GMR | July 2010 | TOP 50GCC corporateBrands by MediaquestCorp.

SECTOR ANALYSIS INNOVATION AND EMOTION SUPPLANT FUNCTIONALITY IN HOUSEHOLD CARE A MediaquestCorp Publication

JULY-AUGUST 2010 - NO 188

TOP 50 GCC corporate Brands

HALAL LIFE THE UK DRINK AT THE HEART OF RAMADAN

MEDIA PLANNING NEW SKILLS NEEDED FOR DIGITAL PLANNING

SPECIAL REPORT MARKETING TO WOMEN

Registered in Dubai Media City

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PROFILE

What’s driving Volkswagen chief Stephan Mecha?

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JULY-AUGUST 2010 – ISSUE NO. 188

NEWS

FiFi Fragrances Awards to debut in UAE. EMEA multinationals step up MBU auditing. Malayalam business title launches. Travel site adopts Halalfriendly hotel rating. Family movie portal for UAE and Saudi Arabia. World Cup app launch pad for BBC website.

WORLD NEWS

Q&A

WFA updates media auditing guidelines. Starbuck’s Digital Network plans unveiled. UK’s Waitrose launches branded YouTube channel. Hearst buys iCrossing digital marketing firm. Pepsi backs media startups. Danone acquires US nutrition firm. Reality-style search for Fanta ambassador under way. Tea and coffee prove most resilient in Mexico’s ravaged economy. AAAI fury at Reckitt Benckiser’s pay-to-pitch diktat. Pro-Islam awareness drive launches in UK. TBWA Johannesburg most awarded agency ever?

Converting buzz words to buy words is what GoNabit founder Dan Stuart hopes for his social shopping site.

RESEARCH

Consumer confidence picks up in Saudi Arabi and the UAE.

GEMAS CASE STUDY

The CSR category attracted many worthy contenders.

HALAL LIFE

Ramadan just wouldn’t be Ramadan… For nearly a century Vimto Cordial has been at the heart of special gatherings in the Arab world, none more so than during the Holy Month.

COVER STORY 42 THE TOP GCC PLC BRANDS GMR Exclusive: Which are the strongest PLCs in the GCC? In an annual study of the relationship between enterprise value and brand value the report authors Brand Finance break down the data by country and business sector and analyse the results.

STRATEGY

Convincing customers that online banking is completely safe takes a significant marketing investment

MEDIA

Neo Ogilvy’s Anna Gibbons highlights the new skill sets required for the data-complex business of digital media planning.

ADVERTISING

Just because MENA consumers are culturally similar it doesn’t mean that one ad execution will fit all.

SPECIAL REPORT MARKETING TO WOMAN

We report back from GMR’s 4th annual Marketing to Women Conference.

SECTOR ANALYSIS: HOMECARE

Innovation is the principle driver behind growth in the burgeoning homecare category. It’s dirty work but someone has to do it... although in this region it’s not usually the one who buys the products. So who exactly should marketers target? Perhaps the most stale of the homecare sub segments, aircare desperately needs a fresh new approach. Plus latest Parc ad spend data and analysis and Sekari’s top 10 word searches.

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 3

70 SECTOR ANALYSIS: HOMECARE MediaquestCorp. Dubai Media City Al Thuraya Tower 2, 24th Floor United Arab Emirates Tel: +(971) 4 391 0760 Fax: +(971) 4 390 8737 www.mediaquestcorp.com

MANAGING EDITOR Siobhán Adams siobhan@mediaquestcorp.com DEPUTY EDITOR Precious Jasper de Leon precious@mediaquestcorp.com

AUDITED BY ART DIRECTORS Sheela Jeevan, Alvin Cha

Reproduction in whole or part of any matter appearing in GMR is prohibited by law without the prior written approval of the publishers. Opinions expressed in GMR do not necessarily represent the views of the publishers and editorial staff of the magazine. The publishers do not hold out any guarantee as to its accuracy, neither do they indemnify any loss arising through use of the information. All dollar prices ($) are US dollars, unless otherwise specified. All marketing data is subject to confirmation. Printed in the UAE by Atlas Printing Press

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Europe: S.C.C Arabies 18 rue de Varize 75016 Paris, France Tel: +(33) 01 47 66 46 00 Fax: +(33) 01 43 80 73 62 Lebanon: Beirut, Lebanon Tel: +(961) 1 202 369 Fax: +(961) 1 202 369

CONTRIBUTORS Radhina Coutinho, Alex Malouf ADVERTISING: MEDIALEADER United Arab Emirates sales@mediaquestcorp.com Tel: +(971) 4 391 0760 Saudi Arabia: Ghassan A. Rbeiz ghassan@mediaquestcorp.com

PUBLISHED BY: Medialeader FZ/MediaquestCorp FZ Europe: S.C.C Arabies, 18 rue de Varize 75016 Paris, France Tel: +(33) 01 47 66 46 00 Fax: +(33) 01 43 80 73 62

CO-CEO Alexandre Hawari CO-CEO Julien Hawari CFO Abdul Rahman Siddiqui Managing Director Ayman Haydar Creative Director Aziz Kamel Distribution & Subscription Director JP Nair, jp@mediaquestcorp.com Marketing Manager Joumana Haddad, joumana@mediaquestcorp.com KSA GM Tarek Abu Hamzy, tarekah@mediaquestcorp.com, Tel: +966 1 4194061 Lebanon GM Nathalie Bontems, Nathalie@mediaquestcorp.com, Tel: +961 1 492801 North Africa GM Adil Abdel Wahab, adel@medialeader.biz, Tel: +213 661 562 660 France Sales Director Manuel Dias, dias@arabies.com, Tel: +33 1 4766 46 00

NEWS

Cookie brand sticks to new family movie portal Majority of families watch films together, 70 per cent cite comedies as top choice GCC Kraft Middle East’s cookie brand Oreo is reinforcing its “warm family moments” positioning with the launch of the Oreo Family Movie Club online and on Facebook. The club is described as a one-stop destination for all content related to family films, including trailers of new and upcoming movies, behindthe-scenes and red carpet footage, interviews and reviews as well as TV and listings. To coincide with the launch, Kraft conducted a survey of movie preferences and habits among nearly 500 families across the UAE and Saudi Arabia. The survey revealed

Coming soon: Oreo launches a movie portal for families

that 61 per cent of respondents in the UAE said familyoriented movies are important as they bring families closer together, while 54 percent said that watching movies is a great way for the family to relax together. In Saudi Arabia, however,

families had a different take, with more than 50 per cent stating that watching movies provided an opportunity to learn about different cultures and improve language skills. Families watch movies together at least twice a week, mainly on TV or on DVDs

and mostly from 7pm to 11pm. In both countries, more than 70 per cent said they liked comedies best, followed by action films and cartoons. The survey was conducted in May online among parents of 227 families across the UAE and 259 families across Saudi Arabia by Business Compass, the research arm of Publicis Group. In separate but related news, data from the Qatar Statistics Authority show that the number of cinema-goers has tripled since 2006 from 374,568 to 1.36 million. The number of cinemas rose from nine to 25 during the same period.

Travel portal adopts Halal Friendly hotel ratings GCC/Singapore Hotels featured on Irhal.com, the Islamic travel portal, will carry Crescentrating Halal Friendly ratings. The initiative is further evidence of the burgeoning halal travel sector. Irhal.com provides travelrelated information in Arabic and English, catering to outbound travellers from the Middle East. Along with travel offers, the site’s city guides contain all the standard information along with prayer timings, mosque locations and halal restaurants in more than 70 cities. Singapore-based Crescentrating focusses on the worldwide Halal Friendly Travel market segment.

about the halal-friendliness of hotels, and this collaboration with Crescentrating will, Inshallah, encourage more hotels to cater to the unique needs of Muslims,” said Irfan Ahmad, Irhal CEO. The site was launched last April and within eight weeks its user base hit 120,000 unique visitors a month, it claims.

ERRATUM Shari’ah compliant: The hospitality sector is becoming more halal conscious

Its hotel rating system, which launched last year, rates hotels from one to seven based on catering to the specific needs of halalconscious travellers along with family friendly facilities,

6 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

environment and overall friendliness. “We are the world’s most comprehensive Arabic language travel website and our audience is predominantly Muslim. They want assurance

In June GMR, Creative View, we mistakenly attributed the Damas creative to The Idea Agency. The creative featured was in fact part of a Damas’ India campaign, produced in association with its Indian partner Gitanjali Group. It was designed by Gitanjali’s ad agency in that country. We regret the error and any confusion this may have caused.

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NEWS

Oriental fragrances to star in regional FiFi Awards Fragrance Foundation UAE’s official launch promises enhancements for sector

Scentsational: Shahzad Haider and Grit Pannier head the Fragrance Foundation UAE

UAE October will see the UAE debut of the regional Fragrance Foundation Awards. Popularly known as the FiFis, the awards were introduced by the Fragrance Foundation Arabia (FFA), the regional arm of the global industry body, the Fragrance Foundation US. A People’s Choice Award – probably for the best new

fragrance launch of the year – will be promoted through retailers. There will also be a Best Regional Fragrance category. Further details had yet to be finalised at the time of writing. Founded in late 2008 by Grit Pannier, president, and Shahzad Haider, founder of Brands Solution Marketing Consultancy, the FFA will

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS

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have a specific focus on promoting Oriental fragrances in international markets. “The Middle East is the hub and home of fragrances and we need more symposia to drive awareness,” said Haider at the inaugural FFA meeting. “The fragrance industry has historically always been an integral part of the daily

Islamic culture and way of life, and Arabs have a very unique passion for fragrances,” he added. “Today, the fragrance industry in the region is growing faster than in other parts of the world, and we have also noticed that Oriental perfumes are adapting their products to suit the global markets. “On the other hand, there is an exponential increase in international brands of fragrances and retail houses in the region because of the sheer demand and keen interest of the multinational brands within the Middle Eastern market,” he said. Other issues to be tackled by the FFA include implementation of the foundation’s Certified Fragrance Sales Specialist course; dual language online newsletter Scentsation; and combating fakes.

Qatar Mars’ brand Snickers has muscled in on World Cup mania by organising the longest football match ever. The event, which took place in Qatar recently, gathered 36 football fans from 10 different Arab markets to compete. Omar Salim, marketing director, Mars GCC, said: “Snickers has a heritage with football, the fans – not the celebrity players. Coming up to the football season, we wanted to stay true to the consumers and brand heritage. Snickers is about the Every Man, the guy who you can find bragging with his friends… about everything.” Lobna Elhalmy, Mediavest’s communications planner for Mars account, added: “The ability of Snickers to combine its football heritage and give the Every Man the ultimate bragging right was a great combination to create noise. Snickers was able to give them all the bragging tools with the integrated communication platform.” The match lasted 42 hours and five minutes and entered the Guinness Book of Records. Family and fans were continually updated via hourly updates on Star FM and a Facebook page. City 7 TV supported the event.

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NEWS

The auditing of MBUs gathers pace in EMEA Nearly 60 per cent of TV spend booked by MBUs is audited by advertisers EMEA According to a survey by the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), 70 per cent of its EMEA members currently work with more than one media auditor in under half of the markets in which they operate. When it comes to the percentage of respondents’ media spend audited in EMEA, an advertiser on average audits 59 per cent of TV investment in EMEA. Of the 50 per cent in EMEA who audit their online investment, they only look at 13 per cent of the investment. Of those who do audit their online investment, 46 per cent said they were satisfied with the results, versus 22 per cent who were dissatis-

Clean bill of health: 77 per cent of WFA members pay auditors a fixed fee

fied – the rest being neutral. And, despite the higher quantity of pitches globally in 2009, the number of EMEA members using auditors as pitch consultants dropped to 60 per cent from 73 per cent in 2008. When it comes to renumeration, 77 per cent pay their auditors on fixed or output-based fee for a project or period – up from 71 per cent in 2008.

This could be indicative of a shift towards more adhoc or tactical approach to using media audit partners in EMEA, WFA spokesman Robert Dreblow told GMR. Overall, 95 per cent of EMEA respondents feel that they enjoy value for money from their media auditors, up from 86 per cent in 2008. The news coincides with the recent release of the second edition

of WFA Guide to Choosing a Media Auditor. The guidelines were first issued in 2003 and aim to help marketers worldwide increase the value they derive from media auditing, says WFA. The results were taken from three surveys of WFA multinational corporate members in Asia-Pacific, Europe and Latin America late last year. They focused solely on media auditing. Thirty-six companies took part, representing $40 billion in global media spend. Although not statistically significant, the results are indicative of multinational marketers’ experience, says WFA. (See World News, page 14, for global data.)

Fourth title in Kuwait applies for BPA auditing Kuwait Mondanite Kuwait – published by Circle Advertising & Publishing, has become the fourth Kuwait-based title to apply for BPA audit. The news follows Watch Shopping magazine’s official application, also in Kuwait. Watch is a free bilingual monthly focusing on shopping trends and information. “With the growing emphasis on accountability by advertisers and agencies in the Kuwait market, we decided that it was important to demonstrate our transparency to our clients through the BPA audit of the circulation figures of Watch,” said Shadi Samad,

managing partner of publisher M2R. The magazine will have 12 months to complete its initial circulation audit. Aspen Aman, business development manager, Middle East, BPA Worldwide, told GMR that there is growing pressure from advertisers in Kuwait for auditing. BPA Middle East has 91 members, of which five are Arabic language, six are dual language and 80 are in English. Of the 18 pending applicants, four are Arabic language, two are dual language and 12 are English. Asked if membership had

12 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

Organic: BPS’s Aspen Aman

decreased during the economic crisis, Aman said there had been some attrition through ceased publications and some through forfeits – those which failed to complete a first audit within the stipulated time – as well as some resignations and terminations.

“But we have continued to see organic growth with additional titles coming on board from member publishers, as well as new entrants into the world of auditing,” she said. “The four titles applying from Kuwait in the past four months are a good example. They constitute one Arabic language mag (Mondanite Kuwait), one English magazine (Studentalk) and two bilingual publications (Bazaar and Watch Shopping Magazine). All come from different publishers.” Aman has since been to Saudi Arabia, meeting with MBUs and clients to promote print auditing.

Malayalam business title debut GCC Business Gulf, which claims to be the first business magazine in Malayalam, the language spoken by the largest expat segment in the region, launched in Dubai late last month. Published by the Fujairah-based Dart Publishing FZE, the tabloid-sized fortnightly will be published on the 1st and 15th of every month. According to editor Rammohan Paliyath, the publication is aimed at upper-middle class Malayali businessmen and prospective entrepreneurs who comprise one of the largest market segments in the region in numbers and net worth. “On advertising front, we target predominantly male, upper and upper-middle class services and products including banks, telecos, automobiles, electronics, IT, watches and jewellery, perfumes, builders, cameras, sunglasses, retail,

New entrant: Fortnightly offering

furniture, B2B products/services, cigarettes, garments, office automation, energy drinks, writing instruments, couriers, luggage and education,” Paliyath told GMR. He added that BPA audit would be applied for after the stipulated six-month period.

World Cup iPhone launch pad Middle East The BBC launched two free iPhone applications last month: The BBC News app and the World Cup app, Luke Bradley-Jones, executive vice president and managing director, BBC.com, told GMR. The news follows the recent unveiling of the BBC News iPad app and is in line with the media giant’s multi-platform strategy. Oracle is on board as a launch partner for the news app, extending its partnership for the iPad application. Yahoo is sponsoring the World Cup app in the US and Infiniti in Canada. Once the event ends, the app will cover content for football games and tournaments across the world. BBC. com is still in talks with potential sponsors for the Middle East.

The site reports 10 per cent yearon-year growth in its Middle East reach. Opening new mobile opportunities for its advertisers, advertising formats include a banner that floats on the side of the screen as the user scrolls up or down the page. Plans for developing similar applications for other smartphones are in progress, added Bradley-Jones. When asked about future trends, he said the network will continue its multi-platform strategy, emphasising mobility as well as webenabled TV. GMR recently reported that BBC. com was ranked 43rd on Google’s list of 1,000 global portals, placing it higher than any other website in the News and Current Events category.

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 13

WORLD NEWS

Starbuck’s offers new WiFi blend USA Starbucks has introduced free internet service at its 6,700 outlets across the United States via AT&T. Previously, only customers with a Starbucks card were entitled to two free hours of WiFi. The initiative heralds the launch later this year of the Starbucks Digital Network through partnership with Yahoo.

