has gained the respect and trust of the Japanese people.

Cultural differences could place more of a part than it first appears. Yahoo! has been careful to tailor their service to the Japanese way of thinking and of life.

Even online, the famed Japanese politeness and etiquette is essential. For example, leaving feedback like ‘Great buyer’ or ‘Bad seller’ will just not cut it. Nor will leaving over factual or emotional responses. There is a definite requirement that all communication between the buyer and seller is respectful and verbose.

If you have ever used eBay, one thing that may shock you about Japanese online auctions is their trusting nature. I have bought a number of different items where the seller has sent me out the item before I’ve even paid for it! This works because most Japanese will feel guilty and run down to make their payment straight away. I’ve even bought from proper online stores and been given the same payment terms, delivery now… pay later! If only Western society was like that.

Another reason for Yahoo! Auctions’ rise to the top was perhaps their Yahoo! Payments system. Yahoo! Payments allows the seller to receive the funds from the sale into their bank account.

A browse through Yahoo! Auctions reveals a world of items that Western collectors would drool over. But before you attempt to logon, you’d better have several years of Japanese studies under your belt. Unless you can converse like a native, with all the intricacies of the Japanese politeness you won’t get far. You’ll also need access to payment methods that you can only do in Japan, such as a local postal money order. International payments are definitely not accepted - and a Japanese delivery address is a must.

Most sellers wont even sell to overseas for these reason, and also because they don’t want the hassles of international delivery. Why would they? With a population of around 127,000,000 people, potential buyers in Japan are not exactly hard to come by.

Japanese culture has many ancient traditions. For example, when entering a Japanese home did you know that you are required to take off your shoes? In Japan culture plays an important part of everyday life, so it’s essential to show respect and always remove your footwear when entering houses in Japan. This means that slip-on or easy to remove shoes are a must.

Obviously, if you are wearing high lace up boots then it is going to get annoying real fast when you have to take them off every time you enter Japanese homes. It’s a good idea to purchase some new socks before your trip too and make sure to always wear clean, hole-free ones as you never know when you may need to take off your shoes. Some Japanese restaurants, temples and traditional hotels will also require that you remove your footwear too. The idea is to keep the dirt from the street outside and preserve the clean Japanese home decor. Most Japanese homes will also feature what is called ‘tatami’. This is the traditional straw matting that you may have visions of Japanese samurai sitting on. Walking on the Japanese tatami mats in anything more than socks is a definite no-no and you will quickly offend your host.

Japanese interiors may feature tatami prominently, however these days most houses in Japan only have one traditional style tatami room. It may be furnished with a sparse amount of Japanese furniture, while the rest of the house will often be of a Western feel. Even without the Japanese tatami room, most Japanese homes will feature a traditional part of Japanese decor called the ‘genkan’. Japanese interiors are usually raised higher, while the genkan will be lower so that you step up into the Japanese home.

Remove your shoes at the genkan and leave them there. There may be place to store them, or you may turn them around ready to step into when you leave and put them to the side out of the way. Or, you may even return to find that your host has neatly arranged them for you, a polite gesture in the culture of Japan. So remember to always where clean socks and remove your shoes when entering a Japanese home and pay respect to their Japanese traditions and culture.