Women to Watch 2023: Tanya Xing, Wavemaker

Tanya Xing

Chief digital officer
Wavemaker
China

With over 20 years of experience providing online and offline integrated media marketing solutions across various industries, Tanya Xing is a seasoned media practitioner who hit the ground at her job at Wavemaker China, running.

As its chief digital officer, she sensed a lacuna in the ‘performance’ capabilities of the agency and within months of being there, set up the Wavemaker performance practise from scratch, growing it from zero to 11% of the agency's total revenue. What's more impressive is that she achieved this feat by starting as a one-person operation to now having a team of over 30 talented professionals.

Xing carved this path within the confines of a major agency group, challenging established norms and proving the practical application, client value, and revenue potential of her concept at every step. The result is a standalone business within Wavemaker that seamlessly integrates into the main agency, and can confidently compete with any specialists in the region. It has been instrumental in propelling the agency's growth, securing new clients, expanding scopes of work, and driving increased revenue.

This exceptional work was duly recognised when Xing and her team won the coveted performance agency of the year at the 2022 Campaign Agency of the Year Awards, cementing her reputation as a trailblazer and visionary.

A particularly notable accomplishment of Xing’s tenure has been the development of Wavemaker China's precision marketing “P+” methodology, which represents the agency's brand-new ‘one performance’ model in the digital transformation era, providing cutting-edge solutions and restructuring the professional framework for new media agencies. She also spearheaded a groundbreaking collaboration with Ocean Engine, Yuntu, to pioneer ‘Gravity’, an interest-based precision marketing model. The shift from subjective brand-centric communications to targeted consumer-centric communications has helped clients increase conversion rates while simultaneously reducing lead costs.

Notably, the launch of Gravity and P+ stands as a testament to Xing’s relentless pursuit of innovation and agency transformation. Equally significant is her emphasis on talent development, which has contributed to her success. She has assembled a world-class team, with an average age of 28 and a team turnover rate of less than 15% per year, focusing not only on hard skills but, more crucially, on fostering a unique culture that values trust and care.