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For years, marketers have targeted a demographic broadly described as middle-class, educated, married, evenly split between genders, and urban dwelling. Until recently, urban was quickly categorized as living in or near the three cities of Beijing, Shanghai, or Tianjin. Now marketers have a feeling these areas might have reached a saturation point.

In other words, the greatest potential for new customers and larger market share probably lies in the so-called second-tier and third-tier cities that have a population similar to, say, Chicago at 3 million rather than Shanghai’s 24 million.

Savvy marketers, looking five to ten years down the road, see the growth of the middle class in second, third, and even fourth-tier cities exploding. For online efforts, the task is to tap into these largely unexplored (by western brands anyway) areas before everyone else. Though television has long dominated the Chinese landscape as the primary marketing medium, things are changing rapidly.

Consider the following tactics to get your brand recognized in China’s outlying regions.

Nothing but Mobile: While it is widely assumed that America and other western countries account for the most use of mobile devices to access the internet, recent research indicates that 61% of all Chinese internet traffic is of the mobile variety. So you are not just selling to an online audience, but to a mobile device audience. That means every page of your website, every email you send, and every social media post or ad you create should reflect that reality.

Percentage of mobile internet traffic by country
Source: The Kenyan Wall Street

Branding: If you already have a successful brand, you are obviously doing something right. However, attracting a Chinese customer might require anything from a minor tweak to a complete brand overhaul. The bottom line is to show awareness that you understand local cultures and preferences. As an example: Are you a western scotch maker? In China, they like to drink it with ice and green tea. It would be a good idea to reflect that local preference in your marketing.

Final Thoughts
There is one aspect of this discussion not touched upon yet. In fact, I held it until the very end so there would be a better chance you would remember. Though the Chinese are voracious learners of the English language, plan for your website and all marketing to be written in Chinese and, for the love of all that is holy, don’t rely on automatic translation software. You have no idea the kind of negative sales backlash that might result when the wrong word or phrase is rendered.

If you do not have a firm comprehension of the local language, do yourself and your business a favor and hire a native speaker to write copy and proofread each element of every sales effort. If you cannot afford that expense yet, wait. It would be better to pause your Chinese marketing plans than to do it badly. As the saying goes, there is no second chance to make a first impression.

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Chinese SEO / April 9, 2020 / 7 minutes of reading

Businesses today rely on their digital presence and an active online community to connect their products and services with consumers. And in the jungle of the world wide web, search engines provide an overview and guidance for those seeking information and answers.

This is why search engine optimization has become an integral part of online marketing. In fact, more than 60% of marketers name SEO as their top inbound marketing priority.

Since there are millions of articles on Google SEO, we shed a light on Baidu SEO in this Tenba Group article. First, we recap SEO as a whole and then look at the Chinese internet search engine environment in detail. We answer 5 of your most frequently asked questions. As always, we focus on the implications and benefits for your business and everyday work life.

A Short History of SEO in China

By now, you certainly know that SEO stands for search engine optimization. This means improving the content on your website and digital presence on social media and other platforms so that search engines can (a) find your business and (b) rank it as high as possible.

In the search engine world, Google is clearly the world leader with a market share of 73%. Bing (12%), Baidu (10%), and Yahoo (3%), and a few smaller ones like Ecosia (0.1%), the tree-planting search engine, share the rest of the cake among them.

In the Chinese search engine world, this picture looks a little bit different. Baidu is the search engine leader with a market share of 70%, followed by Sogou (20%), Shenma (5%), Haosou (3%), and Google (2%).

In the Middle Kingdom, Zhihu (Know?) and Baidu Zhidao (Baidu Knows), Q&A websites similar to Quora, together with the search function of the most popular social media app WeChat, also play a significant role in how consumers find information and buy online. Sogou can even search WeChat directly for information that people seek in the www.

It is also worth mentioning, that due to the strict internet censorship (the "Great Firewall of China") and inaccessibility of information, and because Chinese don't have much faith in larger corporations, the population of the Middle Kingdom prefers to get their news from channels like WeChat and Toutiao.

