Communicate Online

Latest Tweets
- "#Programmatic is #native and, by design, it rests between magic and logic." - @tjlightwala https://t.co/LdxQBYbPsW
  28 Sep 2016
- Marrying the art of #social with the craft of #search by @KhaledSharrouf and @adrianturcsan of @ResolutionMENA: https://t.co/mPTEucj0FZ
  27 Sep 2016
- A dummy's guide to #Snapchat by @emalinaker, @UM_MENA's Farah Shaer and @StarcomME's Cortlan: https://t.co/pJj5v8MLpD
  27 Sep 2016
- Following Tarek Abdalla's departure, @MediacomMENA appoints Eyad Abdul Khalek as CEO: https://t.co/GIpTIBeCFf
  27 Sep 2016
- @HavasMediaME appoints @HoudaHTohme as GM - UAE: https://t.co/Whed3W3Yze
  26 Sep 2016
- Keynote speaker at @OMDMENA #OMDPredicts, @davidplouffe talks #data and #politics: https://t.co/9AdqfNzFoF
  25 Sep 2016
- After KSA, @CiceroBernayPR now ventures into Jordan and Iraq: https://t.co/Mxo9XrMyI1
  25 Sep 2016
- RT @MackJonesME: Mackenzie Jones will be presenting #DesignDisruptors film on the 11th October https://t.co/il1UGsisar #DigitalDubai #MJdig
  22 Sep 2016

I am one who believes that one of the greatest dangers of advertising is not that of misleading people, but that of boring them to death.

Leo Burnett
Opinion

The native story

TJ Lightwala, regional director/head of performance and programmatic, Mindshare MENA, and head of programmatic GroupM Connect, GroupM MENA, on the logic and magic of native programmatic
Latest Tweets
- "#Programmatic is #native and, by design, it rests between magic and logic." - @tjlightwala https://t.co/LdxQBYbPsW
  28 Sep 2016
- Marrying the art of #social with the craft of #search by @KhaledSharrouf and @adrianturcsan of @ResolutionMENA: https://t.co/mPTEucj0FZ
  27 Sep 2016
- A dummy's guide to #Snapchat by @emalinaker, @UM_MENA's Farah Shaer and @StarcomME's Cortlan: https://t.co/pJj5v8MLpD
  27 Sep 2016
- Following Tarek Abdalla's departure, @MediacomMENA appoints Eyad Abdul Khalek as CEO: https://t.co/GIpTIBeCFf
  27 Sep 2016
- @HavasMediaME appoints @HoudaHTohme as GM - UAE: https://t.co/Whed3W3Yze
  26 Sep 2016
- Keynote speaker at @OMDMENA #OMDPredicts, @davidplouffe talks #data and #politics: https://t.co/9AdqfNzFoF
  25 Sep 2016
- After KSA, @CiceroBernayPR now ventures into Jordan and Iraq: https://t.co/Mxo9XrMyI1
  25 Sep 2016
- RT @MackJonesME: Mackenzie Jones will be presenting #DesignDisruptors film on the 11th October https://t.co/il1UGsisar #DigitalDubai #MJdig
  22 Sep 2016
- RT @deepashah_: Being Asian, being a woman, and working in the ad world...read my interview this month with @CommunicateME https://t.co/D9
  22 Sep 2016
- How #luxury brands in the MENA are making up for lost time on #digital: https://t.co/XDjxAa68xN
  22 Sep 2016

Must Read

AppointmentsMediaCom MENA appoints Eyad Abdul Khalek as CEO

2016-09-27 11:37

MediaFaisal J. Abbas joins Saudi daily Arab News

2016-09-27 10:00

Must ReadC&B PR expands into Jordan and Iraq

2016-09-25 08:49

In-DepthSands of time

2016-09-21 16:37

OpinionDo women ‘lack vertical ambition?’

2016-08-07 10:28

DigitalKnowing your customer is the key to success

2016-07-19 14:59

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2016-09-28 20:27

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ELAN Media becomes exclusive media representative for Mall of Qatar

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2016-09-27 19:12

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MediaCom MENA appoints Eyad Abdul Khalek as CEO

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2016-09-27 11:37

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Faisal J. Abbas joins Saudi daily Arab News

Forty-one-year-old Saudi daily Arab News has signaled the beginning of its global and digital expansion by hiring Al Arabiya English’s editor-in-chief Faisal J. Abbas in the same role. Ever since his move from London to Dubai in 2012, Abbas has become known as ‘Mr. Arabiya English’. Under his leadership, Al Arabiya has grown to target the [...]

