Listing ads are one of the best ways to advertise your business online to people all over the world because they are inexpensive and allow you to target specific audiences.
In the DX (digital experience) era, listing ads can be considered an essential marketing tool that is crucial for innovative marketing campaigns such as introducing new brands to overseas markets and publicizing the debut of new products.
Today, it’s easy for anyone to send listing ads to overseas markets. However, if you know what you’re doing and take the right steps, it can be a very powerful marketing tool.
This time, we’ll go into great detail, from the fundamentals of what overseas listing advertisements are to the delivery processes and insider tips for effective overseas listing ads.
What is an Overseas Listing Advertisement?
Listing ads are paid advertisements that appear alongside search engine result pages.
In Japanese, it is also called “検索連動広告” or “Search advertising”. Overseas, however, the term “listing advertisement” is not used; instead, all pay-per-click advertisements are commonly referred to as “Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC)”. Because of this, a search for “listing advertisement” in English will yield no results, and many people may wonder what a listing advertisement for overseas is.
“Listing Advertisement” is a term unique to Japan, and should be recognized as a part of PPC advertising as described above.
The format of the listing advertisement is a text-based advertisement, and the advertising fee is based on a pay-per-click system in which the fee is only charged when the user clicks. The cost per click can change based on factors like competition, ad quality, keyword volume, and the relevance of both the keyword and the ad.
With the growth of the digital advertising market in recent years, there has been more competition between companies that place ads.
However, listing ads can only be displayed to users who search for specific keywords, allowing for a low-cost, highly accurate, and efficient approach compared to conventional mass media ads. Also, companies use it as a form of digital marketing for international markets because they can send ads to potential customers overseas while they are in Japan.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Overseas Search Ads
Here, we will elaborate on the advantages and disadvantages of overseas listing advertisements.
Advantages of Overseas Listing Ads
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You can approach overseas markets while staying in Japan!
One of the greatest benefits of overseas listing ads is the ability to contact potential customers overseas while remaining in Japan. You can improve accuracy by choosing advertising channels that are right for the countries and users you want to reach.
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Approach to the right users
Listing ads can be shown next to specific search terms, so you can easily reach people who are interested in the products or services your company offers.
By analyzing accurate information on the Internet and identifying search keywords for overseas target groups, it is possible to reach prospective customers overseas with high precision and efficiency.
Also, the delivery of listing ads can be changed in a variety of ways, so you can use in-depth analysis and verification to improve accuracy even more.
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Result and effectiveness can be gauged quickly
Due to the fact that listing ads can be delivered immediately from the day the ad is made active, it is positioned as one of the most immediately effective harvesting methods in marketing.
Whether there is a demand for your product or service in the target country, if you want to quickly find out what type of ads are most effective, it is essential to test ad delivery first.
Disadvantages of Overseas Listing Ads
The disadvantages of overseas listing ads roughly fall into two categories. It implies that it is necessary to understand the local language and understand the country-specific differences in advertising operational know-how.
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Need for localization
When posting ad listings overseas, it is necessary to deliver such listings in the target country’s native tongue. Therefore, it is necessary to at least comprehend the local language spoken in the target country or region.
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Operational know-how exists depending on the country
Also note that the know-how of advertising operations differs depending on the target country. Major search engines and search techniques vary from country to country; therefore, prior research is required.
For example, in this blog post, as introduced in Thailand, there is a tendency to use a combination of Thai and English when searching. This is one of the distinguishing characteristics of Thai keyword searches.
Thus, search intentions and search trends vary significantly from country to country. It is important to remember that simply posting an advertisement with the keyword you wish to target will not yield results if you lack the necessary knowledge.
Overseas Listing Ads vs SEO
SEO is a form of digital marketing that is frequently compared to listing ads. SEO, which stands for “Search Engine Optimization,” is the process of making a website more visible in search results.
The implementation of SEO involves a variety of measures, including the accumulation of high-quality content, the optimization of the site’s display speed, and the implementation of internal measures for the site itself. It is essential to understand search engine algorithms and implement appropriate measures. However, if you succeed in being displayed at the top of search results, you can achieve high rankings without incurring advertising expenses.
In SEO measures, there is no such thing as “if you do this, you will always be displayed at the top”, which is why it is necessary to implement various measures. Furthermore, since it requires time and effort to produce results, it is a medium- to long-term marketing strategy.
When implementing SEO strategies with international search engines, the search engines utilized vary by country. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the know-how of the search engines that are appropriate for each country.
Keeping in mind these merits and demerits comprehensively, instead of selecting only one of the measures, such as “overseas listing advertisement” for short-term customer attraction and “SEO measures” for medium- to long-term customer attraction, we recommend that you use them together based on your specific situation.
Procedures for Distributing Overseas Listing Advertisements
So, how should we then distribute overseas listing advertisements?
We will introduce the distribution procedure for starting highly effective overseas listing ads!
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Formulate an advertising strategy
To achieve success with overseas listing ad operations, it is essential to begin ad distribution only after designing a proper strategy. If you distribute overseas listing advertisements without a strategic plan, you may just end up wasting advertising budget blindly.
To formulate a successful overseas listing advertising strategy, it is necessary to analyze the 3C’s (customer, competitor, and corporation) to determine the target audience, the nature of the company’s competitors, and its competitive advantage in the target overseas market.
By analyzing the situation and coming up with a realistic plan, you will be able to send overseas listing ads to potential international customers in an accurate and efficient way.
