The Asian approach to web hosting site design
There is no denying that there are some significant cultural differences between East and West. Since we here at Pingdom deal a lot with web hosting companies and are generally interested in the hosting industry, we have on occasion stumbled upon some Asian hosting websites which to our Western eyes have a very different look (and not just because we can’t read a word 
).
This post has screenshots of some interesting examples from Japan, China and South Korea. The designs are sometimes strikingly different from what you would expect to see from a Western hosting company website, and often quite charming.
Colors and cartoons
Keep it colorful… very colorful. And don’t forget the happy cartoon characters (leprechauns, anyone?)
Screenshot from www.lolipop.jp. (Japan)
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Screenshot from www.muumuu-domain.com. (Japan)
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Screenshot from www.kornet.net. (South Korea)
Cram in a LOT of information
We don’t understand a word of this, but that looks like a lot of information crammed into one page…
Screenshot from www.mireene.com. (South Korea)
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Screenshot from www.firstserver.ne.jp. (Japan)
Cute animals
Cute animals and puppies seem to work well all over the world, including China and Japan.
Screenshot from www.winet.cn. (China)
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Screenshot from rose.ruru.ne.jp. (Japan)
Some other general observations
- For us in Europe at least, websites in China, Japan, South Korea and other Asian countries tend to load really slowly.
- You basically can’t find a Chinese hosting website that doesn’t offer some form of live support chat.
- Did we mention that we really don’t understand a word on these websites?
And before anyone makes this comment: There are of course plenty of examples where the hosting website looks more or less like a conventional Western website. But that wouldn’t have been much fun to look at, would it?
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David Moisan
May 9th, 2008 at 11:17 am
The cartoon dog in the top of last page is lifting its leg. The dog in the lower right looks like it’s squatting…
I know bodily-functions humor is a hallmark of Japanese media.
Hosting Admin
January 14th, 2009 at 12:32 pm
These sites look terrible!!! I can’t believe in Japan there are such low quality designs.
citizensquare
January 26th, 2009 at 1:55 am
Actually, I think they’re quite charming. In addition, people in Asia tend to read most if not all of the information, unlike most Americans who tend to skim through content. It’s cultural differences, really.
Best Web Hosting Company
May 13th, 2009 at 10:11 pm
We really don’t know what’s the content of the sites. Design wise, they are truly awful. However, knowing japanese method. I think they go for quality and not for design,