Yoren Wins Best Technical Practice Award at WDC 2026 Asia-Pacific for Designing Digital Experiences for Chinese Consumers

Yoren Inc. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Osamu Kaneda; hereinafter referred to as "Yoren") participated for the first time in the "WDC 2026 (Weixin Developer Challenge) Asia-Pacific Conference," an international solution competition related to WeChat mini programs, held in Shenzhen, China, on June 16, 2026. Two of its entries advanced to the finals. Among these, the proposal "TAT_微信生态四渠道协同升级方案," which redesigned multiple touchpoints on WeChat into an integrated digital experience for the Tourism Authority of Thailand, was recognized and received the Best Technical Practice Award.

WDC2026 Award Trophy

The conference is hosted by Tencent, a major Chinese digital platform company, and is a solution competition utilizing WeChat mini programs and WeChat Pay.

In the Chinese market, consumers gather information, make reservations and purchases, pay, and receive customer support within unique digital environments, primarily WeChat. To build touchpoints with Chinese consumers, companies must go beyond simply operating individual Chinese social media platforms and design online and offline touchpoints as a consistent experience.

Based on these unique user behaviors in the Chinese market, Yoren proposed a tourism-focused solution that integrates information dissemination, reservations, content acquisition, and customer support, with WeChat mini programs at its core. The company received the award for its design capabilities and technical feasibility.

The Yoren team participating in the "WDC 2026" Asia-Pacific Conference

Overview of the Award-Winning Project

Award-Winning Project: Tourism Authority of Thailand: WeChat Ecosystem Four-Channel Collaboration Enhancement Solution (微信生态四渠道协同升级方案)

This proposal was for the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). A challenge was that the channels operated by TAT on WeChat (Official Account, Service Account, Videos, WeChat Mini Program, etc.) were independent and lacked sufficient mutual integration.

Yoren organized the operational objectives and roles of each channel and presented a renovation plan for phased integration and linkage, with the mini program as the core. The design is characterized by its model for utilizing WeChat to provide consistent information and build relationships with Chinese B2B travel agents, OTAs, local travel companies, and media.

Implications for Japanese Companies

In the inbound sector targeting Chinese consumers (including hotels, transportation, dining, retail, leisure, beauty, medical, etc.), it is sometimes difficult to build a sufficient purchasing and reservation experience solely through the websites and social media touchpoints anticipated by companies. The key is to design the process without fragmentation across awareness, information gathering, inquiries, reservations/purchases, payments, and customer support within the digital environment that Chinese consumers use daily. This award demonstrates Yoren's ability to understand the unique consumer behavior in the Chinese market and translate business challenges into concrete digital experiences.

Yoren will continue to support Japanese companies and brands in their expansion into the Chinese market, acquisition of inbound demand, and growth of cross-border business by designing, developing, and operating digital touchpoints for the Chinese market, including WeChat mini programs.

Award Overview

Conference Name: WDC 2026 (Weixin Developer Challenge) Asia-Pacific Conference

Organizer: Tencent

Date and Location: June 16, 2026, Shenzhen, China

Award Name: Best Technical Practice Award

Award-Winning Project: TAT_微信生态四渠道协同升级方案

For details on the conference overview, award evaluation points, WeChat-related terminology, and the award-winning proposal, please refer to the supplementary materials at the end.

About Yoren Inc.

Yoren provides strategic consulting backed by extensive experience in the Japanese and Chinese markets, along with a multifaceted execution system supporting Go-To-Market strategies for consumers, including CRM operations, e-commerce operations, digital marketing, live event management, and product creation. In 2025, through a corporate inversion, Yoren completed an organizational restructuring to become a Japan-based holding company and provides business support for inbound tourism to Japan.

Company Name: Yoren Inc. / 游仁信息科技(上海)有限公司

Representative: Osamu Kaneda (CEO)

Headquarters Location: 10F, Hanzo-mon PREX South, 2-5-1 Kojimachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

China Branch Location: 20F, Block A, Honghui International Plaza, 1600 Zhongshan West Road, Xuhui District, Shanghai

Number of Employees: 212 (as of the end of December 2025)

URL: https://www.yo-ren.com/jp

Media Inquiries:

Yoren Inc.

Email: pr@yo-ren.com

Supplementary Materials

About WeChat / WeChat Mini Programs

WeChat is a widely used digital platform in China for messaging, payments, information dissemination, and service utilization. For businesses, it serves not just as a chat app/SNS but as a crucial foundation for consumer touchpoints, membership management, reservations/purchases, payments, and customer support.

WeChat Mini Programs are applications that can be used within WeChat. Users can make reservations, purchases, register as members, and make payments within WeChat without needing to download separate apps. In designing services for Chinese consumers, it is important to consider how to link multiple touchpoints centered around these mini programs.

Overview of WDC 2026 Asia-Pacific Conference

WDC (Weixin Developer Challenge) is a solution competition related to WeChat mini programs hosted by Tencent. In the 2026 Asia-Pacific Conference, participating teams proposed solutions utilizing WeChat mini programs and WeChat Pay for actual business challenges presented by companies and organizations in the tourism and hospitality sectors.

- Presenters: 10 companies from the Asia-Pacific region

- Finalists: 41 teams (approx. 30 companies)

- Number of Awards: 17 (1 Overall Award, 10 Best Industry Solutions Awards, 5 Single Item Awards, 1 AI Application Award)

- Total Participants: Not disclosed by Tencent

- Yoren's Results: 2 entries advanced to the finals in its first participation, with one winning the Best Technical Practice Award

Key Evaluation Points for the Best Technical Practice Award

- Technical Practice: Product feature completeness, clarity of core functions, integration and utilization of AI features, modular structure, technical feasibility

Points of Yoren's Award

The multiple channels within TAT's current WeChat ecosystem were independent, leading to fragmented information provision, relationship building, and guidance to event applications for users. The biggest challenge was providing the same content to different types of B2B users, failing to serve TAT's core role.

Yoren redefined the roles of each channel and proposed a model for phased integration and linkage with the mini program as the core. This presented a model that integrates information touchpoints, event applications, and ongoing customer support. The AI-powered mini program displays optimal content for each B2B user, realizing personalized displays for each individual.

Implications for Japanese Companies

- Chinese consumers exhibit different behavioral patterns than those assumed by Japanese companies, which often focus on global media.

- To achieve success in inbound tourism and cross-border business, it is necessary to design information dissemination, reservations/purchases, payments, and customer support in a way that is familiar to Chinese consumers, without fragmentation.

- As overseas companies increasingly adopt unique approaches within the WeChat ecosystem, Japanese companies also need to review their own customer touchpoints for Chinese consumers.

- Yoren's strength lies in its ability to translate consumer understanding, CRM, e-commerce, and digital marketing expertise cultivated in mainland China into concrete experience design and operations.