Case study

Aruba focuses on powering businesses around the world via devices that scale.

Aruba launched Aruba Instant On (AIO) in 2019 to meet a need in the evolving SMB market: Providing enterprise-grade Wi-Fi to meet the rapidly growing needs of small businesses.

The challenge

With COVID-19 bringing about rapid change, SMB owners needed to digitally transform to keep up with demands. They needed an enterprise-grade network that didn’t require an enterprise-sized IT department. Thus, AIO — with a shockingly simple setup — was born.

The solution

We eschewed the “speeds and feeds” tech jargon of Aruba’s competitors and emphasised the ease with which small businesses could upgrade their Wi-Fi. This was achieved by personifying an Aruba access point as an affable and charming “spokesman” who would be the voice of AIO across all touchpoints. This was complemented by a unique, ownable look that stood out from the look and feel of competitors’ messaging.

Our activation framework consisted of a mix of paid media and social, influencers, and foundational organic review site efforts that stretched beyond the US — from UK radio to Hong Kong bus wraps to Australian video bumpers. All this helped AIO become a big deal for small businesses.

The Aruba Instant On work is a source of pride for those that support SMB... We’re definitely punching above our weight class with this campaign.

Shannon Byrne, Senior Director, SMB Marketing, Aruba

The results

The results

The results

Awards