(Yicai Global) Sept. 22 -- Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. [HKG:0700] has scaled up its US operations by offering advertising services to American brands aiming to attract Chinese customers.

The firm has set up an advertising department at its Palo Alto office in California, the US, to help US-based advertisers attract Chinese tourists. A range of brand new ads solutions and resources will also be released on Tencent's popular app WeChat, Sina Technology reported today.

WeChat features advertising models and targeting techniques similar to those offered on Facebook. The team will take part in the upcoming 'advertising week' in New York. Local brands will benefit from the WeChat service in terms of expanding their market reach among Chinese consumers.

On average, Chinese tourists spend far more money in the US than other foreign travelers, data from the national Travel Association reveal. Some 3.5 million Chinese people travel to America every year, and they spend a total of USD35 billion in the country, per the data. Tencent has started cooperation with Rebecca Minkoff, real estate database firm Zillow Group and retail company Free People. Its targeting techniques will give the brands access to Chinese tourists before they go to retail stores in America. Customers can pay for the advertised products in-store using WeChat Pay, Tencent's online payment platform on WeChat.