The GREAT Festival of Innovation was an event organised by the UK Government’s Department for International Trade (DIT). Held in Hong Kong from 21 to 24 March 2018 at Asia Society Hong Kong Center, the Festival was to be the biggest UK-overseas joint trade event that UK Government has ever delivered.
Welcoming 1,600 attendees, nearly 300 UK businesses and 180 high profile speakers, the Festival brought together the brightest minds from across Asia and the UK in a series of talks, workshops and performances. With Brexit in 2016, the UK faced international skepticism over its global economic position and trade relations.
Sinclair was appointed as PR partner to demonstrate the UK’s strength in global trade and position them as a leader in creative ingenuity and innovation. Changing perception was critical.
Insight: Research conducted in 2016 indicated that the majority of Hong Kong SAR and mainland China respondents did not view the UK as an ‘innovative’ country.
Strategy: Used influence of speakers and senior UK government ministers to deliver key messages to the target audience via strategic earned media placements across the APAC region, and amplify messaging via social media channels such as WeChat and LinkedIn.
Monitoring: Research and daily monitoring was implemented to aid with tailored pitching with relevance to current market topics and trends. This also ensured full preparedness for any possible issues.
Engage: Target media were invited to the pre-event launches and four-day festival to meet with speakers and engage directly with government officials.
Advocates: Engaged and prepared organisers, speakers and stakeholders to take part in media interviews on behalf of the festival from different perspectives.
Partnerships: Briefing packs ensured consistent messaging across stakeholder communications, while media partnerships guaranteed impactful editorial features.