UK’s Waitrose unveils YouTube channel Channel will amplify celebrity chef tie-up, says supermarket UK Supermarket chain Waitrose has unveiled its first branded YouTube channel in response to an increasing move towards online brand engagement from customers, said the retailer. The site features interactive video content, including recipes, culinary tips and short films explaining the provenance of Waitrose food. The channel is aimed at broadening the reach of the retailer’s partnership with UK celebrity chefs Delia Smith and Heston Blumenthal. Visitors can also link to 5,000 recipes, current special offers and to shop online at Waitrose.com. Each week the channel will

Cook off: Delia Smith and Heston Blumenthal have partnered with Waitrose

feature the retailer’s Delia and Heston TV spots, with a new recipe supported by special offers on Waitrose food. Paul Hogan, manager of Direct and Local Marketing at Waitrose, says: “This YouTube channel will play a key role in our marketing strategy – it is the perfect platform to in-

spire a wider audience with interactive content in relevant and exciting formats.” Integrated agency Kitcatt Nohr Alexander Shaw created the channel. Other innovations include the first ever digital recipe magazine, Waitrose Live, which launched last year.

New serving: Starbucks’ Digital Network launches later this year

“This online experience will be unique in its content offerings, allowing customers free, unrestricted access to various paid sites and services such as wsj.com, exclusive content and previews, free downloads, local community news and activities, on their laptops, tablets or smart phones,” said Starbucks. Driven by Digital Ventures, a new business unit within Starbucks, it is led by Stephen Gillett, chief information officer and general manager, Digital Ventures. Launch content providers will include iTunes, The New York Times, Patch, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, Yahoo and Zagat.

WFA guidelines on auditing the auditors Global The World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) has issued updated guidelines to help marketers choose and use media auditors. Media auditors are now used by almost all of WFA’s multinational members in Europe, by 57 per cent in Asia-Pacific and by 50 per cent in Latin America. The original guidelines were published in 2003. Levels of advertiser satisfaction with auditors vary considerably by region, says WFA. On average, 95 per cent of WFA members in Europe feel that they get value for money from media auditors – up from 86 per cent in 2008.

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‘Room for improvement’: Rahul Welde

This contrasts with 64 per cent in Asia-Pacific and only 56 per cent in Latin America. Large multinational advertisers face similar auditing challenges across the globe. In Europe, for example, only 21 per cent of those surveyed were “satisfied with

their media auditor’s experience in non-traditional media; 55 per cent in Latin America and 50 per cent in Asia-Pacific agreed that pools are too small for larger advertisers. Unilever’s vice-president Media, Asia AMET and chairman, WFA’s APAC Media and Marketing Network, Rahul Welde, said:“It’s clear that media auditing is an increasingly useful asset for marketers. However, standards in some regions and certain media still have a great deal of room for improvement.” The guidelines are available on the WFA website.

WORLD NEWS

Pepsi hunt for Perfect 10 entrepreneurs Beverage co hatches programme for young innovators USA PepsiCo has launched an innovation incubator programme for start-ups in media, communications and technology. The company will select up to 10 aspiring entrepreneurial groups, match them with industry mentors, and join with them to activate pilot programmes with PepsiCo brands. Partners in the programme include venture capitalists Highland Capital Partners and social media site Mashable. Called PepsiCo 10, the programme helps connect selected entrepreneurs with other business partners including OMD Ignition Factory, TracyLocke, dmg : events and Weber Shandwick. Entrepreneurs can make submissions on one of four segments: social media, mo-

Helping hand: Pepsi will support up to 10 aspiring entrepreneurial groups

bile marketing, place-based and retail experiential marketing, or digital video or gaming. Proposals are evaluated on their ability to impact brands and/or further PepsiCo’s corporate Performance with Purpose priorities. After the assessment, 20 finalists will be go to PepsiCo headquarters and present their ideas to marketing ex-

ecutives, partner media and investment agencies. Up to 10 entrepreneurs will be then be given opportunity to execute a pilot project with the PepsiCo brand teams. PepsiCo has also recently inked contracts with locationbased social networking site Foursquare, endorsement marketing firm Brand Affinity, and Twitter advertising platform Ad.

Fanta launches search for Fantana USA A national search is under way for the fourth Fantana, or “brand ambassador of fun”. Aspiring Fantanas can upload their one-minute audition videos for a chance to be selected and win $7,000 and the opportunity to be included in Fanta’s new national advertising and marketing campaign. The winner will be revealed nationally on MTV in late September. Fanta was relaunched last year with 100 per cent natu-

Big opportunity: The fourth Fantana will be revealed on MTV in September

ral flavours. New variants including grape, pineapple, peach and apple, and more modern packaging.

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According to owner CocaCola, Fanta Orange is the number one fruit-flavoured sparkling beverage in the US.

Danone buys medical firm France/USA French company Danone is buying Medical Nutrition USA, (MNI) Inc for $62 million cash. MNI develops and distributes products for the nutritionally at risk who are under medical supervision. The company introduced liquid protein supplements for elderly people in 2003. Its product range now addresses protein supplementation and wound care support. Sales have grown 10 fold since 2003 to reach $16 million in fiscal year ended January 31, 2010. MNI’s organisation and product portfolio will become part of Danone’s Medical Nutrition division. Sales at Danone’s North American Medical Nutrition business, Nutricia North America, reached $70 million in 2009. The mutual benefit says both companies lie in the complementarities, both in terms of product ranges and distribution channels. MNI has access to the longterm care channel while Nutricia’s products in America are mainly aimed at infants and distributed in pharmacies. In separate but related news, Danone has sold its Arvie sparkling water brand to French bottling company Eurokin. The terms were not disclosed. Danone withdrew the brand in December 2008, but Arvie is reportedly set to return for sale in July. The plant is expected to produce 25 million bottles per annum.

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WORLD NEWS

AAAI fury at RB’s pay-to-pitch rule India A row has broken out between Reckitt Benckiser (India) – RB – and the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI). AAAI has called on India’s marketing community to shun RB’s media review in protest over its new pay-to-pitch, which it called “unacceptable and ridiculous”. RB’s media account, which is under review, sparked the controversy. According to The Economic Times, some of India’s MBUs have shunned RB’s demand for an $8,600 pitch fee. MPG India is the incumbent. “The AAAI strongly believes that advertisers should not charge agencies a fee for pitching to a client, as there is no rationale to do so,” said Sudesh Kapoor, executive secretary. “In fact, it is the view of AAAI that advertisers should pay a fee to the invited agencies for pitching as compensation for their time and effort.” In addition, RB allegedly wants agencies to pay commission for the first 12-18 months because MBUs earn volume rebates from the media. RB is one of India’s biggest advertisers, reputedly spending 14 per cent of the total spend. Not everyone, however, supports the AAAI. Meenakshi Madhvani, managing partner of Spatial Access Private Limited, said: “Smart clients have realised that agencies make huge incomes from media owners in the form of volume discounts and rebates.”

London-wide campaign launched to portray positive image of Islam in UK Stereotypes challenged via‘Inspired by Muhammad’ creative UK Euro RSCG Apex Communications has created a new public awareness campaign to help improve the image of Islam and Muslims in the UK. The London-wide initiative follows a national YouGov opinion poll that revealed that half the British population associates Islam with extremism (58 per cent) and terrorism (50 per cent). Called “Inspired by Muhammad”, the campaign showcases how Muslims are inspired by their faith to contribute positively to British society. The Exploring Islam Foundation, a charity set up in 2009

Public awareness: Charity-funded campaign drives positive message

to challenge stereotypes about Islam, commissioned it. Muslim convert Kristiane Backer, photographed in a London cab decorated with the campaign’s logo, launched the

project. Executions include adverts at bus stops, tube stations and on London Taxis. A website has also been launched to explain Islam’s principles and core beliefs.

TBWA Jo’burg’s trillion dollar baby South Africa The Trillion Dollar campaign, created by TBWA\ Hunt\Lascaris for The Zimbabwean newspaper, could be the most awarded creative in advertising history. TBWA New York calculated that the Johannesburg-based agency has not only won more awards but that it is also the top awarded agency of the past 12 months. The campaign attacked president Robert Mugabe ‘shandling of the country’s economy, which left its national currency worthless. Using actual Zimbabwean notes as the medium, the OHH campaign – posters and billboards – captured the attention of the world’s press.

18 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

Monopoly money: TBWA’s paper money campaign has earned global plaudits

The straplines included: “It’s cheaper to print this on money than on paper.” The Zimbabwean targets Zimbabweans living in the UK and 2 million in Southern Africa. The 63-awards haul to date include: the Black Pencil for Design at the D&ADs the-firstever ADC Black Cube for best-

in-show in advertising by the Art Directors Club as well as three Golds; nine Cannes Lions, including the Outdoor Grand Prix and five Gold Lions at the 2009 Cannes Lions; two Grand Clios (plus another six trophies); a Grand Prix and Gold at the Loeries, as well as a Gold Apex.

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Q&A

FROM BUZZ TO BUY Dan Stuart, founder and CEO of social shopping site GoNabit, on bridging the gap between online buzz and actual buying. CANADIAN NATIONAL Dan Stuart, 36, is founder and CEO of Dubai-based social shopping site GoNabit. Previously chief possibility officer of recruitment portal Bayt.com, he was also director of Intilaq, Bayt’s corporate venture capital arm. Stuart holds a Masters Degree in Curriculum, Theory and Learning from the University of Toronto. He formed GoNabit in January and was joined by partner and chief operating officer Sohrab Jahanbani in March. GoNabit is part funded by the directors and Bayt.com, enabling it to leverage Bayt’s regional infrastructure.

22 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

Let’s start with the social shopping concept around GoNabit. Essentially, it’s a group buying concept where a business gives a 50-90 per cent promotion on our website, and if a certain number of our GoNabit members commit to the deal, they all get it. If not enough nabbers commit to the deal, no one gets it. This model works well in the Middle East because the shopping culture is very social, with people going to malls and shops in groups. We let people get great online deals that they still experience

in the social, offline world. It provides a way for members and their friends to save and discover local businesses; to try out new business. At the same time, it gives companies an opportunity for repeat business at full price. So what exactly does it offer brands? From our business perspective, we like to use the term “assured marketing” in that it’s performance-based marketing where we define the campaign metrics with the businesses we work with and they can be “assured” that we hit these

by getting enough people committed to the deal, or it costs them nothing. Small businesses are already advertising online, but there’s always a gap between building buzz about the brand and translating this into new buyers. This is because an online ad works well if there’s a lead conversion mechanism on the back end. The ad needs to click through to a website that doesn’t just give more information, but has a lead capture or a booking engine that retains the viewer’s interest and shifts them into buyers. We have the mechanism to build buzz. And because people can transact through our website, we bridge the gap from buzz to buy. Which markets are you targeting? Our launch cities are Dubai and Abu Dhabi. But we are looking at Kuwait City, Amman, Beirut, Cairo, Jeddah and Riyadh as well. We think this business works well in different markets and we want to move quickly and smartly. Kuwait City, for example, has a good mix of online savvy good businesses. I lived there for three years so I know it pretty well. Amman and Beirut might not have the greatest internet penetration, nor the largest populations, but they have a great mix of savvy buyers and great variety of things to do. We are also looking at places that have a natural cultural connection to the region such as Turkey and India. Which businesses have shown interest so far? With the social calendar and at one deal every day, we can only work with a limited number of companies. Assuming some repeat collaboration we would be working with roughly 200 businesses a year. It may sound like a lot but once it’s divided into categories such as restaurants, spas, salons, adventure, events and off-the-wall activities, it’s really not that many.

Kuwait City, for example, has a good mix of online savvy good businesses. a business that you’ve heard of but you didn’t know much about – exploration. They are mostly service-based businesses. With events we’re looking at where we get a batch of tickets that we put up as promotion the day before the tickets go online. This limited promotion is meant to be a buzz generator and a WoM amplifier so that when tickets go on sale, there’s a build-up towards the actual sale of the event at full price. GoNabit is selective by virtue of our model. So you see GoNabit as a marketing aide too? We prepare the visuals and the copy for a particular business client for that day. So they get a full marketing message with the deal. It’s not just a faceless coupon.

It’s our resources centred on that brand for that day and that city. When people land on that site, they experience visuals and messages that are aligned with the marketing objectives of that business. It’s hard to get people to sign up for five out of five deals. But if we can get each of them interested in two out of the five for themselves, and one for somebody else, then that’s pretty good. How do you make money? Because we’re handling all the transactions and because it’s performance-based, we take a commission. So the businesses never send us money, the product does the marketing. Essentially, they don’t need a budget to work with us.

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 23

What’s the criteria? Our clients are either a business that you’ve never heard of – discovery – or

Focused: Visuals and messages on the site are aligned with the marketing objectives of businesses, Stuart says

Q&A

Discounts: The offers are mainly targeted at university-educated women with disposable incomes

From our business perspective, we like to use the term ‘assured marketing’. They are marketing off the margin from that first visit—the promotion. How many members do you have already? Right now we have more than 15,000 members. The value for businesses shouldn’t be only about the number of emails we have in our database, but in the difference of how many of our members convert into paid purchases. And target market? Our assumptive market is a 60-40 breakdown. The majority is 24-45-year-old females, university educated with disposable income. We have deals for men too, of course. For instance, where the promotion is for women only, we position it to the men as a potential gift. You can also buy credit for someone else, such as a staff or a friend. What are your marketing strategies for the site? While we are marketing the business

24 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

through our database, we are also running a banner campaign on several websites including Bayt.com. Reinforcing the social nature, we are also running ads on Facebook – the more friends you have, the higher chances are for getting a deal. Say there are 12 members interested in a certain promotion and 50 people are needed to get it, it’s in the interest of those members to become what I call a “value evangelist”, spreading the word to friends so they get the deal. This also gives members the opportunity to use the vouchers together, making the experience even more social. We also have community managers in each city. Their job is to build and manage the community with a personal presence; to be online and out in the field, listening to what people are saying in terms of deals they want to see. We’re not really about shopping online, we’re about getting great deals online that are then experienced offline.

How long did it take from concept to launch? It took four months. For a while I was working on this on my own, then Sohran Jahanbani joined and now there are nine of us, handling sales, admin, operations, etc. How do you monitor its effectiveness? We are in a position to give consumers the opportunity to know more about the business and to make a commitment to do the deal. This is why we strictly monitor the quality of the businesses we work with. After all, if the customer is not happy, not only are they not going back to that business, they also won’t come back to GoNabit for other deals. I wanted our brand to be something where ultimately people will be feel comfortable and share the deals with their friends. I also wanted for it to be something businesses will be comfortable aligning and associating with. The branding on our site is also designed in a way that doesn’t take away from the business client. We are essentially the wrapper or the container for that particular brand for that day. n

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RESEARCH

ON THE REBOUND

Consumers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia are beginning to regain their consumer confidence, a study reveals.

26 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

tugal (51), meanwhile, were the most pessimistic nations. Turning specifically to the GCC, the Nielsen survey shows very positive results for the UAE and Saudi Arabia. It reveals a 29-point increase in the Saudi consumer confidence index; which is the highest positive delta seen across all the 55 countries. The UAE’s consumer confidence index has also shown a significant rise of 11 points from 92 points in fourth quarter of 2009 to 103 in the first quarter of 2010. The optimism exhibited by Saudi and UAE consumers has now positioned both countries among the top 10 confident markets across the globe. It is delightful to see a positive start for 2010, where the world economy is

regaining its confidence, and we observe the same trend for Saudi Arabia and UAE consumers. UAE consumers remained confident during most of 2009 – at a time when the world faced a gloomy situation. However, the uncertainty that the Dubai financial meltdown brought in December 2009 had shaken their confidence, dropping the index by 10 points. But consumers are back in the game and are getting more comfortable about their financial situation and job security, convinced that the worst is over. Some UAE consumers claim that the country is still in recession; however, more and more consumers are now convinced that it’s the end of the road this year. About 42 per cent of UAE consumers

THE GLOBAL consumer confidence index in the first quarter of this year rebounded to reach its highest level of 92 points since its all-time low of 77 in early 2009. The index has increased by six points from seven months ago and is now only two points short of the 94-point index mark in the third quarter of 2007, just prior to onset of the global recession, thus providing the most definitive sign that the world economy is beginning to recover. The global consumer confidence index rose in 41 of the 55 countries surveyed during the quarter, with India (127 index points), Indonesia (116) and Norway (115) remaining the world’s most confident nations. Lithuania (46), Croatia (48) and Por-

GMR FP.ai

CMY

4/27/10

10:41 AM

RESEARCH

are convinced the recession will be over in the next 12 months, compared to 36 percent in the last wave. Although consumers are still cautious about their spending and about eight in 10 have changed their spending habits to save on household expenditure, 64 per cent of UAE consumers said that the state of their personal finances is excellent or good for the next 12 months compared to 51 per cent in the last wave. UAE consumers are still cautious about their spending and remain committed to paying credit card debts and loans, and managing costs on telephone, gas and utility bills.