2016-09-27 10:00

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Art & craft

(L to R: Khaled Sharrouf and Adrian Turcsan) We were recently at SMX London, Europe’s largest search marketing conference, and were pleasantly surprised to see the transformation of search. Having attended the conference for many years now, it was interesting to witness the breakdown of barriers between search and other digital marketing practices this year. [...]

2016-09-27 04:16

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Simplifying the simplest social media platform… in case you haven’t yet

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2016-09-27 04:06

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The Network Communication Group wins BSH Home Appliances account

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2016-09-27 03:54

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The Qode launches digital department

Dubai-based luxury brand consultancy, PR and events company, The Qode, in now entering the digital arena through its new department. The digital team will be headed by Soraya Spahi, who comes with over ten years’ global experience in online communications and campaigns, globally. Consisting of content creators, community managers, programmers and strategists, the new department [...]

2016-09-27 02:11

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Grey Doha wins Silver at Lisbon International Advertising Festival

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2016-09-26 19:17

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Dentsu Aegis Network appoints Khaled Al Ahmed as chief financial officer MENA

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2016-09-26 18:41

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Havas Media appoints Houda Tohme as general manager UAE

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2016-09-26 17:57

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Go Pokémon

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2016-09-25 18:04

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In the driving seat

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2016-09-25 17:47

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Publicis Communications makes key leadership changes

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2016-09-25 15:19

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Axiom Telecom appoints Buzzman for creative duties

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2016-09-25 14:21

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C&B appointed by Dubai Culture and Arts Authority

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2016-09-25 08:53

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C&B PR expands into Jordan and Iraq

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2016-09-25 08:49

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Sands of time

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2016-09-21 16:37

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Leo Burnett’s Tamara Habib joins Netizency

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2016-09-19 13:22

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Initiative MENA appoints Wadih Shamma as regional investment director

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2016-09-18 15:32

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The pulse of impulsive buying

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2016-09-18 10:30

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Sailesh Nathan, Managing Director of BuyDoBuy. (Image supplied)

John Deykin joins 20/20 Productions as director in Dubai

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2016-09-15 01:16

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Cheil MENA wins Gold and Silver at LOERIES 2016

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2016-09-15 01:04

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New digital agency Traverger opens shop for travel and hospitality clients

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2016-09-15 00:43

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Snapchat vs Instagram Stories

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2016-09-14 15:51

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Publicis consolidates regional Leocomm PR offices under MSLGROUP

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2016-09-08 19:54

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What it means to be a young Asian woman in advertising

Deepa Shah is the current chief financial officer (CFO) for Europe and Asia at Hall & Partners. She is also among the youngest CFOs to be employed by the DAS group of companies, a division of Omnicom Group. Among her many achievements, the most recent is the Asian Women of Achievement Award for Business. We [...]

2016-09-06 01:01

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L’Oréal Middle East part of international company initiative Brandstorm

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2016-09-04 19:04

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Publicis Media announces new leadership in Levant

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2016-09-04 11:54

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Elda Choucair takes over as CEO of PHD MENA

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2016-08-31 12:47

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Cheil to handle Papa Murphy’s UAE

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2016-08-28 20:36

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Trusting the Machine in Online Marketing: Optimizing your Audience

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2016-08-28 19:42

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New leadership changes at OMD

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2016-08-28 18:51

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House of Comms brings on Keeley Duffy as senior account director

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2016-08-23 14:54

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Why Instagram Stories misses the point

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2016-08-22 18:12

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Active DMC to handle HintHunt’s communications in the UAE

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2016-08-22 17:57

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Know what you (probably) didn’t know about youth in MENA

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2016-08-22 17:08

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Alex Brunori on what ads work on YouTube

Earlier this year, YouTube announced a first of its kind competition for Ramadan ads on the platform. Titled the “Lantern Award”, the program celebrated the best Ramadan ad in 2016 based on an algorithm that took into account views, engagement, and qualitative elements. The winner of The Lantern Award went to VIVA Kuwait for a [...]

