/2013/11/05/jiro-dreams-of-sushi/ on this server. Your technical support key is: a29e-a5d7-1756-6707 and be sure to provide the technical support key shown above.My post about the sushi restaurant in Tokyo where Barack Obama and Shinzo Abe had a dinner last night. Sukiyabashi Jiro is one of the best sushi restaurants in Tokyo and,without any question, the most famous in the world thanks to the documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi. According to the Wall Street Journal, the two heads of state had a presidential treatment as their dinner lasted for one and a half hour, 3 times longer than a meal normally lasts at Sukiyabashi Jiro. ( Most of the ” regular” people are out after 25-30 min…) Those who have ever been eating out in Tokyo might know the difference between “Sukiyabashi Jiro Ginza” (Tsukamoto Sogyo Building, B1F. 4-2-15, Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo ,tel. 03-3535-3600), 3 Michelin stars  and “Sukiyabashi Jiro Roppongi” (2*). You can quite easily get a booking at the latter, while if you are gaijin, a  foreigner who doesn’t speak Japanese, you have little chance of getting a reservation at Sukiyabashi Jiro Ginza.

And you shouldn’t even try walking in as  you will be most likely turned away.If you do want to eat sushi made by the hands of the “Japan’s living national treasure”, 86 year old sushi master Jiro Ono , you must speak Japanese or be accompanied by a fluent Japanese speaker. Claims of rude service and even foreigners discrimination at Sukiyabashi Jiro Ginza have been surfacing on the internet. Therefore i was a little nervous before going there, especially that the night before i read about  Andy Hayler’s  unfortunate experience. In fact, I was treated really nice and  it was one of my best sushi experiences in Tokyo ever. But first of all, how i got the reservation. The lunch for one was reserved by my Japanese friend. As i understood, the biggest Sukiyabashi Jiro reservation person concern was that i might not show up.( Let’s be fair, this happens in Europe or the US, people just don’t bother to cancel their bookings.) Once my friend guaranteed via her company that the cost of the lunch (31 500 Yen, the same price as dinner ) would be covered anyway, i got the confirmation.

Back to the basement next door to the Gap store in Ginza. When i entered the tiny, only ten places restaurant i was greeted by a lady ( who took my coat) and one of  the Jiro Ono’s  assistants. sushi roller machine amazonI was expecting icy expressions on everybody’s face, but that was not the case. how to order sushi paleoThe lady greeted me with a smile, so as the first assistant of Jiro Ono  and Ono’s son Yoshikazu Ono.sushi to go palma The first thing the assistant asked me was if there was something i don’t eat. sushi delivery toronto eglintonI don’t  eat eel,  i said in my poor Japanese. sushi in oxford street

Almost immediately after i got my first sushi (which i will describe later in this post).  The intervals between each sushi piece were very short, 20 sushi meal took about half an hour. sushi take out calgary nw( According to the Michelin Tokyo  guide ” one shouldn’t be surprised to be finished within 30 minutes”). jiro dreams of sushi movie freeJiro Ono’s work discipline is incredible, once he is behind the counter, he operates like a  Swiss watch. At one point, the son of Jiro Ono asked me where i was from. I said that i am originally from Lithuania. “So you must speak Russian, then”, – he answered in Russian. Suddenly the communication got a lot easier as i do speak Russian a little bit. And Yoshikazu Ono san , and Jiro Ono san were relaxed, pleasant and eager to chat. They didn’t seem to be  bothered at all about my basic Japanese or about me taking pictures of the sushi.

Jiro Ono san even tried to place sushi in a way so it  looks more flattering in front of the camera. Without any hesitation he agreed to take pictures together and before leaving personally gave me the little menu with all the fish i had. Speaking of the sushi, one thing that struck me was the sourness of the rice; it was much more vinegared than at other top Tokyo sushi restaurants I’ve been. The fish quality was amazing and I did eat the eel nigiri after all. Jiro san insisted i should try it and I just couldn’t say no to the legendary sushi master.( Actually i find eel very tasty, i don’t eat it purely because of psychological reasons.) Lunch at Sukiyabashi Jiro Ginza was a lifetime experience and i can’t wait to see  “Jiro dreams of sushi” ,a documentary about the man who has been making sushi since he was nine yet never ceases to search for perfection.   Image courtesy of Magnolia Pictures If you haven’t seen the beautifully shot documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi by David Gelb, I highly suggest you set aside some Netflix time in the near future to do so.

