Customer Trend Log

Social Media Statistics in United Arab Emirates

Key questions this data raises:-

1. Average ad-spend on social media per annum is AED 50,000 only. The question is, in a market where TV is extremely fragmented and print is very expensive what is stopping brands from exploring new media?
2. Why no conventional brand is topping the chart?
3. E-Commerce market of USD 2 billion and still we don’t see anything about www.souq.com , this raises the question about the rating calculation.
4. Is share of subscribers a good indicator, or we should explore more into user sentiment, loyalty and spending

All the data, is also consolidated in UAE databank . UAE databank, is a project of www.customertrendlog.com which aims at combining all the scattered data of UAE consumer in one place. Contact us if you would like to submit or discover any indicator about UAE consumer.

Author Info: Anam Saeed is an emerging marketing research executive with a knack to explore new age media. She has developed content for multiple local and international clients. Based out of South Asia she brings a perspective of developing markets in her research studies.

How to build a brand in UAE? Ten rules that all marketers should know

The world is full of global brands. Which were never designed to be global brands? How to dominate the world is about how to beat them.

This presentation adds insights from United Arab Emirates to the points raised by Simon Silvester

Rule 1: Think Zeitgest  - UAE has startled the world through its development and growth, brands should capitalize that

Rule 2: Think Trial – UAE is a paradise of retail outlets, think trial to all the young audience and the expats that have recently arrived

Rule 3: Think Visual – When 208 nationalities combine speaking multiple languages, the language of your brand should be visual

Rule 4: Think Youthquake – UAE population has an average age of 27, you should connect to the young & rising.

Rule 5: Think Small – UAE is getting green, your brand should be saving on paper and all avoidable wastes because you love environment

Rule 6: Think Print – The media in UAE is print, followed by digital. Think visual, body copy and go crazy

Rule 7: Think Fast – People are on the move, fads are coming and going and where the hell is your brand? Move fast because if you will not your competition will

Rule 8: Think Cultural Neutrality – So many cultures, so many languages but one dream — Dubai Dream

Rule 9: Think Kiasu – Ambition charges UAE population & your brand should fuel it

Rule 10: Think Mobile 200% penetration rate of mobiles asks brand to evolve through modern technology

Brand Mantra: In UAE brand should capture human imagination, and should capture it faster than human imagination

Reading: How to dominate the world by Simon Silvester

Consumer Insight: How blackberry ban will affect UAE consumer

The United Arab Emirates is to block sending e-mails, accessing the internet, and delivering instant messages to other Blackberry handsets – BBC, for more news on UAE Blackberry ban

“Blackberry ban in UAE: Good news for Iphone and a bad news for middle class mobile internet surfers”

Here are some statistics which should be considered before understanding the effect of Blackberry ban.

1. UAE tops Arab world for mobile phone penetration rates, the rate for mobile phone users in the UAE stood at 193.5 percent, followed by Saudi Arabia with a rate of 165.5 percent. (Note: Saudia Arabia has also announced a freeze on blackberry services)
2. “BlackBerry plans represent a substantial part of that (mobile data); while the operators don’t give exact numbers, Etisalat confirmed to me last week that 15% of its mobile subscribers were on mobile data plans, which include BlackBerry.  It’s so widely used, that of that fifteen percent, BlackBerry comprises the largest single part – as much as 10% of the total mobile subscriber base in the UAE”. Informa Media & Telecoms senior analyst Matthew Reed told Arabian Business

Impact on UAE Consumer

1. YPEs, business professionals and B2B users are directly affected with the current policy change, as they are the prime target audience for the handset.
2. Sale of blackberry will drop which will cause an increase in the sales of Iphone. As UAE mobile web surfers have already favored apple Iphone, while Nokia is unable to tap a considerable market share in UAE and in MENA
3. Telecom operators of other countries might benefit from this step. As telecom operators in other countries continuing to provide such services, users who believe that such services are indispensible to their business or lifestyle may be tempted to use the roaming facilities of such players. “Roaming charges in India are pretty cheap,” said an Indian expatriate in the UAE who currently uses the BlackBerry email service extensively for business purposes. “I am going to get the cheapest Indian SIM card and use it here”
4. Iphone price is an entry barrier for Blackberry users and thus small scale users will opt for other solutions for wi-fi internet. It can possibly be the wi-fi internet offer of Etisalat.
5. Mobile commerce and mobile access to social networking sites will be directly affected as these are one of the key activities of mobile internet users.

Additional readings

1. Economist report on Blackberry in UAE
2. Report on mobile usage in UAE 
3. RIM provides the terms and conditions demanded by TRA to USA, UK & China.
4. Governments around the world has security concerns on Blackberry
5. Most people use mobile internet to access social networking sites in USA

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Marketing Research Sector: Online marketing research – some key questions

Yesterday, I had a presentation at the social media forum regarding online marketing research.

Here is the copy, FYI.

Following are key questions which were raised in the session plus in the recent survey which i conducted online about internet marketing research. I am thankful to everyone who participated in the survey and also to the participants and organizers of the media forum. I am trying to answer key queries to the best of my knowledge. Hope you will find the answers useful.

• Question 1 – Online marketing research is cheapand in many cases it is free etc ?
  • ANSWER – First thing first, cheap is a relative term. In labor intensive markets technology is expensive and vice versa. This theory applies to MR as well, in most countries of Asia the cost of face to face is lower than a scientific sample driven online survey instrument.
  • Cost of a survey is dependent on the following
    • Target audience: the difficult the audience i.e. the lower their ratio in population  the higher the cost
    • Survey monitoring:
    • Depth of questionnaire: the deeper, longer the questionnaire the higher the cost
    • Cost of the survey instrument development: printing, software etc
    • Quality controls: the usual quality control is 20% back-checking at each stage; however it varies on client demand. The higher the check the higher the cost
  • Free! There is no such thing called free lunch. Either there are hidden costs or hidden implications. Continue reading “Marketing Research Sector: Online marketing research – some key questions” »