IoT Communication Strategy

After many months of research, interviews, debates, and brainstorming sessions, we finalized and presented our findings and recommendations in the form of an Executive Summary at Midea Group’s Annual Meeting in September 2022.

To bring everyone up to speed, we’ve prepared two versions for your review:

  1. A 5-minute read for a quick overview
  2. A 17-minute video recording from the Annual Conference for those who prefer to watch and listen.

Please note that this is a highly strategic document and must not be shared publicly in any form.

We began by breaking down our leader’s vision into individual components, allowing us to address each part systematically before forming our final recommendations.
Along the way, we also conducted in-depth interviews with over 70 global stakeholders, each lasting more than two hours—totaling approximately 140 hours of insights (equivalent to 18 days of input!). These insights played a crucial role in guiding our brainstorming sessions and shaping our conclusions.
The three remaining strategic decision had been:
Please continue reading to explore the three major areas that were addressed:
All brands will retain their existing brand positioning, while at the product level (‘product is king’), each must emphasize and showcase their smart features. In brand communication, the term “smart” should be incorporated into the messaging and paired with our SmartHome App icon to unify the experience.
To validate this strategy, we examined several brands outside our industry and highlighted an example from the automotive sector.
BMW demonstrates how to remain rooted in its brand legacy while addressing industry shifts—showcasing its EV credentials without straying from its core brand identity.

Similarly, Porsche and Audi are reinforcing their existing brand positioning while incorporating their EV product lines, as seen in airport magazine campaigns.

This comparison illustrated how brands can stay true to their essence while aligning with new technological shifts—a principle we applied to our approach to “smart.
The second pending decision had been the App:
Initially, the MIB Brand Team proposed that each brand should have its own app to maximize individual brand positioning and visual identity:
However, the project team collectively decided to move forward with a unified SmartHome App, which will host all brands within a single platform—while striving to reflect each brand’s identity through UI and UX differentiation:

As of March 2023, the final app icon name and design were still under development, but the IoT team was confident in being ready for launch at IFA Berlin 2023 (September).

The MIB BMM (Brand Management & Marketing) team prepared all related marketing and communication materials—such as packaging, product stickers, and POSMs—once the IoT team delivered the final designs.

 

Below is a directional draft of the app design from the BMM team, presented in September 2022.

The BMM team recommended avoiding fancy names or overly creative designs for the app. Consumers won’t buy a washing machine based on the app’s name or icon, but an intuitive, high-performing UX combined with smart product features will be key to positioning us as a leader in the Smart Home space. This will also help build customer loyalty and drive multi-brand adoption within the app ecosystem.

The third pending decision was when to go live and publish the new App.

The project team agreed to go live with the new app at IFA Berlin in September 2023:
All necessary decisions were made, and the path was then clear:

Below is a 17-minute recording of the Executive Summary presentation from the September 2022 MIB Annual Meeting:

*Note: The video is unlisted and only viewable by those with the direct link.

https://youtu.be/Ze8iwZUWg18