Korean character stickers: Potential for overseas sales – demand in English-speaking and Japanese-speaking markets
- When it comes to overseas sales, the location of use should be determined before considering the character itself.
- Japan is a good place to start because it has both dialogue options and shops.
- In English-speaking countries, the process of discovery is prioritized over the establishment of stores.
- WordPress is more like a signpost that builds trust, rather than a store.
- The expectation that a product will sell simply because it is registered is the most dangerous misconception.
- The most common bottlenecks encountered when operating directly.
- Creating overseas-version information pages with DecoBlocks.
- Initially, we should conduct small-scale experiments for each language region.
- Frequently Asked Questions.
- WordPress-related plugins
Can a single character, translated into English, be immediately sold in overseas stores? Even if the facial expressions and manner of speaking are familiar in Korea, there are places where they might be rejected before the picture itself, especially in contexts where communication takes place.
Even when viewing the same character, users in Japanese-speaking regions and English-speaking regions use different messaging platforms and have different consumption habits. Therefore, the real question is not “Will it sell if translated?”, but rather “In what region and in what kind of situations should it be used?”.
When it comes to overseas sales, the location of use should be determined before considering the character itself.
In South Korea, stickers are commonly used as pictures that are immediately sent during conversations to express greetings, gratitude, apology, or encouragement. This basic principle is the same even overseas. However, users must first decide which messaging platform to use and the specific context in which to send the picture.
LINE Creators Market operates in a way that allows individuals, amateurs, and companies to create stickers, emojis, and themes, and sell them to LINE users worldwide. After passing the review process, sellers can begin selling their products on the Sticker Shop and LINE STORE.
The sales channels are already established.
This is an important point for those attempting their first overseas sales. It is because the place where you upload pictures and the channel through which purchases occur should not be separate.
Japan is a good place to start because it has both dialogue options and shops.
Imagine the screens of Japanese mobile phones. People send messages to friends saying “Good job,” offer light apologies to colleagues, and send encouraging messages to family members. If users can select and pay for character stickers within these conversations, it becomes much easier for sellers to gauge customer reactions.
LY Corporation announced that in December 2025, the number of monthly LINE users in Japan exceeded 100,000,000. In Japan, LINE is already a major platform for everyday communication, and it also includes official channels for selling stickers.
There is a clear reason to test it in Japan.
Korean character stickers can be validated in Japan first because Japan has both users and established purchase channels.
In English-speaking countries, the process of discovery is prioritized over the establishment of stores.
It is difficult to say that the English-speaking world operates in the same way as the Japanese-speaking world, with a single central point for sticker sales. Interest and purchases are distributed across various messaging apps and social networking services. Therefore, it is essential to first design where and how these products will be discovered.
Meta announced in April 2025 that it had added a feature to WhatsApp allowing users to create sticker packs themselves and share them with their chat partners. However, this is simply a feature that lets users create and share sticker packs. It is not the same structure as the LINE Creators Market, where creators register products for public sale.
In English-speaking countries, simply listing a product on a messaging platform is not enough. It is necessary to have a separate hub to describe the character, demonstrate its uses, and provide information on where to purchase it.
WordPress can serve as that hub.
WordPress is more like a signpost that builds trust, rather than a store.
In WordPress, it is possible to create separate English and Japanese pages. You can introduce the character’s personality and then show examples of usage, such as “Good morning,” “Thank you,” and “It’s okay,” in a way that resembles actual conversations. From there, you can link to the LINE STORE, digital product payment pages, or merchandise stores.
In English-speaking countries, this process is particularly important. Even if a sticker has a short or no text, if there is no explanation of the feeling or situation it represents, visitors may see a beautiful picture but be unable to find a reason to purchase it.
Pictures alone are not enough.
To present scenes and dialogues within a post, it is necessary to distinguish between characters and descriptions. DecoBlocks allows you to insert character images from the installed sticker pack into the post and use speech bubbles and designated areas to separate related content.
Important expressions can be marked with highlights, and a table of contents can be created based on the H2 and H3 headings. In the Block Editor, decorations of the same type can be used as blocks, while in the Classic Editor, they can be used as shortcodes.
By gathering samples and purchase links in one place, visitors can understand the character and come back again. If newsletter sign-ups are collected as well, one visit does not have to be the end, and a channel for announcing the next release is also created.
For Japanese-speaking regions, it is practical to quickly direct users to the LINE sales page. For English-speaking regions, it is more effective to first engage users through WordPress and then distribute them through various sales channels.
The expectation that a product will sell simply because it is registered is the most dangerous misconception.
LINE Creators Market provides statistics such as sales volume and the number of times stickers have been sent. However, the availability of statistics does not mean that simply listing a product will guarantee its visibility.
According to data from 2022, there were 5,000,000 registered creators worldwide, and 15,000,000 sets of stickers were being sold. This indicates a high level of competition due to the significant demand.
Registration is just the beginning.