UAE over the next 12 months will be excellent or good, which depicts a slight increase compared to six months ago. At a time when the world is becoming cautiously more positive about the revival of the global economy, Saudi consumers have shown solid optimism in their economy in quarter one. The market is confident as close to one in two consumers feels that the country is not in recession and three in four Saudis feel comfortable about their personal financial situation in the days to come. This positivity and assurance in both the economy and their financial affairs have also made Saudis become more

They are, however, also expressing their desire to increase their spending on upgrading technology, home improvement and apparels. A positive signal on this comes from Nielsen’s Retail Panel, which reports 13 per cent growth in the first quarter of 2010 versus a year ago, proving that consumers have started spending more on FMCGs. Globally, economy and job security remain consumers’ top concerns in the first quarter. In the UAE, as well, one in four consumers cite job security as a main concern, but this number has decreased in the past six months. At the same time, 61 per cent of consumer believe that job prospects in the

CONSUMER CONFIDENCE INDEX GLOBAL TOP 10 India Indonesia Norway Philipines Australia Saudi Arabia Brazil China Singapore UAE

MEAP AVERAGE: How to utilise spare cash after covering essential living expenses 44 44 44

1 5

Putting into savings 37

4 28 28 28 29

5 29

New clothes

0 17 11

New technology products

Holidays/vacations

21 20 19 22

Changes: March 2010 vs. Oct 2009

100

120

140

Base: All respondents

Paying odd debts/credit cards/loans

MIDDLE EAST, AFRICA, PAKISTAN REGION (MEAP) 79 79

Saudi Arabia

108

75 74 71

Egypt

Home improvements/ decorating Out of home entertainment

21 20

110

UAE

22 21 20 20 21

102 103

Investing in shares of stock/mutual funds

91 89 92 76

South Africa

Q1 2010 Q3 2009 Q1 2009 Q3 2008 Base: All respondents N = 2465; ** Saudi Arabia introduced from Q1 2009

28 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

Don’t know/undecided

100

120

24 23

3 5

Q1 2010 Q3 2009 Q1 2009 Base: All respondents N = 2465

Q3 2008

Source: The Nielsen Company UAE 2010

6 6 7

Retirement fund

86 84

27 26 26

83 84

MEAP avg.

I have no spare cash

15 15

Pakistan

26 26

6 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

RESEARCH

positive about their spending in the near future. Fewer Saudis have now come back saying that they will be saving in the days to come (one in three compared to one in two in 2009 first quarter), and increased number have come back saying that they are now planning to travel for a vacation, spend on home decorations and buy new clothing and new technology products. The appetite

for risk also seems to be returning where close to two in 10 Saudis are planning to invest in stocks and shares. This growing positivity is an opportunity for the marketers to cash on; more so in the apparel, technology and tourism industry. Brands need to adopt a push strategy as the consumers will soon be shopping around. Proactively approaching the consumers should help give one brand an edge over

the other, as Saudis have realised that the good days are back and the extra cash in their wallets does not deserve to sit in there for any longer. n

Sevil Ermin managing director UAE The Nielsen Company

CONSUMER CONFIDENCE SURVEY Q1 2010 Compared to this time last year, which of the following actions have you taken in order to save on household expenses? MEAP average 16

UAE

60%

2 15

40%

Base: All respondents who answered Yes Q10 (Code 1) n=313

Base: All respondents who answered Yes Q10 (Code 1) n=396

Base: All respondents who answered Yes Q10 (Code 1) n=1746

10% 5%

15%

25%

10%

20%

10%

30%

35% 30%

40%

20%

50%

30% 14

Saudi Arabia

60%

50% 15

70%

When economic conditions do improve, which of these do you expect you will continue to do? MEAP average 16

80%

UAE

1 2

70% 60%

2 3

15%

30%

20%

10%

11 10

20%

50%

25%

40%

30%

60%

40% 14

Saudi Arabia

70% 3

50%

80%

11 10

10%

11 10

Base: All respondents who answered Yes Q10 (Code 1) n=1746

Base: All respondents who answered Yes Q10 (Code 1) n=396

Base: All respondents who answered Yes Q10 (Code 1) n=313

1. Use my car less often 2. Cut down on at-home entertainment 3. Cut down on out-of-home entertainment 4. Cut down on take-away meals 5. Cut down on smoking 6. Spend less on new clothes

7. Switch to cheaper grocery brands 8. Cut down on telephone expenses 9. Try to save on gas and electricity 10. Cut down on holidays / short breaks 11. Cut out annual vacation 12. Cut down on or buy cheaper brands of alcohol

13. Look for better deals on home loans, insurance, credit cards, etc 14. Delay the replacement of major household items 15. Delay upgrading technology, e.g. PC, Mobile, etc 16. I have taken other actions not listed above

30 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

Source: The Nielsen Company UAE 2010

ATV080_GMR-215 x 280mm-4players-in-1-rev2-F.indd 1

6/20/10 6:56:04 PM

G E M A S E F F I E C A S E S T U DY

CATEGORY: BEST USE OF CSR No golds in this category, but worthy contenders nonetheless.

THE SILVER AWARD Client: NFPC Oasis Sector: Bottled water Product: Oasis Water Campaign: Water for Africa Agency: Leo Burnett Dubai Media expenditure: $500,000 THE CHALLENGE To give consumers a reason-to-buy within a category where the local brands have become commoditised and imported brands are more costly.

32 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

THE BIG IDEA Drink water. Give water. The Water for Africa Campaign. For every bottle of water drunk, consumers contribute towards providing an equal amount of safe drinking water for those who need it most. BRINGING THE IDEA TO LIFE Create a correlation between an everyday act such as drinking water and giving. The no-fuss, no-frill mechanics guaranteed immediate and tangible consumer benefit at moment-of-purchase. An animation featuring a girl

from the UAE and one from Africa, and from very different backgrounds, but who both share the basic human need for safe drinking water. Oasis also partnered with the UN GEMS Water Campaign and UAE Ministry of Environment and Water. Media included TV – a first for Oasis – radio, social media, print and PoS. EFFECTIVENESS Sales rose by 10 per cent over two months; the campaign raised $126,700 for the UN’s Pure Drinking Water in Africa; 3,200 wrist bands were sold with the same number of signatures, while 360,000 litres of safe drinking water delivered to Africa in less than three months.

OBJECTIVE Increase sales; build awareness and create a competitive advantage; as well as provide reason-to-buy and position

Oasis as a citizen giving back to the community.

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G E M A S E F F I E C A S E S T U DY

injuries through child car safety seats; change parental behaviour and address the misconception that children are safest in the arms or laps of parents; and change public behaviour positively and create advocates within the public. Also to highlight child passenger safety as a key issue in the larger context of road safety leading to a change in legislation. THE BIG IDEA To convince parents that a properly installed child seat reduces risk of injury and death by up to 71 per cent.

THE SILVER AWARD Client: Masafi Co Sector: Bottled water Product: Masafi Campaign: Corporate Recycling Initiative Agency: In-house Masafi Media expenditure: Less than $500,000 THE CHALLENGE To build awareness of Masafi’s Corporate Recycling Initiative, which is offered to companies employing 200 or more people, whereby Masafi collects plastic bottles, reprocesses them and forwards them to a recycling plant where they are recycled into non-food applications, such as plastic egg trays.

they all have CSR objectives to fulfill and Masafi is there to help them with little effort and no expense on the part of the participating companies. Online media, PR and print advertisements in select print were used. EFFECTIVENESS Fifty-three partners were enrolled in 2009 and at the time of entry 97 partners across the seven emirates had signed up.

OBJECTIVE To reduce the amount of plastic bottles in the UAE’s landfills; reinforce Masafi’s CSR and commitment to sustainability

THE BRONZE AWARD Client: General Motors Middle East Sector: Automotive Product: Chevrolet Campaign: Buckle-Up – Child Seat Awareness Campaign UAE Agency: Starcom MediaVest Group, Leo Burnett Dubai & Memac Ogilvy PR Media Expenditure: Confidential

THE BIG IDEA Offer firms a recycling service for their bottles, thus reducing Masafi’s and the sector’s UAE carbon footprint. The companies had CSR targets and a minimum 200 employees for clients to sign in, thus ensuring a critical mass per pick up.

THE CHALLENGE The UAE has one of the highest rate of road deaths in the world, yet child safety seats are not compulsory in spite of research showing that correctly fitted child seats reduce child fatalities in car accidents by up to 71 per cent.

BRINGING THE IDEA TO LIFE Targeting key decision-makers within the companies based on the insight that

OBJECTIVE Raise child safety awareness in the UAE to reduce child passenger deaths and

34 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

BRINGING THE IDEA TO LIFE A mass media focused message: “If you love them, set them free…”; encouraging parents to hold on to their children – in the broader context of holding on to their lives, by strapping them into a child car safety seat. Media and consumer touch-points included mall activations; demonstrations in schools; TV; Mother & Baby Show; in-traffic, mini brochure distribution and the Dubai Motor Show. EFFECTIVENESS Publications and TV stations requested to air and print the Arms ad FOC. • 5,405 people visited the mall stands, of which 1,485 were instructed on correct installation of safety seats. • 18,700 leaflets distributed in the malls. • 390 people visited the stand, 161 of were instructed at the Mother & Baby Show. • More than 500 children were weighed and given certificates and 2,000 leaflets were distributed at the BSAK schools. n

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HALAL LIFE

38 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

SWEET MEMORIES Every year Vimto refreshes itself in time for Ramadan and the millions of Muslims for whom it is a part of the family. AN IMPROBABLE pairing, but 85 years on and it flourishes still. Vimto and Ramadan are so strongly entwined it surprises many to learn that the intensely sweet, purple drink was concocted not in Arabia but in the industrial North West of England 102 years ago. Today Vimto – a secret juice-based blend of herbs and spices – generates global sales averaging $331 million, of which $109 million comes from the Middle East. Originally called Vim Tonic by its creator John Noel Nichols, it was intended as a non-alcoholic, restorative drink befitting the abstemiousness of Victorian Britain. Snazzily abbreviated to Vimto soon after its launch in 1908, it became an instant hit particularly in further reaches of the then British Empire. By 1924 it had become a registered trade mark in India, where it gathered

a sizeable following among the Muslim population. And it was in India that it caught the eye of Saudi national Abdulla Aujan, head of a family company which traded in tobacco, rice and beverages. Ahmed Shaboury, head of brands, Aujan, takes up the story. “Abdulla Aujan had an office in Bombay from where they shipped goods to the Gulf,” he told GMR. “In those days, ocean-going vessels from Europe did not have regular services to the BONDING

Friends and family: Vimto is enjoyed down through the generations

Gulf, so everything from Europe was transshipped at Bombay. They saw Vimto Cordial in Bombay and wrote to the Nichols family enquiring about the possibility of shipping 50 cases to Bahrain via Bombay. And that’s how it all started.” Up until the early 1980s it was exported in glass bottles until Aujan set up a bottling operation in Damman in 1984 using concentrate for local production. The association between the Aujan and Nichols families, however, remains unbroken. “Vimto has carved a special position in the hearts of the people of Arabia,” Shaboury points out. “The habit of consuming Vimto Cordial during Ramadan became part of the Arabian Peninsula’s heritage passed from generation to generation.” Today Aujan sells more than 20 million bottles of Vimto Cordial across the GCC, around 70 per cent of which is sold

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 39

HALAL LIFE

Timeless: Ads from 1998 (above) and 1999

Cordial relations: Vimto has become an integral part of special family events throughout the Arab World

The essence of Vimto master-brand is all about genuine relationships... during the Ramadan season – although it is also popular at other occasions such as weddings. Special moments then became the central plank of the marketing communications, focusing on the times during Ramadan that people enjoyed the most. “Ramadan is not Ramadan without Vimto” ran the strapline. The first TV campaign launched in 1987. From 1998 until 2001 Aujan ran the same TVC, but in 2002 the entire campaign and marketing approach was completely reinvigorated. In 2002 communications centred on togetherness and this evolved to joyfulness a year later. In 2004 both elements combined to Joy and Togetherness before a more radical shift to Sweet Gatherings – encapsulating the taste proposition plus the sweetness of the actual meeting. Aujan, meanwhile, has worked hard year after year to keep the classic stalwart relevant to modern consumers without compromising its traditional core values. It may have woven its way into the lives of three generations, but in a

40 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

region where half of the population is less than 18 years old, brand saliency is a continuous quest. One highly successful approach has been some nifty segmentation based on product variants. “The essence of the Vimto master-brand is all about genuine relationships,” Shaboury continued. “The difference in treatments appears in our communication at product level. For example, Vimto Cordial communication is about Genuine Family Relationships, while Vimto Carbonated is about Genuine Relationships Between Friends. This slight repositioning comes as a natural evolution of the togetherness platform.” CONTEMPORARY CLASSIC

Segmentation: Aujan’s Ahmed Shaboury

Another is innovation in advertising. In 2008 the advertising moved into advertainment. Working from the imaginary scenario that stocks could run out, 11 different and very funny TV vignettes showing widespread panic at the prospect were aired during prime time including the top-rated Ramadan nightly show Tash Ma Tash with the tagline: Hurry, they’ll finish it all. The integrated campaign featured PoS, OOH, print and mobile advertising. The vignette video clips went on to become online sensations. Aujan also partnered with MBC’s women’s online portal Imatter in a recipe competition. Sponsorship of Dubai’s Bride Show, meanwhile, is helping maximise oppor tunities in that other great family occasion, weddings, extending usage beyond Ramadan. As Shaboury says: “Vimto brand equity studies confirm that the brand has the highest affinity scores with consumers in Arabia when compared to all other cold beverage brands. “The bonding the brand enjoys with its consumers is so strong that the purchase behaviour during Ramadan and the rush towards the product at the PoP is a unique experience unmatched by any other product in the world.” n

Advertorial

RMS Outdoor wins advertising concession of Abraj Al Bait Mall in K.S.A. One of the largest and most important events in the world occurs annually in Saudi Arabia. The Hajj and Umrah pilgrimage are celebrated by millions of Muslims around the world, and is the single largest gathering of people. More than 6 million pilgrims pursue the Hajj and Umrah duties on yearly basis. Over 4.5 million pilgrims are forecasted, by the Saudi Arabia's National Committee for Hajj and Umrah to attend this year's Hajj pilgrimages, which is a 15 percent year-on-year increase in the number of Hajj pilgrims over 2009. Rotana Media Services Outdoor (RMS Outdoor, operating as HyperMedia in UAE), wins advertising concession of Abraj Al Bait Mall in Saudi Arabia located in Mecca facing the holy mosque. Abraj Al Bait Mall is a massive shopping mall, which is located at the Abraj Al Bait Towers in Mecca. Abraj Al Bait Towers is one of the most ambitious projects undertaken by the government of Saudi Arabia and is expected to be one of the tallest buildings in the world. The Abraj Al Bait Towers have a total of 76 floors spread over an area of 1,455,000 square meters. The towers are comprised of 6 residential towers, prayer hall for 3,800 people, convention centre for 1,500 people, 2 heliports and 4-story parking facilities and many luxurious five star hotels. The mall serves more than 12 million pilgrims every year and is an excellent opportunity for brands to reach a high number of consumers when and where it matters the most; at the Point of Purchase. The Abraj Al Bait Mall has become a shopperâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s paradise and a one-of-a-kind building in the whole world, as well as the

largest of its kind in the entire Islamic world. Branding opportunities vary from premium light boxes, atrium flags, escalator and elevator branding. These vehicles also provide a unique advertising opportunity to capture a diverse demographic from all around the world. With these exciting new communication platform now available, RMS Outdoor continues to help you target the RIGHT consumer at the RIGHt time and in the RIGHT place. Advertisers are now also equipped with a comprehensive advertising solution targeting the Hajj and Umrah demographics through the various advertising oppurtunities of the two iconic landmarks that welcome all the Hajj and Umrah visitors to Jeddah and Mecca; the Hajj Terminal, part of King Abdulaziz International airport in Jeddah, which is the terminal dedicated to process all incoming and outgoing Hajj and Umrah passengers through Jeddah, and now the Abraj Al Bait Mall. As a special long term offer for the Ramadan, Umrah and Hajj seasons,

RMS Outdoor is offering unique and exclusive branding and promotions which will target a wide consumer base with powerful media. More about RMS Outdoor RMS Outdoor, the Out-Of-Home (OOH) subsidiary of Rotana Media Services, delivers an unrivaled variety of advertising media across the Middle East including outdoor advertising, in-store advertising, mall advertising, and airport advertising. RMS Outdoor manages the advertising of over 125 hypermarkets and supermarkets in the UAE, more than 40 retail outlets in Jordan, Qatar and Oman, Kuwait and Virgin Megastores across the Middle East, including Bahrain, Lebanon, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar and Kuwait. RMS Outdoor is also the exclusive partner for all advertising at Dubai HealthCare City, Emaar Malls Group property, including one of the world's largest malls, The Dubai Mall, as well as all other Emaar communities.

