When it matters most

The power of a network when it matters most

Soon after the lockdown was declared in March 2020, our client EY found that the government measures taken were far from adequate and appropriate for all industries. In particular, young, innovative companies, including many startups and scale ups that EY has a relationship with, were unable to take advantage of the schemes and support measures. EY cared about their plight and asked us to think with them and handle much of the communication around this plan. With the aim of helping them and raising awareness of their issues.

Our solution was a powerful kick-off and communication platform that supports and connects startups and scale ups especially on social media. The name we came up with for this activation was ‘EY covid 19 Startup and scale up support’. Including the theme: ‘The power of a network when it matters most’.

The campaign kicked off with a full-page ad in the Financial Times. The headline read, ‘Startups are going to shape tomorrow’s world. But then they have to survive today’s world.’ This ad called attention to the exceptional position of startups and scale ups and, above all, to the great importance these types of companies will play in building a future-proof economy. Meanwhile, we started developing content for social media. In part, this was about the different ways EY wanted to assist these kinds of companies during the crisis.

We also made written and filmed portraits (storytelling) of a number of startups and scale ups, in which the entrepreneurs tell how they deal with this unique situation. Companies that participated included home delivery supermarket Picnic, TicketSwap, a digital platform for the safe exchange of festival tickets, and Amber, a platform for electric shared cars. Thanks in part to this initiative, a number of government measures were adjusted during the second period of the lockdown so that companies like these could also take advantage of it. But just as important was the fact that through the online platform and social media, many entrepreneurs shared their experiences and contacted each other. This ensures that this platform is still active and that the initiative transcends the pandemic.