2016-08-22 10:03

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Ooredoo and MBC Group form exclusive content partnership

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2016-08-21 18:53

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Waleed AL Sayed_CEO_OoredooQatar and Sam Barnett_CEO_MBC Group

Trusting the Machine in Online Marketing: Targeting vs Optimization

Exponential, a global provider of advertising intelligence and digital media solutions, has put together a four-part series on “Trusting the Machine in Online Marketing”. The third part of this series is focused on Targeting vs Optimization. Learn about the importance of valuing users, creating a complex profile and the benefit of automating the optimization process. [...]

2016-08-21 18:15

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J. Walter Thompson MENA first to join Google All-Stars Academy

The training partnership will see the tech company and J. Walter Thompson MENA come together under the program, “Google All-Stars Academy”, which aims to provide digital training to the communications agency. Held this August, the global debut of the program will feature sessions and workshops from Contagious, the Zoo, YouTube and MediaMonks, over four days. [...]

2016-08-21 17:39

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Bashar AlKadhi takes over as CEO of Hill+Knowlton Strategies MENA

Effective September 2016, Bashar AlKadhi will take over as the new CEO MENA at Hill+Knowlton Strategies, overseeing H+K’s business across the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey. Current CEO Sconaid McGeachin will take on the role of regional senior vice-president. AlKadhi joins from the role of COO at H+K’s fellow WPP company ASDA’A Burson-Masteller, a position [...]

2016-08-17 18:58

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Digitraction

Our life is a social book. But, that’s a stale fact. What’s hot? We post #InstaUpdates on our social platforms – “Feeling blessed”, “Having lunch”, “Watching movie”, “Checked in at the airport”, “Admitted in hospital”, and so on. There’s nothing new about it. What’s next? This social frenzy has been taking a toll on us [...]

2016-08-17 17:22

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Xpress Money launches Studio Xpress

With the aim of reaching the Arab audience and increasing brand awareness and recall among this target group through social media, Xpress Money launched a football analysis program, Studio Xpress. The timing of the event coincided with Euro 2016 that took place between June and July, and made perfect sense for the brand due to [...]

2016-08-17 01:18

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MasterCard Priceless Causes continues after Ramadan

During the month of Ramadan, MasterCard Priceless Causes began an initiative to donate food to underprivileged children in grief-stricken parts of the Middle East. It’s common knowledge that the crisis in the Middle East has led to many displaced families along with many more underprivileged children, and delivery of food to these areas is a [...]

2016-08-15 20:33

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Trusting the Machine in Online Marketing: Understanding Audience Evaluation

Exponential, a global provider of advertising intelligence and digital media solutions, has put together a four-part series on “Trusting the Machine in Online Marketing”. The second part of this series is focused on Understanding Audience Evaluation. With extensive access to purchase consideration data and media consumption behaviors, can online marketers use machines to more effectively [...]

2016-08-15 17:35

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‘New media’ company Augustus opens shop in Dubai

Richard Fitzgerald, the former managing director of Brndstr, has moved on to his latest venture, Augustus. The ‘new media’ company launches this month with a vision to establish and maintain a “new order” of media advertising with data and content at the heart of everything it does. Its mission is to be the new media [...]

2016-08-15 17:23

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Staying alive

Relevancy is an essential aspect of achieving career success in these days of cost-cutting, outsourcing, and radical shifts in the ways companies manage their talent, and interact with and source candidates. In order to achieve long-term career progression, growth and accomplishment, and keeping your competitive edge, you need to remain attuned to demands, trends and [...]

2016-08-10 14:56

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Langoor launches in Dubai

India-headquartered full-service digital-first agency, Langoor, has now launched in Dubai to cater to the Middle East region. Having established its footprint in Sydney, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hong Kong, Melbourne and Singapore, the agency aims to invest one million AED in its first year in Dubai. Ruchir Punjabi, Founder, Langoor, says in a statement: “With the start [...]

2016-08-10 10:33

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Trusting the Machine in Online Marketing: Discovering your Audience

Exponential, a global provider of advertising intelligence and digital media solutions, has put together a four-part series on “Trusting the Machine in Online Marketing”. The first part of this series is focused on Discovering your Audience. Data collection and analysis have grown immensely in the last few years, but is there still a case to [...]

2016-08-08 09:55

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Do women ‘lack vertical ambition?’

Kevin Roberts is in hot water. Earlier this week, the Saatchi & Saatchi chairman told Business Insider the gender diversity debate in the ad industry is ‘over’ and some women lack ‘the vertical ambition’ to reach senior positions. Shortly after its publication, Roberts was put on ‘a leave of absence’. Publicis CEO Maurice Levy distanced himself from [...]

