Sanrio’s new sleep app YumeTabi offers an interesting example of ASO localization across Japan and Korea. While the core app and visual identity remain largely the same, its app name, App Store metadata, and messaging are presented differently in each market.
In this article, we take a closer look at those differences through the perspectives of aix’s Japanese and Korean team members.
Sanrio recently launched a new app called Sanrio Characters Dream Travel — YumeTabi in both Japan and South Korea.
Looking at the App Store listings in the two markets, we noticed some interesting differences—not only in the app name, but also in the words used to describe the product.
So we asked members of our Japanese and Korean teams a simple question:
Why might the same app be presented differently in Japan and Korea?
The observations below are aix’s own interpretations based on local perspectives and are not official explanations from Sanrio or the app developer.
Contents
1. The App Name: “YumeTabi” in Japan, “Dream Travel” in Korea
The first difference can be seen in the app name itself.
| Market | App Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japan | ゆめたび (YumeTabi) | A combination of the Japanese words yume (“dream”) and tabi (“travel/journey”) |
| Korea | 드림 트래블 (Dream Travel) | The English phrase “Dream Travel” written phonetically in Hangul |
Interestingly, Korean also has native words for both concepts:
- 꿈 (kkum) = dream
- 여행 (yeohaeng) = travel
So why might the Korean version use the English-derived “Dream Travel” instead?
🇯🇵💬 A Perspective From Our Japanese Team
We do not know the actual reasoning behind the naming decision, but compared with “Dream Travel,” YumeTabi feels cuter, softer, and more approachable in Japanese.
An English-based name would also be longer, and “Dream Travel” could give a somewhat stronger impression of being a game or entertainment title.
There is also a search-related consideration.
“Dream” is not a particularly common Japanese search term, while “travel” is strongly associated with hotels, travel booking, and tourism services.
From that perspective, creating a name based on familiar Japanese words may make more sense for the Japanese market.
🇰🇷💬 A Perspective From Our Korean Team
There probably is no single correct explanation, but we can think of at least two possibilities.
First, English words are more familiar in everyday Korean than people outside Korea may expect.
Although many Koreans may not consider themselves fluent English speakers, basic English education is widespread, and English-derived words are frequently incorporated into everyday Korean speech and written phonetically in Hangul.
Using words such as “Dream” and “Travel” therefore does not necessarily feel foreign.
Second, the choice may be related to the tone and feeling of the words themselves.
Some expressions can feel slightly heavy, formal, or overly literal when written using native Korean vocabulary. Using an English-derived expression can sometimes make the same concept feel lighter, softer, or more contemporary.
From a marketing or copywriting perspective, using the literal Korean words for “dream” and “travel” would not necessarily be wrong, but it could create a slightly more serious or static impression.
Writing “Dream Travel” in Hangul may instead feel more familiar to younger audiences or give the product a more polished, modern image.
aix Insight
This is a good reminder that localization is not only about whether a translation is technically correct.
It also matters how common a word is in the local market, what associations it carries, and how it sounds and feels to native users.
When a product crosses markets, feedback and review from local native speakers can make a significant difference.
2. How Do the App Store Keywords Differ?
The differences become even more interesting when we look at the iOS App Store metadata.
🇯🇵 Japan
Title:
Sanrio Characters YumeTabi
Subtitle:
A Relaxing Sleep Habits Game Featuring Sanrio Characters
Key concepts include:
Sanrio / Characters / Relaxation / Sleep / Habits / Game
🇰🇷 Korea
Title:
Sanrio Characters Dream Travel: Relaxation, Sleep, Alarm, Routine
Subtitle:
Go on a Journey with Sanrio Characters and Develop Healthy Sleep Habits
Key concepts include:
Sanrio / Characters / Relaxation / Sleep / Alarm / Routine / Travel / Health / Habits
aix Insight
Our impression is that the Japanese listing places slightly more emphasis on the experience and feeling created by the Sanrio characters, with words related to relaxation and gaming.
The Korean listing, on the other hand, appears to communicate more of the app’s practical functions and benefits, such as sleep, health, alarms, and routines.
Of course, App Store metadata has strict character limits, so we should be careful not to overinterpret these differences.
Still, what is interesting is that the two listings are not simply identical translations of one master title.
They appear to have been adjusted to communicate the product in ways that make sense for each market.
For us, this is a good example of localization going one step beyond translation.
3. What About the App Store Screenshots?
Compared with the metadata, the screenshots are much more consistent between the two markets.
The overall content and visual design are essentially the same, with the main localization being the translated text.
aix Insight
One detail we found interesting is the use of fonts that feel natural in each language.
Even when the overall creative concept remains the same, typography can significantly affect whether a localized design feels natural or slightly “translated.”
At the moment, the screenshots work well across both markets without major visual changes.
However, user needs and preferences may differ between Japan and Korea, so it will be interesting to see whether the team experiments with more market-specific messaging or creative variations in the future.
We would be especially interested to see whether different screenshot messages are tested as the app gathers more user and conversion data.
Conclusion
Looking at newly launched apps like YumeTabi gives us a useful opportunity to reconsider what matters when launching the same product in multiple markets.
Even between neighboring markets such as Japan and Korea, the words, naming conventions, visual impressions, and messaging that feel natural can be different.
This is why local input remains so important.
Translations can be checked linguistically, but questions such as:
“Does this name feel cute?”
“Does this word sound too serious?”
“What kind of app does this phrase make you imagine?”
are much harder to answer without someone who actually lives in and understands the market.
YumeTabi is still a newly launched app, so we are also curious to see how its marketing and App Store strategy evolve from here.
For global app marketers, it is a small but interesting case study in a familiar lesson:
Localization is not just about translating words. It is also about understanding how those words feel in the market.