SEO vs. SEA

The common denominator of search engines is complexity. All of them have similarities, but also their own algorithm, which is undisclosed and continuously adapts. This, and because "every business" is optimizing their online information, is the reason why SEO is a constant work in progress and never finished.

Unlike PPC advertisements (SEA), where you pay-per-click, SEO is "free" and sustainable in the long run. Free in quotation marks, because if you do SEO yourself, you need to invest your time. And if you hire an SEO agency for China or your target market, you will have to pay them of course.

But, it is an investment well made! Because...if you only focus on paid search engine advertisements you will continue to pay for every potential customer, since you pay when the prospect clicks on the advertisement, regardless of whether you close the deal or not.

If you are still not sure, whether SEO is important for your business or not, we have a few more reasons in detail in this article.

SEO in China vs. the Rest of the World

Although search engine optimization goes beyond your business website, it usually starts there. So, first, we look at the main similarities when optimizing your website for Google and Baidu:

And these are the most important differences between Baidu China SEO and Google SEO:

Now that you have a good overview of the global and Chinese market of search engines, let's look at the most common questions around Baidu, we have received from you.

Baidu SEO - Answers to 5 Frequently Asked Questions

If you are new to marketing in China and our blog, you may ask yourself "What is Baidu and how does it work"? The basic information we have already explained in this Baidu article. To extend this Baidu guide, we answer the 5 most commonly asked questions around this Chinese search engine.

1. Does Baidu have a social community?
According to the Baidu China search engine, Baidu Tieba, similar to Facebook groups, is the largest communication platform with 300 million monthly active users. This platform is a mix between Quora and Reddit and mesmerizes internet users with its content-oriented and highly interactive appearance.

2. How do I Create a Baidu Account?
Yes. Before you can do anything with Baidu SEO, you must create an account. With this, you can use the various Baidu platforms and the Baidu Webmaster Tool. Click here and fill out the Baidu account registration form. Keep in mind that you need a Chinese phone number to do so. Check our blog in the future for a more detailed Baidu register tutorial.

3. How do I Index Pages on Baidu?
Although Baidu regularly crawls websites to keep their search engine users up-to-date, it can take 1-2 months until your site and updates are indexed. If you want to add your website faster to the Baidu Index (Ziyuan), you can submit your URL here. Submit your sitemap so that all sites are indexed (same process as Google).

4. Can I Use SEA/PPC on Baidu?

PPC advertising in China provides fast online promotion with instant results, just like in the rest of the online world. Of course, you can buy advertisements on the results pages (Baidu PPC aka pay-per-click) through the Baidu Ads Manager. If you'd rather outsource this task, a Baidu SEO agency can help you with this.

Keep in mind that the online environment in China including search engines is closely regulated. For example, blacklisted terms include "best, no. 1, top class, guarantee, trustworthy". And particularly highly regulated industries are the health sector, finance, and gambling (which is completely forbidden).

5. Does Baidu have an Analytics Tool?

Baidu Tongji is the official analytics tool of Baidu, similar to Google Analytics. It provides statistics and reports about a website's traffic and sources, as well as conversions to sales.

With the Baidu Webmaster Tool, you can index your site and have access to even more options for SEO settings and analysis. You will find a Baidu tracking tool to monitor your website's ranking on Baidu and much more.

We hope to have answered your burning questions around the top Chinese search engine and it's Baidu SEO tools. If you want to know more, feel free to call, WhatsApp or email us anytime.

The Takeaway

Now that you have insight into the search engine market in China, Baidu SEO, and what all of this means for your business, get started! A smart SEO strategy for China, helps your business to draw consumer traffic to your website, and thus grow your sales and revenue. And keep in mind to avoid these 17 common SEO mistakes.

If you want a helping hand with SEO marketing in China or if you are looking for a China PR company with the best PR services, your dedicated team of Tenba Group is here for you!

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Tenba Group | Baidu SEO - Answers to 5 FAQs in 2020

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Chinese SEO / April 9, 2020 / 7 minutes of reading Businesses today rely on their digital presence and an active online community to connect their products and services with consumers. And in the jungle of the world wide web, search engines provide an overview and guidance for those seeking information and answers.