Biggest digital-led community and influencer marketing programme to launch Z by HP

HP Inc. India recently introduced a series of mobile workstations for creative professionals — Z by HP. Designed for creative and technical professionals, the new product range features cutting-edge design, innovative collaboration tools and advanced security features to transform the creative process. 

To promote its new line of workstations, the brand has launched the ‘#IAmAChangemaker’ campaign. Through this initiative, HP is inviting change-makers from across India to come together and become a part of a larger community where artists/creators can share their love and passion for art and creativity.   

Neelima Burra

‘Z’ by HP mobile workstations was launched by ace filmmaker Zoya Aktar in New Delhi. In a candid conversation with BestMediaInfo.com, Neelima Burra, Country Marketing Director, HP India, said, “As the campaign is for the creators and change-makers, Zoya fits in perfectly as a face to inspire to think beyond boundaries. She will also be a part of the campaign journey on social media and help spread the message.”

Digital will be the main medium of communication. “The biggest medium/platform for this particular campaign is going to be digital (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn), where the community is and where they can showcase their work,” Burra said.

Excerpts: 

How did the brand think of creating such a niche product? How are these decisions taken?  

The launch of ‘Z by HP’ is for creators and the influencer community, which is towards creative entrepreneurship. It’s about how art and technology can come together to actually bring imagination to life. The thin and light mobile workstations are launched for the modern generation of creative professionals who work on-the-go — product developers, engineers, video editors, VR (virtual reality) developers, etc. 

This is also about community building wherein you bring the industry's best creators together. We have eminent personalities in the industry who have made their mark in their professions — photography, videography, filmmaking, street arts, etc. We are calling them ‘Change Makers Community’. 

Before we curated this campaign, we did social listening. We learnt that more than 45,000 conversations were happening in the creative professional community about how they should ‘think out of the box’. 

It was a very interesting social listening conversation, wherein we realised that when one says “we need to think out of the box”, basically you are trying to see a box, and defining yourself in the boundaries of something that’s already conventionally defined. And then you are pressuring yourself to think out of the boundary. Whereas the real change-makers are those who actually don’t see the box. It’s actually a dimensionless/boundaryless creativity. So, it’s not about ‘thinking out of the box’, rather thinking that ‘there is no box’.

How did the brand synergise these thoughts with the new product range?

The ‘Z by HP’ workstations are designed for artists and creative professionals who value the freedom to express their craft and creativity. This new range of products has all dimensionless features — seamless design, light in weight and loaded with new features that have been introduced and curated towards various forms of creativity they can unleash. 

In the industry, there are various products, but this is the only range of workstations curated for creators. The creative community always needs certain aspects, designs and features in the products which probably not everyone is able to provide. This new range helps people to redefine those creativity dimensions. The features are something that are enabling them right from security to design, and collaborating within the community.

What marketing strategy has HP adopted to promote the new range?

We are developing a first-of-its-kind online community. And this is something people rarely do in our industry. A few days ago, we launched a pre-buzz campaign around it across social media platforms with more than 20 influencers such as Zoya, Jayesh Sachdev (founder of Quirk Box), Akshara Ashok (creator of Happy Fluff Comics), etc. All are talking about what is ‘Z’.  

We have just initiated these discussions. Later on, the influencers will provide mentorship and guidance as to how they can really channelise their true potential when it comes to creativity. 

We will run a boot camp, do a createathon across the country wherein people can submit their creatives/designs, which will further be shortlisted by eminent personalities in the industry. 

(Zoya) Aktar is one of the faces for the brand as a ‘change maker’. The best of the creatives, and people who have really demonstrated that ‘there is no box’, and who are the real change makers, will become the face of this campaign to take it forward. These will be the people who will become part of the community, which we are planning to further engage, give newer skill sets, platforms, etc.

Why did the brand consider India to be a perfect market to launch this kind of product? What makes now the right time to experiment with this kind of offering? 

See, there is millennial and then there is Gen-Z. I believe Gen-Z is going to shape India. 

Recently, we were going through a study conducted by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). What comes out clearly is the fact that more than 30% of the ‘Gen-Z’ population want to go after their passion. They don’t want to go after the conventional jobs.  

This clearly suggests that it’s no more a time to opt for 9-5 (conventional) jobs. Hence, it’s all the more critical for India to have products that can help you really drive your passion through your profession, drive more experiences which are more enriching, rather than just doing work. 

I feel that it’s a time when the entrepreneurial age is picking up, when passion and profession is merging, when it’s all about one life, it’s the most apt time to launch such a product.         

What TG are you targeting? 

When we say ‘Gen-Z’, by definition it is the 18-24 years age group. Having said that, anyone who has passion, has a believe is his/her ideas, willing to break the mould, go beyond the stereotypes, and want to carve out a path which has never been walked before. That’s where a campaign like ‘#IAmAChangemaker’ comes in. 

The reason we have got Zoya, and also others, because she has in a certain way broken the mould with unconventional films, which are relatable to young India. This new range will be helpful to photographers, filmmakers, designers, artists, graphic designers, street artist including animators. So, all these are the people whom we are going to target.

Will this new range be not so useful for those who are non-creative/artists? 

Every product can be used by anyone. But you listen to the consumer needs, design products that are true to that consumer segment, and position it. This range is primarily designed for creative professionals. 

Any ad campaign planned for ‘Z’ range?  

‘#IAmAChangemaker’ will revolve around real stories and real heroes. So, we are going to choose those real stories and celebrate them. 

We will also celebrate whenever we find art and technology coming together to create something new. So, it’s going to be a curated journey, a community marketing/influencer marketing programme. And it will be one of the biggest in the industry from a brand, which is digital first. 

The market is flooded with designing PCs such as Apple MacBook Pro 15, Microsoft Surface Book 2, Dell XPS 15 2-in-1, Samsung Notebook 9 Pen, Lenovo Yoga 920, etc. So, how are you trying to position this new product? And do you think HP as a brand will turn out to be a challenger in this category?

It’s not about challenging any brand. It’s about challenging the mindset. At HP, we always say ‘Keep Reinventing’. And ‘Keep Reinventing’ is not a slogan or a dialogue. It is the company’s philosophy; it’s the heart of everything we do, right from product design to the idea of breaking the stereotypes. So, we are not here to challenge any XYZ brand or its products. 

What for you is the lead medium of communication? And for this particular campaign, which medium/platform you are going to leverage the most?

The biggest medium/platform for this particular campaign is going to be digital (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn), where the community is and where they can showcase their work. 

It will be a platform for a two-way conversation. The reason there’s so much buzz around ‘#IAmAChangemaker’ because the brand is talking ‘Gen-Z’ language. The brand is talking about their challenges and beliefs. So, with the right tools and technology, HP is an enabler to initiate conversations between the communities.

Like Zoya is an influencer, there are other people who are going to talk to you, help you overcome your challenges, help refine your creativity. So, multiple projects will be curated wherein all these people can come together, and HP is going to enable those projects. 

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