Baidu is one of the most renowned and developed resources among few platforms that are available in China for search engine marketing (SEM) for business. It is therefore essential for any business in China to make its presence on Baidu. Discussed below are some of the characteristics of SEM in China and what can help a business to grow in the Chinese market through digital marketing.

Language and design of the website

Though it is not mandatory but it is obvious to have one’s business website in mandarin when one is planning to reach over 700 million users that speak and read mandarin. The Chinese internet is one of the fastest growing internet markets, and Baidu holds more than 70% of it. No business would like to reach the audience in the language that they do not understand. In addition to the language of the website, the design also matters which needs to be appealing and relevant to the Chinese audience.

Correct and complete documentation

Since the Chinese government supervises Baidu for its every service that it offers to businesses, Baidu SEM needs complete and correct documentation from the businesses. Just like the website, all the documentation needs to be in Chinese language but it is a mandate here, and any document in a foreign language must be provided with the translation. The foreign business is required to submit the following documents; business registration certificate with a hand written statement, screenshot of the website’s homepage showing the URL, screenshot of the website’s information from the local government’s website along with hand written statement, and the bank account statement of the business. Ideally, the registration certificate must have the company’s name, its registered office, and the company’s number. Similarly, the bank account statement must have the name of the bank, account number of the business, and the number, name, and address of the particular branch where the company holds the account.

Online Ads

As opposed to an average internet user across the globe, Chinese people do not mind seeing online ads on the websites that they visit. Where other users from west tend to avoid the websites that do target advertising, Chinese users react differently by believing the brand or the business which is paying for its advertisement online. In fact, if a business is not present on Baidu doing online marketing through various ads, people do not even consider it as a brand. Therefore, online ads are an essential part of Baidu SEM. It is a common Chinese believe that a business who is investing in online advertising must have invested well in its products offering a good range of products for the public.

The speed of the website

This might sound strange, but the internet speed in China is comparatively slower than the internet speed in the west and other Asian countries. It’s not just the firewall but The Great Firewall in China that blocks or eventually slows down the foreign websites and servers specifically the western. Website hosting helps in working the same speed as the internet connectivity in China because the loading speed of the site affects the site verification by Baidu. Also, if a website keeps a user to wait for longer than others, it is

ICP licensing and website hosting

ICP is an Internet Content Provider’s license which is a permit granted by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in China, without which the website of the business may not operate. When a business has its stores or offices in China, it is little easier to get this license, but if the business is international without any local office or store, then some agency or someone in China needs to represent that business. The process of obtaining this license generally takes one to three months of time, but once it is done, it becomes very simple for a business to use Baidu SEM to divert maximum traffic to its website. This is called website hosting in China which is again a mandate from the government because the government does not want its internet users to be diverted to a website which is beyond security controls.