Global_searchAs the study "State of Retailing Online" of Shop.org and Forrester Research points out, search engine marketing (SEM) and advertising has always been and still is in high demand. According to their report, 85% of the dealers consider search engine marketing as a very effective tool for customer acquisition. Hence, online dealers spend most for paid search and four out of five said they have spent more on SEM than last year.

Fact is that more and more retailers are planning to sell globally and this trend is supported and embraced by the consumers in Asia as well. Go-Globe’s blog states, for instance, that e-commerce sales in Asia is constantly going up, since almost 42% of the world’s internet users are living in Asia, driven especially by smartphones and mobile devices.

Actually, Go-Globe expects 36.5% of worldwide B2C e-commerce sales to come from the Asia Pacific region this year. All in all claiming that the proportion of consumers will double in the next three years. China is clearly at the top with six out of every 10 dollars spent online in Asia coming from there. Besides that, 37% of Asia Pacific respondents said they were more likely to purchase goods and services through mobile devices, which is higher than the global average of 26%. Unfortunately, most web shops that operate internationally believe it is sufficient to translate a central shop into the local language, which simply isn’t (but that’s another discussion).

Fact is that whoever puts more effort into SEM will sell more, SoQuero, the online marketing specialist confirms, besides summarizing important tips to successfully implement international Search Engine Advertising (SEA), such as:

  • Check which engine is mainly used by your audience in the target country and create your SEA campaigns for that specific group(s).
  • Make the effort and give the choice and creation of your keyword lists into the hands of native speakers or experienced translators.
  • Analyze your competitors in the target market. Your offer must match the habits, the culture and the price structure of the target country.
  • Your customers shouldn’t realize immediately that you are a foreign company! So, customize the landing pages of your offers with the necessary local flavor of your target market!
  • Think global - act local! Global campaigns should be centrally focused but locally controlled. Clearly defined processes and responsibilities help to prevent misunderstandings!

By Daniela La Marca