APAC · CountryTOFU
Marketing in and from China
The short answer
China needs a completely different marketing playbook. Google, Meta and most Western platforms are blocked, and Chinese consumers discover, research and buy through domestic super-apps and marketplaces. PMG works with Chinese brands marketing in India and other markets — where we run campaigns directly — and advises international and Indian brands planning China entry, coordinating with China-based specialists for in-market execution.
China's digital ecosystem at a glance
| Job | Platforms |
|---|---|
| Search | Baidu (dominant), plus search inside WeChat, Douyin and Xiaohongshu |
| Social and messaging | WeChat (Weixin), Weibo |
| Short video and live commerce | Douyin, Kuaishou |
| Lifestyle discovery and reviews | Xiaohongshu (RED) |
| Long-form video and youth culture | Bilibili |
| eCommerce | Tmall, Taobao, JD.com, Pinduoduo; Douyin shops |
| Payments | Alipay and WeChat Pay |
Rules to know before marketing in China
- PIPL — consent, purpose limitation and strict cross-border transfer rules for personal information
- Data Security Law and Cybersecurity Law — data classification and security obligations
- ICP licence — required to host websites on servers in mainland China
- Advertising Law — strict rules, including bans on superlatives such as "best" or "No. 1" in many contexts
- Platform access — local entities, partners or cross-border eCommerce models are usually required
How we help Chinese brands outside China
- India market entry — Meta, Google, YouTube and marketplace campaigns for Chinese consumer electronics, apps and D2C brands entering India
- Global expansion — campaigns in Southeast Asia, the Gulf, Europe and the Americas
- Localisation — Hindi and regional-language creative, Indian payment and delivery norms
- Compliance — India's DPDP framework, ASCI guidelines and platform policies
How we help brands planning China entry
We help international and Indian brands assess the opportunity, plan positioning and budgets, choose between cross-border eCommerce (such as Tmall Global) and a local entity, and brief China-based execution partners — then measure results against the same business metrics we use elsewhere.
The Chinese marketing calendar
- Chinese New Year (Spring Festival) — the biggest holiday season
- 618 (18 June) — major mid-year shopping festival
- Singles' Day (11 November) — the world's largest shopping event
- Mid-Autumn Festival — gifting season
How Chinese consumers research and buy
Chinese consumers discover products in content-led apps — Xiaohongshu (RED) for reviews and lifestyle inspiration, Douyin for short video and livestream shopping — and buy through Tmall, JD.com, Pinduoduo or directly inside Douyin and WeChat mini programs. Key opinion leaders (KOLs) and everyday creators (KOCs) play a bigger role than in most Western markets. For foreign brands, cross-border eCommerce platforms allow selling to Chinese consumers without a local entity, within import rules and quotas.
Example: a Chinese consumer brand entering India
India-specific positioning, Hindi and regional-language creative, marketplace listings and compliance with Indian advertising and data rules — run by a team that knows the Indian market.
Digital marketing services for businesses in China
Every engagement is built from the same components — chosen and weighted for your category, budget and customers in China. Most clients start with two or three of these and add more once the economics are proven.
Performance Marketing
Full-funnel paid media run against your margins. We set break-even ROAS and a target cost per acquisition first, then plan Google, Meta and other channels around what customers in China actually respond to. Budgets move every week toward whatever produces the cheapest incremental sales or qualified leads — not the loudest platform numbers.
Google Ads
Search, Performance Max, Shopping, YouTube and Demand Gen campaigns built around high-intent searches in China. We fix conversion tracking first, separate brand from non-brand, use location and language targeting deliberately, and report on cost per qualified lead or sale rather than clicks and impressions.
Meta Ads
Facebook and Instagram campaigns driven by creative testing — new hooks, formats and offers every week — with the Conversions API for reliable signals and audiences shaped for China. Lead campaigns route straight to WhatsApp or your CRM so your team can follow up within minutes.
SEO
Technical SEO, content and authority building aimed at the searches buyers in China make before they contact a business. We fix crawl, speed and indexing problems first, then build service, location and comparison pages that can rank in Google and be cited in AI answers.
AEO & GEO (AI Search)
Answer engine and generative engine optimisation: answer-first content, clear entity information and structured data that help your business appear in Google's AI features, ChatGPT and other assistants when buyers in China ask for recommendations.
LinkedIn Ads
LinkedIn campaigns for B2B companies selling in China: job-title, industry and company targeting, account-based lists, lead forms synced to your CRM, and reporting on pipeline and revenue rather than cost per lead alone.
Marketplace Marketing
Amazon and regional marketplace advertising and listing optimisation, balanced with your own website so you grow sales in China without handing all your margin to marketplaces.
Web Design & Development
Fast, conversion-focused websites and landing pages — clear offers, trust signals, mobile-first forms and proper tracking — so the traffic you pay for in China actually turns into enquiries and sales.
