Campaign Name：Wearable IoT World U.S. Pan-Asia IoT Superhighway

　　Date of Campaign：January 2016 – Ongoing

　　Client Name：Wearable IoT World

　　Brand Name：Wearable IoT World

　　Agency Name：The Hoffman Agency

　　Project Description:

　　Wearable IoT World (WIoTW) pioneers as the world’s first accelerator based in San Francisco focusing on the Internet of Things (IoT), wearables, and emerging technologies.

　　WIoTW chose Hong Kong as its home in Asia to launch the U.S.-Pan Asia IoT Superhighway Accelerator – connecting the world’s two largest markets US and China in the IoT arena.

　　Upon landing on the Superhighway, they officially launched on January 19, 2016 and hosted its inaugural class on May 17, 2016, pivoting on driving IoT innovation and entrepreneurship in Hong Kong and Asia while championing global IoT development ahead.

　　As their business partner and communications consultant, The Hoffman Agency is working with WIoTW to drive awareness of the U.S.-Pan Asia IoT Superhighway, while connecting and educating Hong Kong and other Asian startup community on IoT.

　　The partnership began in January 2016 and is currently ongoing.

　　Project Background:

　　Despite the booming startup ecosystem, evident low startup rates and gaps in the entrepreneurial ecosystem are hindering the industry’s development. According to The World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report, Hong Kong’s main challenge is the need to evolve to an “innovative powerhouse”.

　　WIoTW sought to use its experience and highly focused expertise to fill these gaps, especially in the IoT community to support Hong Kong’s aspiring entrepreneurs.

　　At the time of the launch, WIoTW had no presence and low awareness in Asia, especially towards the traditionally conservative mindset of Hong Kongers with an aversion to risk-taking and entrepreneurship – posing as a challenge for WIoTW to recruit new startups into their accelerator program.

　　Firstly, The Hoffman Agency sought to establish WIoTW’s reputation in Hong Kong within the wearables/IoT industry to drive applications to the accelerator. This is to foster stronger engagement within the community by bringing WIoTW resources, expertise, and network from the US to Asian IoTstartups.

　　Project Research:

　　The startup ecosystem in Hong Kong is just at its beginning. According to a Compass report, “for Hong Kong, its entrepreneurs are just starting to catch up to global know-how through interactions with global stakeholders from the world’s top ecosystems.

　　With Hong Kong’s startup scene flourishing in recent years, numerous enterprises and organizations have started establishing support networks for budding entrepreneurs in an effort to boost the development of local startups.

　　Local and overseas entrepreneurs are able to take advantage of the three key assets of Hong Kong, including its proximity to other Asia Pacific countries, its hospitable business environment, and the government’s support for the startup ecosystem – thereby solidifying the city as an innovation hub in Asia, which in turn support the development of Internet of Things (IoT) and wearable technologies.

　　Project Planning:

　　The Hoffman Agency sought to establishWIoTW’s reputation in Hong Kong within the wearables/IoT industry to drive applications to the accelerator.

　　· Strategy: By fostering stronger engagement within the community by bringing WIoTW resources, expertise, and network from the US to Asian IoTstartups.

　　· Program: Official Launch in Hong Kong – telling the story through press briefings, executive profiling, social media campaigns, Demo Day

　　We also aim to educate the Hong Kong audience and startup ecosystem to unlock the potential of IoT.

　　· Strategy: to collaborate with industry players to inject WIoTW’s voice into relevant dialogs and present Hong Kong as a nurturing ground for innovative IoTstartups

　　· Program:Community Integration – Hosting flagship event Wearable Wednesday, speakerships at industry events

　　In addition, another objective is to enhance brand profile and position WIoTW’s status as an industry leader in the region for their expansion further into Asia.

　　· Strategy: Deepen WIoTW’s influence in the community within the region to fortify its thought leadership and elevate its market position

　　· Program:Thought leadership – Devising traditional and social media campaigns to demonstrate local commitment/relevancy

　　Project Execution:

　　The Hoffman Agency achieved objectives through the following strategies:

　　Establishing brand reputation in the IoT industry to drive applications to the accelerator

　　· First of all, we acknowledged the need to establish WIoTW as an elite accelerator in Hong Kong for wearables/IoTstartups and drive applications to the accelerator. Therefore we must have a strong market launch and a sustained media storytelling approach during this phase of PR activities. But with only 5 working days loomed ahead of us, what can we accomplish? How can we set WIoTW apart in the existing crowded accelerator market?

