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Sandra Loibl, Executive Creative Director at Serviceplan Campaign in Munich, talks about being on the Dubai Lynx Jury for Promo & Activation, Outdoor, Interactive and Mobile category. Serviceplan Group Middle East are an official sponsor of Dubai Lynx, the biggest festival in the Middle East and North Africa region for the creative communications industry. She also gives some interesting insights into the empowerment of women in the region.

Whoever’s been on a trip to the Middle East, instantly has a pretty solid idea in mind hearing these two words together. You too, right?

Anybody, who has the chance to visit Dubai and the other Emirates nowadays, can immediately kiss this antiquated notion goodbye. That’s because the model of femininity is subject to constant change in this region – which is certainly a good thing.

The same goes for camels. They represent – more by coincidence than by definition – the creative change. As a member of the jury, I couldn’t ignore the “camelpower” idea by Nissan. Pure genius. Just to give you a little heads up: Camelpower became the creative power of the Middle East. Nissan simply developed a new measuring unit or rather activity unit for off-road vehicles. Not outdated horse power but C-A-M-E-L-P-O-W-E-R. Who might have a use for horses in the desert anyway? Together with National Geographic, Nissan took a highly scientific approach to develop the “camel-power-unit”. An idea, which could have only originated in this region and yet is so simple, that one can understand it anywhere in the world.

Even I, being a woman who doesn’t have a clue about cars, gets it! Didn’t we say, we’d stop using prejudices? It seems a lot has changed in the Middle East. At the Dubai Lynx Festival, there were a lot of brilliant ideas concerning the empowerment of women in this region. And again, I have to mention Nissan. #shedrives is a wonderful idea, about the fact that “women are finally allowed to drive”. Emotional, relevant and really well executed. “Bridal uniform” is an idea devoted to the terrible topic of forced marriage among under aged girls in Pakistan – with a fashion show. A supermarket chain even changed its former male dominated branding into a female one. Ladies and gentlemen, raise your hats.

Making a long story short: the creative ideas from this region make a strong and believable statement for equality. Ideas not only for NGOs but for real brands. I think this is really great and mind changing. Even Coke celebrates the fact that women are allowed to go to concerts. with a brilliantly crafted print ad. All this using their very own brand claim “taste the feeling”. Feels fantastic!

Thanks, Dubai. Thanks, Middle East. For ideas, that can truly make a difference. And also, for a great jury with exceptionally gifted creatives from all around the world who communicate, discuss, convince and allow themselves to be convinced. I’m having tons of funs being part of this the creative process, which is also a process of awakening for us western thinkers – male and female.

 

This article was first published on lbbonline.com.

TECHUCATION THANKS TO AR & VR

Technology and education is on the rise, with companies like IBM and Apple working hand in hand to release Watson Element in a bid to help teachers gain insights into individual learning behaviors. In Dubai, the vision of Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum to provide “NEW GENERATIONS with the skills needed for the future” is prompting VR giant, Samsung, to seek content cooperation partners like Serviceplan to create VR experiences in both the classroom and the workplace. Brands can take advantage of AR and VR by creating content, instead of merely looking at devices to push content through. This will be a tall order for VR and AR content creators, as International Data Corporation (IDC) reports that the augmented and virtual reality market for the Middle East and Africa will grow robustly over the next five years, projecting annual growth rates of more than 100 per cent by 2020.

REALTIME INFLUENCER MARKETING

Realtime Influencer Markting will now, more than ever, require brands to slowly give up creative control. With new social tools like Facebook Live and Instagram Stories now available to supplement Snapchat, transparency between brands and influencers, as well as authenticity in influencer content, will become more apparent in 2017. Brands will want to see immediacy in content, regardless of its ephemeral nature, but will, in turn, require statistics behind it. This means shorter lead-times to conceptualize and create content, giving influencers more control of the pieces they publish. Consequently, influencers will start choosing to collaborate only with brands that allow them to stay true to their personalities, and to maintain the core of their online following. With real-time now invading our social spaces, influencer authenticity will replace influencer popularity. Brands will come to realize that fame does not necessarily equate to quality, and that quality, served to a smaller, more targeted audience will hold more value and influence. Other, more established brands will revert to celebrities over mere influencers, if only to defy the already dizzying predominance of so-called “social voices”. Dubai’s clever use of Sharuk Khan in its latest promotional film is one such example.

ATTENTION ECONOMY AND THE 5 SECONDS OF OPPORTUNITY

Today, attention is a rising commodity in itself, as smartphones have left humans with such short attention spans that there is only a 3-5 second window of opportunity to grab the consumer’s attention. This change in consumer behavior places increased value on content marketing with short video at its core. In this new landscape, social platforms are assuming the role traditionally occupied by broadcast media. Brands and marketers should start looking into innovative content that would make their platforms more and more relevant to the already hooked Arab audience. Live video, for one, is now being experimented with by brands (primarily from owned events to amplify reach) and this will be utilized even more in 2017.

