Senior Marketing Manager (Japan)

Keywords Studios is seeking a strategic and collaborative Senior Marketing Manager to lead and optimize marketing strategies for the Japanese market. This role acts as the Japan representative for global marketing, ensuring effective deployment of brand, messaging, and Go-to-Market activities aligned with the Japanese gaming industry. The manager will report to the Global Marketing Director and collaborate closely with country leadership, sales, and regional/global marketing teams, playing a crucial role in enhancing Keywords' presence and driving business growth in Japan.

Must Have

• Develop and execute Japan-specific marketing strategies aligned with global goals.
• Localize global messaging, brand positioning, and value propositions for Japanese audiences.
• Act as the primary marketing contact in Japan, representing Create, Globalize, and Engage functions.
• Lead content strategy and asset production, creating creative briefs for localized assets.
• Manage the Japanese version of the Keywords Studios website, ensuring content is updated and SEO optimized.
• Manage and grow local corporate social media channels (X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook).
• Lead planning and execution of key local events, especially Tokyo Game Show (TGS).
• Plan and execute paid advertising campaigns, managing budget and reporting ROI.
• Track KPIs for campaign performance, content utilization, and marketing-driven pipeline contribution.
• Collaborate with sales to ensure proposals and messaging reflect a clear market position for Japanese clients.
• Maintain a library of localized marketing assets, case studies, and presentations for the sales team.
• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, Communications, or related field.
• 7+ years of marketing experience, preferably in gaming, entertainment, digital marketing, or technology.
• Deep understanding of the Japanese game and entertainment industry.
• Native-level Japanese and business-level English.

Good to Have

• Experience with creative agencies or marketing services related to LiveOps, publishing support, or digital content.
• Knowledge of game development, production, or B2B service marketing.
• Certifications in digital marketing, analytics, or campaign management.

Company Overview

Keywords Studios is a global creative and technical service provider specializing in the video game industry. With over 13,000 professionals across more than 70 studios in over 25 countries, we offer three core service lines that support the entire game development lifecycle:

• Create — Game development, art production, audio production
• Globalize — Voice and text localization, localization testing, functional testing
• Engage — Marketing, LiveOps, community, user acquisition

In Japan, Keywords Studios provides all Create, Globalize, and Engage service lines, supporting major publishers, developers, agencies, and IP holders with domestic and international teams. We have established localization, QA, player support, and marketing functions, including the Tokyo-based development studio Wizcorp, serving many influential companies in the Japanese game and entertainment industry. As Japan is one of the world's most important and culturally influential markets in interactive entertainment, we are strengthening our marketing leadership in Japan to effectively adapt, localize, and execute our global strategy for our Japanese partners.

Job Description

Position Overview

We are looking for a strategic and highly collaborative Senior Marketing Manager to oversee and optimize Keywords Studios' marketing strategy for the Japanese market. As the Japan representative for the global marketing function, this role ensures the effective deployment of our brand, messaging, and Go-to-Market activities in line with the expectations of our Japanese gaming industry partners.

This position reports to the Global Marketing Director and works closely with the Japan Country Manager, Create Leadership, Sales Team, and regional/global marketing personnel. As a strategic bridge between Japan and the Group Marketing function, you will collaborate with the central team to define asset requirements and leverage the global design team to produce high-quality, localized or customized creative assets for the Japanese market.

This position plays a crucial role in strengthening Keywords' presence in Japan, improving the quality and consistency of marketing communications, and supporting business growth across all service lines. By translating global marketing strategies into culturally resonant, market-specific executions, the Senior Marketing Manager will directly contribute to our continued business expansion in one of our most critical regions.

Key Responsibilities

Japan Market Marketing Strategy and Localization

• Develop and execute Japan-specific marketing strategies aligned with global goals.
• Localize global messaging, brand positioning, and value propositions for Japanese audiences.
• Highlight market insights, opportunities, trends, and competitive dynamics to global stakeholders.

Cross-Service Line Collaboration and Marketing Representation

• Act as the primary marketing contact in Japan, representing Create, Globalize, and Engage functions and services.
• Collaborate with sales, Create leadership, and regional service lines to ensure unified market positioning.
• Support the development of customized integrated proposals and solution packages for Japanese clients.

Marketing Content, Campaigns, and Brand Presence

• Asset Management and Production: Lead content strategy and asset production processes. Create creative briefs and collaborate with Group Marketing and internal design teams to deliver high-quality localized assets, presentation materials, case studies, one-pagers, and custom creatives for the Japanese market.
• Website Management: Be responsible for the Japanese version of the Keywords Studios website, ensuring content is up-to-date, culturally appropriate, SEO-optimized, and aligned with global brand standards.
• Social Media: Manage and grow local corporate social media channels (X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, etc.), responsible for community engagement and Japanese copywriting.
• Events (Tokyo Game Show): Lead the planning and execution of key local events, especially Tokyo Game Show (TGS), consulting with Group Marketing on budget, branding, and strategic objectives.
• Paid Advertising: Plan and execute paid advertising campaigns to achieve specific business goals, including budget management and ROI reporting.

Reporting, Analysis, and Continuous Improvement

• Track KPIs such as campaign performance, content utilization, and marketing-driven pipeline contribution.
• Asset Performance: Understand the performance of specific creative assets and messages through data analysis, providing insights for future design briefs and campaign strategies.
• Regular reporting to the Global Marketing Director and Japan Leadership Team.
• Continuously identify opportunities to enhance Keywords' brand presence and market impact in Japan.

Sales Support and Collaboration

• Collaborate with the sales team to ensure proposals, messaging, and presentations reflect a clear and consistent market position tailored to Japanese client expectations.
• Provide strategic input in key business opportunities where a marketing perspective is useful (e.g., positioning, storytelling, differentiators).
• Maintain a library of localized marketing assets, case studies, and presentation materials that are easily accessible and usable by the sales team.
• Coordinate with sales leadership to ensure marketing activities reinforce commercial priorities and upcoming initiatives.

Required Skills and Qualities

• Strategic thinking: Ability to translate global and regional business objectives into actionable, localized marketing plans.
• Analytical skills: High ability in data interpretation regarding asset performance, campaign measurement, and ROI.
• Creative collaboration: Ability to clearly communicate creative needs to design teams and manage feedback loops to ensure high-quality output.
• Excellent interpersonal skills: A strong relationship builder with empathy, emotional intelligence, and the ability to collaborate effectively across functions and cultures.
• Excellent storytelling ability: The power to clearly and confidently shape compelling narratives for Japanese audiences, both in writing and verbally.
• Project management: Excellent organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously (TGS planning, website updates, campaigns, etc.).
• Cross-functional collaboration: Comfortable collaborating with diverse teams across service lines, regions, and specializations.

Qualifications

Application Requirements

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, Communications, or a related field.
• 7+ years of marketing experience (preferably in gaming, entertainment, digital marketing, or technology industry).
• Proven track record of developing and executing integrated marketing campaigns in Japan.
• Deep understanding of the Japanese game and entertainment industry.
• Experience bridging local needs and global creative teams (briefing designers, managing localization workflows).
• Experience managing corporate social media accounts and website content management systems (CMS).
• Experience implementing and reporting on paid advertising campaigns.
• Native-level Japanese and business-level English.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with creative agencies or marketing services related to LiveOps, publishing support, or digital content.
• Knowledge of game development, production, or B2B service marketing.
• Certifications in digital marketing, analytics, or campaign management.

Other Information

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