Core Insights - impact.com has demonstrated robust growth in 2025, achieving significant results in product innovation and industry influence, serving over 5,000 leading brands globally, with more than 900 new clients added in the second quarter alone [1][2] - The company emphasizes a shift in consumer purchasing behavior towards trust and value co-creation, with recommendations from creators and trusted sources becoming crucial in influencing buying decisions [1][2] Company Developments - impact.com has expanded its global strategy by entering the Spanish market, establishing an office in Madrid, and appointing local leadership to enhance customer success and operational capabilities [2] - The company now operates in 20 countries with over 1,300 employees, focusing on maximizing the growth potential of partner marketing for both local and international brands [2] Industry Trends - The 2025 Industry Mid-Year Benchmark Report indicates a fundamental change in consumer behavior, where deeper research and comparisons are made before purchasing, favoring information from trusted community sources over traditional brand advertising [1] - The Partnerships Experience (iPX) marketing summit has expanded its scale, with the 2025 China outbound marketing summit attracting over 600 representatives from Chinese brands and experts to discuss global growth strategies amid the AI wave [3]

Core Insights - The iPX 2025 China Outbound Marketing Summit, hosted by impact.com, gathered over 600 industry representatives to discuss the transformation driven by AI technology and the new global market landscape for Chinese brands [1] - Jennifer Zhang, Managing Director of impact.com Greater China, emphasized that partnerships are the underlying logic driving the transformation of Chinese brands, moving away from traditional customer acquisition models towards partnership marketing [1][3] - The shift towards partnership marketing is particularly effective for engaging Generation Z and emerging consumer groups, establishing brand trust through community and creator-driven strategies [1] Group 1 - AI advancements, such as those from DeepSeek and the widespread application of generative AI tools like ChatGPT, are pushing marketing into the AI era, complicating market competition and diversifying consumer demands [3] - SAP's CRM expert highlighted that AI-supported user operations and DTC transformation can help brands shift from a transaction-centric model to a user interaction model, enhancing customer lifetime value [3] Group 2 - impact.com is upgrading its products to enhance partnership marketing efficiency, focusing on four key areas that leverage AI and automation [3][5] - The platform has undergone a complete front-end redesign for improved user experience, introduced an AI-powered assistant "Ask Impact" for partner recommendations and insights, and implemented an intelligent agent framework to automate repetitive tasks [5] - The launch of the "Product Boost" retail media solution allows brands to incentivize specific product promotions through partnerships, creating new growth channels [5] Group 3 - Participants at the summit stressed that Chinese brands are in a critical transition from "Made in China" to "Created in China," needing to shed low-cost labels and rely on product innovation, design, and quality to reshape their international image [7] - To penetrate mature markets like the U.S., companies must build multi-touchpoint partnership matrices and focus on localized communication to integrate into local cultural contexts [7]

Core Insights - AI technology is driving marketing transformation and strategic upgrades for enterprises, necessitating Chinese brands to reshape growth logic and achieve sustainable business growth through collaboration with global ecosystem partners [1][2][3] Group 1: Marketing Transformation - The partnership marketing model is becoming essential for brands to engage with younger consumers, particularly Generation Z, as their shopping journey begins within social circles rather than traditional retail environments [1][2] - Partnership marketing demonstrates advantages over traditional channels, including lower customer acquisition costs, longer customer lifecycles, and stronger brand equity [2] Group 2: Globalization and Consumer Engagement - Chinese brands are increasingly pursuing globalization, with AI-driven marketing innovations presenting new opportunities [2][3] - To succeed globally, brands must shift from transaction-centric approaches to customer interaction-focused strategies, establishing sustainable competitive barriers [2] Group 3: Cultural Understanding and Brand Image - This is a critical time for Chinese brands to reshape their global image by enhancing innovation, design, and product quality, moving away from the "low-cost" label [3] - Effective cross-cultural communication requires deeper cultural understanding beyond mere language translation, with brands needing to create cultural contexts that align with clear brand objectives [3] Group 4: Future Opportunities - The dual drivers of AI technology and partnership ecosystems are presenting unprecedented development opportunities for Chinese brands [3]

