{"id":128713,"date":"2021-03-05T16:30:42","date_gmt":"2021-03-05T16:30:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.smartinsights.com\/?p=128713"},"modified":"2021-03-09T14:18:15","modified_gmt":"2021-03-09T14:18:15","slug":"your-guide-advertising-baidu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.smartinsights.com\/digital-marketing-strategy\/your-guide-advertising-baidu\/","title":{"rendered":"Your 2021 guide to advertising on Baidu"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tips and tricks to help you get the most out of paid search on China\u2019s largest search platform<\/h2>\n

With Google claiming less than 2% of the market in China, the search engine landscape is markedly different from that in most Western markets. While there are several key players, including Haosou<\/a>, Sogou<\/a>, and Shenma<\/a>, in the space, Baidu<\/a> is undoubtedly the first port of call for most companies looking to run search marketing campaigns in China.<\/p>\n

So, why Baidu?<\/h3>\n

There are several reasons why advertisers turn to Baidu when looking to advertise their products or services to Chinese consumers, the most important of which are outlined here.<\/p>\n

Highest market share<\/h3>\n

Baidu search has the highest market share across both desktop and mobile users. According to <\/span>Statista<\/span><\/a>, Baidu boasts 74% of the Chinese search market, with Sogou coming in second place with almost 14%.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Baidu<\/a><\/p>\n

Figure 1: Statista - Market share of search engines in China (Nov 2020)<\/span><\/p>\n

More advertising options<\/h4>\n

As a platform, Baidu offers more than just paid search advertising. With the ability to run in-feed ads and create brand zones, advertisers have a wider variety of methods to reach their target audience.<\/span><\/p>\n

More sophisticated features<\/h4>\n

Following major updates to the platform in recent years, Baidu now also offers a more sophisticated audience segmentation feature. Baidu has also launched the ability to obtain industry search insights and a drag-and-drop landing page builder. These new additions are particularly useful for extracting key consumer insights to better inform your campaigns.<\/span><\/p>\n

Longest-running search engine in China<\/h4>\n

Having launched in 2000, Baidu boasts a relatively mature structure in comparison to other search engines on the market. Paired with their extensive customer support services and more open resources, they provide a more efficient experience.<\/span><\/p>\n

How does Baidu look on desktop and mobile?<\/h3>\n

In 2016, following the scandal around the <\/span>death of Wei Zexi<\/span><\/a>, Baidu was forced to overhaul its search results ranking system from a maximum of eleven ads to four ads on the landscape.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, Baidu has been gradually releasing more ad spaces in recent years, and has even begun mixing paid and organic listings across its landscape. As of today, there are a maximum of six paid ads shown at the top of the search results page. This is followed by one organic listing and further paid ads. In 2020, Baidu also released a new ad space available in the top right-hand corner of the results page.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Baidu<\/p>\n

On mobile and tablet, Baidu search results display a maximum of three paid adverts at the top of the page, followed by the organic results, and more adverts. The exact layout of results on Baidu changes from time to time, so it\u2019s important to keep up-to-date with the latest developments.<\/p>\n

How do people search in China?<\/h3>\n

Before diving into PPC advertising on Baidu, it\u2019s worth taking a look at typical search behavior in China.<\/p>\n

When a search is driven by purchase intent, the vast majority of Chinese consumers would turn to an e-commerce platform such as Tmall<\/a>, Taobao<\/a>, or JD.com<\/a> rather than searching on Baidu. This is demonstrated in the example below, which shows daily search volume for the same term - \u2018male knitwear shirt\u2019 - on Baidu and Taobao (data from Baidu keyword planner and Taobao keyword planner, respectively).<\/p>\n

\"E-commerce<\/a><\/p>\n

Figure 3: Monthly search interest for \u2018women\u2019s bag\u2019 on Baidu versus Taobao (data from Baidu and Taobao keyword planners)<\/span><\/p>\n

However, if Chinese consumers are at an earlier stage of their purchase journey, they are more likely to search for product reviews, style guides and other information, to help inform their purchase decision.<\/p>\n

Opportunities for paid search on Baidu<\/h3>\n

Before you actually start investing in advertising on Baidu, it\u2019s vital to have a good idea of the volume of impressions you are likely to receive on the platform. Sitting with Baidu ads manager, Baidu\u2019s own keyword planner is a great starting point for estimating the number of impressions you can expect for certain keywords, allowing you insight into daily impressions, estimated cost-per-click, and the level of competition for your space. It can also serve as the major source for your Baidu SEO research.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Baidu<\/a><\/p>\n

Figure 4 - Baidu Keyword Planner<\/span><\/p>\n

If your brand awareness levels are currently very low in China, or if the sector in which you operate is very niche, it may be better to start with upper-funnel advertising, such as paid social and display on WeChat or Weibo, rather than diving straight into paid search on Baidu.<\/span><\/p>\n

Smart Insights members are planning, managing, and optimizing their international marketing strategies with our dedicated marketing training. With marketing tools and templates for paid, organic and earned digital and social media, plus SEO-boosting strategies, we have marketing solutions to help you achieve your goals. Find out how to create your winning marketing strategy today.
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Need a plan to create a winning marketing strategy?<\/h3>

Get started today using a tried and tested step-by-step process to optimize your marketing.<\/p>Start Now<\/a><\/div>\"\"<\/div><\/p>\n

Baidu account set-up<\/h4>\n

Setting up a Baidu advertiser account is a much more complex process than the equivalent on Google Ads. There are essentially two options for doing so - to be set up directly with major Baidu branches such as Beijing and Shanghai, or through a Baidu-listed agency partner.<\/p>\n

Whichever you choose, several documents are required<\/a><\/u>, which need to be translated into Simplified Chinese, including:<\/p>\n