Yes, we are the stuff that legends are made of. And no, you don’t have to hold your horses; in fact, you’ll need them as I take you through 1,001 Tales of Arabian Marketing myths and urban legends in the Middle East.
Much has been written and much has been said about it, but so far, very little attempt has been made to simplify the stuff that marketing legends in the Middle East are made of. Still, one too many investors are left unaware of the many intricacies involved in communicating to Arab Muslims, for instance; or of the “do’s” and “dont’s” associated with understanding a region that has in fact more economic than political stories to tell than most international news rooms would have it.
So here’s a quick run-down of some Arabian tales you just might find useful in considering a brand venture into this emerging region of global affluents and digital millenials.

Urban Legend #1 | The Middle East*, known as the Arab region, is a homogeneous market. Myth, of course, as it has three main cultural groups and two geo-economic clusters.
The three cultural groups are led by the predominantly Arab Markets of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Oman, among others, which are considered to be strongly traditional with impregnable traditions and strong family ties.
Then we have the multicultural markets like the UAE, Qatar, and to some extent, Bahrain, with high percentages of expatriate populations, and are earmarked by modern luxury. Last of these cultural groups are the Levant markets of Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine and Syria that have a very Euro-Mediterranean feel to them. Compared to a predominantly Arab region like the GCC, the Levant region is where we see a celebration of commonalities and a transcending of differences between European and Mediterranean cultures. Even the topography of the region is more European than the GCC which is predominantly made up of desert lands. Now barring the war that is happening in Syria right now, Syria’s Euro-Mediterranean roots remains.
Geo-economic clusters are the easiest to remember. GCC or the Gulf Cooperation Council is a political and economic confederation of six countries namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. As a result of this cooperation, foreign direct investment in the region has become an integral economic booster in what has always been known as an oil-rich and oil-dependent region.
The Levant markets have become more globalized and a lot more integrated with its Arabic roots, and while political instability may seem to be an underlying thread, measures of economic strengthening and stability, along with long-term developments are largely underway. These are thanks, in part, to a pool of highly and even globally-educated younger generation who are ever more keen to keep in step with the progress of its neighboring GCC countries.

Urban Legend #2 | Despite common misconception, an Islamic lifestyle is neither intrinsically anti-western nor anti-American. As a matter of fact, a growing number of Muslim consumers aspire to emulate an international (western) suburban lifestyle. Without necessarily deserting their Bedouin roots, Arab families are now adapting a global-minded lifestyle, with most young Arabs seeking higher education in Europe and the Americas.
Even as they lean towards western-style lifestyles, many increasingly make choices that re-assert their identity as Muslims and their respect for Islamic principles. As such, Sharia-oriented business models form core of their product and service preferences.

Urban Legend #3 | Communicating to Arabs is the same as communicating to Muslims. Wrong. There is an undeniable distinction between Arabs (or the Arab world) & Muslims (or the Muslim world.) Arabic Muslims come from the Arabian Gulf and, compared to other Muslim regions, they reflect more Western ideas and tremendous wealth.
Even the geography and topography of their region speak well of the Arab Muslims who actually represent a highly developed culture and civilization where modern cities mingle with ancient ones. Oil as well as infrastructure and modern progress and tourism has catapulted most Arab Muslims to their global wealth to date.

Urban Legend #4 | Marketing to Arabs is marketing to an aging population of forefathers and their current heirs. This, I say, is a big misnomer. There is a new and powerfully emerging new Arab Muslim consumer today. The Arab millennials or the Arab digital generation, is dominated by young consumers who are the future of Arab and Muslim consumption. Currently, more than half of the population of Arab countries are under the age of 25, now representing more than 11 per cent of the world population.
Interestingly enough, these Millennials are growing into a hugely different world to the generation of their immediate families. Their beliefs, their concerns, their expectations, and their aspirations are shaped by their life experiences which have not only seen the recent Arab Springs, but have witnessed a global population that has come to respect the rapid progress in their region – progress that took decades for most first world economies to achieve.
While core religious values and inclinations remain the same across the geo-economic clusters and across generations, the Millennials’ contemporary concerns and expectations pose a whole new slew of challenges and opportunities to marketers seeking to reach out to an outspoken, digitally-connected consumer segment.

Urban Legend #5 | Business is strictly business in the Middle East. You were warned. Business and personal friendships are one and the same in this highly-relational region, and Arabs generally prefer to do business with people they know, they like and they trust. Speeding up introductions to get straight into business dialogues might just get you into some bit of a bind. Small talk is more than just a courtesy; it is a way of finding out whether you would be a suitable business partner.
I say take time to engage in conversation, both genuinely and enthusiastically. Sincerely inquiring about family members and their well being, and having a few stories in your back pocket to break the ice are always sure-fire ways to get business meetings off to a fiery start.

These are but 5 of the 1,001 tales that we, a team of more than 14 nationalities in our Dubai Offices, are eager to share with you next time we meet…. over a pot of Arabic coffee and some dates maybe?

*The term “Middle East” has many different interpretations (politically and economically) in terms of which countries are included and which are not. At Serviceplan Middle East, we cater to the following markets:
Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen.