(Source: https://pltfrm.com.cn)
Introduction
Paid search advertising on Baidu offers overseas brands a direct route to reach Chinese consumers—but without the right optimization, ad budgets can be quickly drained with little return. Baidu’s platform operates under a different set of rules than Western counterparts like Google, requiring strategies built specifically for China’s digital and mobile-first environment. This article explores best-in-class tactics to optimize your paid search campaigns for stronger ROI and sustainable growth.
1. Keyword Grouping and Campaign Structuring
Smaller, Focused Ad Groups:
Baidu rewards relevance. By creating tightly themed ad groups (e.g., “有机婴儿奶粉” vs “母婴海淘平台”), you increase the chance of high-quality scores and better placements at lower cost.
Separate Brand and Generic Campaigns:
Run dedicated campaigns for brand keywords to protect branded traffic and use separate ones for generic or competitor terms. This improves tracking, bidding, and performance insights.
2. Custom Extensions and Creative Formats
Baidu Sitelinks and Callouts:
Use Baidu’s sitelink extensions (“子链”) and promotion callouts (“推广橱窗”) to provide additional navigation and boost engagement. These increase the ad’s real estate and user trust.
Image and Video Add-ons:
Add rich visuals to your paid ads where possible. Baidu’s newer ad formats allow for image carousels and embedded video—key for product categories like beauty, fashion, and food.
3. Real-Time Bid Adjustments for Performance Scaling
Smart Bidding Automation:
Deploy Baidu’s automated bidding for campaigns that have consistent conversion data. Use manual CPC for new tests, and switch to smart bidding once performance stabilizes.
Weather and Time-Based Adjustments:
For industries like outdoor gear or skincare, apply bid modifiers tied to weather or time of day using external data feeds integrated via Baidu’s tools. These contextual signals can drastically improve ad efficiency.
4. Sync Paid Search with Organic Baidu Strategy
Unified Keyword Research:
Run a combined SEO + SEM keyword discovery process. Queries that perform well organically are often great candidates for paid campaigns.
Share Landing Page Insights:
Use heatmaps and session recordings from Baidu Tongji (Analytics) to understand where users drop off, and refine both organic and paid destination pages to reduce bounce rates and increase conversions.
5. Case Study: A New Zealand Natural Skincare Brand Scales with Optimization
A natural skincare brand from New Zealand targeted young female consumers in China. After their initial Baidu campaigns underperformed, they restructured their campaigns using granular ad groups, layered in image-based extensions, and localized their landing pages with influencer content. With smart bidding and coordinated organic search strategy, they reduced their CPA by 42% and doubled their return on ad spend within eight weeks.
PLTFRM is an international brand consulting agency that works with companies such as Red, TikTok, Tmall, Baidu, and other well-known Chinese internet e-commerce platforms. We have been working with Chile Cherries for many years, reaching Chinese consumers in depth through different platforms and realizing that Chile Cherries’ exports in China account for 97% of the total exports in Asia. Contact us, and we will help you find the best China e-commerce platform for you. Search PLTFRM for a free consultation!
info@pltfrm.cn
www.pltfrm.cn