The movie is touching, gorgeous and inspiring. That being said, I also found myself thinking about the documentary for days afterwards – and applying the lessons from the film to a variety of different pursuits – including marketing. The film follows Jiro Ono, an 85-year-old sushi master who has spent his life perfecting his craft at his deceptively modest 3-star Michelin restaurant in Tokyo. Jiro is supremely dedicated to the art of sushi (some would say obsessed) – and has earned a reputation for serving the best sushi in the world. So, what does sushi have to do with marketing? The more I thought about Jiro’s story, the more I realized the parallels between his life’s work and success and great marketing. Here are a few lessons we can take from the movie and apply to the marketing world: Perhaps what’s given Jiro the reputation he has today was his desire to only serve sushi at his restaurant. There are no appetizers and no menu. Guests are served the sushi Jiro has prepared that day, in the order he has decided.

This allows Jiro to focus entirely on a single menu of sushi every day – and ensuring the perfection of each piece. This same principle can be applied to marketing. Stop focusing on the things that don’t matter (i.e. the fluff). When marketing your product and/or services, focus on the narrow message you want to deliver. Don’t make an audience think too much about what you are offering. Too many choices leads to paralyzation. Provide an experience that focuses on exactly what you are trying to communicate and limit anything that distracts from this core message. Much like Jiro found appetizers filled diners up too much to truly enjoy the sushi, you don’t want bloated marketing to fill your audience up too much to understand your message. What does your business/product/client do exceptionally well? What message or benefit are you trying to communicate? Focus in on these elements and the resulting marketing efforts will be tight, easily digestible and often very effective.

Jiro thinks about every single detail that goes into his sushi. From the seating arrangements to the ingredients to the temperature of the rice – absolutely nothing is overlooked. In marketing, the same attention to detail can make the difference between a mediocre campaign and a great one. I was recently part of a team that helped with the redesign of the Virgin America website. What resonated with audiences about the new site was not only the overall look, feel and function, but also the attention to all of the small details. Instead of standard (and boring) copy to alert passengers they had completed a step in booking a flight, we wrote cheeky, on-brand and fun messaging that made the experience feel completely Virgin. It was a little detail that went a long ways in creating a holistic experience. Which brings us to…. Jiro thinks about EVERYTHING when it comes to his guests’ experience. He serves one piece of sushi at a time to every customer that sits in his tiny, 11-seat restaurant.

He’s focused on ensuring all patrons finish eating at the same time, so he makes bigger sushi for bigger people and smaller sushi for smaller people, adjusting on the fly. He also notices which hand people use to eat their sushi, and then places each piece on the plate accordingly to make it easier to pick up. Everything from seating arrangement to portion size is handled in the background by Jiro and his staff so customers can focus on the one thing they came to do: eat the best sushi in the world. Jiro understands that it’s all of these components that contribute to the experience – not just the output (the sushi). In marketing, we may not be able to sit and closely observe the way an audience is consuming our efforts, but with today’s technology, we do have powerful analytics and data that can help inform you of an audience’s interaction with your marketing and their experience. Smart marketers will use these insights to adjust tactics on the fly in order to create the best, most effective experience.

All of Jiro’s sushi is extremely simple. This not only allows the ingredients to shine through, but makes the end result pure (and delicious. and beautiful). Essentially, Jiro edits his sushi down to only the most crucial elements – and then makes sure those elements are perfect. Do the same with your marketing: Edit. Reduce your marketing and messaging down to its most essential and important elements. Allow the “ingredients” of your marketing shine through. Focus on making each piece of marketing boil down to only the most essential elements. This will help drive a clear, easily digestible and effective marketing messaging and strategy. At 85 years old Jiro is the best sushi chef in the world. And yet, he proudly states that he is not perfect and there is always room for improvement. Jiro was nine years old when he left his home, and he has only done one thing since then: keep improving. Even after he received an award from Japan declaring him a national treasure, he returned to work the same day to further improve his skills.