Secret Japanese Onsen Foreigners Don't Know! | Tokyo

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1. I think the Japan vlog scene falls into two main categories (slight disclaimer: I am being generalistic and trying to crudely group things so no one get angry with me haha). First category (A): youtube channels that star a girl whose content is largely vlogging (talking about their day, fashion, makeup, topics) and the occasional travel/"interesting Japan thing"-type video. The audience for this category are likely young women who enjoy watching it (though, of course, I'm sure guys also watch). Naturally, if they are good looking and doing interesting things, they'll have an easier time finding an audience. This audience will probably be pretty large too considering young people have a lot of time on their hands and will be a strong base unlike older 21+ working people. At the end of the day, they are catering to their audience and doing what they want, it just so happens that syncs with their audience. If you are looking to co-op this same audience that will be difficult for you to do, if not improbable, simply because you aren't a girl and, in that audience's eye, don't really fill in what they are seeking (or you may fill certain areas but not others). That is a large audience and you will be able to have them check out your stuff but to expect to draw the same amount time and again, without filling in the requisite conditions that those vloggers fill (being a girl, vlogging about x, y, z, fashion/makeup, etc, going places, etc), is likely not the best course of action. Couples can also fall into this category occasionally but both members really need to be funny/on point/possibly good looking, etc. What is appealing to the very younger generations doesn't necessarily apply to the older ones.
   
   The next are the successful (I emphasize this point because there are a lot of random channels, of course, doing the best they can) mostly guy channels. These are typically low on vlogs and instead aim at delivering very high quality content both in topic/interest and/or humour. Thinking WheresStu, ONLYinJapan, AbroadInJapan, OkanoTV, Simon and Martina/Rachel and Jun (these couples actually fall in Category A and B which probably explains their wide-ranging success; Gimmieabrake/flakeman falls into Category Z which just means he is too unique to put into one section, due to various factors), etc. Notice that they always try to deliver high quality, interesting, and/or humorous videos. (Not to say your content is that). The editing quality and simply source material is quite on point, and although the volume of releases is not exactly a lot, many would complain it's not enough, that slow rate of delivering high quality releases puts them at a good place. Their audiences not only includes people who follow jvlogging but likely other people who may have peripherally come upon the video. But it needs to be a very interesting topic or be really funny for them to bother coming out; sometimes less is more in this regard. For example, with WheresStu, his viral video the tokyo salaryman, caught up a lot of people not connected to vlogging; from that, he spring-boarded a lot of funny stuff, interaction, etc). AbroadInJapan makes a lot of high quality funny videos but they are almost always connected to a topic or a place, and he also has Japanese people who he interacts. ONLYinJapan is basically the gold standard of high quality entertaining content and hits a lot of things: interviewing Japanese people, travelling to unique locations, Japanese 'things;' all in a very high quality package and production.
   
   I'm not sure what I'm getting at but I think what is happening is it is very difficult to be capturing the audience of (A) simply because it will not work for you or your style. Your style is better suited to (B). If you are more suited for (B), then you need to crank up whatever it is that makes category (B)'s successful. Maybe find a way to appropriate the things that work for their videos and find a way to incorporate them into yours. Maybe have one video a month where you do a topic, very in depth, interview a Japanese person who has a connection to it, maybe go to the place, etc. Your video skills are getting better and better and same with the editing. I think your humour is right up there with the best jvloggers if not the best so the good news is that isn't your problem. Finding a way to distill it and put out things that will draw in the audience, and audiences that aren't your typical audience, can help. It's tough to fight it out like you've been doing but you're only getting better, keep at it. Keep finding sponsors who want you to go to places and do stuff. Another thing more mental thing you could do is look at successful videos in depth: count the amount of cuts, how many are low-high shots? how many are shot long? Are they using some sort of steadicam? How are they using the light? What topic are they doing? Is there a new topic I can do? Can I do the topic they did better than they did or if they missed something? The age old question of click baity headlines/thumbnails (it's a fact of life whether people complain about it or not; if it works it works), etc.
   
   Having said all that, remind yourself that I'm just trying to come up with things to help. You're a very talented individual and frankly should be more successful in this youtube endeavour but alas this is how things are sometimes and we're sometimes forced to carry a bit more of a burden to get to the same place. You can do it though!
2. 日本にはこんなところもあるんですね！！
3. hi Yoko! hi eee!
4. Ozzy , you're so cool! I wish I can speak Japanese cus I wanna visit that place
5. Did you have to cover your tattoo?
6. Is Yoko your GF? She's cute. How long was the trip to that area? The best Onsen I've visited was in Nagano. It was an outdoors one that was attached to the back of the hotel with a view of the snow covered mountains.
7. loved it OZZY san.
8. Bro, you're giving me reasons to come back to Japan for a 3rd time!
9. Things get stolen in Japan?! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! There goes my JET application lol. The food looks amazing though.
10. That's a beautiful place. It sure would beat walking around Tokyo. And the hotel looked quaint.
11. うわあぁ、楽しそう！ It looks like so much fun!
    
    Great vid, looking forward seeing more onsen Ozzy! (^^)v
12. I've been here 4 times! Usually full of University students many points of the year. Love the onsen tamago
13. What a gorgeous area, looks great. I have a question about tattoos, are there onsens where they are ok? Thank you for your video ☺
14. :o cool place
15. oh! I hope you enjoyed Gunma! I live in Takasaki right now. Thank you for showing Kusatsu, it is indeed a really famous onsen among Japanese people. I went this winter (on valentine day) with my bf ! It is also lovely because of the snow, but we went by another option : the train. It was surprisely bad because even if it's a limited express, it stops close to Kusatsu , not in Kusatsu... From the station , you're obliged to take another JR bus to reach it. At the end, it was quite expensive! :( For those who are interested, there is also another famous onsen in Gunma called Minakami onsen. You can also ride a SL (steam train) on some weekends to go there, definitely an agreable experience. :D
16. All those wooden troughs are mineral precipitators. They gather the precipitated minerals periodically and sell them. They also help to cool the water down too.
    Great Vid!
17. 動画を観て、虫といえば・・最近、イナゴの佃煮を食べていないな。思い出した。
    
    草津温泉ってたしか熱い温泉だったような・・？まあ効くらしいけどー。
    有名温泉だ。
    ところでロッカーがないのなら、貴重品は別のところで預かってくれないのかな？　
    銭湯だと番台で預かってくれるのにー。どうなんだろう？
18. I heard Ozzy saying oh shit for first time