Chinese companies going global need a "ticket to entry."

```

Author | Huang Yu

Editor | Wang Xiaojuan

Going global is becoming a new path for more and more Chinese companies to seek growth. If going global used to be an adventure, in the new wave it has evolved into a "new voyage" that tests strategic focus and refined operations.

In this journey, a new model called "partnership marketing" is increasingly recognized by Chinese companies going global, guiding Chinese brands in the complex and ever-changing global market.

Against this backdrop, the US-based company impact.com, which is positioned as a partnership marketing management SaaS platform, has entered a period of opportunity. After holding its first digital marketing and partnership marketing summit—iPX (Partnerships Experience)—in China last year, impact.com recently held its second summit in China.

From "Made in China" to "Created in China", Chinese brands are constantly reshaping their ecological niche. Jennifer Zhang, Managing Director of Greater China at impact.com, pointed out that the underlying logic driving this change is precisely partnership relationships.

She said that today’s consumers, especially Gen Z and even younger groups, no longer start their shopping journeys on store shelves, but rather within social circles. The shaping of brand value is no longer in the hands of marketers, but is collectively determined by the community around the brand.

Therefore, community-led and creator-driven partnership marketing is becoming a key entry ticket for brands to have conversations with young users.

impact.com entered the Chinese market in 2019, and since 2021, Chinese companies going global have brought explosive growth to impact.com’s performance.

This illustrates that partnership marketing is being adopted by more and more Chinese companies. Jennifer Zhang revealed that when impact.com first entered the Chinese market, almost every client had to be educated from scratch about what partnership marketing was. Now, every brand going global is considering this strategy.

In the past, Chinese companies relied heavily on traditional forms of digital advertising, such as streams from major platforms, programmatic ads, and third-party cookie data tracking during their internationalization, but these "old methods" are proving less and less effective. In addition, as global competition intensifies, brands must use more strategic ways to build deep connections with overseas consumers.

Partnership marketing connects with KOLs, influencers, content creators, and various media trusted by consumers, which can deliver lower customer acquisition costs, longer customer lifecycles, and stronger brand equity for brands.

Jennifer Zhang believes that, under the wave of AI and new technologies, the effectiveness of traditional search and single-channel ads is weakening, and investing in the partner ecosystem is equivalent to investing in future growth.

As AI technology sweeps the globe, impact.com also announced a major product version update at this summit, showcasing how AI empowers partnership marketing to become more intelligent and efficient.

First is the deep integration of generative AI. The impact.com platform has launched the "Ask Impact" intelligent assistant, which can quickly recommend matched partners, provide industry insights, and generate intelligent report analysis based on multidimensional data. AI capabilities are also embedded in content creation and intelligent search, using natural language to understand user intent and improve matching efficiency and personalization.

Second is the enhancement of automated workflows. impact.com has introduced an intelligent agent framework to automate repetitive tasks (such as the process of recruiting partners), and has significantly upgraded its management tools for creator campaigns, including features like sentiment analysis, geolocation filtering, and AI-generated briefs, to improve campaign effectiveness and brand safety.

As going global enters deep waters, Chinese brands are demanding more from marketing. Brands need to win the market through differentiated value, refined operations, and sustained user experience.

And partnership marketing, with its attributes of "building trust" and "results-oriented", and riding the wave of AI, is becoming an indispensable "navigator" in this new voyage.

Risk Warning and DisclaimerThe market has risks, investment needs caution. This article does not constitute personal investment advice, nor does it take into account the special investment objectives, financial situation, or needs of individual users. Users should consider whether any opinions, viewpoints, or conclusions in this article are suitable for their own specific circumstances. Investment is at your own risk. ```