Yext, Inc. (NYSE: YEXT), the leader in Digital Knowledge Management (DKM), announced integrations with some of the largest global digital services used by Chinese travellers around the world, as part of Yext's Spring '19 Product Release. The integrations with Baidu Map (Overseas), Fliggy, CK Map, and PIRT put businesses outside China in control of their brand information in the services that hundreds of millions of Chinese travellers all across the globe use to find places to eat, shop, stay, and more.
"The Chinese digital landscape is made up of an entirely different set of services from those in the West. When Chinese travellers who use services like Baidu and Fliggy at home travel overseas, they use these same services to find businesses in the cities they are visiting," said Howard Lerman, Founder and CEO of Yext. "If a business's information isn't in these services, it is invisible to these potential customers. We're integrating with some of the largest Chinese services so businesses using Yext can provide perfect answers to Chinese travellers."
Travellers from Mainland China are still subject to the "Great Firewall" when they travel overseas, and so they do not use sites like Google to find places to eat, stay, or shop, overseas. Instead, they use services like Baidu Map (Overseas), Fliggy, CK Map, and PIRT while travelling. A survey by Coresight Research indicates that 72% of Chinese tourists use online resources to plan their trips and 98% rely on their mobile phones while abroad to keep in touch and do research on the move.
"Chinese tourists spent a world-leading $261 billion in 2016, and the economic impact of tourism from China is expected to grow in the coming years. Many businesses aren't structuring their information and making it available to the digital services this critical customer base is using, and so they are unable to reach these customers," said Marc Ferrentino, Chief Strategy Officer of Yext. "Yext's integrations with leading Chinese services make it possible for businesses in the West to provide verified answers to consumers using these services, increasing visibility and providing a better customer experience."
The Spring '19 Release includes the following features:
New Integrations with Chinese Apps: The Yext Knowledge Network now includes leading services that Chinese travellers use when they travel around the world. Businesses outside China using Yext can now publish their information to Baidu Map (Overseas), Fliggy, CK Map, and PIRT, so their critical business information will be correct and up to date in these services. Current Yext customers will see these new data partners in their accounts on 26 March.
Google Q&A: Businesses can now monitor and answer questions that consumers ask about them on Google in Google's Q&A search results, directly in the Yext dashboard. Using Yext, they can also sync pre-answered FAQs to pre-empt common customer questions in order to provide a better customer experience and win more business.
AI-Ready Pages: Yext's self-serve Pages option is now available for general access. With the Spring '19 Release, Yext has enhanced AI-Ready Pages with new customisation options. AI-Ready Pages let businesses create a smart landing page on their website for any entity stored in Yext with just a few clicks to drive consumer discovery and action.
For more information on the Spring '19 Product Release, visit the Release Notes.
