Like with other marketing campaigns, success in Baidu advertising isn't only about views or clicks—it's about conversions. Accurately measuring the conversion rate in Baidu Ads helps brands understand the real impact of their ad spend and refine their strategies for maximum ROI.
This guide dives into how to measure conversion rates in Baidu Ads, covering key metrics, tools, and best practices to maximize campaign performance and optimize for conversions.
TL;DR: Measuring the conversion rate in Baidu Ads is crucial for brands aiming to maximize their ad ROI in China. By understanding key metrics and using tools like Baidu Tongji and Baidu Analytics, brands can accurately track conversions, adjust ad strategies, and improve campaign outcomes. For international brands needing optimized access and performance in China, solutions like Chinafy can significantly enhance ad loading times and compatibility, improving both reach and conversion potential.
The conversion rate in Baidu ads represents the percentage of users who complete a desired action—such as a purchase, sign-up, or form submission—after clicking on an ad.
This metric gives advertisers insight into how well their campaigns are turning interest into action, helping them assess whether their ads are effective at driving revenue-generating behavior.
For instance, if 500 users click on a Baidu ad, and 25 of those users complete a purchase, the conversion rate would be calculated as:
Conversion Rate = Conversions/Total Clicks × 100
25/500 = 0.05 x 100 = 5%
Conversion rate is one of the most vital metrics for evaluating the success of any digital advertising campaign, Baidu ads included. Here’s why tracking it matters:
Return on investment (ROI): It helps you calculate how well your ads are performing against your ad spend.
Customer insights: A deeper understanding of customer actions and preferences.
Optimization opportunities: Identifies weak points in your sales funnel or ad messaging.
Data-driven adjustments: Provides clear data to make strategic changes, improving campaign performance and customer engagement.
In addition to the overall conversion rate, there are other essential metrics to monitor for a complete picture of Baidu Ad performance:
Click-through rate (CTR): The percentage of people who clicked on your ad out of those who saw it.
Cost per conversion (CPC): The average amount spent to acquire one conversion.
Conversion value: The monetary value of each conversion.
Bounce rate: The percentage of visitors who leave your site after viewing only one page, which can indicate how relevant your landing page is.
To measure conversions effectively, you need to set up tracking within Baidu’s advertising ecosystem. Here’s a step-by-step guide:
Step 1: Access Baidu ads conversion tracking tools
Baidu offers several tools for tracking conversions:
Baidu Tongji (Baidu Analytics): This is similar to Google Analytics but optimized for the Chinese market, providing valuable insights into user behavior on your website.
Baidu Conversion Tracking (CPA Tracking): Integrated within Baidu Ads, this tool lets advertisers set up goals directly tied to ad performance.
Step 2: Define your conversion goals
In Baidu Ads, you can specify goals that match your business objectives, such as Purchases, Sign-Ups, or Page Views. Clear goal definitions make it easier to measure specific actions that matter to your brand.
Step 3: Install the Baidu conversion code
Baidu provides a tracking code to place on your website, enabling conversion data collection. This code helps Baidu attribute on-site actions to specific ad interactions, ensuring accurate conversion measurement.
Step 4: Set up conversion events in Baidu Tongji
Through Baidu Tongji, you can configure custom events that match your predefined conversion goals. This step requires specifying the actions you want to track (e.g., adding items to the cart or completing a purchase).
Step 5: Monitor conversion reports
Within Baidu Ads, access Conversion Reports to view performance insights. Reports show data on each conversion action, including source ads, conversion rate, and cost metrics, allowing for real-time campaign adjustments.
Improving your conversion rate is an ongoing process. Here are strategies for enhancing Baidu Ads performance:
Refine ad copy and keywords: Localize ad copy to match the preferences and search behaviors of Chinese audiences.
A/B test landing pages: Test different versions of landing pages to identify which content and designs lead to the highest conversions.
Optimize for mobile: Ensure your ads and landing pages are optimized for mobile users since mobile browsing dominates in China.
Load time optimization: Slow-loading websites can significantly impact conversions in China. Using Chinafy can help optimize site load times and content accessibility, crucial for retaining user engagement after an ad click.
Conversion tracking in Baidu Ads presents some unique challenges for international businesses:
Compatibility issues: Western analytics tools like Google Analytics can have limitations in China, so users may opt to use Baidu’s analytics solutions. However, what is often the case is that global websites load so slowly that the Google Analytics tag doesn’t fire as it sits at the end of a website, but when websites are optimized for China, Google Analytics works as normal.
Data privacy compliance: Make sure that your tracking methods adhere to China’s data privacy regulations, such as the Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL).
Loading speed and accessibility: Chinese users may experience slower load times on non-local sites, which can lead to drop-offs. Chinafy specializes in addressing these accessibility issues by optimizing foreign websites for the Chinese internet, resulting in better loading speeds and higher conversion rates.
By setting up Baidu ads conversion tracking, monitoring key metrics, and making data-informed adjustments, brands can enhance ad performance and meet campaign objectives. Optimizing site speed and accessibility with a solution like Chinafy can help global businesses achieve a more complete China marketing strategy by resolving web performance incompatibilities that would otherwise hinder their reach in China.
Ready to improve your Baidu Ads conversion rate? Contact Chinafy to learn more about how we can support your brand’s success in the Chinese market through our partners.