Project Description
Clickatell: Building a new brand category
Background
Clickatell has been a mobile messaging pioneer for ±25 years. Launched in 2000, its founders wrote the world’s first API to send an SMS from a computer to a mobile phone – with just four lines of code.
Over the next two decades, Clickatell grew into a multi-million dollar business as messaging evolved from one-way text alerts to rich, contextual conversations. In 2018 it introduced the world’s first Conversational (Chat) Commerce offering for ABSA bank.
Challenge
While Chat Commerce is the next big revolution in digital commerce with an USD 8 billion market globally, it’s a new concept in the Western world that would take some time for consumers to adopt – especially in the USA where SMS and mobile messaging are more familiar to people than instant chat.
Approach
PR worked to create context, outline the vision, educate audiences, position Clickatell as the chat commerce leader in emerging markets, and offer reasons to believe.
This consisted of a full service PR offering with press tours, thought leadership, interviews, press releases on new product, company, and customer announcements, as well as trends reports, blogs, media liaison at events, social media support, speaker slots and awards, and a B2B influencer programme.
In 2022, PR helped publicise Clickatell’s USD 91 million capital raise, which included: TechCrunch, FinTech Futures, Business Insider Africa, The Paypers, SABC2 Morning Live, 702 Bruce Whitfield, Fast Company, BusinessTech, TechCentral, Ventureburn and more.
Results
Chat Commerce is going mainstream in South Africa as major brands from retailers and financial institutions, to airlines and logistics, travel and tourism are taking up chat.
Recognised as a leader in this space, Clickatell’s influence in the US is also steadily growing with clients like GoDaddy, United Airlines and Zipcar.