How we work with businesses in China
- Audit (week 0–1). We review your ad accounts, analytics, tracking, website and competitors in China, and send a written audit: what's broken, what's wasted, and the three moves we'd make first.
- Plan (week 1–2). A measurement plan, break-even ROAS and target CAC, a channel mix for China and a 90-day roadmap with owners and dates.
- Launch (week 2–4). Clean campaign structures, verified conversion tracking, the first creative sprint and landing-page fixes that remove obvious friction.
- Optimise (months 2–3). Weekly tests across audiences, bidding, creative and pages, with budget shifting toward the cheapest incremental results.
- Scale (month 3 onwards). New channels, cities and markets and retention loops — added only when the economics hold at higher spend.
Live working-hours overlap with China: 9:30am–6pm Beijing time. Every client gets a shared WhatsApp group, a weekly 30-minute call with the strategist who runs the account, a live dashboard and a written change log. See how we work for the full process.
Why businesses in China work with PMG
- Measurement first. Break-even ROAS, target CAC and clean tracking before any budget is scaled.
- You own everything. Ad accounts, data and creative stay in your name, and ad spend goes straight to the platforms.
- Senior people on your account. The strategist who runs your campaigns is the person you talk to every week.
- Weekly transparency. A scorecard, change log and test board every week — no vanity metrics.
- Short minimum terms. We would rather keep clients with results than with contracts.
- A long working day. Mon–Sat, 7am–9pm IST, giving real overlap with China and overnight progress on your campaigns.
What does digital marketing cost for a business in China?
We quote after a free audit, based on scope rather than geography: the number of channels and markets, your monthly ad spend, creative volume, languages and tracking complexity. Your ad spend is paid directly to Google, Meta and other platforms from your own accounts, in Renminbi (CNY) — it never passes through us.
PMG charges a fixed monthly fee, a percentage of ad spend or a hybrid — whichever keeps incentives cleanest — and many clients add a performance-linked component once tracking is reliable. Minimum terms are short. See pricing for what drives cost and how to compare agency quotes.
Cities and areas we serve in China
We plan budgets and creative city by city, because costs, competition and customer behaviour differ even within China. Campaigns regularly target:
- Shanghai
- Beijing
- Shenzhen
- Guangzhou
- Hangzhou
- Chengdu
Free growth audit
Get a written audit for China.
No sales call required. Tell us where to look; a strategist replies within working hours and sends the written audit within 72 hours.
- Tracking check
- Pixels, Conversions API, GA4 events and offline conversions — what is firing, what is double-counted, what is missing.
- Wasted spend
- Search terms, placements, audiences and overlap that cost money without producing qualified leads or sales.
- Conversion path
- Landing page speed, message match, form friction and follow-up time — where interested people drop off.
- 90-day priorities
- The three changes we would make first, with the metric each one should move.
Frequently asked questions
Can you run Google or Meta ads in China?
No — Google and Meta are not accessible in mainland China. Campaigns there run on Baidu, WeChat, Douyin and other domestic platforms, usually through local partners.
Do you run campaigns inside China?
We advise and coordinate with China-based specialists for in-market execution. We run campaigns directly for Chinese brands marketing outside China, including in India.
Can Chinese apps advertise in India?
Many can, subject to Indian law and platform policies; some apps have been blocked by the Indian government. We check the current status before planning campaigns.
What is Xiaohongshu and why does it matter?
Xiaohongshu (RED) is a lifestyle and review platform where many Chinese consumers research products before buying. Brands entering China usually plan content there early.
Can PMG help Chinese brands market in India?
Yes — within Indian regulations, we plan and run campaigns for Chinese and other foreign brands entering India.
How much does it cost to hire a digital marketing agency in China?
PMG quotes after a free audit — a fixed monthly fee, a percentage of ad spend or a hybrid, depending on channels, markets, creative volume and tracking. Ad spend is paid directly to the platforms from your own accounts.
How long does it take to see results from digital marketing in China?
Tracking fixes and search campaigns often show improvement within two to four weeks. Prospecting on Meta or YouTube usually needs three to six weeks of creative testing, and SEO compounds over three to nine months. We agree leading indicators for each channel so you are never guessing.
Do we need to sign a long contract?
No. Minimum terms are short, because we would rather keep clients with results than with contracts. Ad accounts, data and creative stay in your name throughout.
Will we own our ad accounts and data?
Yes. Campaigns run in your own Google, Meta and other ad accounts with partner access for PMG, and you can see everything at any time.
When can we talk to PMG live from China?
Our team works Mon–Sat, 7am–9pm IST. Live overlap with China: 9:30am–6pm Beijing time. Day-to-day questions are handled on a shared WhatsApp group.
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