　　Educating the Hong Kong audience on the global IoT ecosystem and opportunities ahead in entrepreneurship

　　· Immediately after the Hong Kong launch, as partners of WIoTW, we began fostering collaborations with key local industry players in the public and private sectors, such as InvestHK, StartupsHK, StartupWeekend, KPMG, Jumpstart Magazine, and General Assembly. Leveraging on their audience we cultivated increasing awareness of the industry and presented Hong Kong as a nurturing ground for innovative IoTstartups.

　　Enhance profile of WIoTW in the entrepreneurship ecosystem through our storytelling approach

　　· Another important aspect is to continue to sustain media interest by introducing the 13 selected startups through our signature storytelling graphic series on WIoTW’s social media channels, on average reaching 2,000+ fans organically.

　　Foster stronger engagement within the community by bringing WIoTW resources, expertise and network from the US to Asian IoTstartups

　　· To signal their launch into Hong Kong, we summoned a press briefing to tell the story of the WIoTW U.S.-Pan Asia IoT Superhighway. Through key note speeches, one-on-one interviews, executive profiling, and social media campaigns, we effectively generated buzz throughout the community and beyond

　　· Understanding that first impression matters, we capitalized on creating engaging visuals that included a unique backdrop, banners, and signage. Aligned with the Superhighway theme, we wielded a clear edge in engaging the audience and increasing brand awareness amongst startups.

　　· Given our profound grasp of the local landscape and community engagement, we advised WIoTW to include key government officials such as HK’s Chief Information Officer, Under Secretary of Innovation and Technology Bureau, the Associate Director-General of InvestHK, and also influential academics, business executives, and VCs to the launch event. But it doesn’t stop there – we continued to engage with them, as well as other accelerators, throughout our campaign period and speak at events together.

　　Collaborate with industry players to inject WIoTW’s voice into relevant dialogs and present Hong Kong as a nurturing ground for innovative IoTstartups

　　· With only two weeks to prepare, we hosted the First Asia Wearable Wednesday event in April, partnered with KPMG, a key driver of local entrepreneurship activities, which bridged the community together as part of the development phase leading up to the accelerator program starting in May. We then reached out to partners and alumni from all industries to build community spirit and propel awareness through social media. Yobie Benjamin, a key WIoTW advisor and VC, former CTO of Citigroup and winner of the World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer Award, flew in from San Francisco to speak, facilitating interesting debates and discussions.

　　· We also hosted a media roundtable the day of the Wearable Wednesday event as an opportunity for media to interact with executives and reap deeper knowledge of the program, resulting in in-depth coverage from top-tier media.

　　Deepen WIoTW’s influence in the community within the region to fortify its thought leadership and elevate its market position

　　· With Hong Kong as WIoTW’s launching pad for their future expansion into Asia, we highlighted the importance of knowledge sharing and establishing thought leadership in the media, social media, and via speakerships. Through our efforts, we successfully deepened WIoTW’s influence in the community within the region to elevate its market position.

　　· We believe it is paramount to disentangle myths regarding startup and entrepreneurship in Hong Kong, a traditionally risk-averse society. Therefore, through a collaborative approach with top players of the ecosystem and event participation coupled with a social media approach, we set out to debunk these myths with our new friends!

　　Project Feature: 

　　Impression matters: Designed engaging brand visuals for launch

　　· Understanding that first impression matters, we capitalized on creating engaging visuals that included a unique backdrop, banners, and signage. Aligned with the Superhighway theme, we wielded a clear edge in engaging the audience and increasing brand awareness amongst startups.

　　Call for action through engaging WIoTW HK Lab Opening Countdown Graphic Series

　　· Understanding the need to stand out from industry competitors, we conducted a digital campaign to augment awareness and drive startup applications to the accelerator with call for action graphics and executive insights sharing; enabling us to reinforce our signature design for the program.

　　Establishing thought leadership through #WellnessWednesday campaign

　　· We incorporated thought leadership pieces in the media, and expert insight sharing on social media. Conceiving the idea of bite-sized, easily sharable wellness advice for the pressure-filled startup community with the #WellnessWednesday campaign, we also featured advice from WIoTW founders and advisors.

　　Startup introduction

　　· Startups from the inaugural class were introduced on social media on a weekly basis with links and hashtags to their official platforms, helping them attract attention from consumer and investors alike. They also served as a roadmap leading to the big day – Demo Day, graduation of the Hong Kong Summer ’16 class.

　　· As followers of WIoTW had already caught a glimpse of the startups through this introduction, they were able to have more understanding of their companies, as well as stories of the founders, going into Demo Day.

