What is a CDN Network?
A CDN is a network of web servers located in specific geographical areas which will deliver your content faster in the region.
Users connect with your web pages via web servers and sometimes they could be very far away from where your website is hosted. The longer distance, the slower the load speed will be for your website. A CDN system circumvents this problem by distributing your content on several servers all around the globe or during a specific region. Therefore, your users won't retirve the content from the initial server but from the one closest server to his physical location, which will dramatically increase the loading speed of your website.
How can a CDN Network improve performance in China?
A CDN is extremely important in China due to the scale of the country which causes more complicated internet architecture. In China, there are three major Internet Service Providers (ISP) and their networks are not yet 100% interconnected. This is often not a perfect scenario for your website's loading speed. The networks are often congested with high latency as a result. Moreover, they do not deliver an equivalent performance all across China. For example, the connection could also be super fast in Shanghai but much slower in another city.
Given this scenario, a Content Delivery Network is an efficient solution to the problem. The CDN will disperse your content across several servers in China providing your traffic with the simplest possible performance.
CDN Provider
There are several good CDNs on the market. Based on our experience, we recommend using Alibaba Cloud as the CDN provider for China. Alibaba has an in-depth network of servers in China and they even have a partnership with ISPs and multiple leading network solution providers.
China's ICP Licence
Implementing CDN isn't so difficult, but you've got to think about that to realize access to the Chinese network you would like an ICP license. The ICP may be a document issued by China's Ministry of Industry and Knowledge Technology (MIIT) necessary to run an internet site in China. QPSoftware can assist foreign companies in applying for the ICP license, a process that's known to be daunting and discouraging for many foreigners.
Once Alibaba Cloud has been set up, you'll immediately see a clear load speed difference for your users in China and an improvement in your website's performance.
Additional Speed Optimization for China
There are a couple of other optimization methods that you simply cannot overlook as a digital marketer which are necessary to possess a well-performing website in China.
Host your website in China
The benefits of hosting your website in China are invaluable. always remember that China features strong Internet censorship. Therefore, accessing the market from abroad will bring several barriers and roadblocks imposed by the good Firewall of China which will hamper your website.
Chinese web hosting won't face the good Firewall, making your site tons faster, and it'll even make it easier to figure on SEO for China. As an alternative, you'll host your website in Hong Kong instead of mainland China. For more information, Please read our guide on how to host an internet site in China.
Avoid blocked elements
China presents a completely different Internet environment. Most of the expertise and knowledge you've developed over the years could also be of no use in China. Once more, the good Firewall may be a game-changer and you would like to suit its rules.
For instance, Google in China doesn’t work because it is the most famous social network. ditch Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Google API, Google Maps, Google pics, and therefore the list goes on. These platforms are blocked and, besides just not working, they're going to drastically hamper your website.
Baidu sets the principles in China and your website must be optimized for this program.
It's recommended to replace popular platforms (Google/Youtube/Twitter, Facebook) with WeChat, Youku, Sina Weibo, Baidu maps than so on, in order to avoid network disruption. You'll find detailed information on the way to rank well on Baidu by reading our guides about SEO in China.
Are you able to Optimize your Website's Load Times for China? Contact Us Today!