Episode #395: The Thrill Of The Hunt In Sales In Japan

In competitive markets like Tokyo (東京, Tokyo), sales teams can’t rely on one style alone. Leaders at 日本企業 (Japanese companies) and 外資系企業 (multinational companies) face a real question: how do you consistently win new business while protecting long-term client value? The answer often starts with understanding the two essential sales roles—hunters and farmers—and designing a system where both thrive.

Hunters are energised by discovering new prospects, creating opportunities from nothing, and landing deals. They love the chase and the breakthrough moment when a prospect becomes a client.

Farmers excel after the contract is signed. They build trust, handle follow-through, manage relationships, and grow accounts into long-term repeaters.

Mini-summary: Hunters create new clients; farmers grow and retain them. High-performing organisations need both, especially in relationship-driven markets like Japan.

Hunters live close to the edge of outcomes: win, lose, or stall. Every outreach carries uncertainty, and results can feel personal.

Common “loss” experiences include:

• The buyer chooses a competitor (痛い, itai / “that hurts”).

• The deal collapses unexpectedly.

• The buyer disappears (“ghosting”).

For hunters, these outcomes can trigger self-doubt—especially when several losses stack up in a short time.

Mini-summary: The hunter role amplifies emotional swings because success is never guaranteed and each attempt feels like a fresh test.

Resilient hunters separate analysis from self-blame:

1. Assume the offer truly helps the client.
   If a buyer declines, they may be missing an opportunity that would have supported their goals.

2. Review behaviour, not identity.
   Hunters can ask:

   • What did I do well?

   • What could I improve next time?

   • What signals did I miss?

3. Refuse to internalise negativity.
   Treat losses as data, not verdicts on your worth.

4. Stay emotionally level in both directions.
   Celebrate wins with quiet confidence, not ego; accept losses without collapse.

Mini-summary: Hunters keep certainty intact by learning from outcomes without letting outcomes define them.

Effective hunters use deliberate, repeatable patterns—especially at networking events:

• Arrive early and scan name badges.
  Look for familiar contacts, target prospects, or people you’ve wanted to meet.

• Own the doorway.
  Meet attendees as they enter; people often assume you’re hosting, which lowers barriers.

• Qualify quickly through simple curiosity.
  Asking about their business and headcount helps you match solutions:

  • Small teams → public programs.

  • 30+ employees → potential in-house training.

• Work the room consistently.
  Sales means “kissing frogs” until you find the right fit—then following through.

A single well-handled first meeting can turn into a major engagement. One example: meeting an executive at an American Chamber New Year’s party led to a full in-house Leadership Training For Managers program the following month.

Mini-summary: Hunters win in Japan through disciplined networking, fast qualification, and steady follow-up that turns chance meetings into trust-based deals.

Hunters need wins to “leaven out” the inevitable failures. Losses are guaranteed in any sales pipeline; the emotional skill is not avoiding failure, but recovering from it.

When hunters stay resilient:

• They keep prospecting momentum.

• They protect confidence under pressure.

• They continue generating new market value.

Mini-summary: Success doesn’t remove failure from a hunter’s life; it balances it and keeps the chase alive.

• Hunters and farmers are both essential: one creates new clients, the other grows and retains them.

• Hunters must master emotional resilience: losses are data, not identity.

• Repeatable networking behaviours drive new business: especially in 東京 (Tokyo).

• Balanced confidence wins markets: stay steady in both victory and defeat.

Founded in the U.S. in 1912, Dale Carnegie Training has supported individuals and companies worldwide for over a century in leadership, sales, presentation, executive coaching, and DEI. Our Tokyo office, established in 1963, has been empowering both Japanese and multinational corporate clients ever since.