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Identify keywords and phrases
Keyword research is one of the most important aspects of listing ads. Begin with keyword research and research your search terms. Using Google Analytics to look at which pages get the most traffic from search engines can also help you choose keywords.
You can also research two or three competitors who are doing well on Google Ads.
There are a number of third-party tools that can be used for keyword research in Japan, but we believe that overseas tools are much more effective when it comes to international advertising distribution. Tools such as SEMrush or KeywordsFX will provide a variety of information, including competitive analysis and CPC, in addition to keyword research.
Select specific keywords instead of general or vague ones.
For overseas listing ads, use local keywords that match your target audience as closely as possible.
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Decide on the target location where you want your ads to be shown
Determine the target location for overseas listing advertisements. However, setting the area as “the entire world” or to “English-speaking countries” is unrealistic, even if the company’s target is English-speaking countries. If the target location is too large, the approach will be shallow and broad, which is inefficient.
If you have already begun disseminating information overseas, such as a website for overseas but have not yet decided on a target country, it would be wise to examine the existing data of your company’s overseas media to determine which countries have a high number of inflows.
If the target is already determined and there is already a point of contact with the local community, it is possible to interview locals to determine if the company’s products are needed in the area.
If you have not yet begun disseminating information internationally and have not selected any target countries, evaluate the possibility of entering overseas markets with Google Market Finder and Google Keyword Planner. Google Market Finder provides detailed information about which markets are best suited for your product or service, while Google Keyword Planner helps you research keywords for your advertising campaigns.
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Choose an advertising platform
Google Ads is one of the major online marketing tools for reaching new customers. However, there are numerous global platforms that can distribute overseas listing advertisements.
In Korea, many businesses use NAVER or Daum. In China, where Google is not available, businesses use Baidu or Sogou. In Taiwan, the leading search engines are Google and Yahoo!. In Hong Kong, the leading search engines are Google, Yahoo!, and Bing.
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Set your advertising budget
You can set an ad delivery budget for each campaign with listing ads, and ads will never be delivered in excess of the budgeted amount. When trying overseas listing advertising for the first time, it is smart to start small with a small budget until the results are proven.
If you’re not sure how much to spend, try setting a budget cap or a free PPC calculator such as Lead Generation PPC Calculator or SEM & PPC Calculator to verify the cost-effectiveness before operation.
You can reduce the risk by conducting a comprehensive analysis beforehand.
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Create international ad creatives
After deciding on a strategy for overseas listing ads and setting a budget, it’s time to make overseas ad creatives.
Also, if you do not already have a website or landing page for international territories, you will need to create one.
If you wish to keep costs low, it would be prudent to first produce only the landing page for international markets and then evaluate the effect of the advertisement.
Ad creatives for overseas listing advertisements must be tailored to the target country.
Analyze the ad creatives of your competitors who are using the same keyword and create a design and copy that is appropriate for the target country. If the translation is wrong or the way it is said is unsettling, the user will be suspicious and leave the site right away.
Also, user search habits and preferences vary by country or region, so it is necessary to analyze them thoroughly. So, consider the culture and beliefs of the target country and develop an ad creative that is appropriate for that nation.
“Color” influences the brand!
“Relationship between color psychology and corporate brand”
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Set up your ad account
Even if you are sending advertisements abroad, you can distribute them globally by creating a Google Ads account in the same manner as in Japan.
Acquire an advertising account, configure keywords to link overseas listing ads, and compose an ad copy for overseas audiences.
You can select the country and language in which your ad will be delivered on the campaign page when setting up ad delivery.
3 Points To Make Overseas Listing Advertisement Successful
There are a number of considerations to keep in mind if you want your overseas listing advertisement to be successful.
This time, we’d like to discuss three considerations that should be kept in mind.
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Understand the search habits of your target country
Understanding the search habits of the target country is necessary for effective overseas listing advertising.
As previously stated in this article, search habits and the most popular search engines vary greatly by country or region. In Japan and the United States, Google is the most popular search engine, whereas in China it is Baidu and in Korea it is NAVER.
In addition, rather than simply translating listings into the local language, it is necessary to use more localized words and expressions that are actually employed by locals. Therefore, one of the most important considerations is to have a native speaker review the copy and ad creative.
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Comply with the advertising rules of your country or region
Overseas listing ads must be delivered in compliance with the advertising rules of the target country.
Even Google Ads, the most popular ad platform in the world, has different guidelines for each country. The products that are prohibited from carrying advertisements vary from country to country. Check the advertising regulations of your target nation.
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Create a compelling headline
When listing ads, titles and headlines that get people’s attention, or the power of words, are very important.
Your ad copy is the first thing a searcher will see, and it is your only opportunity to communicate with them in a limited number of words. In the competitive search results page, it is necessary to be aware of using the power of words to shake the user’s mind and persuade them to click.
Comprehend the context and objectives of users’ search activities, and generate clickable titles and headings based on this information.
Summary
Listing ads for people overseas don’t cost much, and it’s one of the best ways to reach out to people in other countries online.
To be successful, you need to narrow down your target country and make sure your ads use words and phrases that sound natural in that country.
By concurrently employing overseas listing advertisements and SEO, you will be able to increase the effectiveness of overseas marketing strategies.
Here at Info Cubic Japan, we have seen success with overseas listing ads for both B2B and B2C businesses. International listing advertisement is one of our most effective global marketing strategies.
If you have any problems with “Multilingual Listing Ads”, please feel free to contact us!