2016-08-07 10:28

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Celebrity and influencer marketing

The number of influencers keeps increasing with every new social platform. As users find an odd familiarity with influencers that rests somewhere between friendship and fandom, brands have been quick to notice where there consumers and jump on to the bandwagon. We catch up with Maurice Hamilton, global CEO of The SMC Group, which specializes [...]

2016-08-04 15:19

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Interesting Times launches Facebook Canvas

With Facebook as its client, Lebanon-headquartered agency, Interesting Times designed a new campaign to launch Facebook Canvas targeting the tech company’s clients. The objective of the campaign was to launch the new product and create awareness about its benefits. Interesting Times, in partnership with Facebook, chose to leverage time spent online during Ramadan and launched [...]

2016-08-04 15:00

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Leo Burnett MEA appoints Ahmad Abu Zannad as regional strategy director

Leo Burnett MEA has promoted Ahmad Abu Zannad to the position of regional strategy director for the GCC. Ahmad is a graduate of Concordia University and has worked as head of consumer marketing at Zain in Jordan and KSA before moving to Leo Burnett KSA as head of strategic planning. He was then promoted to [...]

2016-08-04 14:06

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Mat Baxter appointed global CEO, Initiative

Effective immediately, IPG Mediabrands has appointed Mat Baxter as global chief executive officer, replacing Jim Elms, who has now been named chairman of the agency and managing director of Interpublic. In his new role, Elms will be part of the group’s efforts to drive collaboration between IPG Mediabrands and the broader network of Interpublic agencies. [...]

2016-08-03 17:07

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flydubai appoints OMD as media agency

flydubai has appointed OMD (part of the Omnicom Media Group) to manage its media communications brief across its network. Commenting on the appointment, Mike Evans, senior vice-president of customer experience, brand and communications, says in a statement: “In our search for a media buying partner, OMD has clearly demonstrated the tangible value we could extract [...]

2016-08-03 14:03

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Ipsos and Garage 366 team up in MENA

Ipsos MENA and UAE-based communications agency, Garage 366, have signed a deal to work together on the “creative front”, according to a press statement. The communications agency plans to create and deliver better solutions and optimized media opportunities with the help of exclusive data provided by the research firm. Garage 366 will have access to [...]

2016-08-01 17:08

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Not just PR

In my 13 years of PR experience, the Middle East PR industry has evolved to grow from a handful of fully-fledged agencies a decade and a half ago, to an extensive array of agencies of all shapes, sizes and specialties offering a variety of services. Fifteen years ago the media landscape in the region didn’t [...]

2016-08-01 16:37

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Grayling enters Iran with PGt Advertising

PGt Advertising, an Iranian advertising and marketing communications solutions agencies, and Grayling have signed an affiliation agreement to provide integrated communications, public affairs, design, and market development services to businesses, non-profits, and government authorities in Iran. The affiliation agreement will see both agencies working together to provide a full range of communications services to current [...]

2016-08-01 11:58

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CESP endorses Kantar Media’s TView in the UAE

Independent media auditor Centre d’étude des supports de publicité (CESP) has audited the national TView people meter-based Television Audience Measurement (TAM) service in the UAE and found it aligned with international standards, reinforcing Kantar Media’s solution. The TView service delivers daily TV ratings and is funded and endorsed by media players in the UAE, including [...]

2016-08-01 11:46

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FrieslandCampina appoints Buzzman

FrieslandCampina’s cheese brand, Frico, has appointed Buzzman as a creative partner for the Middle East. The agency will be in charge of developing Frico Middle East’s website and launching it across its social media platforms. Adil Ehsan, marketing manager at FreislandCampina, says in a statement: “We couldn’t be more excited to be working with Buzzman. [...]

2016-07-31 15:48

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The content conundrum

In your talk at Festival of Media MENA 2016, you spoke about millennials. Do you think marketers are ignoring other consumers by focusing only on this demographic? We are starting to limit ourselves too much with demographic data. Simply because someone is between 18 and 25 years of age, it doesn’t mean they are not [...]

2016-07-31 12:03

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TBWA helps the Lebanese Mountain Trail and UN through its CSR initiative

“TBWA for Good” – the agency’s newly launched CSR initiative – had a two-fold objective this year: help refugees through a partnership with the UN and save the Lebanese Mountain Trail (LMT). The activity brought together team members from the UAE, KSA, Qatar and Lebanon offices to raise funds and awareness, as well as to [...]

