Remote working, virtual events gain acceptance

New research from global communications agency ClearStory International has analyzed the rapid surge in interest in the most popular tech trends across media since coronavirus first emerged. 

 

The Q1 COVID Tech Trend Report was compiled to help businesses, industry stakeholders, journalists and others gain insight into the historic speed and scale of interest that catapulted previously obscured tech trends into public prominence.

 

The report identified 7,815 articles across Hong Kong media that featured mentions of tech trends that emerged under the spotlight as COVID-19 took hold. It assesses the surge in interest in the weeks coming up to the height of the pandemic. Globally, on average, there was a 17,500% increase in interest in video calling while there was an upsurge in interest in remote working by 14,000%.

 

From their low point in December 2019 to their highest point in the last week of March 2020, the report identifies 7 key tech trends and tracks the percentage increase in interest over that period on a topic by topic basis. In Hong Kong the highest surges of interest were recorded as:

 

1. Remote working (increased by 10,600% from low point)

 

2. Video conferencing (increased by 4,733% from low point)

 

3. E-learning/edtech (increased by 1,200% from low point)

 

4. Virtual events/conferencing (increased by 1,100% from low point)

 

5. Gig economy (increased by 575% from low point)

 

6. Health/med/biotech (increased by 377% from low point)

 

7. E-commerce (increased by 222% from low point)

 

                                         James McCann, CEO and Founder of ClearStory International

 

With 88 percent of Hong Kong’s working population in the service sector, remote working has become a significant topic of interest, as has video conferencing. Research also showed E-commerce to be the least talked about topic, despite recent figures which showed there are over 4.5 million e-shoppers across the region.

 

Speaking about the Q1 COVID Tech Trend Report, CEO and Founder of ClearStory International, James McCann said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted entire industries and created a significantly different dynamic for those in business and media globally. As governments, companies and societies scramble to adjust to a new reality, this report provides insight into a shift in most talked about sectors since coronavirus took hold. We hope this analysis will help businesses, stakeholders and journalists among others identify which areas are most of interest and likely to grow in these challenging times.”

 

The study was carried out from the December 2, 2018 to April 5, 2020 2020. ClearStory International is a global PR agency that works with emerging tech companies across the world.