　　Project Evaluation:

　　Vroom vroom – we’re here!

　　· Our storytelling prowess eventually paid off with 167+ pieces of positive coverage generated from global/regional, broadcast, print and online media from the launch event itself in just a few months.

　　· In the four months since its launch, WIoTW received 250+ applications to the Hong Kong accelerator program, exceeding our target of 100. 13 successful applicants were selected to join the 15-week Summer 2016 Labs Class.

　　· The program gained extensive media interest and coverage that attracted many key local partners that conveyed collaborations, ensuing in a surge of interest in the accelerator by local and international startups.

　　· Differentiated WIoTW’s accelerator with other accelerators in the growing community, thereby establishing its market position in Hong Kong and the startup community as a premium accelerator.

　　Figures at a Glance

　　· 250+ applications to HK accelerator (from 100 anticipated applications)

　　· 109% increase of Facebook fans of Asia-focused Facebook page

　　· 32% increase of Facebook fans of global Facebook page

　　· 20+ speakerships and event participations and counting

　　· 120+ attendees of community event Wearable Wednesday (from 80 initial target)

　　· 1,194,667,021+ audience reached

　　· 205+ pieces of on-message and positive coverage

　　· 20 local partners and counting

　　Sustain momentum post-launch with continuous positive media exposure

　　· Our approach accentuated the simplicity of storytelling that was easily caught on and understood by the media. We followed with a continuous pursuit in building and maintaining media and partner relationships by setting up meet-and-greets and in-depth interviews with top-tier local and international publications, reaching an audience of more than 1,194,046,021.

　　First Asia Wearable Wednesday successfully brought together the community

　　· As a result of the event, we successfully attracted 120+ guests, including entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, corporate executives, advisors, and media together through this event, over our initial target of 80. More importantly, the event also upsurged applications to the accelerator program.

　　· By partnering with the ecosystem to promote Hong Kong’s startup environment, WIoTW attended and spoke at 15+ industry events in four months hosted by the government and private sectors, such as RISE, Silicon Dragon, KPMG conferences, Hong Kong Trade Development Council, Internet Economy Summit. Hong Kong’s Financial Secretary even mentioned the WIoTW accelerator during his keynote speech at EmTech Hong Kong, a premier technology conference hosted by MIT Technology Review.

　　Making a difference through social media

　　· The #WellnessWednesday series is well-received by the community, and on average each post reaches 2,500+ audience members organically. Acting as a supportive voice to the community with bi-weekly wellness advice by partners and advisors shared on social media, applications to the accelerator continues to surge during the application period.

　　· The global Facebook page fans had grown by more than 32% since the launch of the accelerator in early January 2016. Hong Kong-based fans of the global Facebook page also increased, resulting as the second biggest audience after the U.S.

　　· The Asia-focused Facebook page started in late April and grew organically by 113%. As a highly competitive program, the accelerator received 250+ applications from local and international entrepreneurs, with only 13 startups from Hong Kong and beyond were selected to join from industries including health and fitness, sensors, smart clothing, smart home, automotive, and more.

　　The Final Stretch – Demo Day

　　· Demo Day, the graduation day of the startups, took place on August 25, 2016, attracting more than 200+ guests, partners, media, investors, alumni, and community members.

　　· Press members were invited to a briefing session prior to the event, which enabled them to catch an early glimpse of the startups and understand more about their business. This garnered positive media coverage on the event. Startups were also able to gain additional media exposure after the event as in-depth interviews were also scheduled.

　　· The event attracted the attention of the entire ecosystem, with distinguished guests as speakers:

　　o Mr. Nicholas W. Yang, JP, Secretary for Innovation and Technology, HKSAR

　　o Mr. Herman Lam, Chief Executive Officer, Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited

　　o Mr. Charles Ng, Acting Director-General of Investment Promotion, Invest Hong Kong

　　o Dr. Allan Zeman, GBM, GBS, JP, Chairman, Lan Kwai Fong Holdings Limited

　　o Mr. Duncan Chiu, Managing Director, Radiant Venture Capital

　　Project Images: 

Wearable IoT World_Demo Day Group Photo-min

Wearable IoT World_Launch Group Photo-min

Wearable IoT World Team and HK Class of Summer 2016-min

　　案例资料由The Hoffman Agency提供，未经中国公共关系网17PR授权，严禁转载，违者必究。如需转载或了解更多精彩内容，请登录官网：http://www.17pr.com