2016-07-31 12:02

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Matters of the (he)art

Maktabi’s tryst with doodle art began back in the fall of 1983, when he was in fourth grade. Back then, of course, it wasn’t doodle art – just scribbles standing in the way of his studies, as his then teacher pointed out. Fast forward to 30 years later, when his wife saw his scribbles and [...]

2016-07-31 12:02

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Data night

Choueiri Group’s digital arm, Digital Media Services (DMS), launched its audience targeting solution toward the end of February, making it one of the few media representation companies to offer such a solution. We caught up with the agency’s head of data science, Youmna Borghol, to learn more about everyone’s favorite not-just-buzzword, data. Can you tell [...]

2016-07-31 11:15

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Hyatt Middle East creates #AnythingIsPossible web series

Hyatt Hotels in the Middle East have created a sequel to the French web series “Anything is Possible – France” that was aired last year by the French operations of the hotel. Written and produced by Partizan and V(room), who handled the French episodes for Hyatt, the UAE sequel focuses on the elements and emotions [...]

2016-07-30 03:24

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Zuma Dubai and Abu Dhabi appoint Global Communications Agency

Global Communications Agency (GCA) has been appointed as the official communications agency for Zuma Dubai and Abu Dhabi. GCA will be responsible for supporting all communications including, positioning the brand through strategic partnerships and activities, announcing news, managing events and boosting social media presence. “We couldn’t be more excited about being awarded such a well [...]

2016-07-30 02:10

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Ezdan Mall and ELAN Media sign advertising partnership

Ezdan Holding Group and ELAN Media, the media arm of ELAN Group have recently signed a partnership where ELAN Media will be the exclusive media representative for the mall. The announcement was made during an official signing ceremony attended by senior executives from both companies. As part of the 10-year agreement, ELAN Media will bring [...]

2016-07-28 17:30

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Tune in

Home to nine terrestrial radio stations in the UAE, ARN launched seven new digital-only radio channels in May 2016. “We are not in the business of radio anymore,” says ARN COO Steve Smith. We catch up with him to find out – among other things – exactly what ARN is in the business of. The [...]

2016-07-26 16:17

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5 interview habits of super persuasive job applicants

Your winning CV, glowing credentials, brilliant references and stellar endorsements have impressed, and you find yourself preparing to meet your employer of choice, with a little anxiety and a lot of excitement. Chances are they have a long list of questions to ask you, and very clear expectations of what they would like to hear [...]

2016-07-26 15:42

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The MediaVantage wins exclusive media sales rights of Travel + Leisure India

UAE-based media sales representative The MediaVantage has been awarded the exclusive contract to represent all titles owned by Exposure Media Marketing, India (A Burda International Company), which includes publications such as Travel + Leisure India & South Asia, Millionaire Asia India, Asia Spa India, Architecture + Design, Better Homes and Gardens, Maxim India, and Sports [...]

2016-07-26 15:30

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Win some, win some more

There’s no dearth of advertising award shows and, sometimes, winning can do more harm than good. This is why FP7 fundamentally focuses on the Effie Awards, Cannes Lions and the Dubai Lynx Awards. The global Effie Effectiveness Index has ranked FP7/DXB as the Most Effective Individual Agency – Global this year. The agency has been [...]

2016-07-26 13:15

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Dentsu Aegis Network acquires gyro

Dentsu Aegis Network today announced the acquisition of gyro, an independent global creative agency dedicated exclusively to business-to-business (B2B) marketing. Following this acquisition, Dentsu Aegis MENA will add a B2B offering to its product porfolio in the region. Globally, Dentsu Aegis’ B2B media agency Interprise, which was launched earlier this year, will be integrated into [...]

2016-07-26 13:10

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Get excited

“In the Middle East, there have been many wars and recessions, and this is another recession. So, what do you do?” asks Elie Khouri. He not only seems unperturbed by the varied challenges the region is facing, but, more strikingly, he continues to be optimistic – even enthusiastic. We catch up with him to find [...]

2016-07-25 18:05

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VIVA Kuwait wins YouTube’s Lantern Award

YouTube announced today the winner of the Lantern Award, a YouTube-first designed to highlight the best Ramadan ad in 2016 based on an algorithm that takes into account views, engagement, and qualitative elements. The Winner of The Lantern Award went to VIVA Kuwait for a very funny two-part series, Where is my bowl?, on misplacing [...]