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ÂŠ Corbis

COVER STORY

42 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

RECESSION PROOF? The outlook is promising for GCC brands as values increase this year. in value despite the financial downturn hitting the region’s real estate and investment sector. Nonetheless, other consumer-orientated brands remained buoyant. The brands in this year’s study contribute to a total Brand Value (BV) of nearly $36 billion, which represents a 20 per cent increase from 2009 results, measured at $29.8 billion. Subsequently, this year’s overall Enterprise Value (EV) for the Top 50 has also grown from $409 billion to $497 billion, an increase of 22 per cent over last year. EV is calculated as: Market capitalisation plus preferred equity plus minority interest plus total debt (long term and short term) plus cash and equivalents. The BV/EV ratio is an interesting metric that effectively shows how “hard” the brand is working – ie. what proportion of the enterprise value is made up by the brand value. This year, 7 per cent of the total GCC

Winners Zain Etisalat NBAD Mobily Saudi Electricity Al Rajhi Bank QNB First Gulf Bank Emirates NDB Savola Losers Aldar Public Warehousing STC Emaar Properties Mashreq Omantel Dubai Investments Batelco Union Properties Kuwait Finance House

Change in BV (US$ millions) 807 614 446 441 439 401 313 313 312 309 Change in BV (US$ millions) -549 -168 -119 -117 -106 -95 -91 -85 -56 -50

Source: Brand Finance plc ©Brand Finance 2010

EACH YEAR, London-headquartered Brand Finance plc publishes an annual study of the Top 50 brands in the GCC. In this feature, we look at how the brands measured up this year. This region is largely dominated by family-owned and government-controlled enterprises. Most brands appearing in the Top 50 are from the UAE and Saudi Arabia, whereas Bahrain and Oman contributed the least brands. The selection was primarily restricted by the need to obtain financial information, which is generally only available for publicly quoted companies. For this reason, there are some Gulf brands that are excluded because they are privately held. Regional brands still display high growth rates and an expansion to overseas markets. We can report that as the global economy improves, regional brands are capable of building brand value at a substantial level. The Top 50 GCC brands increased

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 43

COVER STORY

TOP 50 ME BRANDS (US$ MILLIONS)

Outright winner: For the fourth consecutive year, Emirates was revealed to be the highest ranked brand

The top 50 GCC brands increased in value even as the financial downturn hit the region. brand value is contributed to the total EV, consistent with the result in 2009 (7 per cent). For the fourth consecutive year Emirates was revealed to be the highest ranked brand with an estimated $3.5 billion in brand value. This figure compares favourably with last year’s measurement of $3.2 billion, a 10 per cent increase. This outstanding performance was partially attributed to the growth of passenger numbers and demand in the Middle East. Secondly, the airline’s focus on brandbuilding and its ability to match forecasted demand with a continuous investment in improving its onboard customer services quality also made a significant contribution. Emirates enjoyed an upgrade of its brand rating from AA+ to AAA-, maintaining its position as the sole airline brand appearing in the Top 50 GCC brands league table.

44 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

Telecoms • Valued at $2.9 billion, Zain, a Kuwaitibased mobile telecom operator, improved its brand value by 39 per cent, climbing up four places in the rankings. The brand has presence in 25 countries. More than half of its subscribers are in Africa. Zain’s core competency lies within its revolutionised concept, in its One Network technology, claimed to be the world’s first, borderless mobile service offering its customers favourable rates for cross-border communications and data services. The performance was attributable to other factors as well, including a widening of the brand’s cross-border footprint and its growing customer base. • Zain’s increase in brand value of $807 million outperformed its closest peer, Etisalat, which only recorded $614 millon in brand value. Nonetheless, both improved their rankings from 4 to 2 and 5 to 3, respectively.

Rank 2010 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50

Rank 2009 1 4 5 2 3 6 8 7 15 12 16 24 9 27 14 17 18 19 21 39 23 11 25 43 30 13 31 22 36 42 40 44 20 54 35 33 26 32 28 84 49 51 47 10 37 65 34

Brand Emirates Zain Etisalat STC Qtel Saudi Electricity Savola DP World Mobily Emirates NDB Al Rajhi Bank National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) Kuwait Finance House NBK Abu Dhabi National Energy Kuwait Foods Sabic Almarai du QNB Petro Rabigh Public Warehousing Wataniya First Gulf Bank Samba Emaar Properties Riyad Bank Sultan Center SABB ADCB ANB Banque Saudi Fransi Mashreq Ahli United Bank Dubai Islamic Bank Jarir Marketing Omantel Dar Alarkan Batelco Qatar Islamic Bank ADIB Abu Dhabi National Hotels BankMuscat Sorouh Burgan Bank Aldar Qatar Fuel Union Properties Commercialbank Dubai Investments

Source: Brand Finance plc ©Brand Finance 2010

AD)

Industry Group

Domicile

Airlines Telecommunications Telecommunications Telecommunications Telecommunications Electric Food Commercial Services Telecommunications Banks Banks Banks Banks Banks Electric Food Chemicals Food Telecommunications Banks Chemicals Storage/Warehousing Telecommunications Banks Banks Real Estate Banks Retail Banks Banks Banks Banks Banks Banks Banks Retail Telecommunications Real Estate Telecommunications Banks Banks Lodging Banks Real Estate Banks Real Estate Oil&Gas Real Estate Banks Venture Capital

UAE Kuwait UAE Saudi Arabia Qatar Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia UAE Saudi Arabia UAE Saudi Arabia UAE Kuwait Kuwait UAE Kuwait Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia UAE Qatar Saudi Arabia Kuwait Kuwait UAE Saudi Arabia UAE Saudi Arabia Kuwait Saudi Arabia UAE Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia UAE Bahrain UAE Saudi Arabia Oman Saudi Arabia Bahrain Qatar UAE UAE Oman UAE Kuwait UAE Qatar UAE Qatar UAE

Brand Value 2010 3,518 2,889 2,607 2,393 2,366 1,457 1,183 1,033 976 943 922 835 748 685 685 665 639 621 572 545 539 531 522 517 475 468 461 408 400 394 356 334 330 323 315 300 285 277 246 241 222 217 202 199 186 185 181 178 177 174

Enterprise Value 2010 12,131 24,170 19,951 32,607 17,060 24,211 5,488 13,004 10,049 6,734 30,899 8,228 10,172 12,910 18,469 2,470 90,871 6,095 3,738 13,165 15,787 2,267 2,959 7,319 13,380 6,401 11,720 844 10,550 2,750 8,233 8,755 3,968 2,903 3,083 1,452 2,586 4,046 2,245 4,753 1,701 859 2,566 1,770 1,440 3,495 908 623 4,430 972

BV / EV 2010% 29% 12% 13% 7% 14% 6% 22% 8% 10% 14% 3% 10% 7% 5% 4% 27% 1% 10% 15% 4% 3% 23% 18% 7% 4% 7% 4% 48% 4% 14% 4% 4% 8% 11% 10% 21% 11% 7% 11% 5% 13% 25% 8% 11% 13% 5% 20% 28% 4% 18%

Brand Value 2009 3,211 2,082 1,992 2,513 2,132 1,018 875 1,005 535 631 522 389 798 380 544 477 475 473 415 231 391 699 384 203 312 585 311 410 242 209 230 200 436 130 256 287 381 294 331 83

Enterprise Value 2009 11,074 19,277 14,070 31,826 15,054 20,637 3,816 8,093 7,965 4,292 21,591 5,650 12,530 15,267 16,518 2,163 60,157 5,050 2,213 9,255 12,183 3,257 3,158 3,287 11,563 3,907 8,317 859 7,837 3,208 5,255 6,927 9,996 3,878 2,317 1,342 3,347 6,038 2,402 3,758

BV / EV 2009 % 29% 11% 14% 8% 14% 5% 23% 12% 7% 15% 2% 7% 6% 2% 3% 22% 1% 9% 19% 3% 3% 21% 12% 6% 3% 15% 4% 48% 3% 7% 4% 3% 4% 3% 11% 21% 11% 5% 14% 2%

149 138 161

657 2,398 458

23% 6% 35%

734

4,296

17%

233 112 265

1,880 3,313 1,748

12% 3% 15% s

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 45

COVER STORY

Big impression: Sorouh’s posted a respectable showing as its ranking climbed from 47 to 44

Sorouh was the only real estate brand that enjoyed a rise of 24 per cent. Etisalat saw an increase of 31 per cent in its brand value to $2.6 billion. Having already invested in countries with the fastest growing teleco sectors such as India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, Etisalat’s carried out a series of foreign acquisitions in new markets such as Iran. • Despite having the largest number of subscribers in the GCC, STC remained the third most valuable brand in the Middle East with a 13 per cent increase in brand value to $2.4 billion. • On the other hand, Qatar Telecom’s brand ranking dropped from 2 to 4. Despite acquiring 65 per cent of Indonesia’s PT Indosat in late 2008, the company underperformed in the Indonesian market. Real estate In contrast to last year, real estate brands across the GCC suffered the biggest losses. Four out of five real estate brands – Emaar, Dar Alarkan, Aldar and Union Properties

46 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

– dropped an average 25 to 75 per cent. Aldar’s brand value particularly saw a dramatic loss of 75 per cent. Sorouh was the only real estate firm to enjoy a rise of 24 per cent in its brand value. The company’s ranking climbed from 47 to 44. Banking • Emirates NDB created the most valuable banking brand merger in the GCC Top 50; its brand value increased by 49 per cent to $943 million. • Saudi Arabia-based Al Rahji Bank and National Bank of Abu Dhabi also improved their brand value by 77 per cent and 114 per cent, respectively. • Al Rahji Bank’s EV was 4.5 times higher than Emirates NDB’s, while there was only a $2 million-discrepancy in brand value between the two. • Qatar Islamic Bank’s brand value skyrocketed by 189 per cent increase to $241 million.

• On the flip side, two banking brands, Kuwait Finance House and Mashreq, were the only brands that saw their value go down by 6 per cent and 24 per cent, respectively. Food Three companies in the food sector made it on the list. Savola saw a 35 per cent increase in brand value (from $875 million to $1.2 billion); Kuwait Foods went up 39 per cent ($477 million to $665 million); and Almarai recorded a rise of 31 per cent ($473 million to $621 million). Savola Food, owned by Savola Group, was the only brand whose rating was upgraded from AA- to AA. The research shows that there are several strong and valuable brands within the GCC T op 50 that outperformed the market despite the recession. n

Gautam Sen Gupta managing director Brand Finance ME

TOP 10 BRANDS BY COUNTRY

Brand

Industry Group

Brand Value 2010

Enterprise Value 2010

BV / EV 2010%

Brand Value 2009

Enterprise Value 2009

BV / EV 2009%

29% 13% 8% 14% 10% 4% 15% 7% 7% 14%

3,211 1,992 1,005 631 389 544 415 203 585 209

11,074 14,070 8,093 4,292 5,650 16,518 2,213 3,287 3,907 3,208

29% 14% 12% 15% 7% 3% 19% 6% 15% 7%

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Emirates Etisalat DP World Emirates NDB National Bank of Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi National Energy du First Gulf Bank Emaar Properties ADCB Ahli United Bank Batelco

Airlines Telecommunications Commercial Services Banks Banks Electric Telecommunications Banks Real Estate Banks Banks Telecommunications

3,518 2,607 1,033 943 835 685 572 517 468 394 BAHRAIN 323 246

12,131 19,951 13,004 6,734 8,228 18,469 3,738 7,319 6,401 2,750 2,903 2,245

11% 11%

130 331

3,878 2,402

3% 14%

SAUDI ARABIA STC Saudi Electricity Savola Mobily Al Rajhi Bank Sabic Almarai Petro Rabigh samba Riyad bank

Telecommunications Electric Food Telecommunications Banks Chemicals Food Chemicals Banks Banks

2,393 1,457 1,183 976 922 639 621 539 475 461

32,607 24,211 5,488 10,049 30,899 90,871 6,095 15,787 13,380 11,720

7% 6% 22% 10% 3% 1% 10% 3% 4% 4%

2,513 1,018 875 535 522 475 473 391 312 311

31,826 20,637 3,816 7,965 21,591 60,157 5,050 12,183 11,563 8,317

8% 5% 23% 7% 2% 1% 9% 3% 3% 4%

17,060 13,165 4,753 908 4,430

14% 4% 5% 20% 4%

2,132 231 83 112

15,054 9,255 3,758 3,313

14% 3% 2%

24,170 10,172 12,910 2,470 2,267 2,959 844 1,440

12% 7% 5% 27% 23% 18% 48% 13%

2,082 798 380 477 699 384 410 -

19,277 12,530 15,267 2,163 3,257 3,158 859 -

11% 6% 2% 22% 21% 12% 48%

2,586 2,566

11% 8%

381 138

3,347 2,398

11% 6%

QATAR Qtel QNB Qatar Islamic Bank Qatar Fuel Commercialbank

Telecommunications Banks Banks Oil&Gas Banks

2,366 545 241 181 177

Zain Kuwait Finance House NBK Kuwait Foods Public Warehousing Wataniya Sultan Center Burgan Bank

Telecommunications Banks Banks Food Storage/Warehousing Telecommunications Retail Banks

2,889 748 685 665 531 522 408 186

KUWAIT

OMAN Omantel BankMuscat

Telecommunications Banks

285 202

Source: Brand Finance plc ÂŠBrand Finance 2010

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 47

PROFILE

48 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

THE GMR INTERVIEW

Stefan Mecha took over the role of VW MD at just about the worst time for the auto sector. A year later he tells Precious de Leon what drives him on. “That kind of pressure usually means either sending units out of your home market or slashing prices and these are definitely not good for the brand. Brand equity, after all, can’t be built on discounts. It has to be built on value for the customer. “It would be dishonest to say though that anybody can sell cars here without FANTASY CV Born: 1969 Wife: Kristin, children: Mathis, 11, Luise, 9 and Lasse, 7 Qualifications: Masters of Science in Business Administration, University of Hagen Hobbies: sports: running, skiing First job: car rental and fleet management Career high: current role…so far. Career low: starting out as an area sales manager, knock on wood it’s been good so far Fantasy job: Avalanche Rescue Skier

entering into promotions. The question is to what extent,” he adds. “In 2009, we had a clear strategy to focus on the product. But of course, any promotions we used where there to sweeten the deal but it was to a reasonable extent.” Although this is his first posting in the Middle East, Mecha is no stranger to the region. In 2005, he joined Volkswagen as regional director for commercial vehicles in Western Europe and the Middle East. Then he was based in Hanover, but was already familiar with distributors across the region and had an understanding of its consumers and their buying behaviour. “Right away I knew my agenda is to start expanding our brand, which is extremely difficult task in this declining market and tough environment.” The German native is determined and very methodical. He came to the interview armed with company references and an issue of GMR. But don’t expect a stoicial and guarded persona. Mecha was animated and very engaged throughout our conversation.

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 49

IT WILL be a year this August since Stefan Mecha took on the role of managing director at Volkswagen Middle East. And what a year it was. The region’s auto sector was one of the hardest hit by the economic crash in 2009. In Dubai alone, the Road and Transport Authority (RTA) estimates that new passenger vehicle registrations saw a 31.5 per cent contraction that year. For Volkswagen Middle East in particular, the crunch was reflected in the 18 per cent drop in overall sales for the brand in 2009, compared to the previous year— not necessarily the best time to take the lead role at an auto company. In need having to shift stock, many auto brands resorted to heavy discounting. But Mecha says Volkswagen was in a “lucky” position of not having to cut prices. ”When the decline started in 2008, we were in a lucky position…lucky in that it really wasn’t on purpose but more the circumstance and unintentional. Our stock was in good shape so we had no pressure to have to move metal and cars in 2009,” he says.

PROFILE

By design: Volkswagen invited owners of the Golf, Generation I to VI, to a ‘Style Up your Golf’contest last year. The photo above is one of the entries.

‘Destined’ “I’ve always had a passion for automotives. But it was sort of destiny that I ended up in this business because you never know where you’re going to end up after you graduate,” says Mecha, who has more than 15 years experience in the sector—five of which at Volkswagen. After receiving his MS Business Administration at the University of Hagen, his first job was in the car rental and fleet management industry. Afterwards, he was offered a post as GM of Services in Switzerland with Smart, a start up company that made the Swatchmobile, a 3.0L two-seater hybrid that most now know as the Smart Car. He joined when it was partially funded by Daimler-Benz AG before it became Daimler Chrysler. In a twist of fate, the owners of Smart had actually been working with Volkswagen prior to its partnership with Daimler-Benz. The venture dissolved when the new VW CEO in 1993 decided to focus on the company’s own 3.0L car, the Lupo. “Working on Smart was a real automotive challenge. This was a brand that didn’t exist, built from scratch with a

50 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

completely different concept at the time,” he says. Throughout his time at Smart, he worked in Germany, Switzerland, and lastly in France, where he headed the Strategic Marketing and Financial Services. In 2005, after a couple of years, Mecha moved to Volkswagen to work in the commercial vehicles sector and two and a half years later he moved to the passenger side as VW’s regional director for Western Germany. And finally in 2009, Mecha, his wife Kristin and their three children, moved to the UAE to manage Volkswagen Middle East. Looking ahead When asked about trends in the auto industry, Mecha believes although there is growing demand for compact cars in other markets, the segment is still very small in the Middle East. “If we want to grow the brand, we have to capitalise on the products that we currently have,” he says, adding regional demand is more likely to grow in the midsize and smaller size saloons. So what can we expect from this year?

