How Baidu Differs from Google: The SEO Perspective

If you just got your business website optimized for Google, you may easily fall for this: Website optimization process for Google is the same as optimizing your Chinese-language website for Baidu. It is not!

Alright, we agree that there may be quite a few similarities, but the manner in which both these search engine giants rank websites are poles apart. So, would hiring a dedicated Chinese online marketing company for this purpose be useful? Yes, and in a myriad ways.

But before you do that, allow us to share with you the crucial differences between Google and Baidu, on SEO grounds:

Hosting

If you want your business website to rank high in a local search engine, for instance Google Germany, having your website hosted in that particular country can make a huge difference. As far as Google is concerned, this is merely an insignificant difference. That’s because Google clearly understands that certain countries, let’s say US, dictate the web hosting market; on the other hand, there are others, such as India, that provide web hosting far reasonably – persuading owners of business websites across the globe to host their websites from that country.  

However for Baidu, getting website hosted within China can produce remarkable results. It has a direct impact on how effectively a website appears in Baidu’s search engine result pages. Moreover, getting your website hosted in Mainland China can also improve page load times – working in favor of Baidu SEO and overall user experience.

ICP License

Creating a website and indexing it in Google is a simple, uncomplicated process. Despite the fact that certain domain names have limitations; businesses can easily purchase a ‘.com’, ‘.net’ or ‘.edu’, establish a website and index it in Google.

However in China, all the websites are required to possess an Internet Content Provider license. And to get that, people need Chinese business license. Western businesses may find this to be complex, and truly it can be that way. But if you partner with a Chinese online marketing agency, they’ll provide you with appropriate guidance for attaining both licenses.  

Censorship

There are certain kinds of content that Google doesn’t promote – mostly content that’s illegal. However typically, Google search results are not censored. 

On the other hand, censorship is a common yet crucial practice in China. And it is also one of the major aspects e-marketers have to deal with. Some websites are banned, and certain kinds of content prohibited by the Chinese government. And given that Baidu is a Chinese company, it works in conjunction with the government. Therefore, websites that meet government’s eligibility criteria are only indexed with Baidu.

Interested in promoting your brand in China with custom online marketing solutions? This is the right place. At LIMPID, we have SEO specialists, web developers, translators and online marketing experts that can help you localize your website into Chinese, while optimizing it for Baidu. We offer PPC marketing, SEO services, and a host of other web and mobile services. Call us right away at +1-877-574-2407 further information and queries.