Translation is not limited to converting Korean sentences into English and Japanese. When targeting the Japanese-speaking market, it is necessary to create natural expressions for greetings, gratitude, apologies, encouragement, and interactions between colleagues and friends. In the English-speaking market, it is important to assess whether meaning can be conveyed solely through facial expressions and gestures, without relying on text.
The revenue is not the same as the selling price. According to the official information, after deducting the 30% commission from the App Store and Google Play, 50% of the revenue is transferred to the registered account. The actual amount may vary depending on the purchase region, exchange rate, bank fees, currency exchange fees, and withholding tax.
The selling price and the revenue are different.
Rights issues must also be checked separately. Even if a character can be used in Korea, there is no guarantee that it will pass the review and licensing requirements of overseas platforms. It may be restricted if it infringes on the rights of celebrities or existing characters, or if it contains inappropriate expressions or content intended for business promotion.
The most common bottlenecks encountered when operating directly.
In actual operation, if the translation, product registration, link connection, and visitor tracking are handled separately, problems can quickly escalate. If one person creates the picture, refines the language, verifies the review criteria, and manages the sales page, it becomes difficult to determine at which stage the purchase process is failing.
The records indicate whether a visitor viewed a sample, clicked on a purchase link, or abandoned the process just before payment. Even when attempting to compare the responses of the Japanese and English pages, it is difficult to determine which market is responding if the referral paths are mixed.
While performing the task directly may reduce costs, it can also obscure the data used for decision-making.
WordPress is not a store that solves all problems. It is more appropriate to use it as a hub for gathering information and comparing responses. If you divide the Japanese LINE products and the English-speaking sales pages into different access paths, the results of even small experiments become clearer.
Creating overseas-version information pages with DecoBlocks.
For English-speaking visitors, it is necessary to explain the character’s facial expressions and usage scenarios, and for Japanese pages, it is necessary to visually distinguish the structure of the text when sharing stickers and conversation examples. DecoBlocks is a tool for WordPress posts that adds speech bubbles, section boxes, quotation boxes, and emphasis effects, and allows you to place character images from the installed sticker pack.
If the page becomes too long, it can automatically generate a table of contents based on the H2 and H3 headings. Example dialogues featuring characters can be displayed in “Speech Bubble” boxes, and language-specific instructions or usage conditions can be presented in “Section Box” format. This structure is suitable for organizing the reading flow of WordPress posts intended for international sales.
Initially, we should conduct small-scale experiments for each language region.
If it is possible to create natural-sounding Japanese expressions and target LINE users, it is better to start by releasing a small set of Japanese stickers. By observing the sales volume and the number of times they are sent, it is possible to confirm which scenes are actually used in real conversations.
It is not necessary to make something large from the beginning.
Conversely, when considering the English-speaking market, the goal is not to target all English users from the beginning. Instead, one might choose characters that resonate even without text, or identify a small audience with specific preferences, and then compile samples and usage examples on WordPress.
- First, the Japanese-speaking region will prepare natural conversation expressions and LINE sales channels.
- In English-speaking regions, the target audience and usage scenarios are defined, and WordPress is used as the primary platform.
- Both regions are evaluated not only based on sales volume, but also on the actual number of transmissions and visitor reactions.
Ultimately, there is sufficient potential for Korean characters to be sold overseas. However, the two markets should not be approached in the same way.
To confirm actual demand, the Japanese-speaking market should be tested on LINE first, and in the English-speaking market, users should be led to discover the character on WordPress before the purchase path is connected.
The answer can only be found by testing it in smaller parts.
Frequently Asked Questions.
Q. Should the Korean stickers be translated directly into English and Japanese?
A. Rather than simply translating directly, expressions should be re-created to fit the actual situations in which they are used. For Japanese-speaking regions, it is best to prioritize scenes that are frequently used in conversations, such as greetings, expressions of gratitude, apologies, and encouragement. For English-speaking regions, it is better to test short expressions or images without text separately.
Q. Will my character fit the Japanese-speaking or English-speaking market first?
A. If we can create natural conversational expressions, such as greetings and expressions of gratitude, and target LINE users, we will first test it in the Japanese-speaking market. If the meaning can be conveyed solely through facial expressions and gestures, or if the target audience is clearly defined by specific preferences, we will first operate a small English-language page to gauge the response.
Q. Can this problem be easily solved using a tool? What kind of tool should be used?
A. It is difficult to handle translation, image creation, sales, and visitor measurement with one tool. A practical approach is to use separately a website management tool that can create multilingual pages, sales channels, and visitor measurement tools, and record the click-through and purchase responses for each channel.
Q. How can I display character stickers and their usage examples together in WordPress?
A. You can use the DecoBlocks Insert Character Sticker to add character images from installed sticker packs to your posts.
The usage examples can be displayed as dialogues using speech bubbles, and related explanations can be grouped within section boxes. A table of contents can be created based on the H2 and H3 headings of the text, which can also be used to divide long instruction pages into sections.