Core Insights - The iPX2025 China Outbound Marketing Summit, hosted by impact.com, gathered over 600 participants to discuss how Chinese brands can reshape growth logic and achieve sustainable business in the context of AI technology and global market changes [1] - Jennifer Zhang, Managing Director of impact.com Greater China, emphasized the importance of "reshaping," steady "growth," and "co-prosperity" with partners as essential strategies for building global competitiveness for Chinese brands [1] Group 1 - The summit highlighted the evolution of Chinese brands over the past two decades, driven by breakthroughs in AI, the rise of high-end manufacturing, and innovations in smart hardware [1] - The underlying logic of this transformation is the partnership model, as contemporary consumers, especially Gen Z and younger generations, initiate their shopping journeys through social circles rather than traditional retail [1] - Community-driven and creator-led partner marketing is becoming a crucial entry point for brands to engage with younger users [1] Group 2 - Brands must proactively expand cooperation models and reshape performance marketing to build a more resilient and sustainable global ecosystem [2] - SAP's CRM cloud solutions expert emphasized that Chinese brands need to deepen their Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) strategy, shifting from transaction-centric to customer interaction-focused approaches [2] - AI-enabled user operations are key to marketing innovation, allowing brands to achieve personalized interactions and enhance customer lifetime value (CLV) through insights and predictive analytics [2] Group 3 - Participants noted a shift in outbound marketing strategies, moving from product-driven approaches to long-term brand establishment [2] - Brands need to focus on differentiated value, refined operations, and continuous user experience to win in the market [2] - Current outbound efforts are not just about product export but also about expressing global ideas and mindsets, requiring brands to integrate local user habits and content ecosystems for effective localization [2]

Core Insights - The article highlights the shift in consumer behavior in North America, where the shopping journey has become decentralized and fragmented, moving away from the traditional linear funnel model to a more complex, multi-channel approach [1][2][12]. Group 1: Consumer Research Behavior - Among consumers with an annual income of over $250,000, 60.2% conduct five or more product research sessions before making a purchase, significantly higher than other income groups [1]. - 43% of consumers research products across three or more channels before making a decision, indicating a trend towards a more thorough evaluation process [9]. Group 2: Discovery Phase - The top three discovery channels for North American consumers are Amazon (56%), search engines (42%), and Walmart.com (29%), showcasing the diverse avenues through which consumers find new products [6]. - 69.3% of consumers discover at least one new product each week, reflecting a high acceptance rate for new items [6]. Group 3: Consideration Phase - In the consideration phase, 44.3% of consumers utilize search engines for in-depth product research, while 24% engage with brands on social media [9]. - Different age groups exhibit varying influences during the consideration phase, with younger consumers prioritizing discounts and influencer recommendations, while older consumers focus on product quality and family opinions [9]. Group 4: Purchase Phase - Price and quality remain the primary drivers of purchase decisions, with consumer reviews and brand reputation also playing significant roles [10]. - The preference for influencer recommendations is notably higher among younger consumers, while older consumers still trust family recommendations [10]. Group 5: Attribution Challenges - The complexity of consumer behavior has led to significant challenges in marketing attribution, as consumers often engage with multiple channels before making a purchase [12][13]. - 83.8% of retail sales still occur in physical stores, despite extensive online research, complicating the attribution of sales to specific marketing efforts [12]. Group 6: Solutions for Brands - Brands are encouraged to create a cohesive digital marketing ecosystem that ensures consistent messaging across all channels while allowing for tailored content [16]. - Implementing real-time price and inventory management systems is crucial to maintaining consumer trust and preventing discrepancies across platforms [19]. - Encouraging user reviews and leveraging social proof can significantly influence purchasing decisions, as consumer feedback is a key factor in the decision-making process [21]. Group 7: Fundamental Considerations - The article concludes that product quality, trust, and convenience remain the core elements driving consumer behavior, despite the increasing complexity of the marketing landscape [22].

Group 1 - impact.com has announced that Titanium Technology has officially become its certified partner in the Chinese market, marking a further deepening of its service provider cooperation system in the local market [1] - The partnership aims to enhance resource integration, capability sharing, and operational standardization, helping outbound brands improve growth efficiency and marketing certainty in a complex global market [1][2] - Titanium Technology, as an AI-driven global growth digital service provider, offers end-to-end solutions including advertising optimization, user growth strategies, creative management, and data tracking across various outbound industries [2][3] Group 2 - impact.com is building a localized support network in China centered on "capability sharing + resource collaboration," enhancing local response efficiency and professional delivery capabilities [3] - The "Work with impact.com" collaboration plan has been launched, featuring industry live broadcasts, offline salons, and content co-creation projects, aimed at creating an open and sustainable local cooperation network [3] - impact.com aims to deepen cooperation with local service providers to standardize and scale marketing efforts in the Chinese market, establishing itself as a key bridge for Chinese brands to access global markets [3][5] Group 3 - impact.com redefines digital marketing through its three core product matrices: Performance, Creator, and Advocate, facilitating a full-link growth ecosystem for global brands [4] - The company has rapidly gained a significant position in the Chinese outbound brand market within five years, establishing strong brand influence in the partner marketing field [5] - impact.com has been recognized by major media outlets and has successfully driven revenue growth for global brands such as Walmart, Uber, and L'Oreal [5]