Drupal is a powerful content management system. It is also a good CMS for SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Google is the biggest search engine in the world. But when it comes to China, Baidu is the biggest one. Our clients are always interested to know that how a Drupal website can be better for Baidu SEO. We will share 7 tips here.
1. Chinese URL
Among Chinese, English, and Pinyin URL, which one is the best for Baidu SEO? According to our practice, Chinese and pinyin URL both works well, but definitely not English. The current trend is that more and more websites are having Chinese URL. As long as the Chinese URL is not too long, Baidu will not have the problem indexing the pages.
2. Chinese Meta tag, Meta description, and Page Title
Don’t leave meta tag, meta description, and page title empty or in non-Chinese. These three sections will help Baidu spider identify your web pages. Also, the content will be showed in the search results. Use the human-readable content. Don’t only use keyword stuffing. It will not help the page ranking.
3. Baidu Tongji and Search Console
If you want to do SEO for Baidu, using Baidu Analytics is a must. In terms of features, Baidu Tongji is not as powerful as Google Analytics. But it has data specifically for Baidu search engine. We would recommend applying both Google Analytics and Baidu Tongji on the website. You can use both sides of data to help you make the decision. Like Google search console, Baidu also has Baidu search console. Baidu search console also provides valuable information to do SEO. The downside of using Baidu Analytics is that there is no English version. You must have someone who knows Chinese.
4. Drupal SEO Modules
There are some useful Drupal SEO modules which help you improve SEO. Yet you can not install and use them out of the box. It requires certain configuration. For details, I would recommend reading these two books, Drupal 6 SEO and Drupal 8 SEO.
5. Sitemap Submit
Whenever you launch or relaunch your website, remember to submit your website to Baidu through Baidu search console. Of course, you can always wait for Baidu spiders to crawl your websites. The risk is Baidu spider might not be able to crawl your website for some reason. We would suggest submitting your website yourself and check Baidu Search Console later.
6. Website Speed and Stability
Like Google SEO, website speed and stability are also variables Baidu ranking considers. You can Baidu Analytics to know your website speed. Also, you can use China-specific website monitor service like, Jiankonbao, to monitor your website stability. If you host your website outside mainland China, you need to make sure your website is not blocked by the firewall.
7. Good content and UX.
This is the most important tip but probably the most difficult to execute. If you have good content, you have finished 50% of your SEO work. What does good content mean? It means your content really provides value to your visitors. There are three variables search engine would consider as good content, i.e. low bounce rate, high session duration, and high returning visitors. It also brings another topic, good user experience (UX). A better user-experience website will make visitors stay longer. Once your website has valuable content and better user experience, i.e. highly human-retable content, your website will have better SEO. It is a long-term SEO work for Baidu and Google.
Conclusion
There is no shortcut for Baidu or Google SEO. It takes at least three months to see the results after you finish the first SEO work. Also, it is a long-term work. You always have to monitor the analytics data to keep improving your website SEO. If you plan to host your website in the long term, it is worth investing time in basic SEO.
About The Author
Stephen Tseng
Co-founder of dminrostudio