February 5, 2018 — A cover has been chosen for the second edition of my book Landed Japan, and a winning entrant has been picked for the Landed Japan giveaway.
The most popular design is version B, and the lucky winner is Shoichi Muromura.
Here’s some background on the cover design and the Landed Japan giveaway.
During the week of January 22, 2018, I assembled 10 sample designs for the book cover. Photos ranged from Tokyo Tower and street scenes of Akihabara and Shibuya crossing to Dotonbori and the Osaka skyline. I wanted a photo that had impact, that wasn’t a cliché and that immediately conveyed the idea of Japan and real estate.
In the end, I selected three photos that were taken in Kyoto in August 2016.
On January 27, I began posting the three covers on social media, including Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. I also included the photos in my monthly newsletter.
By the February 4 cutoff, I had received 122 votes, which broke down as follows
Design A: 40
Design B: 59
Design C: 23
While most people simply picked a letter, others sent interesting and often insightful comments about why they liked a certain photo, and their second and third choices.
Respondents were a diverse group that included professional and semiprofessional photographers, designers, architects, journalists, entrepreneurs, students, retirees, family and friends.
My Japanese friends and associates shared their opinions, as did several long-term foreign residents of Japan. I also received votes from coast to coast in Canada, from all over the United States, and from Poland, England, Sweden, Finland, Australia, Singapore, Germany, the Philippines, Mainland China and Hong Kong.
On February 5, I tabulated the results on a spreadsheet, and used the random number generator at random.org to pick a winner.
Thanks to everyone who participated and congratulations again to Muromura-san, who won the Landed Japan giveaway.