Mecha says “2010 is a transition phase” for Volkswagen Middle East. The company is expecting to deliver the latest Touareg model to the region this August, along with the R model for the Golf. “We expect a 10-15 per cent increase, compared to last year,” he says. “We expect the industry to be more or less on the same level, with a 3-5 per cent increase in market.” The Golf GTI and the Scirocco are niche brands that have worked well in the region as brand building pillars rather than volume shifting models, he adds. The company sells about 700 units a year for the Golf GTI and about 600 for the Scirocco. For other car segments, plans are underway to launch the 5-seater Passat CC while the Tiguan, launched 18 months ago remains in high demand. And there are plans to bring three new products to the Middle East. Two of them will be available at the beginning of 2011. The first one is Polo, previously only available as a hatchback and to be introduced in the market as a saloon.

The second is the new Jetta. Built in Mexico, the new model will be roomier and positioned towards the volume segment. The third model is codenamed the Volkswagen New Midsize Sedan (NMS) and will be built in the USA. It will be the size of a Passat and is targeted for the midsize market. The car is being produced in VW’s US facilities. Specifications are being finalised and the car is expected to hit Middle East roads by 2012.

Behavioural shifts Volkswagen drivers across the globe are safety-conscious and, to a certain extent, concerned about fuel efficiency. But there are differences in the way the brand is perceived in the region, says Mecha. “Our brand image here, to a certain extent differs, from Europe or other parts of the world which is good but we are missing a lot of things that the brand stands for. “One of the key things is family and young people. In Europe, for example, the Golf is a ‘first car’ of choice for most teens in Europe. This is not the case here.” To shift this change in perception, Volkswagen has been hosting sports tournaments in universities. The first one was a month-long football competi-

tion in partnership with SAMACO. The Volkswagen University Football Tournament was held in Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar. The company maintains ties with KAUST University as well as universities in the UAE. “The beauty of this segment is that you can introduce them your products at a young age and have the to opportunity to keep them as a customer within the Volkswagen umbrella. Plus it also gives us a chance to expose their parents to our brand, as well.” Even with a 65-70 per cent brand loyalty rating, Mecha says that going forward his primary focus will be in reaching new customers. “We want to expand the brand, so conquest is a key term. We want to maintain our customers but we also intend

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 51

New roads to take Besides new product launches, Iraq is also a priority for Volkswagen. The company went through a yearlong extensive pitch for an exclusive distributor in the country. It recently appointed the National Automotive Trading Co. (NatCo.) as its exclusive partners. The showroom and after sales service centre is set to open this July in Erbil, with plans to expand across Iraq. “It’s if vital importance to enter the Iraqi market,” says Mecha. “It’s on the verge of stability and we need to be present there as it happens.”

…the company released a free iPhone game app for the launch of its GTI model, instead of investing in TVCs.

PROFILE

On track: The Middle East is scheduled to receive its first batch of the new Touareg model this summer

AGENCIES PR: Online: Creative: Events: Media:

IPN Tribal DDB DDB Salt & Pepper Mediacom

COMPANY CREDS The Volkswagen Group with its headquarters in Wolfsburg is currently the largest carmaker in Europe. The Group holds nine brands from seven European countries: Volkswagen, Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Seat, Skoda, Scania and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles.Each brand operates as an independent entity on the market, with the product range extending from low-consumption small cars to luxury class vehicles. On the commercial side, the product offering spans pick ups, busses and heavy trucks. Today, the Group operates 48 production plants in 13 European countries and a further six countries in the Americas, Asia and Africa. Around the world, more than 360,000 employees produce almost 25,400 vehicles or are involved in vehicle-related services each working day. The Group sells its vehicles in more than 150 countries, including several distributors in the Middle East. The Volkswagen Middle East Regional Office opened in 2005, based in Dubai and overseeing 11 markets. Since its opening, the office has launched several initiative, including the Regional Service Competence Center and Regional Training Center, aimed at providing improved service to their customers. An additional 10,000sqm Middle East Parts Centre for Volkswagen and Audi was opened in 2007. Located in Dubai’s Jebel Ali Free Zone, the facility has improved parts availability and reduced lead times for parts ordering. The centre also serves to regulate the use of approved genuine parts as a measure towards greater vehicle safety.

to reach out to potential Volkswagen drivers.” Marketing in-roads Plans are to continue below-the-line efforts for the youth and family segments. And

52 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

with the recent appointment of global marketing head Luca de Meo, Volkswagen is also making in-roads in using social media and digital devices to market to a more tech-savvy audience. In 2009 the company released a free

iPhone game app for the launch of its GTI model, instead of investing in TVCs. Last June, Volkswagen became one of the first auto brands to create a customer magazine iPad app, called the iPad DAS (Digital Automotive Space). Prior to that it also launched an iPod application for the new Touareg, which saw more than one million users during its launch. “The industry is moving towards a digital media. But not everything can be digital as there are still certain target groups that you can’t reach with it. But if you look at the youth in the region, especially in Saudi Arabia, they are all about digital there.” Social media however will undoubtedly become a bigger part of Volkswagen’s communications. The company is working with its agencies to maintain a presence on social sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Youtube. Volkswagen has also recently announced an Open Innovation Contest inviting software developers and students to create infotainment systems for vehicles. Besides global campaigns, Volkswagen Middle East has also been pushing local campaigns. One of them is the Style up your Golf in Jordan, where the winner received a cash prize and was flown to Austria for a VW Golf convention. Regional viral campaigns have also run in Oman and the rest of the region. Beyond this, the Middle East office is also heavily supporting Qatari racer Nasser Al Attiyah, with plans to maximise exposure of their partnership in the coming months. With quite a few things to juggle this year and in the coming years, Mecha says he divides his time among staying at the office, spending time with partners, dealers and after sales units across the region and liaising with the headquarters in German. And if his long agenda list is anything to go by, Mecha’s first year as Middle East lead—rollercoaster of a year as it was—is only just the beginning. n

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S T R AT E G Y

BARRIER TO ENTRY Banks will have to invest heavily to convince customers that online banking is totally safe, writes Zainab Mansoor. INTERNET BANKING is a convenient and secure way to access one’s bank account. Or so we are told. Despite online security advancing to the point where there are negligible odds of a breach, netizens still fear a growing and equally innovative trend in online scams, email phishing, and other forms of internet spoofing. So how does a bank engage its customers and lure them towards what is a more sophisticated form of banking? The trends in marketing campaigns in

54 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

the region indicate how the personal internet banking platform is being promoted: As a secure and hassle-free alternative to conventional channels – and a lucrative one. Standard Chartered Bank UAE, for example, launched a “Bank Online and Win” campaign last October whereby customers were encouraged to log on to their accounts to view e-statements and conduct transactions. Each login entitled participants to one entry and each transaction 50 entries,

in a lucky draw on December 31. The prizes included an all-expenses-paid trip to Euro Disney and a BMW 320i. Standard Chartered adopted a 360-degree communications strategy in which all consumer touch points were engaged to inform customers about the promotion. Radio and newspaper advertising, inbranch leaflets, website banners, and a call centre – in addition to a number of other touch points – were deployed to disseminate information across the market. The campaign resulted in a more

than 20 per cent increase in online banking activation during the fourth quarter of 2009, with a growth of over 600 per cent in online bill payments during the same period. A fan page on Facebook gathered a whopping 7,000 users in less than three months. “The campaign has been a great success and has resulted in a large increase in the usage of our online banking portal,” said Pramod Veturi, Standard Chartered’s head of Transaction Banking for the UAE. Asked whether Standard Chartered would run similar promos in the future, Veturi said: “What is reassuring for us is that the majority of registrants continue to actively use our portal. We will definitely continue to invest in bringing more customer-centric products and services that benefit and reward them.”

Likewise, Mashreq Bank UAE launched its “Click More to Win More” promotional campaign during the last quarter of 2009, inviting customers to adopt MashreqOnline or mobile banking as their preferred banking mechanism to earn points. Each time a customer used services such as bill payments and transfers, they earned points. A score grid explained how many points would be awarded per transaction; the accumulation of sufficient points made a customer a weekly, monthly or overall winner. The respective prizes included a Harman Kardon home theatre system, a MacBook, or the grand prize of a Dh20,000 gift voucher from electronics retail outlet SharafDG. Like Standard Chartered, Mashreq used all available channels to advertise the promotion: In-branch fliers and bro-

chures, ads on ATM machines, website banners and emails or text messages to customers. Gavin Anderson, head of Distribution at Mashreq, considers the campaign to be a success: “Mashreq offers a market-leading online banking service with rich functionality that is easy to use and fully secure. We launched the ‘Click More to Win More’ campaign with the objective to encourage most of our customers to use more services within MashreqOnline. As a result, we have received very positive feedback from customers as well as the bank frontline staff.” Elsewhere in the GCC, Qatar National Bank launched a “Use and Win” campaign last year promoting its EAZYlife suite of e-channels. Customers registering for or using EAZYInternet services or other e-services

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 55

S T R AT E G Y

NATIONAL BANK OF ABU DHABI

Online conversions soar at NBAD The National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) has had notable success converting customers to online. By the end of 2009, the net profits of its Internet Banking Unit (IBU) rose 120 per cent, the number of nbadOnline users rose by 56 per cent and transactional volume by 24 per cent. To meet the increasing demand for electronic banking services, NBAD recently opened new premises for its IBU. The company claims to be the only UAE bank to provide each of its customers a PIN generating security device (which is required for login), making nbadOnline extremely secure and safe, it says. “We are constantly running campaigns to increase our user base and transactions and we have been extremely successful in 2009 with online users increasing 56 per cent,” says Ahmed Al Naqbi, senior manager, Channels and Electronic Banking Services.

56 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

during the campaign period were eligible to enter a lucky draw. Every month, four lucky winners bagged prizes such as Sony home theatre systems, LCD televisions, Playstations or iPods. The promotion ended earlier this year and was followed by a grand draw. Such campaigns are a regular annual feature at Qatar National Bank, although the theme of the promotion varies each year to retain excitement and interest. The reward system not only ensures instant customer gratification, but also augments the customer’s resolve to continue using the bank’s e-services – a testament to the success of the initiative. Some regional financial institutions have taken a quieter approach, using touch points to encourage and, at times, push customers to use online portals by emphasising their benefits; for example, convenience and lower transaction costs. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank offered a redeemable rewards programme to online users. Points were allotted for such transactions as account activation, transfers and utility payments. These points were redeemable against vouchers used at merchant partner outlets. A few banks offer an e-saver account, the features and functionality of which vary from institution to institution – but which always pay the highest interest and are accessible only through online portals and, in some cases, other e-channels. Similarly, banks top up mobile phone credit with an extra 10 per cent if recharged through their online platform. And some transactions are free of charge if conducted online, but attract a levy if made across the counter. The growth in online transactions – whether prompted by promotions or more low-key touch points – suggests that consumer habits and perceptions have changed sufficiently that customers won’t want to go back to conventional channels. n

6 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 7

©Corbis

MEDIA

BLIND DATA Only a data-based approach can reap all the benefits of digital media.

60 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

tions for the media agency model, which needs to adapt as the media landscape changes. What digital does best: Targeting Previously, DM was the only way to reach customers and prospects one-toone and, generally, brand “Advertising” (traditional, with a capital “A”) meant communicating through broadcast and print with limited targeting capabilities. Through digital channels, we can focus our advertising like never before, communicating directly to our target. Historically, geo-targeting meant buying postal data for direct mail or ad space in the local community newspaper. Digital technology allows us to target a message based on someone’s exact location, taking the message directly to the consumer. Using mobile advertising as an example, we can ensure that a client’s

message is shown only to people within a certain radius of a location as per the GPS phone coordinates or proximity to a Bluetooth location. For example, sending me a mobile voucher offering “25 per cent off” at the café downstairs from my office would definitely get me up and out of my seat in preference to ordering-in. This type of targeted communication, overlaid with some basic time of day/ week targeting, reduces wasted exposure 10-fold. For a cosmetic brand, contextual advertising used to mean buying space in the makeup section of a fashion magazine. The data and technology available within digital channels now means we can target advertising against specific keywords, wherever they might appear. As an example, that same makeup brand could advertise to women in the

WE ARE all very aware that the digitisation of media is changing the way we communicate, the way we seek information, and the way we spend our free and work time, which, in turn, is changing the marketing and advertising industry beyond recognition. Over the past 18 months, the global economic crisis has underscored the need for cost efficiency and accountability in advertising. As a media agency – concerned with planning and buying and, therefore, by definition one of advertising’s more data- and dollar-driven disciplines – we know that providing a tangible ROI is more urgent than ever. Digital channels are not yet at the point where they can replace broadcast media – but, as an increasing number of channels become digital, we must understand how to make the best use of them. This has implica-

Middle East whether they are reading The New York Times fashion blog or watching Lauren Luke’s DIY makeup videos on YouTube. Contextual targeting allows us to broaden the scope of our activity, reduce the premiums we, as advertisers, might have to pay to secure contextual relevance in a magazine, newspaper or TV show and, ultimately, make the advertising more relevant to consumers. The slightly more controversial method of targeting online – behavioural targeting – didn’t exist before 2005. Through analysis of a person’s activity online (note: not all data is personally identifiable), we are able to build a picture of how interested a potential consumer might be in a certain product based on what is being searched for, what ads are being clicked, and what articles are being read. We can look at the frequency of this behaviour and overlay on it a purchase cycle of, say, a car, and predict when the consumer might be in the market for a car. Using similar logic, it is possible to identify whether someone has visited a website – and by the pages they visit, whether they are, in fact, already a customer. Through this, we can start to communicate using messages more fitting to their relationship with the brand. Measurability and flexibility In addition to the precise targeting that digital offers, everything done through a digital medium is measurable. We can track, in real time, how many responded to the brand and what they did as a result, either directly or indirectly; for example, visited the website, purchased online, downloaded a brochure – providing a much more accurate ROI metric than traditional DM. Taking this a step further, when we track multiple digital channels, we can also start to understand how these channels work together to inform channel selection and weighting. Digital also equals flexibility. With shorter lead times and access to real-time

Precise targeting: It is possible to build a picture of potential interest in a product based on mouse clicks

Making sense of this next generation of data requires a new breed of analytics specialists… data, we can refine the banner creative, where the banner is placed on the page and what sites it runs on to increase the likelihood of the user taking a desired action. If a placement on a site is not working, we can work with the publishers to optimise placement. The problem and the opportunity If there is one hurdle to clear, it is how we deal with the increasing volume and complexity of the data. This, however, is both a blessing and a curse – we can measure everything, but choosing what to measure and how we interpret it, is key. The more we know therefore about our prospects and customers and what they do and don’t do when exposed to our messaging, the larger ROI on ad dollars. Media planning and buying have always been the more data-driven disciplines (read: geeky) in advertising.

Making sense of this next generation of data requires a new breed of data and analytics specialists with sound technical knowledge and marketing experience. We need people who can draw meaning from the data so it can be used to develop client marketing strategies. What will the media agency of tomorrow look like? It is safe to assume we are heading towards a more data-based economy, so agencies must follow suit. Digital-centric media agencies are now in a prime position to help clients take full advantage of what this new technology can offer. More fresh talent is needed so that digital channels can take flight. n

Anna Gibbons business director neo@Ogilvy Dubai

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 61

ADVERTISING

HUMOUR ME

Creating ads that travel well across the region is no laughing matter TV ADVERTISING is a multimillion dollar business with huge sums being spent by advertisers. Making an ad is equally expensive. Hence there is always the need to maximise the ROI. One way to do that is to use the same ad across many countries, which not only reduces production costs but also ensures that brand communication is consistent across the markets. For marketers in the MENA region, there is a huge added advantage – the Arabic language. There are, however, significant differences across the region, which can make a common communication theme across the region a challenge. • Economic prosperity varies across the MENA region, therefore the challenges that brands face vary depending on whether they are premium or economy offerings.

