Moderating this panel is Mike Grehan of BruceClay.com
China has their own search engines. It is an interesting place, from that perspective.
Stephen Noton, Senior SEO/SEM Consultant, Adverted Internet Advertising Agency.
12 of top 100 china web sites have numbers in the domain. Why? The keyboard in China is a main reason. They have 13,5000 chinese characters.
The way people market in China, is different than in the US. He shows the features on Google China (i.e. Google suggest). He shows Google China popular searches by category. Google also has a algorithmic directory in China.
The Matt Cutts of China Jianfei Zhu, he controls all Asia based Google spam topics. His blog is at GoogleChinaWebmaster.com, but it is currently in Chinese.
Since there is guided search (suggestions), an SEO can use that data to know what to go after in terms of keywords. Also, the popular searches page is a great SEO tool in China. The long tail doesnt really exist today in China.
Bill Hunt, CEO, Global Strategies International
China is paying attention to search. He showed a picture of the audience at an SES in China, how they interested they are in the information.
Issues Faced: - It is tough and also an advantage to being a foreigner in China - Budgets are small from local companies - Can't make changes to the site due to WW restrictions - Clients are very particular about their contacts in your company - Some large companies in China more sophisticated than corporate HQ - Allow the client or interactive agency to save face - Relationships are critical to success (clients, search engines, influencers) - Employees make or break a deal - Much of the ads are still branded and less lead generation or sales focused - Be flexible and do business the chinese way
State of Search Marketing - Doubling of attendance at search conferences -- SES China from 600 to 1000 attendees -- Question from audience more sophisticated - China RFPs - Sophistication of Adoption -- Blend between scams and more advanced -- Bigger companies are in many cases more advanced than their HQs - Demand for Information -- Traffic to search blogs increasing significantly -- Increase in Chinese centric blogs and content
State of Search Agencies: - 1,000 companies offering SEM -- 10 to 15 top agencies stand out - Trends -- Many agencies offer PPC as SEO -- SEO is simply meta tags -- PPC is 2 to 3 steps from actual buyers -- Integrating more advanced techniques -- Social media optimization -- Consolidation
Recommendations for Marketers - Check their credentials and references - Go visit them and meet their team - Confirm they are not outsourcing - Establish goals and document them - Period checks of the quality of the ads and the effectiveness of campaigns
Recommendations for Agencies - Pick your team effectively - Incentives for employee loyalty are critical - Build relationships with the engines and organizations like SEMPO - Pick your partner well and do a lot of research on their capabilities and their network
Top Online Activities - 93% of people in China want news - 85% Listen and download music - 84% play games online - 69% use email
96% access the internet via desktops and 21% use laptops and 27% use mobile devices
Mobile search growth is increasing
Key observations - Baidu: - Baidu is the most popular search engine for lifestyle searches (ring tones, music) - Baidu's results are overwhelmingly influenced by paid ads - Baidu has greatest reach with young lifestyle centric searches - CPM advertising is most popular with Baidu
Ads are out of control, they cover most of Sina site.
What does this mean to the world? - New travel opportunities for Chinese have resulted in significant to country information - Opportunities to market to Chinese if you do it in their terms and comfort level - Access to information about Chinese companies will be easier to locate - Access to information about China and the Olympics
Key to Success in China - Relationships - Patience - Due Deligence - Time in Country - Open Mind
