Ema’s Mega Trends For Social Media in Middle East2014

@emalinakerhttp://emalinakeruae.tumblr.com/

343 Million Users Makes Google + the second largest platform in terms of monthly users

It ties your activities to search

It will start to become the ‘one size fits all’ platform as it ties video, with search, local content and demographics

Google Plus Comes Of Age

MOBILE IS KING

Mobile in the middle

Mobile technology and behavior is at the center of our current digital ecosystem, including web, social and search activities

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Social Networks

Websites

Paid Media

SO

CIA

L SH

AR

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SEA

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The millenials that live and work in the Middle East region maybe tech savvy and carry smart phones but they have limited data or no data at all especially in Egypt, Levant and North Africa

Free Wifi and internet services will reap dividends to those venues and retailers that provide it

Big Data Dilemmas

App-based Marketing/Gaming is Booming

We are seeing a big increase in application usage and development especially in Saudi, Qatar and the UAE. Telling stories through apps that embody a brand’s character will be increasingly popular

Community gaming on tablets in particular is growing at a vast pace with over 11.8 million daily active users in MENA*

*Source: AlistDaily October 2013

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Social Driving Commerce

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Understanding the Social Shopper Will Be Paramount for Retailers in The Region

The biggest spenders in the Middle East hail from Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE - which is also where social is most actively used.

Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait also have deep pockets with 90 million Internet users who spent a collective $9 billion online in 2012. By 2015, that region is expected to spend $15 billion. *Source: The Future of Commerce 2012

Increased Trust in Ecommerce Will Lead To Boom

Rise of the hyper connected, mobile, digital buyer means companies need to think mobile first moving into 2014

The research shows that purchase levels held steady at 68% across the study regions of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE. M-commerce is becoming more established, which means that users are now migrating their spending on big-ticket physical items from the PC to mobile*

*Source: MEF Third Global Consumer Survey for 2013

M-commerce Driving High Ticket Purchasing

• Already a HUGE trend in Kuwait I predict I-Commerce or Instagram commerce will become bigger in other countries across the Middle East – Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon are all ripe for this to take off in a big way in 2014

The Dawn Of I-Commerce or Instagram Commerce

VISUAL & INTEGRATED CONTENT EVOLUTION

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50 years ago, David Ogilvy asked:

“Are your ads looking more like magazine spreads yet?”

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OWNED

EARNED

PAID

We’re Seeing Deeper Integration of Media

Engagingthe rightinfluencers

Driving communitiesto advocate &take action

Creatingremarkable

content

Visual Storytelling Becomes More Prevalent

Micro & disposable content important for capturing the youth markets

Hyper Targeted Communications To Those That REALLY Matter

SOCIAL EVENTS

LIVE TV Will Become More Social

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• With Expo 2020 being announced late November we saw the power of social media to drive engagement, reach and impact of the live celebrations taking place in Dubai that evening. The Twittersphere was awash with congratulatory tweets & Vines/Instavideos of the fireworks

SOCIAL & REAL LIFE EVENTS BECOME MORE INTEGRATED

SOCIAL BECOMES STRATEGIC BUSINESS IMPERATIVE

Social Will Start To Help Businesses in MENA Become Smarter

Write like a journalist, think like an editor.

Be self-reflective. It’s a two-fold process.Be an expert at understanding social dynamics, sociology, and behavioral psychology a top priority.Utilize gamification and storytelling techniques. Be objective in a subjective way.

70/30 Rule.

Elevation of Social Media Managers To Social Strategists/Directors