• Consumerism across markets differs with varied exposure to brands – consumers in the Middle East having far more choices than those in North Africa. • Subtle differences in the cultural context can mean that the same communication theme may not necessarily work across the region – for example, showing a woman at a workplace might be very aspirational even to upper class Saudi women, but that would not necessarily be the case in countries such as Egypt and Morocco where, among the upper classes, a woman in the workplace is not so rare. Although MENA consumers are regarded as culturally similar, it would take a brave man to claim that one can air the same ad across the region with similar results.

Mining our extensive database of more than 500 ads tested across Saudi Arabia and Egypt shows that trying to predict the outcome of ad performance across the two markets is akin to predicting the outcome of a coin toss. We observe that on Enjoyment, which is a good measure of the power of the creative, ad performance is similar only 50 per cent of the time. Thankfully, we do find some commonalities among ads that performed similarly, and these can act as signposts for marketers. Ads that did well… kept it simple Linear executions work well with the MENA consumers, who tend to miss out multi-layered plots. For example, in a toothpaste ad when a person’s shadow

62 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

consistently built its communication around the before/after theme, wherein the brand helps its protagonist to achieve her aspirations and be recognised. Ads that did well… made them tap their feet Music tends to drive enjoyment, especially regional pop, but not as a subtle background prop, when it tends to be less effective. For example, many brands have successfully tapped into popular and contemporary music of singers such as Nancy Ajram, Haifa Wehbe, Amr Diab, Tamer Hosny, etc.

Ads that did well… made them laugh Humour travels well across both markets, especially lighthearted, everyday humour. Subtle humour or extremely “witty” humour does not work so well with the consumers. Usually, we have seen that whenever we have tested Western ads in these markets, they have not done too well, as they tend to rely on subtle humour. For example, an ad that showed an old man getting inspired to do things he had never done in life did not resonate well with the consumers because they didn’t catch the humour in the situations.

…it would take a brave man to claim that one can air the same ad across the region…

was shown fighting in the background while the person was eating food, a metaphor for fighting germs, consumers did not pick up the message. Between the two, Egyptians are less adept at decoding multi-layered benefits, which is a function of less exposure to a variety of media programming among Egyptians who are less exposed to international media due to lower penetration of satellite TV. Problem/solution formats, the most linear form of execution, tend to travel better across both countries because a clear understanding of a plot is a strong point. Quite a few categories such as fairness cream, haircare, skincare, etc. tend to follow this genre of advertising. For example, a skincare brand has

Right now, somewhere in the Middle East, there’s a moment happening that could never happen anywhere else in the world. These moments are what we trade in.

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July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 63

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ADVERTISING

AD PERFORMANCE ON ENJOYMENT ACROSS SAUDI AND EYGPT

34%

51% 15%

Equally well

Different

Equally poor

Base: 41 cases where the same ad was tested in Saudi and Egypt

DATABASE COMPOSITION 40% 40%

Personal care Home care 1%5%

45% 51%

F&B 10% 8%

Others 0

Saudi Arabia

Egypt

Base: 418 ads in Saudi and 153 ads in Egypt. Source: AMRB 2010

Universal appeal: Ads based around well-known stories tend to do well

…whenever we have tested Western ads in these markets they have not done too well… Humour based on peoples’ actions/ visuals tends to work better. Humour based on verbal quips, however, does not work as well. For example, consumers did not see the funny side of a CSD brand that tried to showcase its diet credentials through verbal battle between the eyes and the tongue. Ads that did well… made them emotional Ads that tap into universal emotions tend to travel well – be it evoking the spirit of Ramadan or focusing on mother’s interest in the child’s development, or tapping into ageing-related concerns of not-so-young women. Ads that did well… captivated their imagination Ads showing romantic situations ending in the girl getting her man or ads that show appreciation for the female protagonist generate empathy in both markets. Personal care brands have tapped into this quite successfully. For example, a haircare brand tapped

64 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

into this theme with an ad that showed that the protagonist was able to capture the attention of the man she liked by making her hair beautiful, ending in the man proposing to her. Ads that did well… kept away from very localised depictions Slice-of-life ads that draw situational contexts from culture that is country-specific don’t lend themselves well for cross-country use. For example, an ad for a beverage that showed an Egyptian village souk was not appreciated in Saudi, where consumers could not relate to the setting. Ads that did well… used a regional celebrity Celebrities such as Nancy, Elissa, Mona Zaki, Amr Diab are popular across the region and many have been used to make ads with cross-cultural appeal. Ads that did well… built stories around popular fantasies We find that ads based around well-known

folklore/fantasies such as Aladdin, Ali Baba, Cinderella, Romeo & Juliet, etc. tend to do well due to the universal appeal and understanding of these stories. Incorporating some of these elements within the campaigns should ensure more cross-cultural appeal. However, our experience also suggests that contextual background would also heavily dictate communication transference: • The development stage of the category within the market would also have an impact on the messaging within the category. • The brand’s life stage, whether the brand is an established player or a growing one, would dictate the communication needs for the brand. • Brand’s competitive context needs to be factored into how to position a brand in the market. n

Amol Ghate AMRB, Dubai

SPECIAL REPORT

THE POWER OF WOMEN

Nearly 200 marketing professionals from across the region gather to hear experts at the 4th GMR Marketing to Women Conference in Dubai. ACCORDING TO the World Bank, the global earning power of women is forecast to reach $18 trillion by 2014. At the same time they will control $15 trillion – 70 per cent – of total global consumer spend, says the Boston Consulting Group. In the Middle East alone, women will control $383 billion of the region’s wealth by next year. These were just some of the insights revealed about this crucial consumer demographic during the fourth annual GMR Marketing to Women Conference held recently at the Grosvenor House, Dubai.The sell-out event, organised by Mediaquest Events, was sponsored by

66 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

Choueri Group, Balshayer Investment Co, Yahoo! Maktoob and Damas. Nearly 200 marketing professionals from across the region gathered to hear CLEAR STRATEGY

On target: Procter & Gamble’s Monica Shina

Insight: L’Oreal ME’s Anthony Ponsford

a panel of expert speakers address and analyse the key issues and trends that influence women’s purchase decisions. Keynote speaker was US-based gendermarketing guru and author of Marketing to Women, Marti Barletta, who outlined the different approaches to purchasing between men and women. Men, she says, are linear thinkers and more likely to prioritse or focus on single purchase. “They prioritise the important things,” Barletta told the delegates. Women, through combining the roles of motherhood, wife and often career, continually multi-task, and therefore maximise all shopping opportunities.

Maximum impact: Marti Barletta said women, unlike men, tend to maximise all shopping opportunities

Malls are open access academies of social distinction. “Women who are in the bankable age represent almost 46 per cent of the total female populations,” he said, adding that 96 per cent prefer Islamic products. Anthony Ponsford, country general manager, L’Oreal Middle East, examined the breakneck speed of mall development INSIGHT

Teen focus: Nivea Group Building trust: Kraft Foods MD Robert Taylor-Hughes MEA’s MD, Vishal Tikku

across the region and its impact on the luxury sector. “Malls are open access academies of social distinction,” he said. Brands, he added, should cultivate a more qualified awareness and make experiential relationship breakthroughs at the point-of-sale. Monica Shina, group PR manager – Brand PR AP&P, Procter & Gamble Gulf, talked the audience through the powerful influence of peer group word-of-mouth advocacy on mothers. Some 5 million mums around the world blog each week, she said. In the Arabian Peninsular alone there are 900,000 mums online, out of MEA internet usage of 57 million users, of which 70 per cent use social networks, so the power of social media cannot be ignored, she said.

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 67

“They prioritise the important things and the extras. They will go the extra mile to get it ‘just right’, she said. Turning more specifically to women in Saudi Arabia, TNS consultant Stuart Campbell-Morris chartered the evolution of brands from commodity, through to badge of identity. We are now in an era of brand as relationship, he told delegates. Campbell-Morris also described the profound change in attitudes and aspirations among women in the kingdom since the accession of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, His Majesty King Abdullah, whose social change initiatives are slowly reshaping their role in society. Marketers should feature women as the central subject of their advertising, as they are achieving more success and are therefore more open to authoritative scenarios and accomplishment, he said. Robert Taylor Hughes, managing director of Nivea Group, tackled the sometimes tricky topic of teen girls. Referencing Nivea’s new teen range Angel Star as a case study, he reminded the audience just how important the “wow” factor is in all teen-related communications. Mass social media, including an American Idol-style contest to find the face of Angel Star, and striking instore displays underpinned the launch of this new range, he said. Kraft Foods MEA’s managing director, Vishal Tikku, reminded delegates of the importance of building trust in brands. Echoing Campbell-Morris’ earlier advice, he said brand communication needed to strike a balance between entrenched usage habits and the changing mindset of Saudi women. More than 40 per cent of private wealth in Saudi Arabia is in the hands of women. This figure offers a huge opportunity for the financial services industry across the board as long as it communicates with potential and existing female customers in a meaningful and relevant way, said Yusuf Jehangir, general manager at Al Rajhi Bank.

©Corbis

SPECIAL REPORT

All ears: Participants in the conference received insights into the buying habits of women and shared some of their own too

In the Middle East alone, women will control $383 billion of the region’s wealth by next year. Unilever Gulf’s marketing director, Home and Personal Care, Kenneth Lingan, retraced the history of the 50-yearold Sunsilk brand. The brand, he said, had lost its identity over the years due to the volume of range extentions and innovations. Without a clear USP, the range no longer connected with the target market, he said. A new marketing strategy of collaborating with hair experts helped the brand redefine its core message and regain the trust of consumers, Lingan said. Concluding a day crammed with insight and research, the CEO of VLCC International, Sandeep Ahuja, emphasised the growing importance of the burgeoning wellness sector, which has seen spas and salons move beyond cosmetic and indulgence into more holistic wellness centres embracing weight management and nutrition as well.

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“Genuine consumer connection is the ultimate goal for any brand, but the influence and impact of independent consumer advocacy via social media networks means that marketers have to work much harder to achieve that goal,” said Siobhan Adams, managing editor of Gulf Marketing Review. “Marketers in the Middle East, however, have an even harder task due to the

complexity and wide variance in ethnic and social demography across the region. We hope that GMR conferences help in this task.” Alexandre Hawari, Co-CEO of Mediaquest Corp, also mentioned that Mediaquest Events had fully committed significant resources behind the GMR Conference Programme. The unit will see the addition of more specialist seminars and workshops later in the year. n

GMR gratefully acknowledges event sponsors Choueri Group, Balshayer Investment Co, Yahoo! Maktoob and Damas.

EXPERT TIPS

Sound plan: Unilever Gulf’s Kenneth Lingan

Healthy advice: VLCC’s Sandeep Ahuja

On the ball: TNS MEA’s Stuart Campbell-Morris

Making connection: Al Rajhi’s Yusuf Jehangir

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S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

HOMECARE Innovation is crucial in the heavily pressurised homecare sector. Innovation Advertising and emotions Aircare Euromonitor Sekari sees green on top PARC analysis PARC data

71 76 78 79 80 82 84

ÂŠ Corbis

NEXT MONTH PERSONAL CARE

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SHINING NEW THINGS Continuous innovation keeps the homecare sector buoyant, reports Radhina Coutinho.

to the creation of new categories or even line extensions within a new category,” says Amitabh Bose, marketing manager, Home Care, Henkel GCC. “Two examples that come to mind are disinfectants, which created a separate category from the antiseptics (primarily meant for personal use). And then within disinfectants, there was the launch of different formats like the trigger spray, which helped the consumers use the product for different applications like cleaning the counter tops in kitchens, other surfaces like the basin, and even cleaning items like toys,” he says. “The first-mover advantage is always there. People always remember the first product in any category. However, it’s imperative for the first-mover to continuously innovate and keep itself ahead of the pack. If the others catch up, the advantage would go off in no time,” says Bose.

According to Azrak, this is what Clorox did with the disinfectant wipes category. From sachets and canisters of surface wipes, newer scents, flushable wipes that can be used to clean toilet seats, and sanitising hand wipes that kids can use before opening their lunch boxes, the format lent itself to further line development. “Wipes was an innovation, but these are examples of how Clorox took the lead in developing a sub-category of homecare,” said Azrak. So is it all about growing the size of the pie, or are innovations created to answer specific consumer needs? It can be argued that many innovations don’t really answer any unique needs, and that consumers only buy because they are already available. After all, whoever thought, “I really wish I had separate disinfectant sprays to use on my kitchen sink, stovetop, basin and tub.”

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 71

STROLL DOWN the homecare aisle in any supermarket or sift through the TVCs on any home shopping channel and the word “innovative” will stare down from every shelf or boom out through the VO. From dishwashing liquids specially formulated for cold water, to mops that automatically dispense floor cleaner, to air care sprays that sense-and-dispense only when you are in the room, home care is constantly infused with innovation. “Innovations grow the category,” says Claude Azrak, regional manager, Clorox Middle East. And for companies that manage to stumble upon what the pundits call “category-establishing innovations” – the first disinfecting wipe, the first green household cleaner, or the first baby-safe sanitiser – the ROI can be immense. “One of the key tasks of leading companies is to launch innovations that lead

S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

Dual purpose: DAC recently launched a dishwashing liquid that combines degreasing with germ-killing properties

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their goals even higher. Experiments are already in full swing so that they can use the eco-surfactants in laundry and dishwashing detergents,” he Bremans says. But he adds that it is important to involve consumers at an early stage in innovation. This includes sharing new ideas in smaller consumer focus groups or dispensing new product samples via a consumer database and asking for feedback. “It is of no use to come up with a great ecological innovation if this innovation is rejected by consumers,” he says. INNOVATION

First-mover advantage: Henkel GCC’s Amitabh Bose

Natural: Ecover’s Michael Bremans

Bose agrees. “The concept has to fit in with consumer needs. The product, packaging and other marketing mix elements have to fit in with the concept. This needs to be validated by consumer research at every step.” One example, says Bose, is Henkel-owned DAC’s recent launch of a dishwashing liquid that combines degreasing with germ-killing properties. “When DAC dishwashing liquid came with the additional proposition of disinfection along with degreasing, this was based on extensive consumer research, as it was found that consumers use all kinds of other products to disinfect their dishes,” he says. But an innovative product that meets an as-yet-unmet need is no guarantee that it will be welcomed with open arms. Other factors play a role – namely customer acceptance, favourable industry conditions, and advertising, retail and sales support. “The bigger the innovation, the more probable that a cultural change is needed in consumers’ mind to accept it. First-

“Some trends are pushed more by the industry than are actually demanded by consumers. As far as antibacterial products are concerned, it’s difficult to know what came first,” says Michaël Bremans, CEO of Ecover, ecological detergents. Bremans adds that regarding green homecare – in itself a major category innovation – the most important driver of innovation is new greener technologies and ingredients. “We need to give the consumer a better understanding of what actually can make the difference to make a product more ecological,” he says. Bremans cites Ecover’s R&D department patenting a new method to create surfactants through a fully biochemical process, using a special bioreactor. Tests show the product has cleaning capacities as powerful as the petrochemicalbased market leaders, as well as complete biodegradability and low toxicity. “Now that Ecover knows it is possible to create powerful cleaning products from plant-based and mineral ingredients in an ecological way, Ecover R&D have set

S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

A tight squeeze: Innovation is crucial since the pressure to perform well at retail is very high, and slow selling lines can be readily delisted

in-market products need to achieve this cultural change, which is definitely not easier to market than old favourites. “For example, the first green cleaner needed to raise the consumers’ agenda for the need for more ecological cleaning products in the first place. When Ecover was introduced in the market, except for a very small niche group, nobody really questioned the environmental impact of cleaning products. A lot of educational work needed to be done first,” says Bremans. Timing and prevailing market conditions can also put a spoke in the wheel. “Sometimes you launch a brand and the timing may not be ideal,” says Azrak. “For example, we launched Greenworks [Clorox’s natural cleaning range] and H1N1 broke out. People didn’t care about the environment as much as H1N1, it was a big scare. Then you had the global crisis.” Greenworks, being a bit more niche, was sold at a 50 per cent premium. But did the consumer want to pay those extra dirhams?

