VISION AND COLLABORATION

Facing the music

Roddy Campbell of MDL Beast – the company behind the SoundStorm festival – says research shows young Saudis are a progressive bunch

The events and content we produce as a business are really an embodiment of the rapid cultural change under way in the kingdom. Who would have dreamed a decade ago that by 2019 hundreds of thousands of young revellers would be mixing it up with the biggest international DJs in the world alongside regional music talent at SoundStorm? We knew we were tapping into a zeitgeist, but it was time to take the pulse of the nation, to move from anecdotal to analytical with a deeper profi ling of Saudi youth than had been seen previously.

To uncover the wants and needs of this change-making generation, qualitative research preceded high-quality online surveys with more than 2,000 18- to 44-yearold Saudis, selected on the basis of having at least some interest in music. An iterative statistical process then refi ned six segments, plotted against the dimensions of how progressive they are and the role entertainment plays in their lives.

The behavioural nuances between the segments will be used to refi ne our own marketing and product development activities, as well as in the crafting and amplifi cation of campaigns with brand partners across the region.

On a general level, the love for music and music experiences surpassed even our optimistic expectations. 66 per cent of all people cited music as a real passion of theirs and, for 49 per cent, it was a clear number one amongst passion points, something they couldn’t live without. Whilst the ‘Social Hedonists’ are the standout group united by a love to party, the interest in live events and social experiences is high across the entire Saudi youth spectrum. 70 per cent of Saudi youth stated they’d like to see more events like SS2019 happen in the kingdom, with 66 per cent acknowledging the positive eff ect the festival had on their general happiness and wellbeing. I’d suspect many brands may underestimate this demand, given the conservative roots of the country. Cultural attitudes have changed quickly; clearly corporations that help satisfy this thirst for live entertainment by facilitating access or enhancing experiences can reap the rewards in terms of brand affi nity.

A key driver in festival interest was that it represented “something great to do without leaving Saudi Arabia”. This illustrates the greater eff ect, in line with Vision 2030, of diverting some of Saudi’s sizeable overseas expenditure on entertainment into the domestic economy. As attending live experiences becomes a cultural norm, increasingly sophisticated brand platforms will emerge around this passion point. Logo-slapping will not cut it; our discerning audience groups will expect an authentic role for brands within this fast-emerging ecosystem. We anticipate some of the biggest and best brand platforms in global entertainment to come from this region over the next few years and we’re ready to push the boundaries.

Saudis are a connected group, as we’ve seen with the high per-capita usage rates across the various social networks, a trend that won’t change any time soon. “Keeping me entertained” was the top reason for social media usage (66 per cent). Arguably the relatively low number of traditional media brands in KSA could create an opportunity for non-traditional content creators (infl uencers, music properties, consumers, even brands) to fi ll the void in using entertainment as a social currency.

It’s not all about the next party or FOMO-inducing experience for the Saudi youth. 83 per cent agreed that SoundStorm provided more opportunities for local creatives and, indeed, MDL Beast is committed to supercharging local creators, inspiring them to follow their passion and showcasing Neo Arab youth culture globally. 82 per cent were proud of the creativity and culture of Saudi Arabia, with all demographic groups displaying optimism for a promising future. Interestingly, optimism peaked with females aged 25-34. Moving beyond core music fans, much of our future activity will be targeting the ‘Cultural Futurists’, a group that really drives this patriotic push for progress. They have an appetite for entertainment with purpose, not just play, for platforms that ladder up to the betterment of society. Whether through driving communities, conferences or crowdsourced creativity, we see a huge role for brands in empowering this generation.

Interestingly, the mainstream groups (‘The Follower’ and ‘Old School’) represented just 30 per cent of consumers surveyed. Indeed, The Follower segment was found to be three times smaller than the US equivalent when a replica survey was completed for benchmarking. Clearly KSA consumers are taking an active role in accelerating change. They are vocal and will be loyal advocates for brands that appeal to their passions and sense of values through this next phase of cultural evolution. What an exciting time to co-create culture.

‘‘66 per cent of all people cited music as a real passion of theirs and, for 49 per cent, it was a clear number one.”