Search "japanese press release template" and you mostly find generic advice with no worked example attached. This guide is the missing piece: the standard structure Japanese press releases actually follow, what goes in each part and why, and then a complete example — built around a fictional brand and annotated in English — so you can see the template filled in, not just described.
A template is a skeleton, not a finished release. It tells you where the company profile block goes and what order the body follows; it doesn't tell you how to keep a headline factual instead of clever, or how to phrase a claim so it survives Japanese advertising conventions. Treat what follows as the structure — the register and precision underneath it still need a native Japanese business writer.
The 5-part structure every Japanese press release follows
Japanese press releases are more standardized in format than most Western ones — which is good news for a template, and part of why deviating from it reads as a red flag to journalists.
1. Headline — state the fact, skip the wordplay
A specific, verb-driven sentence: who did what, and often when. "Company X begins sales of Y in Japan on September 1" rather than a clever tagline. Wordplay headlines, common in Western PR, mostly don't survive translation and read as vague to a Japanese editor scanning dozens of releases.
2. Summary paragraph — the 5W1H lead
Immediately after the headline: who, what, when, where and how much, in one dense paragraph — complete enough that a journalist could write a two-line brief from it alone without reading further. Pricing goes in JPY, tax included; a release that only states a foreign currency figure reads as not actually built for the Japanese market.
3. Body — details in descending importance, often as a 記書き list
After the lead, supporting details follow in strictly descending order of importance, frequently formatted as a labeled 記書き (literally "written as notes") bullet list: specs, price, availability, retail partners, background. This is where product facts live — not where new superlative claims get introduced.
4. Company profile block (会社概要)
A short, structured block: company name, founding date, representative's name, headquarters address, and a one-line business description. Japanese readers expect this block in every release, regardless of company size — its absence is one of the clearest signals that a release wasn't written for the Japanese market. We cover the cultural reasoning behind this and the other structural conventions in more depth in our Japanese press-release format guide.
5. Contact block — reachable in Japanese
Clearly separated from the company profile block: a named contact, email and — where relevant — phone, who can respond to a follow-up question in Japanese. A journalist who can't get an answer in Japanese usually doesn't write the story, no matter how strong the news is.
A full example — fictional brand, for illustration
Example — fictional brand, for illustration. "Nordholm Brew Co." below is an invented company created only to demonstrate the template; any resemblance to a real business is coincidental. English notes in italics explain what each part is doing and why. An actual release would be written natively in Japanese from the start — this is shown in English so the structure is legible to non-Japanese-reading founders.
Headline
"Nordholm Brew Co. Begins Sales of Stainless-Steel Pour-Over Coffee Sets in Japan on September 1"
Note: factual and verb-driven — states what is happening and when, with no adjectives or wordplay.
Summary paragraph
Bergen, Norway — August 20, 2026 — Nordholm Brew Co., a Norwegian manufacturer of stainless-steel pour-over coffee equipment, announced today that its complete pour-over set will go on sale in Japan from September 1, 2026, priced at ¥12,800 (tax included), through the company's official Japan online store and a small number of specialty coffee retailers in Tokyo and Osaka.
Note: who (Nordholm Brew Co.), what (pour-over set on sale), when (September 1), where (official store plus named cities), how much (¥12,800, tax included) — a journalist could write a brief from this paragraph alone.
Body (記書き)
- Product: Nordholm Pour-Over Set — dripper, server and measuring scoop, double-wall stainless steel, designed and manufactured in Bergen, Norway.
- Price: ¥12,800, tax included, available from September 1, 2026.
- Where to buy: Nordholm's official Japan online store, and in person at two specialty coffee retailers in Tokyo and Osaka.
- Background: the set has been sold across Northern Europe since 2019; Japan is the brand's first market launch in Asia.
Note: details in descending order of importance, as a labeled list. Only checkable facts about the product, price and availability — no claims about taste or effects.
会社概要 (Company profile)
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Company name | Nordholm Brew Co. AS |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Representative | Ingrid Solberg, CEO |
| Headquarters | Bergen, Norway |
| Business | Design and manufacture of coffee brewing equipment |
| Website | nordholmbrew.example (fictional domain) |
Note: this block appears in every Japanese release regardless of company size — its absence is one of the clearest signs a release wasn't written for the Japanese market.
Contact block
Media inquiries: Nordholm Brew Co. Japan Press Office (fictional) — handled in Japanese — press@nordholmbrew.example
Note: a separated, easy-to-find contact reachable in Japanese, so a journalist's follow-up question actually gets answered.
Common mistakes this template is designed to prevent
- Machine translation. Running an English release through translation software and calling it Japanese. It's detectable within a sentence or two, and it signals "not built for this market" before the content is even judged.
- USD or EUR pricing only. A summary paragraph without a JPY figure, tax included, forces a Japanese reader to do currency math before they understand the news — and reads as an afterthought market.
- No company profile block. Skipping 会社概要 because a home-market release doesn't have one. Japanese readers expect it regardless of company size or industry.
- Exaggerated claims. "Revolutionary," "world's first," unverifiable "No.1" claims. Japanese business writing values factual modesty — superlatives cost credibility with editors, and unverifiable No.1 claims can separately raise issues under Japanese advertising standards.
Getting the template right is necessary but not sufficient on its own — you still need a distribution plan. See our guide on how to send a press release in Japan without a Japanese office for the platform landscape, costs and a realistic timeline.
Skip the template — get it written natively
Tell us what you're announcing — you'll get a natively written Japanese release built on this exact structure, plus distribution with a guaranteed 20+ Japanese media republications within 7 days, or your money back.
Start my release →Frequently asked questions
What is the standard structure of a Japanese press release template?
Five parts in order: a factual, verb-driven headline; a 5W1H summary paragraph; a body in descending importance, often as a labeled 記書き list; a 会社概要 (company profile) block; and a separated contact block reachable in Japanese.
Can I just translate my English press release into this template?
Not safely. A literal translation can read as foreign to Japanese journalists and can accidentally use phrasing that doesn't fit local marketing conventions. The template needs native Japanese writing, not a translation pass over English copy.
Do I need a company profile block even for a small company?
Yes. Japanese readers and journalists expect 会社概要 in every release, regardless of company size. Its absence is one of the clearest signs a release wasn't written for the Japanese market.
What's the most common mistake when following this template?
Filling in the structure correctly but keeping Western marketing habits inside it: superlative claims, USD/EUR-only pricing, and machine-translated body copy.
Does following this template guarantee media coverage?
No — editorial coverage is always a journalist's decision. What is guaranteed is distribution: 20+ Japanese media republications within 7 days, or the release fee is refunded in full. That's automatic syndication, not editorial coverage.