On-us does away with the monotonous, wasteful physical gifts common at industry events with community-caring digital vouchers.
The Hong Kong fintech start-up On-us is launching digital vouchers as an alternative event engagement tool aimed at promoting zero-waste and sustainability.
Anyone who has ever attended an industry event, fintech-related or otherwise, will be more than aware of the abundance of free branded pens, notebooks and power banks available as take-home souvenirs; tokens of interactions with attending companies.
Although the excess stock does not represent the distributing company’s image and reputation, a considerable proportion of it will inevitably end up in the landfill after the attributed event concludes.
In recognition of this wastefulness and the negative impact it has on the environment, On-us’ latest initiative seeks to reaction industry event gifts with directed digital vouchers.
Apart from typical merchants such as supermarkets and coffee shops, the vouchers can be redeemed for eco-friendly products or at social enterprises supporting the disadvantaged.
In this way, On-us’ offering not only establishes an alternative avenue through which event organisers can engage with attendees but provides a way for participating companies to contribute positively to the world around them.
“Our mission is to bring about a change in the event engagement industry,” confirms the company’s co-founder and chief strategy officer, Honnus Cheung.
Cheung says that by replacing physical gifts with digital vouchers, event organisers can eliminate the logistical challenges of managing physical gifts.
“This [solution] not only provides a more engaging experience for attendees but also fosters a stronger connection between attendees and the event,” she explains, before adding that the solution “enables event organisers to engage their audiences in a sustainable and digital way.”
Early adopters
A variety of organisations, including the Hong Kong Institute of Human Resource Management (HKIHRM), The University of Hong Kong, Cyberport and the Hong Kong Cancer Fund, have already adopted the digital vouchers.
Kandy Lui, executive director of the HKIHRM, confirms that the vouchers have allowed the institute to “customise greeting message and set the gift amount to suit our needs in different occasions” before adding “the new solution has saved us a lot of effort on handling logistic of physical gifts, avoiding wastage and being in line with our environmental, social and governance (ESG) agenda.”
In addition to this, Dan Tan, marketing and communications assistant manager at the Hong Kong Cancer Fund, recognises the voucher solution as an effective and innovative event engagement tool, “On-us digital voucher integrates wellness and NFT elements into our fundraising efforts, revolutionising the way people can support our cause and make a real difference in the lives of those touched by cancer.”
Concluding this, Joyce Chow, assistant director of the centre for civil society and governance at The University of Hong Kong, praised On-us’s ability to connect audiences with social enterprises.
“Partnering with On-us not only helps us engage our audiences and promote inclusive employment, but its…merchant network also includes social enterprises that especially hire the disabled, providing a tailored engagement solution that easily connects social enterprises with the audience,” comments Chow.
As consumers become increasingly aware of the environmental impact of their actions, event organisers are looking for ways to make their events more sustainable; a solution found in On-us’ new offering.
By promoting sustainability, reducing waste and fostering connections among the event and professional communities, On-us digital voucher tool is fostering engagement between event organisers and participants in a sustainable and efficient way.