74 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

“Everyone was trying to cut whatever they could. So factors that could go against the launch unfortunately came at that time. But the launch happened and things did pick up. So, did it take off and did it start leading? Yes it did. Did it reach the numbers we were expecting it to? Maybe not,” says Azrak. According to Bose, it is crucial that trade partners buy into innovation. The retailer has to believe as much as the manufacturer. From a retailer’s perspecCRITICAL TIMING

Flu bug: When eco-friendly Greenworks from Clorox launched consumers were more concerned about H1N1 than the evironment said the company’s Claude Azrak

tive, a product that does not sell well uses up shelf space. So if a product is not immediately performing, some retailers can start exerting pressure. Educating sales teams on long-term plans is also key. “Sales teams around the world are driven by instant results and innovations do not always bring instant results. In fact, in most cases they do not bring instant results. So it becomes important to share the long-term plan of the innovations with the sales teams to make their expectations realistic.” Bremans concludes that failure is undeniably a part of the game. “A fair percentage of innovations fails on the market in any industry. You cannot create an innovative culture in a company if you cannot allow some innovations to fail. If what we believed to be a great innovation fails on the market, we learn and adapt, but it should never block an open mind set for other new innovations. Also, budgets need to be set up with a certain risk factor incorporated,” he says. n

S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

HOME MAID It’s dirty work but somebody has to do it. The question for marketers is who? asks Radhina Coutinho THE IMAGE of a doting mother smiling contentedly as her young brood crawls, rolls or plays on sparkling, disinfected floors is an all too familiar image for homecare ad creatives. But in a region where a high percentage of households leave the daily cleaning to the maid, the imagery is all the more evocative. The maid may use the product, but the doting mother is the one who actually cares, right? And, ultimately, the one who picks the product. “The housewife is still the key target for homecare brands, as even with domestic help she is still the main decision-maker with regards to what brands are used in

76 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

the household. She also still tends to be the main purchaser. Advertising, therefore, still tends to target the housewife or mother of the family,” says Joanna SIMPLE MESSAGE

Family focus: Unilever Pragmatic: DDB Dubai’s Home care-Gulf’s Krishnakumar GP Joanna Robinson

Robinson, marketing manager, Unilever Homecare-Gulf. According to Krishnakumar GP, senior account director, DDB Dubai – Clorox’s Middle East’s regional advertising agency – establishing an emotional connection is even more crucial in this region as the functional benefits are often taken for granted in cases where the purchaser does not actually use the product. “One of the most important things that differentiates brand X from brand Y is creating an emotional connect with the consumer,” Krishnakumar says. “It is not about the functional benefits of killing 99.9 per cent of germs in your house that is important; it’s about making

your house a safe place to live in. For brands with strong brand equity, consumers know the functional attributes of the brand, so it comes down to emotionally bonding with the consumer.” For Clorox, this bonding is through activities such as sponsoring the Mother, Baby and Child Show, nursery and school visits, tie-ups with websites such as expatwoman.com, and appearances at the site’s regular “coffee mornings”. “We spoke to mothers and kids, gave them exercises, made it very interactive, very informercial,” says Krishnakumar. “From a communications and marketing point of view, Clorox uses a pull-strategy – it’s all about creating positive associations with the attributes of the brand and making the brand a part of your home.” According to Robinson, one of Unilever’s strategies to drive an emotional connection is the use of the family environment in most of its ATL. “Family is very important in the GCC so we push the emotional platform of ‘caring for your family through Unilever products’, as well as the functional platform of germ-killing and cleaning,” says Robinson. “The focus is not only on creating a family scene within the TVC that the consumer can relate to, but also on the convenience element. The key communication message is around making your life easier, so that you can spend more quality time with your family. We also use family identities in a lot of our brands, such as the Comfort Comfees family associated with our fabric conditioner brand.” And while TV remains a key channel for a brand to make its way into the mindset of the mother and home-maker, shoppers are, of course, still influenced at the shelf level by specials, price-offs and PoS – although push strategies of these sort work best as part of an integrated campaign that helps move a brand or product from the trial stage, to the regular-use stage, and ultimately to the “part of the monthly shop” stage.

CLOROX LAUNCHES THE ISTAIN

Clorox became the latest manufacturer to venture into mobile marketing with the launch of the Clorox iStain app in April. The app offers stain removal tips and targets mothers aged 25 to 54. The app came into fruition after Clorox discovered tens of thousands of people were searching for stain removal tips and advice online. On launching the app, the company said it was “taking the solutions and content we already have and delivering it in a way people access information now”. Rather than recommending only Clorox products, the company says the app, which is searchable by stain, will recommend what suits best the task in hand, with club soda cited as a possible solution for some stain removal tasks. Additionally, the app will encourage users to leave feedback, including their own stain solutions, via the company website or Facebook, creating a sense of online community, which the manufacturer hopes will serve to strengthen brand loyalty.

The maid may use the product, but the doting mother is the one who actually cares, right? And deciding which brands fall in that much-sought-after category ultimately is the lady of the house. “Even if she doesn’t personally use the product, she has a definite say in terms of what comes into the house, ” says Krishnakumar While maids can influence in certain scenarios regarding which products work better than others, and in other cases may actually be the person buying the product, in most cases she is given a list and she is expected to buy only the products on that list. “There are some cases that we’ve seen

in research where if a maid comes in for, say, Clorox Liquid Bleach, and it is out of stock, they go back, they don’t buy anything else. So it is already predecided,” says Krishnakumar. There’s little doubt then that the primary target audience for homecare products in the Middle East, remains like everywhere else in the world, mothers with young kids below the age of 12. “Cutting a long story very short – who is the final decision-maker and the authority on purchase here? It is definitely the lady of the house,” concludes Krishnakumar. n

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S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

BREATH OF FRESH AIR Air care brands need to wake up and smell the new options, reports Radhina Coutinho. THE AIR CARE sector desperately needs an injection of freshness, with global retail sales having grown a measly 1 per cent in 2009 over 2008, according to Euromonitor International. It’s the poorest performing sector in the home care category in 2009, and its weakest performance since Euromonitor tracking first began. The problem can hardly be attributed to lack of consumer choice. Data extrapolated from Datamonitor’s Product Launch Analytics (PLA) database indicates that the category was one of two within the home care sector (the other being general purpose cleaners) that accounted for the highest proportion of new product introductions tracked by product specialists across the globe in 2008-09.

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More aesthetically appealing formats and “smart” dispensers have headed design-led launches. Every month offers new scent collections featuring everything from the ever-popular pine and citrus fragrances (both possessing longstanding disinfectant associations), to the ubiquitous floral and fruity variants, experiential and outdoorsy scents of the “ocean breeze” and “first rain” kind, and mood enhancing variants linked to aromatherapy and foody scents like vanilla cake and chocolate. What is to blame is poor consumer awareness and poorer retail visibility outside the developed world. Consumers need help to notice the incredible variety of products available – from aerosol sprays, liquid gel refills, electric dispensers, candles and reed diffus-

ers – and to understand their different uses: Whether, for example, they offer pure “air freshening” qualities, stronger malodour coverage, or possess additional germ-killing properties. Air care brands need to speak louder and be seen more in non-developed markets, for consumers to listen to, look at, and smell the options out there. According to a recent Euromonitor Global Market Research Blog entitled Air care needs to smell the opportunity or risk turning stale, “The industry needs to raise its advertising and promotional investment right across the emerging markets. That should be a slam-dunk strategy for educating and bringing on stream new consumers while also leveraging the aspirational and positive lifestyle credentials of the sector”. n

MARKET SIZES • HISTORIC (2009)/FORECAST (2010-2014) • RETAIL VALUE RSP • US$MN • CONSTANT PRICES & FIXED EXCHANGE RATES 2009

AIRCARE Iran Egypt Saudi Arabia Iraq - modelled United Arab Emirates Oman - modelled Lebanon - modelled Kuwait - modelled Bahrain - modelled Yemen - modelled Qatar - modelled Jordan - modelled SURFACE CARE Iran Saudi Arabia Egypt Iraq - modelled Kuwait - modelled United Arab Emirates Jordan - modelled Oman - modelled Lebanon - modelled Qatar - modelled Bahrain - modelled Yemen - modelled LAUNDRY CARE Iran Egypt Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates Jordan - modelled Iraq - modelled Kuwait - modelled Oman - modelled Lebanon - modelled Qatar - modelled Bahrain - modelled Yemen - modelled

2009 43.2 39.1 27.7 7.5 5.1 2.1 1.6 1.6 0.5 0.4 0.2 0.1

2010 45.0 36.9 28.8 7.8 5.4 2.1 1.7 1.5 0.5 0.4 0.2 0.1

2011 47.1 35.5 30.0 8.1 5.7 2.2 1.7 1.4 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.1

2012 49.4 34.7 31.2 8.4 6.1 2.3 1.7 1.4 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.1

2013 51.9 34.9 32.5 8.7 6.5 2.3 1.8 1.4 0.6 0.5 0.2 0.1

2014 54.7 35.2 33.7 9.1 6.8 2.4 1.8 1.4 0.7 0.5 0.1 0.1

176.1 68.9 44.6 16.0 9.6 6.8 6.3 4.4 3.5 2.5 1.4 1.1

179.2 71.4 41.3 16.6 9.9 7.2 5.8 4.5 3.6 2.8 1.5 1.1

182.8 73.8 39.2 17.2 10.2 7.7 5.6 4.7 3.7 3.0 1.6 1.1

186.9 76.1 38.0 17.9 10.6 8.4 5.4 4.8 3.7 3.2 1.7 1.2

191.4 78.6 37.9 18.5 11.2 9.1 5.4 4.9 3.8 3.3 1.8 1.2

196.1 81.4 38.2 19.3 11.8 9.8 5.4 5.1 3.9 3.4 1.9 1.3

752.4 523.8 270.8 61.3 47.8 15.1 5.0 4.0 3.2 1.2 1.1 0.8

801.8 490.0 285.4 65.3 45.0 15.9 5.2 4.2 3.4 1.3 1.2 0.9

859.1 466.8 296.7 69.0 43.0 16.6 5.4 4.4 3.5 1.4 1.3 0.9

925.4 453.3 307.1 72.7 41.7 17.3 5.6 4.5 3.5 1.5 1.4 0.9

1,003.0 445.6 317.3 75.9 40.8 18.1 5.9 4.7 3.6 1.6 1.5 1.0

1,092.7 443.7 327.3 78.5 40.5 18.8 6.2 4.8 3.7 1.6 1.6 1.0

90.7 40.1 16.3 9.3 4.9 2.5 2.6 2.2 1.3 1.1 0.4 0.3

82.6 40.8 15.0 9.3 5.0 2.7 2.7 2.1 1.4 1.1 0.4 0.3

75.8 41.6 14.2 9.7 5.1 2.9 2.7 2.0 1.4 1.1 0.5 0.3

70.3 42.4 13.9 10.1 5.2 3.0 2.9 1.9 1.4 1.1 0.5 0.3

66.0 43.1 14.0 10.6 5.4 3.1 3.0 1.9 1.4 1.1 0.5 0.4

62.3 43.7 14.2 11.1 5.5 3.2 3.2 1.9 1.4 1.1 0.5 0.4

BLEACH Iran Saudi Arabia Egypt Kuwait - modelled Iraq - modelled Qatar - modelled United Arab Emirates Jordan - modelled Oman - modelled Lebanon - modelled Bahrain - modelled Yemen - modelled Source: Euromonitor International 2010

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 79

S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

SWEEPING CHANGES The region’s consumers have stepped up their search for green cleaning products… naturally. I HAVE TO admit that, given the brief for an SEO analysis on household cleaning products, my first port of call was my new wife. She opened the secret cupboard under the kitchen sink where no man has gone before and there, stashed away, was a vast array of squirt bottles, bleach bottles, spray cans, cloths, mops and other strange items. It was like Pandora’s Box or, more accurately, a Pandora’s cupboard of a man’s biggest nightmare – housework. So began our journey into Search behaviour in this sector. Taking a regional view, including Iraq – Google recently opened a country-specific engine for Iraq as well as Tunisia, a clear demonstration of its ever increasing commitment to localised search in the

80 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

region – we started to research keywords showing intent for information regarding household cleaning. Out of thousands of keywords, we identified the top 10 that had the most search queries. What truly stood out was the enormous number of search queries for “green cleaning” and, fifth down the line, “natural cleaner”, which suggests a regional interest in “green” and a trend for environmentally-friendly ingredients and chemicals. So which websites are taking advantage of this interest in alternative products? Researching the global results from the Google domain in the UAE, there were no local or regional examples of websites that ranked highest on average across all 10 keywords.

The majority were global informationbased websites such as www.housekeeping.about.org or www.ehow.com, which focused on providing information and instructions – from how to clean a GE coffee-maker to how to get the smell of old perfume out of fabric. So we researched the top sites that ranked locally in the UAE as a sample where 20 per cent of searchers will click on the ‘Pages from’ option in Google, which provides a more filtered search of local websites. The results were somewhat disappointing. No major brands from the big FMCG companies, such as P&G or Unilever, were taking advantage of this space. The top sites where either business information sites, or newspaper sites with generic news items.

Expatwoman.com stood out in the top four. It shows how UGC increases the amount of content on websites which, in turn, increases the amount of page rank for a broad range of keywords, as discussions are typed out across a wide range of topics. But brands should be careful about opening their product to comments. Witness the case of Ariel Excel Gel and the site www.coldisthenewhot.com – a new groundbreaking washing gel that washes at 15 degrees. The latest comments were mostly negative with one stating: “This product claims to wash from 15 degrees. How can this be as no washing machines are in the shops have a 15 degree setting!” The only two sites vaguely related to household cleaning products were cleanmiddleeast.ae and helpinghands-cleaning. com, one a magazine for the cleaning industry and the other a professional cleaning service. All in all social media is playing an ever more crucial role in search engine rankings, but you need to be careful how you manage it. Local content is still an open opportunity with little to no competition. For “green” product categories there is an opportunity for local brands to tap into a vibrant market of people searching for information on these products. Maybe it’s just men like me who are just trying to figure out what the content under the kitchen sink is all about, or maybe it’s women actively seeking more information on going green, but if you can capture their attention by ranking high for search terms, provide relevant information and show them where they can buy your products, then it seems there is a whole market awaiting you. n

Lee Mancini head of Sekari Dubai

TOP TOP 10 10 SEARCH SEARCH RESULTS RESULTS GOOGLE.AE GOOGLE.AE (GLOBAL) (GLOBAL) # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Coverage 80% 70% 60% 60% 50% 50% 50% 50% 40% 40%

Domain www.ehow.com housekeeping.about.com www.wikihow.com en.wikipedia.org tlc.howstuffworks.com www.care2.com www.housecleaning-tips.com hubpages.com www.realsimple.com www.tellmehowto.net

Performance data based on global results. Results show the top 10 performing websites, which on average have the highest rank and the most coverage in natural search results in Google.ae.

TOP 10 SEARCH RESULTS ‘PAGES FROM UAE’ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

100% 100% 80% 80% 80% 80% 70% 70% 60% 60%

www.ameinfo.com www.gulfnews.com www.datadubai.com www.expatwoman.com www.dubaiyellowpagesonline.com www.souq.com www.thenational.ae www.dubaichronicle.com www.cleanmiddleeast.ae www.helpinghands-cleaning.com

Performance data based on Google.ae “Pages From” UAE. Results show the top 10 performing websites, which on average have the highest rank and the most coverage in natural search results in Google.ae.

TOP 10 ENGLISH KEYWORDS # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Keyword home cleaner green cleaner household products kitchen cleaning natural cleaner bathroom cleaning clean bathroom toilet clean shower cleaning soap products

Local Search Volume May 2010 201,000 110,000 90,500 74,000 49,500 40,500 40,500 40,500 40,500 33,100

Regional Search Volume in the month of May 2010 for the top 10 Household Cleaning Products related search terms. Regional search volume from Google Search Engines in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Lebanon, Kuwait, Jordan, Yemen as well as Afganhistan and Iraq. Source: Sekari 2010

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 81

ÂŠ Getty/Gallo Images

S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

LIQUID ASSETS Levant remains top spending market with a surge of 82 per cent, while GCC sees decline in the household cleaning sector. THE HOUSEHOLD cleaning advertising market is estimated at $271 million in 2009, posting a healthy regional growth of 32 per cent over the previous year. Brands in the sector seem to have advertised heavily during the economic downturn to persuade consumers not to switch to cheaper alternatives. However, growth was not uniform across the region with heavy fluctuations observed in major markets. Advertisers preferred Pan Arab Media over specific local markets. Pan Arab Media accounted for 70 per cent of the total market share â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a rise of 30 per cent over the last year. Lebanon kept its top position due to an 82 per cent surge in spend over the past year. Egypt and Kuwait posted heavy gains of 122 per cent and 62 per cent, respectively, attributed to positive regional growth.

