Help to promote NZ technology to the world

CREATING A GLOBAL NARRATIVE: NZ Tech's chief strategy officer Julie Gill says the 'We See Tomorrow First' workshop here was about showing local businesses how they can develop their own tech story and align it with the national narrative to build a global profile. Pictured from left are NZ Story lead facilitator Peter Roband, facilitator Tania Bearsley, Trust Tairawhiti (TT) digital technology sector enhancement lead Jared Johnstone, Ms Gill, TT economic development general manager Richard Searle, facilitator Pip Loader and Naked Audience director and facilitator Miriam Chancellor. Picture by Paul Rickard

Local businesses looking to raise their profile on a global scale can now bank on a national technology campaign and toolkit launched this year.

As part of the campaign, Gisborne hosted a digital marketing and sales initiative called “Tech Story” — with the brand name “We See Tomorrow First” — late last month.

Organised by NZ Tech, a group of technology associations, the workshop was facilitated by staff from NZ Story — a government-funded agency charged with overseeing how New Zealand businesses are understood overseas.

NZ Story and workshop lead facilitator Peter Roband said the initiative was designed to present opportunities for businesses across the country to “distinguish themselves”.

“The Tech Story initiative is a campaign and toolkit created to help both NZ businesses and government tell a unified and compelling story to the world about our tech.”

The workshop focused on how businesses could develop their own unique story by utilising free tools or assets available from the tech industry's brand-identity website “We See Tomorrow First”.

People could download digital assets such as social tiles, little narratives, presentation slides and professional Zoom backgrounds to boost sales initiatives and marketing strategies.

Toro Studio's head of technology Matt Oakley was one of the locals at the workshop.

“The strong focus I took is that with the help of the NZ Tech Story, we can really sell our messages and attract people not only around New Zealand but also worldwide.”

The opportunity to use the free digital assets to communicate messages, especially on social media platforms, to bring in potential consumers was a “big boost”, he said.

“I'm a tech guy, so being able to dip into the rich set of assets is awesome. It really takes away the heavy lifting for us.

“We are really excited to try this out on our customers and I'm sure we'll be getting some positive comments, as it is very value-based and a great way to build relationships.”

NZ Tech's chief strategy officer Julie Gill said the idea of the “Tech Story” started about 18 months ago.

“While it was important to understand the industry and what we have got — our selling piece — it was equally crucial to know if there was an interest internationally.”

In the first eight months the organisation carried out international research on perceptions of Aotearoa from a business, investment and also from an export perspective, she said.

“The overriding feedback was that people don't think of tech when they think of us.

“They think of tourism, the beautiful hills, and food. But they don't think of tech — so what we recognise is that we have got a bit of work to do nationally.”

For the next stage, the organisation worked with partners such as AMO Group, a collective of 20 New Zealand production companies, and Toro Studios to create animations for the brand initiative.

Ms Gill said they also welcomed the Government's contribution of $20 million over four years to support Tech Story and growth of the software-as-a-service community, as part of this year's Budget announced last month.

“It's a big sign of the approval that this is really important for the country and the tech industry.”