WordPress is the world’s most widely used CMS (content management system) and is also extensively used in Japan for building corporate websites, blogs, and e-commerce sites. However, to create a website tailored to Japan’s internet environment, user habits, and legal regulations, several specific points must be addressed.

WordPress Japan, as a company specializing in WordPress themes and services tailored for the Japanese market, supports all users—from beginners to professionals—in smoothly building their sites. This article provides a detailed step-by-step guide for WordPress beginners on creating websites for the Japanese market.

Table of Contents

1. What is WordPress?
2. Features of WordPress in Japan
3. What to Prepare Before Creating a Website
4. How to Install WordPress (For Japan)
5. Choosing Themes for Japan
6. Essential Plugins and Extensions
7. Creating Pages and Menus
8. SEO Strategies for Japan
9. Legal, Regulatory, and Privacy Policy Considerations
10. Building an E-Commerce Site for Japan
11. Post-Launch Operation and Maintenance
12. Summary

1. What is WordPress?

WordPress is a free CMS (content management system) that allows you to create websites without needing specialized knowledge of HTML or CSS.

• Easy to use even for beginners
• Freely expandable with diverse themes and plugins
• Supports a wide range of uses including blogs, corporate sites, e-commerce sites, and portfolios

WordPress Japan offers themes and plugins fully compatible with Japanese, enabling you to leverage designs and features optimized for the Japanese market.

2. Characteristics of WordPress in Japan

In Japan, WordPress adoption is increasing not only among personal blogs and small-to-medium enterprise websites, but also among major corporations.

The characteristics in Japan can be summarized as follows:

• Japanese Support: Extensive Japanese themes, plugins, and manuals
• Compatibility with Domestic Hosting Providers: Sakura Internet, Xserver, ConoHa WING, etc.
• E-commerce Site Support: Supports Japanese payment methods via WooCommerce and Welcart
• SEO-Friendly: Japanese-supported plugins like All in One SEO and Rank Math
• Active Community: Japanese communities such as WordBench and WP-Japan

WordPress Japan provides optimization and support tailored for the Japanese market, creating an environment where domestic companies and individual users can confidently manage their websites.

3. Items to Prepare Before Creating a Website (For Japan)

The following items are required when creating a Japanese-language site using WordPress.

Domain name

• When prioritizing reliability, .jp or .com domains are recommended.
• Example: example.jp, example.com

Rental Server

• Choosing a server located within Japan improves display speed and support
• Examples: Sakura Internet, Xserver, ConoHa WING

SSL Certificate

• HTTPS support is mandatory
• Many rental servers offer free Let’s Encrypt support

Site Design and Content Planning

• Designing company profiles, service introductions, blogs, inquiry pages, etc., while considering the character count and structure of Japanese content

WordPress Japan can provide comprehensive support covering everything from initial setup to server configuration.

4. How to Install WordPress (For Japan)

Automatic Installation

Many servers in Japan offer a “WordPress Easy Install” feature.

1. Log in to the server management panel
2. Select “WordPress Easy Install”
3. Select your domain
4. Installation complete → Log in via example.jp/wp-admin

Manual Installation

For advanced users: Download the latest version from the official WordPress website, create a MySQL database, configure wp-config.php, and enter information on the installation screen.

WordPress Japan supports both automatic and manual installations.

5. How to Choose Themes for Japan

Free Theme

• Twenty Twenty-Three
• Cocoon

Paid Theme

• THE THOR
• JIN
• SANGO

Key points when choosing:

• Japanese font support (e.g., Noto Sans)
• Responsive design (smartphones and tablets)
• Japanese manuals and support available
• Easy customization of footers and company information

WordPress Japan offers themes optimized for the Japanese market, with designs tailored for various industries (corporate, restaurants, hotels, e-commerce sites, etc.).

6. Essential Plugins and Extensions

Purpose	Plugin Example	Comments
SEO	All in One SEO, Rank Math	SEO Optimization for Japanese Websites
Security	Wordfence, SiteGuard	Japanese language support, malware protection
Cache/Speed Optimization	W3 Total Cache, WP Rocket	Japanese Server Optimization Support
Contact Form	Contact Form 7, MW WP Form	Japanese form creation available
Backup	UpdraftPlus	Supports automatic backup

7. Creating Pages and Menus

• In Japanese, it’s important to arrange information concisely and clearly.
• Create main pages such as “Company Overview,” “Services,” “Blog,” and “Contact Us.”
• Create menus under “Appearance” → “Menus.”
• Always check the mobile display.

WordPress Japan also provides support for page layout and navigation design.

8. SEO for Japan

• Incorporate Japanese keywords naturally into title tags and meta descriptions
• Organize heading structure (H1–H3)
• Improve site navigation with internal links
• Enhance page speed (caching, CDN, image optimization)
• Implement local SEO (Google My Business registration)

9. Important Considerations Regarding Laws, Regulations, and Privacy Policies

• Personal Information Protection Act: Clearly state how personal information is handled on inquiry forms and member sites.
• Specified Commercial Transactions Act: For e-commerce sites and paid service sales, display company name, location, contact information, and return policy.
• Privacy Policy & Cookie Handling: Easily set up using plugins.

WordPress Japan also provides templates and configuration methods that comply with the law.

10. How to Build an E-Commerce Site for Japan

• Leverage WooCommerce and Welcart
• Japanese language support, credit card, PayPay, and Rakuten Pay compatible
• Easily build product pages, carts, and order management
• Pages, menus, SEO, and speed optimization also configurable

11. Post-launch operation and maintenance

• Regular Updates for WordPress, Themes, and Plugins
• Backups (UpdraftPlus)
• Access Analytics (Google Analytics)
• Regular Content Updates
• Security Monitoring (Wordfence, SiteGuard)

12. Summary

When creating a Japanese-language website with WordPress, keep the following points in mind:

• Prepare Japanese-specific domain and server
• Install WordPress
• Select Japanese-compatible theme
• Install necessary plugins
• Create pages and menus
• Implement SEO and legal compliance
• Build e-commerce site (if required)
• Ongoing operation and maintenance

WordPress Japan provides themes, plugins, and support tailored specifically for the Japanese market, enabling even beginners to confidently create professional websites.