Why Baidu PPC could be your best friend when entering the China market

With 48.5 per cent of China’s population using the internet, online marketing clearly has the potential to get you noticed (source: CNNIC). Like Google, Chinese search giant Baidu offers advertisers a Pay Per Click advertising system, Baidu PPC “Phoenix Nest” platform. Being able to specifically target the people who are looking for your products and services allows you to concentrate your marketing and save money.

Reach the right audience

Baidu PPC is a quick way to bring in targeted traffic and qualified leads to your Chinese website. By choosing the right keywords, you can target exactly the right people. Once you have found out what keywords your target market are using, you have an almost direct line of access to them. Your adverts can appear exactly where your target market are going to be, sending your website, blog, or landing page, a stream of traffic comprising people whose interests and desires can be fulfilled by your products or services.

Reduce marketing wastage

With traditional marketing, you are casting your net wide. A lot of people who see your marketing materials won’t be your target market. Whether in print, television, or radio, you are paying to advertise to your target market – and a lot of other people on top.

With Baidu PPC you are advertising only to people who match your criteria. They share the right interests, visit the right sites, or exhibit the right behaviours that marks them out as potential customers. Of course, no one has a 100% conversion rate, but by targeting only the right people, and only paying when they click on your adverts, you are greatly reducing the amount of money spent advertising to the wrong people.

Don’t get drowned out by your competitors

When you first enter the China market, you will be faced with a lot of competition. As eBay found out when they went head-to-head with Alibaba, domestic companies are well established to resist new competitors. But while you are a small business, you aren’t much of a threat, and bigger companies with massive marketing budgets can completely outclass you when it comes to advertising.

Baidu PPC gives you the chance to reach your target market without breaking the bank or taking on your competitors. By doing your research and picking your keywords carefully, you can still reach your target market without needing to spend big money taking on the major players.

Measure the results

Baidu PPC gives you detailed analysis of what is working and what isn’t. Unlike a traditional advertising campaign, in which you perfect the final materials and then hope they perform well, PPC advertising can be tested, adapted, and improved based upon campaign performance. Because you can start with a small budget, you can run several variations of the same advert to see which performs the best. By constantly tweaking your advertisement based upon click-through-rates and conversions, you can create a powerful and effective campaign that can be used again and again.

(Image source: “Pay Per Click Means World Wide Web And Advertiser” |www.freedigitalphotos.net)