Tencent Marketing Solution and dentsu Announce Joint Business Partnership at Cannes Lions

22 June 2023 | As the economy rebounds, novel consumption trends and consumer behaviors are beginning to take shape, prompting major brands to increase their investment to tackle challenges and seize opportunities for future growth.

These circumstances set the stage for the 70th Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Established in 1954, the Festival has become a global stage where marketing and advertising professionals converge to celebrate creative excellence and inspire business collaborations. This year, Tencent Marketing Solution (hereafter referred to as TMS) is making waves by unveiling its Joint Business Partnership (JBP) with dentsu.

Embracing Evolution and Innovation for Future Growth

On June 20th, Ethen Zhang, Deputy General Manager of Channel Sales at TMS, and Rob Gilby, APAC CEO of dentsu, jointly stamped a scroll inscribed with the Chinese characters "Lian Meng," symbolizing "Union". The exchange of "Dunhuang" artwork ornaments – symbols of "heritage, innovation, technique, and responsibility" – marked the commencement of this strategic partnership.

Ethen Zhang announced at the ceremony, "We aspire to harness dentsu's comprehensive strengths and global network resources, while fully capitalizing on the synergies of both our ecosystems. Together, we aspire to offer our clients more enduring and higher return on investment solutions."

At the ceremony, Rob Gilby shared, “In today’s hyper-competitive and customer-centric world, we need to know the most about customers and harness innovation and resources to continue to manage and meet expectations while also driving growth for business. Today, we are honoured and delighted to be strategically aligned with Tencent, a leader in China to shape the customer experience of the future and cultivate long-standing brand loyalty and trust.”

Innovation and Collaboration: Adding Value to the Marketplace

Building on a strong track record of collaboration, the enhanced JBP will concentrate on four core areas: integrated marketing solution development, copyrighted content cooperation, marketing technology and measurement, and charity and social responsibility.

● Integrated Marketing Solutions Development: Over the past three years, marketing has transitioned from a focus on immediate conversion and effectiveness to a greater emphasis on long-term value, acknowledging the crucial role of brand building in business growth. Dentsu will leverage its resources and expertise in creative, media, and customer experience and capitalize on the Tencent ecosystem to create a platform for sustainable growth for its clients.

● Copyrighted Content Cooperation: Tencent's ecosystem incorporates a variety of platforms such as Tencent Video, Tencent Sports, Tencent Games, among others, supported by a robust distribution network. Concurrently, dentsu boasts a rich content portfolio and copyright configuration, including animation, cartoons and eSports. The partners will explore potential collaborations in areas such as copyright cooperation, content introduction and expansion into global markets, as well as joint marketing and operations.

● Marketing Technology & Measurement: The influence of branding marketing on businesses and content marketing on brand building remains a pressing issue. By amalgamating Tencent's measurement and data product, RACE, with dentsu’s profound insights across a multitude of markets and industries, the alliance will facilitate collaboration in marketing measurement, offering a more comprehensive and scientifically grounded perspective to their clients.

● Charity & Social Responsibility: In 2022, dentsu launched their "2030 Sustainable Development" plan, which strongly aligns with Tencent's vision of "Tech for Good". The two companies agreed to employ their respective resources and strengths to foster sustainable development alongside their partners.

CEO of dentsu China, Deric Wong, stated, “Consumers demand quality choices in today’s digitally-savvy market and dentsu’s strategic partnership with Tencent teams us together – leveraging innovations, resources and our leading business positions to help brands predict, plan and move forward for what’s next. At dentsu, we think global and act local, to understand each market better. Collaboratively with Tencent’s unparalleled Internet value added services in China, we look forward to create tomorrow’s experience today.”

Tommy Li, President of Amplifi, dentsu China, also expressed, “Dentsu’s history of innovation have enabled us as Business Producers to help global brands expand their footprint into China. Together with Tencent, as a leading investor and innovator for IP in China for its video, gaming platforms and robust network, we are excited about the great opportunities through our international network and strategic alliances, to bring our capabilities to China and beyond.”

Xiaoke Li, Senior Director of the Channel Sales Department at TMS, stated, "Dentsu is a marketing partner with a century-old heritage. We have carried out fruitful cooperation in fields such as creativity and marketing science exploration. And look forward to the upgrade of this partnership to bring more inspiration to the market."

Maxxie Qi, dentsu Cooperation Lead of the Channel Sales Department at TMS, remarked, "We eagerly anticipate fully leveraging dentsu’s robust capabilities in content, creativity, media, and consumer experience within Tencent's ecosystem. Our aim is to deliver more sustainable and integrated solutions to our global clientele."

As we navigate these VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous) times, embracing change and daring to innovate requires unyielding belief and tenacity. TMS is committed to ongoing collaboration with the dentsu, welcoming further possibilities for innovation with an open and win-win mindset, and jointly propelling the continuous evolution of the marketing ecosystem.