Social Media Kickstart for Nature Alpha
Each step of the kickstart process was tailored to our needs and based on in-depth research into our target audience and technical niche (biodiversity ESG data). The passion they have for their work and commitment to the success of their clients is clear.
Services
- Content planning
- LinkedIn content creation
- Personal (Founder) profile content
- Communications strategy
Goals
- Launch Nature Alpha’s online presence to fill a (then) blank space.
- Create high-quality content that appeals to a niche, highly educated target audience.
- Establish Nature Alpha and its founder, Dr. Vian Sharif as thought leaders in the area of biodiversity data.
- Leverage COP26 in the digital communications.
Challenges
- Emerging, highly niche field (biodiversity data).
- Quickly developing field requiring constant monitoring for new developments.
- Demanding, technical, highly educated target audience (asset managers).
The client
Nature Alpha is an early-stage green fintech company. They use AI to provide insights into the nature-related risk and impact of scale asset-level investment decisions.
COP26 discussions highlighted the need for the private finance sector to consider nature within their environmental strategy. However, there is a lack of credible data to guide decision making.
Nature Alpha’s AI and machine learning-powered biodiversity analytics provide a way for the financial sector to comply with changing investor and regulatory expectations.
The Approach
Discovery & strategy
We began by conducting in-depth research into the behaviours and preferences of the Nature Alpha’s target audience – asset managers.
This helped to inform the overall communications strategy which aimed to establish the credibility of the company’s platform within a highly knowledgeable sector.
The personal account content also had to reflect the style of Nature Alpha’s co-founder, Dr Vian Sharif, and her established reputation in the field of green finance.
With the limited time availability of the Nature Alpha co-founders we managed to strike the right balance between a collaborative approach and time efficiency. An agile approach was also key, as the company aimed to launch their online presence ahead of COP26.
Content planning
Following the creation of a communications strategy, we created a multichannel content plan.
This plan laid the foundations for the future expansion of Nature Alpha’s online presence, whilst ensuring that it was agile enough to reflect the changing context of COP26.
It included two core elements:
Fixed content
Some of the content was based on the issues faced by Nature Alpha’s target audience. It provided a useful resource for viewers.
The content also discussed wider environmental themes within the private finance sector and framed Nature Alpha’s platform as a solution.
Source-based content
The content plan included a list of high-quality content sources.
This allowed the plan to be flexible and provided us with the ability to respond to industry news. This was crucial to staying relevant in the context of rapid change during COP26.
The source list also sped up the content creation process, as by confirming sources in advance we could cut down on the time needed for feedback.
Content creation
We began by creating a variety of LinkedIn templates that would be consistent with Nature Alpha’s branding.
We then started the process of content creation. This included topics such as:
COP26 industry updates
COP26 has led to many changes in the private finance industry, while also building expectations for future transformation.
Organisations like the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero signal the transition of the sector towards environmentally-focused decision making. This includes consideration of biodiversity loss.
Commentary on the development in ‘ESG’ investing expectations
‘ESG’ is a growing trend within private finance that involves the consideration of a company’s environmental and social governance when making investment decisions.
However, there is a shortage in biodiversity data at scale that would be relevant for ESG-related decision making by asset managers.
The content highlighted the rapid growth of ESG investing, the issue of finding credible data and the benefit of using Nature Alpha’s platform as a solution.
Industry news such as the new CDSB guidance on biodiversity disclosure
Company disclosure of environmental credentials is currently an uneven and inconsistent global process. This is a major issue for asset manages who wish to invest in environmentally sustainable companies.
The Climate Disclosure Standards Board announced their third framework applications guidance, focused on the theme of biodiversity.
This was a significant moment in the development of disclosure standards and the importance of nature for private finance.
Due to the flexibility of the content plan, Nature Alpha was able to swiftly respond to this milestone.
Results
We launched Nature Alpha's Linkedin presence using the company's page and a co-founder's personal account
This allowed the company to begin building their online presence immediately, while simultaneously working with us to prepare a long-term content plan and begin its execution
Additional gains:
+243% Linkedin page views
+333% click through rate to the company website
+650% increase in new followers
Some further benefits include a constant, gradual growth of the follower count and establishing a visual style of the company’s social media communications.
During our work together
Some of Nature Alpha’s achievements during the period of our work together include:
- Nature Alpha's co-founder, Dr Vian Sharif spoke at several events during COP26, including on a panel with the Institute of International Finance.
- Nature Alpha ranked as one of ten globally outstanding solutions in the IRCAI Global 2021 Top 100 List by the United Nations Economic, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and International Research Centre on Artificial Intelligence (IRCAI).
In the client's words
'Adopter easily adapted to the fast-paced nature of our early-stage tech business. Each step of the kickstart process was tailored to our needs and based on in-depth research into our target audience and technical niche (biodiversity ESG data). I was particularly impressed with how Katherine took the time to talk me through the methodical process behind each strategic marketing decision along the way. The passion they have for their work and commitment to the success of their clients is clear.'
Lew Bedford
Growth Lead
