Hyperwallet Data-Driven Index and Microsite

Background

Hyperwallet, an industry-leading payouts provider, delivers a simple, reliable and transparent payment management process to growing organizations. With offices in San Francisco, Austin, London, Sydney and Vancouver, Hyperwallet’s global presence makes it easy to enhance the payee experience almost anywhere in the world. Integrated payment tracking technology coupled with user-friendly compliance and identity verification enable enterprise, e-commerce and on-demand platforms to seamlessly pay up to 7 billion people in a singular payment environment.

The Challenge

On the heels of a booming sharing economy and the success of big-name brands like Airbnb and Uber, thousands of on-demand platforms are launching and expanding worldwide. And with this new opportunity comes an increase in the number of individuals who are joining this new worker class as side hustlers, freelancers and gig workers. That’s where Hyperwallet thrives. By providing the technology to pay gig and freelance workers in 140 countries, Hyperwallet accommodates a growing number of sharing economy companies.

The problem was making that fact known among potential customers. To position itself as a top authority on payouts, shepherd potential business partners through the expansion process and drive real business results, Hyperwallet sought Walker Sands’ help in creating a campaign that would drum up plenty of attention.

The Solution

Walker Sands created The Marketplace Expansion Index to highlight the insights and expertise that make Hyperwallet one of the leading payout providers in the industry. With insights from Hyperwallet’s Index, companies can gain an improved understanding of how the sharing economy is changing across geographies and ultimately make better business decisions.

Instead of simply advising its customers to follow in the footsteps of other platforms, Hyperwallet aims to create true partnerships in which factors like regulation, workforce and infrastructure influence a company’s expansion efforts. Several core components make up this annual guide for expansion, including:

• Data collection and analysis: From population to internet penetration, Walker Sands and Hyperwallet used proprietary data as well as credible third-party resources to compare the top 209 countries for international expansion. Four key expansion readiness indicators – infrastructure, workforce, e-commerce activity and foreign competition – along with 10 additional parameters were also considered to narrow the list to just 36. Each of the remaining countries were assigned to one of three tiers – established (countries 1-12), emerging (countries 13-24) and evolving (countries 25-36).
• Downloadable report: Spanning 135 pages, the data-driven report showcases a comprehensive breakdown of each country’s scores within specific categories and parameters. Walker Sands also pulled together key themes for each tier to quickly inform readers of similar opportunities and challenges within each tier and individual country.
• Interactive microsite: Walker Sands complemented the downloadable report with a fully interactive microsite. Visitors can toggle through a map of the world and even filter the 36 countries based on their rankings in the Index. On the profile page of each country, an overview of specific scores accompanies analysis and insights from Hyperwallet’s executive team.

Both the report and microsite were promoted through a wide range of strategies and tactics, specifically:

• Media relations: In an effort to reach 1,700 reporters across all 36 countries, Walker Sands pitched 65 different story angles in the two weeks prior to the official launch of the Index at Money20/20 in Las Vegas. A series of paid placements were also organized to help generate top-tier business and technology media coverage for Hyperwallet.
• Demand generation: Walker Sands sought to increase report downloads from more than 8,000 marketplace executives by customizing LinkedIn ads for specific audiences. Overall, five different variations of ad copy were drafted and optimized to yield the best results.
• Video: Several videos detailing top insights from the report and microsite were shared on Hyperwallet’s email newsletter, blog and social media channels. Analysis of key findings – such as characteristics of established, emerging and evolving countries – was included within each video to organically promote the downloadable report and microsite.
• Graphics: To further drive interest from qualified prospects, graphics accompanied social media posts as well as emails related to The Marketplace Expansion Index. By featuring key themes from the report, the graphics were aimed at grabbing the attention of potential customers.

The Results

With Walker Sands’ help in the design, creation and promotion of both the report and microsite, Hyperwallet earned 30 placements within the first month of launch – totaling more than 1 million impressions. After awareness of the Index increased thanks to mentions in top publications such as BetaKit and PYMNTS.com, a surge in sales prospects soon followed. In fact, the report was downloaded more than 200 times, including by renowned marketplace companies like eBay and Rakuten.

Walker Sands also generated significant interest in the Index through social media. LinkedIn ad impressions topped 500 million and the overall campaign conversion rate reached 3.4 percent.

Having previously generated PR and marketing results for Hyperwallet over the course of 3 years, Walker Sands used The Marketplace Expansion Index as an opportunity to exceed the payout provider’s business development and sales goals. The design, creation and promotion of the downloadable report and microsite helped showcase Hyperwallet’s payout expertise and spark ongoing conversations with potential customers about the future of the sharing economy.