Baidu still has the majority of the search engine market share in China. So, if your business has high visibility on its search results page, you can gain access to a huge audience of high-intent users. 

Whether you’re looking to drive conversions, increase brand visibility, or reach millions of Chinese consumers, a well-optimized Baidu Ads campaign could skyrocket your ecommerce business in China.

TL;DR: Baidu Ads are a key tool for ecommerce success in China. To maximize ROI, focus efforts on the best-performing ad types, like search and display ads, leverage retargeting strategies and optimize your site’s speed and functionality.

In this guide, we’ll explore the benefits of Baidu Ads, how to set up campaigns, the best ad formats for ecommerce, and tips to maximize your ROI.

Introduction to Baidu Ads

Baidu Ads, or Baidu Tuiguang (百度推广), is a pay-per-click (PPC) advertising platform similar to Google Ads. It allows businesses to promote products or services across Baidu’s search engine, display networks, and partner platforms.

For ecommerce businesses, Baidu Ads enables you to connect with high-intent users actively searching for products, delivering highly targeted traffic to your site.

Baidu Tuiguang

Benefits of Baidu Ads for ecommerce

Baidu Ads offers China-specific advantages that make it a must-have for ecommerce brands targeting Chinese consumers:

Reach: Baidu dominates China’s search engine market, making it the top choice for accessing millions of online shoppers.

Transactional intent: Many Baidu users search with a clear intent to purchase, offering ecommerce businesses a direct path to conversions.

Integrations: Baidu Ads integrates with other Baidu platforms like Baidu Maps and Tieba, enabling brands to engage consumers across multiple touchpoints in their buying journey.

Variety of ad formats: From text-based search ads to shopping ads showcasing product images, Baidu Ads offers formats designed for ecommerce needs.

Localized targeting: The platform supports precise targeting based on demographics, location, device, and user behavior, ensuring your campaigns reach the right audience.

Setting up effective Baidu Ads campaigns

Before you launch your campaign, here are a couple of other considerations:

Optimize your website for China

A website that performs well globally may be slow or even unusable in China, which will impact conversion rates if your ads are directed to a slow-loading page. So how can you ensure your site offers the same experience for users in China as it does the rest of the world?

Chinafy is the only platform that can detect, address, replace or remove third party resources that impact both speed and functionality specifically for a website in China.

Why not try out our Visual Speed Test to see how your site currently looks when loaded from China?

Perform keyword research

Here are some ways to find keywords for Baidu SEM:

Identify terms that directly relate to your products, such as specific features.

Use Baidu auto-complete to discover trending terms.

Baidu auto-complete

Explore related searches to find searches that users commonly pair with your initial query.

Access Baidu Keyword Planner via your Baidu PPC account to find insights into search volumes and related keywords like Google’s keyword planner in Google Ads.

Try out third-party tools like Chinaz, Aizhan Keyword Tool, AccuRanker or 5118.

Read our full blog on conducting keyword research for Baidu.

Ad types suitable for ecommerce

Baidu Ads offers several formats tailored for ecommerce businesses:

Search Ads

Baidu search ads are text-based ads displayed on Baidu's SERP.

Best for: Capturing high-intent users and driving traffic.

Display Ads

Baidu display ads are image-based ads shown on Baidu's partner sites.

Best for: Boosting brand awareness and retargeting.

Shopping Ads

Baidu shopping ads are product-centric ads with images and prices. 

Best for: Promoting products directly to ready-to-buy users.

Brand Zone

Baidu Brand Zone ads are premium high-visiblity placements at the top of Baidu's SERP.

Best for: Established brands seeking maximum exposure and credibility.

Baidu Brand Zone

Tips for optimizing your Baidu Ads

Here’s how to get the most out of your Baidu Ads campaigns:

Tailor your ad copy

Use Simplified Chinese in your ad copy and highlight key benefits, like discounts, free shipping, or exclusive deals.

Examples of high-intent keywords:

购买最新款智能手机 (Buy the latest smartphone)

限时折扣运动鞋 (Limited-time discount on sneakers)

送货上门电器 (Home delivery for appliances)

Use high-quality visuals and branding

Make sure your ads use high-resolution images, consistent colors, and, depending on your products, recognizable brand elements. When using people in images, be mindful that users in China may respond better to visuals that reflect local cultural styles.

Retarget users

Retargeting is a powerful strategy for re-engaging users who have already shown interest in your products.

Here’s a short summary of how to set up a retargeting campaign in Baidu Ads:

Define a target audience consisting of those who have visited your website or interacted with your brand but have not converted.

Install a tracking code (similar to Google Ads Remarketing tag) on your website to track user behavior and collect data.

Use the collected data to create remarketing lists based on user behavior, such as page visits, cart abandonment, etc.

Set up an ads campaign as normal and select your remarketing list for your audience.

Use ad extensions

Enhance ad visibility by using Baidu’s extensions, such as sitelinks, call buttons, and location extensions, to provide additional information and improve click-through rates.

Tracking performance and adjusting strategies

Regular monitoring and optimization are crucial for sustained success:

Leverage Baidu Tongji: Use Baidu’s analytics tool to track key performance metrics like click-through rates (CTR), conversions, and user behavior.

A/B test: Experiment with different ad creatives, keywords, and bids to identify what performs best.

Optimize for conversion rates: Focus your budget on high-performing keywords and exclude underperforming ones to maximize ROI.

Just as you would consider Google Ads and Google Shopping for your e-commerce brand elsewhere in the world, Baidu is a powerful tool to target Chinese consumers. By combining precise targeting, optimized creatives, and performance tracking, you can effectively reach and convert Chinese consumers.

And a final note - a successful campaign depends on more than just ad setup. Without a well-optimized website, you could be driving leads to an inaccessible site…

Chinafy helps e-commerce businesses resolve common website compatibility issues, improve site speed, and create a smoother user experience, ensuring your ads deliver results.

We can also connect you with Baidu ads experts to maximize your end-to-end China marketing efforts. Get started now.