2016-07-25 17:44

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Group Plus Media appoints new group commercial director

Katia Habshi has been appointed as the new group commercial director of Group Plus Media in Lebanon, replacing Tony Khoury. Habshi has been with Group Plus Media Lebanon for over 12 years. Following her promotion, she will now handle all media sales strategies and client-related activities.

2016-07-25 17:33

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Facebook introduces new ways to advertise apps

Facebook has recently announced new formats to advertise apps on the social network. With almost 90 percent of time on mobile being spent in apps and 58 percent of mobile purchases in the US being done through apps, clearly, mobile apps are the present and the future. However, not every person who installs an app [...]

2016-07-25 17:19

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Grow your Business Beyond the App Install

Effie Worldwide CEO Neal Davies’ tips for winning

When the president and chief executive officer of Effie Worldwide makes his way to Dubai, you know the award-loving MENA ad industry is going to show up in full force to glean everything they can to win the next Effie. That was certainly the case at the Effie Bootcamp, held in Dubai’s Waldorf Astoria on [...]

2016-07-25 17:16

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How KSA-based Kasra plans to revive the Arabic language

Nawaf Felemban is a rocket scientist turned management consultant. He recently founded Arabic website, Kasra. As a rocket scientist with Raytheon, he developed advanced algorithms for Military Radars. As a management consultant with McKinsey, he advised CEOs and Ministers on education and healthcare reform. A dual citizen between Saudi Arabia and the US, he worked [...]

2016-07-25 15:41

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It’s all good

Earlier this year, the CEO of one of the region’s leading agencies announced, almost nonchalantly: “Like it or not, we’re in a recession.” And he’s not alone: nearly 53 percent of UAE residents think so too, says a Nielsen survey, released earlier this year. And, although this belief isn’t grounded in truth, at least for [...]

2016-07-24 16:29

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Skin in the game

UK-based ad tech company InSkin Media is stretching its wings beyond London, Hamburg, Sydney, Singapore and Hong Kong to set up its first MENA office in Dubai later this year. We caught up with the company’s chief commercial officer Steve Doyle and MENA head of sales Toby Daniell to see what they’ve been up to [...]

2016-07-24 14:53

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CNN brings news to private messaging apps: news or noise?

Undeniably news and social media have developed an interconnected – if sometimes perilous – relationship. While certain platforms have encouraged citizen journalism, the real-time nature of others has changed the meaning of breaking news. Stemming from such social media platforms is a more personal service: messaging. While newsfeeds and timelines are inundated by brands almost [...]

2016-07-24 14:43

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Spot on situation

After a fairly positive 2015, the client-agency motivation and dynamics have hit a barricade with the number of agencies recording relationship improvements falling from 70 percent confidence to less than 50 percent. This is due to an increasingly competitive scenario of agencies, freelancers or those ‘wanting to do everything’ individuals in town, where clients work [...]

2016-07-24 12:32

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TCApr wins The Langham, London and Langham Hospitality Group accounts

TCApr has been appointed as the Middle East representative of The Langham, London and Langham Hospitality Group. Nestled in the heart of the West End, The Langham, London has recently unveiled 115 new guest rooms, suites and residences that enrich the hotel’s commitment to exceptional hospitality. The property is part of Langham Hotels and Resorts, [...]

2016-07-24 12:12

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L’Oréal ranks among world’s top 10 most attractive employers

Paris-based beauty brand L’Oréal has been ranked the 9th most attractive employer by business students in the Universum rankings this year, up from in 2015. The French cosmetics firm is the 16th most attractive employer for engineering students in the Most Attractive Employers Ranking. Last year, the brand was placed at 17 among the top [...]

2016-07-20 16:21

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Pepsi marks World Emoji Day with PepsiMoji video

To mark the World Emoji Day which fell on Sunday (July 17) Pepsi launched a new PepsiMoji-filled video to demonstrate how emojis can be used to communicate in ways that traverse boundaries. Studies have suggested that emoji is the fastest growing language and it has already become a universal language. Pepsi has taken the emojis [...]

