WHAT ABOUT GOOGLE AND BING?
Google is only available in China for users who access VPN (Virtual Private Network). Does that mean that it’s useless for marketing to Chinese consumers? Not exactly. You can still use Google to target people living outside of Mainland China: exchange students, expats, tourists, etc. But we do not recommend it for campaigns that are targeting Chinese users living within China.
There’s also one foreign search engine accessible in China: Microsoft’s Bing (必应). However, despite being a default browser on many devices, it’s not commonly used by mainland consumers and therefore we do japan phone number not normally recommend advertising on it.
There are two apps that offer strong local search features and these are: Baidu Maps and Amap (高德地图; the default map used by iPhone’s.) And as you can guess, they’re both quite similar to Google Maps.
Within these apps, users can search for specific addresses but also use the apps to discover local restaurants, hotels, shops and services. Both of the apps provide basic info about the place, reviews, prices etc. as they’re connected to platforms like Diangping (点评) and Ctrip.
However, in China, you can also expect users to go straight to the Dianping app and search there instead of using a search engine.
How do Chinese Consumers Search for Products?
Many Chinese users will also skip search engines completely when they are searching for a product to purchase. Instead, they’ll head directly to Taobao, Tmall, Jingdong or another shopping app.
What About Local Search?