My Rakuten Experience: Mako

Mako is Manager of the Marketing Group in the Point Experience Business Department of the Media Business.

Current Job

I am in charge of marketing for “Super Point Screen,” a point-earning app provided by Rakuten. I am involved in a wide range of planning activities to get more users to use the app, including promotion, product improvement, campaign planning, operation of social media and conducting user interviews.

“Super Point Screen” focuses on the point-earning experience and enables users to create their own unique experiences by using Rakuten’s different businesses and planning tie-ins. In fact, we have collaborated with major merchants to create coupon plans, as well as with influencers to create a Rakuten Super Point-earning experience through riddle-solving games and kaidan (ghost stories). In addition to the services I am in charge of, I also propose advertising and tie-in projects to increase the number of Rakuten users engaged with the app.

Why did you join Rakuten?

At my previous job, I worked as a director of human resources-related advertising planning and production and as a data analyst. I found it deeply satisfying being able to support advertisers’ operations, both creatively and through quantitative data analysis and to create opportunities for customers to become interested in companies.

I wanted to further develop my data analysis skills for business growth, so I decided to seek the next stage of my career. One of the main reasons I chose Rakuten was because it provides an environment in which I am able to propose and analyze advertising solutions based on the wealth of consumer behavior analysis data collected by the Rakuten Group.

Another point that attracted me to the idea of working at Rakuten is that we can provide value to customers by leveraging the unique aspects of Rakuten’s businesses, such as Rakuten Points and Okaimono Panda, and by collaborating with a wide range of businesses.

Work Environment

The various teams at Rakuten all work very closely with each other, particularly the engineer teams, with whom we discuss and execute a variety of tasks, such as planning unique campaigns and determining more effective ways of structuring user communication. In the planning of new functions, the process from defining requirements to creating mock-ups is very speedy, with PoC (Proof of Concept) and reviews proceeding every few weeks.

Our designers help us give shape to our ideas with mock-ups, and our engineers help us launch discussions on the planning side, so we can all work across roles and domains to discuss services with each other so that, in the end, our customers and advertisers can benefit from it. I love seeing my ideas take shape in the form of designs and products, as well as receiving feedback from users once these products are delivered to them.

Career Goals

My current goal is to generate products that can create an impact on society from the business side, and to build connections between customers and clients by making full use of our creativity and data. I would especially like to take advantage of Rakuten’s distinctive strengths to create products that are unique to Rakuten and have never been seen before.

In order to achieve this, I proactively seek out learning opportunities, including polishing my data analysis skills using SQL and BI tools, information design using Figma (a vector graphics editor and prototyping tool) and design assets, and participating in conferences on product management and advertising management. At Rakuten, I have many opportunities to learn about product management, both in practice and in theory.

How many projects do you handle currently?

I handle about 10 to 15 projects at any given time. Their scales vary, and each project can take a few weeks to several months to complete. The total number of projects per year I could be directly involved in is about 120.

Are you involved in any club activities at Rakuten?

I sometimes drop by Rakuten’s board game group!

What do you do on your days off?

I really like escape games, so I do those often.

*The content and affiliation presented in this article are accurate as of the time of the interview.

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