2016-07-19 15:58

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Knowing your customer is the key to success

Abdulla Al Gurg In a continuous changing market environment, operational efficiency remains important. However, retailers are leveraging data and new technologies to optimize demand processes, attract and retain more customers, and drive future growth. Understanding consumer behaviour is necessary, albeit challenging, as it not only helps in marketing your products better by increasing their visibility, [...]

2016-07-19 14:59

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CNN Digital hires Mashable editor for key role in London

CNN Digital Worldwide has hired Blathnaid Healy, from Mashable, as a senior editor in its London newsroom. Healy previously established Mashable’s first London office, built an editorial team and developed a multimedia editorial agenda across all platforms. “This is an exciting time to be joining CNN. You can see its commitment to Digital everywhere you [...]

2016-07-14 16:30

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Survey: CNN named Middle East’s top international new channel

CNN has been named as the #1 international news channel in the Middle East, in terms of its reach to audiences in the region, a new Ipsos survey revealed. The Ipsos Affluent Survey Middle East, which launched in Europe in 1995 has expanded to cover other regions including Africa, Asia Pacific, Latin America and [...]

2016-07-13 17:07

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Ramadan on Twitter: An international conversation in numbers

While the month of Ramadan is regarded as a spiritual time for Muslims around the world, Twitter users took the conversation onto the social network, sharing their most precious moments and events from the holy month with the world. According to data released by the social network, tweets related to #Ramadan were viewed more [...]

2016-07-13 13:46

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Twitter icon appears on a smartphone. (Image: Alamy)

Do creative impressions work?

Sometimes advertisements and brand activities seem so bizarre, you can hardly believe it! Table fans that can take you to the moon. Chocolates that let you travel time. A vertical soccer match high in the air, 10 storeys off the ground to be precise. You think that’s impossible? Lo and Behold. Adidas proves nothing is [...]

2016-07-11 16:04

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Facebook ‘most popular’ social network in UAE, survey finds

UAE residents spend an average of approximately five hours of their day on social media, a new YouGov survey finds. Through surveying over 5,000 UAE residents, it was revealed that the time spent on social media varied among different age groups. Younger users, aged 18-35, spend between two to six hours of their day [...]

2016-07-10 11:30

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Publicis Groupe, Tencent sign global partnership

Global marketing and communications group Publicis announced the signing of a strategic partnership with internet giant Tencent earlier this week at the Viva Technology Paris, a leading event devoted to start-ups and innovation. Tencent, operates popular social and media platforms in China, and this partnership is claimed to be the first of its kind [...]

2016-07-04 13:41

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Maurice Levy and SY Lau scan a WeChat QR code to officially mark the start of the partnership. (Image supplied)

HSBC and J. Walter Thompson help mums re-enter the workforce

Returning to work after going on maternity leave can seem stressful and challenging to many mothers. To encourage them, HSBC bank in the UAE teamed up with J. Walter Thompson and launched the “I Recommend Mum” campaign, aimed specifically at supporting mothers who plan to return to work after taking a break. “It’s [...]

2016-07-03 11:51

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ID Comms survey: Better talent management critical for future growth

Media agencies and advertisers are all aligned with the idea that better talent management will help them deliver more effective, powerful marketing. The results are based on 130 responses from Marketing, Media and Procurement specialists with a range of global, regional and local market responsibilities. Eighty-three percent of respondents strongly agreed that advertisers who can [...]

2016-06-29 14:31

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The story of an online film that became the most viral ad in MENA

Social media and new realities in Saudi’s media landscape The rise of digital media has brought major shifts in the Saudi market. Today, Saudi has become the most digitally engaged society in the world with the highest viewership rate on YouTube, the 2nd highest growth rate on Twitter and the 3rd highest smartphone penetration in [...]

2016-06-29 12:48

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White Water PR to manage Johny Dar’s Jeans for Refugees

Dubai-based White Water PR has been chosen as the PR agency for artist Johny Dar’s project “Jeans for Refugees”. The fundraising initiative is aimed at helping refugees around the world, with all proceeds going to the International Rescue Committee (IRC). The project brings together 101 celebrities who are participating by donating the jeans to Dar. [...]

2016-06-29 09:00

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7DAYS launches in-house content marketing studio

UAE publisher 7DAYS has launched DEEP, its in-house content marketing studio that aims to work with advertisers to create content. We caught up with Charlotte Turner, head of content marketing, to understand the purpose and mission of the studio. Tell us a little bit about DEEP DEEP is the in-house content marketing team from 7DAYS. [...]

2016-06-28 22:36

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