If your online business doesn’t have its eyes on China, you must have a pretty good reason for overlooking it! The giant Asian country is home to one billion people, and the good news is there are plenty of web-based methods of reaching them. In this blog, we will look at some useful online marketing strategies for China.

Rather than Google, in China a large chunk of internet traffic uses Baidu for its enquiries on the internet, which means that if you can use the platform to your advantage, you’re on to a winner. Unfortunately, many of the prominent site positions are retained by Baidu for its own sites, but there are still opportunities for you to market your business on the search engine. It can pay dividends to seek out an experienced Baidu SEO expert, as the search engine has its own nuances which are different to Google in some respects.

Chinese internet users are known to be prone to researching brands well before making a buying decision. That means when targeting China it is very important to have a good ‘e-reputation’ – that could be positive reviews from Chinese users, press coverage gained within China, and an existing community of fans or followers.

Some would argue that WeChat, the instant messaging platform with over 800 million users, is the biggest opportunity to engage with Chinese consumers. Strategic building of a community, the creation of an effective brand account, and savvy use of WeChat advertising to target particular demographics can all add up to a satisfactory return on investment from your outlay into a WeChat campaign.

There are several reasons why it might be beneficial to make mobile a central element of your digital marketing in China strategy, basing your efforts around a mobile ready website and a specially built, China-focused, smartphone or tablet app. You can also take steps to optimise your site specifically for Baidu.

If you can link your product or service to a well-known face in Chinese culture, be it music, television or sport, there is a chance your promotion could have a lot more penetration. This could cost a lot of money, but enlisting the help of some brand ambassadors in the form of Chinese celebrities gives you the right kind of alignment to make a big noise.

It is vital that the nature of the content you send out over the web gives value to consumers in China. Photos and videos stand a good chance of going viral compared to dry text, and there is also a case for telling a story around your brand, be it factual, fictional or tongue in cheek. Ensure that the video content you do produce and share ticks the boxes in terms of quality, as a grainy or under produced effort will not reflect well on your brand.

To discuss an online marketing strategy for China that meets your objectives, contact us today.

(Image source: Image created by jk1991 | www.freedigitalphotos.net)