82 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

The markets that declined significantly were Saudi Arabia (-56 per cent), the UAE (-23 per cent), Qatar (-82 per cent), Bahrain (-59 per cent), Oman (-8 per cent) and Jordan (-31 per cent). TV held the lionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s share among major media types with 97 per cent of the market share; the medium saw its share rise by 33 per cent. Laundry detergent got the major share of 53 per cent in the sector, growing by 53 per cent. Dishwashing liquids also gained 78 per cent while disinfectants grew robustly at 94 per cent, as consumption increased perhaps owing to the outbreak of swine flu. Top brands in the descending order of spending in the region in 2009 were Ariel, Tide and Fairy. The sector holds promising growth in 2010 as it has reportedly gained 52

per cent in the first quarter compared to previous quarter. However, the disinfectant category slowed down as expected and other categories maintained the growth momentum. UAE is back to green in the first quarter with a 65 percent growth and Pan Arab Media continued its appeal to advertisers with a 71 per cent growth. The ad spend is calculated on the media rate cards and does not account for incentives and discounts that advertisers may avail from media owners. n

Shaharyar Umar product manager Pan Arab Research Centre, UAE

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21 - 22 September 2010 ADNEC, Abu Dhabi, UAE

Held under the patronage of H.E. Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi Minister of Foreign Trade

Maktoob from Yahoo! Presents The Internet Show

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6/9/10 2:58:13 PM

SECTOR ANALYSIS

CATEGORY: household cleaning - ARAB ADVERTISING MARKETS - Y2009 MILLIONS US$271

MARKETS RANKING & MEDIA SPLIT (000 US$) Television Rank Market Name & Abbreviation Y2007 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Pan Arab Media Lebanon Egypt Kindom of Saudi Arabia Kuwait United Arab Emirates Jordan Oman Bahrain Qatar Other Markets** Total All Markets

Y2008

%Var’n Y2009 YTD

PAN 102,361 145,614 189,449 EGY 25,018 27,106 49,214 KWT 7,638 6,699 14,845 KSA 9,037 16,577 7,302 UAE 4,143 3,714 6,026 QTR 1,604 2,621 2,028 JOR 683 414 286 LEB 126 279 258 OMN 0 27 11 BAH 74 60 11 OTH 3,524 2,290 2,009 154,208 205,401 271,439

30 82 122 -56 62 -23 -31 -8 -59 -82 -12 32

2009

%Var’n YTD

189,178 48,385 8,834 5,842 5,913 1,849 82 167 0 0 1,789 262,039

30 84 207 -62 71 -9 -77 -9 33

Media Split (Millions US$) Magazines Radio

Newspapers Y2009 0 11 260 381 4 27 193 66 0 11 112 1,065

%Var’n YTD -62 36 23 -73 4 589 -75 -68 -41 -3

2009 271 88 225 251 105 112 6 25 11 0 82 1,176

%Var’n YTD

2009

-29 52 42 -36 -56 -67 -65 150 450 -40 -32

0 301 682 0 2 29 0 0 0 0 26 1,040

+32%

Outdoor

%Var’n YTD 63 37 107

1200 48

2009

Cinema

%Var’n YTD

0 429 4,844 828 2 0 5 0 0 0 0 6,108

2009

%Var’n YTD

0 0 0 0 0 11 0 0 0 0 0 11

-28 63 28 -38

-95

**Other markets: Combined - Syria, Yemen & Arasian

Ranking of Markets & Media Split (000US$) 100%

Category Split by Market 70%

75% 50%

25% 0%

2% 3%

18%

Pan Arab Media Lebanon Egypt Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Total GCC LEV PAN LEB EGY KSA KWT UAE JOR 271439 206981 64458 189449 49214 14845 7302 6026 2028 286

Television

Newspapers

Magazines

Radio

OMN 258

BAH 11

Outdoor

Kuwait

QTR OTH 11 2009

UAE

Cinema

Other markets

SPLIT BY PRODUCTS (000 US$) - Y2009 53%

GCC & Levant Markets 14% 4% 6% 10% 13%

Pan Arab Media 51% 12%

Dishwashing liquid Laundry detergent Cmb Household cleansers & polish Disinfectant Insect killer Others

8% 5%

13% 11%

GCC Markets 50%

8% 5%

13%

61%

11%

2% 5%

13%

Dishwashing liquid Laundry detergent Cmb Household cleansers & polish Disinfectant Static stain remover Others

Levant Markets

Laundry detergent Household Supply Insect killer Others

22% 5% 6%

Dishwashing liquid Floor detergent

TOP BRANDS - ALL MEDIA (000 US$) - Y2009 Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Brand Ariel Tide Fairy Comfort Persil Jif Dettol Pril Bonux Vanish Downy Dac Harpic Clorox Glade Sanita Ace General Pif Paf Raid

PAN ARAB MEDIA Value 45,243 34,969 22,922 17,645 15,785 14,916 13,640 13,002 12,383 10,622 10,316 6,736 5,013 4,819 4,591 3,531 3,181 3,044 2,872 2,706

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

84 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

Brand Ariel Tide Comfort Jif Dettol Fairy Vanish Downy Persil Pril Dac Bonux Glade Harpic Clorox Ace Pif Paf General Raid Oxi

GCC Value 29,990 23,904 16,057 13,645 12,475 12,257 9,418 8,827 8,383 8,193 5,890 5,276 4,355 3,901 3,801 3,181 2,812 2,671 2,311 1,634

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

LEVANT Brand Ariel Tide Comfort Jif Fairy Dettol Downy Vanish Persil Pril Dac Bonux Harpic Clorox Glade Ace Pif Paf General Raid Ariel_tide

Value 31,569 25,357 17,645 14,916 13,505 13,322 10,316 10,270 8,786 8,277 6,736 5,379 5,013 4,565 4,493 3,181 2,812 2,671 2,638 2,006

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Brand Ariel Tide Fairy Bonux Persil Pril Sanita Vape Vileda Der General Oxi Baygon X-tra Pyrosol General Vanish Dettol Rozenbal Clorox Mr. Muscle

Value 13,674 9,612 9,417 7,004 6,999 4,725 3,115 1,523 1,259 1,048 907 593 593 468 373 352 318 292 254 208

Source: PARC

GCC & LEVANT

CATEGORY: HOUSEHOLD CLEANING - Y2009 AGCC, LEVANT, PAN ARAB & ARASIAN MEDIA MARKET ADVERTISING EXPENDITURE FOR TOP PRODUCTS (000 US$) 2007 - 2009 (JAN-DEC) 2007 2008 75,730 93,714 19,512 20,609 17,152 31,447 6,902 8,733 13,280 13,626 21,632 37,272 154,208 205,401

Laundry Detergents (LTD) Dishwashing Liq-powder (DLP) Cmb HH Clnrs & Polishers (CHC) Disinfectants (DFT) Insect Killer (INK) Others (OTH) Total

2009 143,369 36,735 28,008 16,975 10,727 35,625 271,439

2009 Media Split % LTD DLP CHC DFT INK OTH 20%

40%

60%

80%

%Var’n Y09/08 53 78 -11 94 -21 -4 32

Sh% 53 14 10 6 4 13 100

100%

TV 98 92 97 99 85 97 97

NP 0 0 0 1 2 1 0

MG 0 0 0 0 2 1 0

RD 0 1 0 0 0 0 0

Product Growth 2007 - 2009 (000 US$) 160000 140000 120000 100000 80000 60000 40000 20000 0 LDT DLP CHC DFT

Newspapers Television Magazines Outdoor Radio Cinema

2008

2009

OD 1 6 2 0 10 1 2

INK

CN 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

OTH

2007

OVERALL MEDIA SPLIT ANALYSIS (000 US$) Media Television Newspapers Magazines Radio Outdoor Cinema Total

Value 145,310 1,746 1,828 428 4,896 0 154,208

2007

Sh% 94 1 1 0 3 0 100

Value 197,400 1,094 1,738 702 4,238 229 205,401

2008

Sh% 96 1 1 0 2 0 100

Value 262,039 1,065 1,176 1,040 6,108 11 271,439

2009

Sh% 97 0 0 0 2 0 100

Var'n % 2008/2009 33 -3 -32 48 44 -95 32

MONTHLY SPEND ANALYSIS (MILLIONS US$) 2007 - 2009 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2009

2008

2007

Overall Media Split 2007 - 2009 300000 250000 200000 150000 100000 50000 0

Period Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Nov Total

2007 9 9 10 11 20 17 17 12 14 12 11 12 154

2008 14 15 22 17 15 13 17 16 21 19 19 16 205

2009 11 15 22 22 30 27 25 27 23 27 25 18 271

97% 1%

2007

Var’n % 2009/2008 -25 -2 0 26 96 108 44 67 11 42 30 13 32

Total Category - Media Split %

(000 US$ - Semi Logarithmic)

2008

2009 Television

Outdoor

Others (Newspaper, Magazine, Radio, Cinema)

Television Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Ariel 2 Tide 3 Fairy 4 Comfort 5 Jif 6 Persil 7 Dettol 8 Bonux 9 Pril 10 Vanish

2009 45065 34964 22417 17643 14916 14401 13618 12383 10644 10622

Newspapers Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Dac 2 Pril 3 Clorox 4 Ars 5 New Pyrosol 6 Bahar 7 Persil 8 Spring Touch 9 Raid 10 Mr. Muscle

2009 131 119 76 75 68 60 51 42 39 33

Magazines Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Downy 2 Fairy 3 Clorox 4 New Pyrosol 5 Persil 6 Pril 7 Bio Cleana 8 Eclat De Velours 9 Bahar 10 Flit

2009 254 176 127 100 57 51 50 49 35 20

Radio Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Pril 2 Stop Mousse 3 X-tra 4 Persil 5 Dac 6 Fairy 7 Vape 8 Sanita 9 Baygon 10 Lulu

2009 349 201 187 158 49 43 21 16 8 6

Outdoor Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Pril 2 Persil 3 Pyrosol 4 Clorox 5 Oxi 6 General 7 Ars 8 Fairy 9 Ariel 10 X-tra

2009 1839 1118 468 450 333 314 297 284 172 122

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 85

Newspapers Television Magazines Outdoor Radio Cinema

+32%

Top Brands Y2009 (000 US$)

Source: PARC

Product & Abbreviation

MILLIONS US$271

Media Split %

SECTOR ANALYSIS

CATEGORY: HOUSEHOLD CLEANING - LEVANT MEDIA MARKETS ADVERTISING EXPENDITURE FOR TOP PRODUCTS (000 US$) 2007 - 2009 (JAN-DEC) 2007 21,848 4,390 611 4,332 1,012 1,569 33,762

Laundry Detergents (LTD) Dishwashing Liq-powder (DLP) Household Supplies Cmb (HSC) Insect Killer (INK) Floor Detergents (FDT) Others (OTH) TOTAL

2008 21,331 3,552 3,933 2,828 670 2,142 34,456

2009 39,282 14,166 3,684 2,941 1,124 3,261 64,458

Sh% 61 22 6 5 2 5 100

%Var’n Y09/08 84 299 -6 4 68 52 87

2009 Media Split %

DLP HSC INK FDT OTH 60%

40%

80%

NP 0 1 0 5 0 5 1

MG 0 0 0 4 0 3 1

RD 1 3 0 1 0 0 2

OD 5 14 3 24 5 16 8

Product Growth 2007 - 2009 (000 US$) 45000 40000 35000 30000 25000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0 LTD DLP HSC INK

LDT

20%

TV 94 81 96 66 95 76 89

100%

Newspapers Television Magazines Outdoor Radio Cinema

2008

2009

FDT

CN 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

OTH

2007

OVERALL MEDIA SPLIT ANALYSIS (000 US$) Media Television Newspapers Magazines Radio Outdoor Total

Value 28,362 715 257 358 4,070 33,762

2007

Sh% 84 2 1 1 12 100

Value 29,569 368 261 683 3,575 34,456

2008

2009 Value 57,326 533 338 983 5,278 64,458

Sh% 86 1 1 2 10 100

Sh% 89 1 1 2 8 100

Var'n % 2008/2009 94 45 30 44 48 87

MONTHLY SPEND ANALYSIS (MILLIONS US$) 2007 - 2009 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2009

2008

2007

Overall Media Split 2007 - 2009 70000 60000 50000 40000 30000 20000 10000 0

Period Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Total

2007 3 2 2 2 4 4 3 2 4 3 2 2 34

2008 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 5 4 4 3 34

2009 3 3 5 4 6 5 8 7 6 7 5 6 64

Total Category - Media Split %

(000 US$ - Semi Logarithmic)

89% 1%

2% 8%

2007

2008

Newspapers Television Magazines Outdoor Radio Cinema

86 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

2009 Outdoor Television Newspaper Radio

+87%

Top Brands Y2009 (000 US$)

Var’n % 2009/2008 57 37 131 83 205 117 158 203 9 77 9 113 87

Television Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Ariel 2 Tide 3 Fairy 4 Bonux 5 Persil 6 Sanita 7 Pril 8 Vape 9 Vileda 10 Der General

2009 13496 9609 9165 7004 5632 3099 2373 1398 1259 1008

Newspapers Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Pril 2 New Pyrosol 3 Persil 4 Raid 5 Mr. Muscle 6 Kovix 7 Bravo 8 Clorox 9 Ajax 10 Flit

2009 119 68 45 39 33 26 21 20 16 16

Magazines Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 New Pyrosol 2 Bio Cleana 3 Persil 4 Pril 5 Flit 6 Fairy 7 Flitol 8 Gpi 9 Efx 10 Bissell

2009 100 50 46 45 20 7 7 7 5 4

Radio Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Pril 2 Stop Mousse 3 X-tra 4 Persil 5 Fairy 6 Vape 7 Sanita 8 Baygon 9 Flit

2009 349 201 187 158 43 21 16 8 2

Outdoor Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Pril 2 Persil 3 Pyrosol 4 Oxi 5 General 6 Fairy 7 Ariel 8 Clorox 9 X-tra 10 Gohar

2009 1839 1118 468 333 314 200 172 168 122 104

Source: PARC

Product & Abbreviation

MILLIONS US$64

Media Split %

AGCC, PAN ARAB & ARASIAN MEDIA MARKETS ADVERTISING EXPENDITURE FOR TOP PRODUCTS (000 US$) 2007 - 2009 (JAN-DEC) Media Split %

Product & Abbreviation 2007 2009 2008 Laundry Detergents (LDT) 53,882 72,383 104,087 Cmb HH Clnrs A& Polishers (CHC) 16,831 30,723 27,106 Dishwashing Liq Powder (DLP) 15,122 17,057 22,569 Disinfectants (DFT) 6,544 8,639 16,435 Static-stain Remover (SSR) 8,456 12,222 10,270 Others (OTH) 19,611 29,921 26,514 Total 120,446 170,945 206,981

Sh% 50 13 11 8 5 13 100

%Var’n TV Y09/08 44 99 -12 100 32 99 90 99 -16 100 -11 96 21 99

NP 0 0 0 1 0 1 0

MG 0 0 1 0 0 1 0

RD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

OD 0 0 0 0 0 3 0

CN 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

MILLIONS US$207

+21%

Top Brands Y2009 (000 US$) Product Growth 2007 - 2009 (000 US$) 120000

LDT

100000

CHC

80000

DLP

60000

DFT

40000

SSR

20000

OTH 0%

20%

60%

40%

80%

100%

LTD

Newspapers Television Magazines Outdoor Radio Cinema

CHC

2009

DLP

2008

DFT

SSR

OTH

2007

OVERALL MEDIA SPLIT ANALYSIS (000 US$) Media Television Newspapers Magazines Radio Outdoor Cinema Total

Value 116,948 1,031 1,571 70 826 0 120,446

2007

Sh% 97 1 1 0 1 0 100

Value 167,831 726 1,477 19 663 229 170,945

2008

2009 Value 204,713 532 838 57 830 11 206,981

Sh% 98 0 1 0 0 0 100

Var'n % 2008/2009 22 -27 -43 200 25 -95 21

Sh% 99 0 0 0 0 0 100

MONTHLY SPEND ANALYSIS (MILLIONS US$) 2007 - 2009 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2009

2008

2007

Overall Media Split 2007 - 2009 250000 200000 150000 10000 50000 0

Period Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Total

2007 6 6 7 9 16 13 14 11 11 9 9 10 120

2008 13 12 20 15 13 10 14 14 16 15 15 14 171

2009 8 11 17 18 23 21 17 20 17 20 20 13 207

Var’n % 2009/2008 -35 -9 -14 18 78 106 20 43 12 33 36 -5 21

Total Category - Media Split %

(000 US$ - Semi Logarithmic)

99%

2007

2008

Newspapers Television Magazines Outdoor Radio Cinema

2009 Television

Others (Newspaper, Magazine, Radio, Cinema, Outdoor)

Television Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Ariel 2 Tide 3 Comfort 4 Jif 5 Dettol 6 Fairy 7 Vanish 8 Downy 9 Persil 10 Pril

2009 31569 25355 17643 14916 13300 13252 10270 10051 8769 8271

Newspapers Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Dac 2 Ars 3 Bahar 4 Clorox 5 Spring Touch 6 Raid_baygon 7 Mortein 8 Dettol 9 Beurer 10 VAPE

2009 131 75 60 56 42 25 19 14 13 11

Magazines Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Downy 2 Fairy 3 Clorox 4 Eclat De Velours 5 Bahar 6 Body Guard 7 Cambro 8 Ars 9 Airfree 10 Gai Soap

2009 254 169 127 49 35 17 17 15 11 11

Radio Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Dac 2 Lulu 3 Tide

2009 49 6 2

Outdoor Top Spenders Rank Brand 1 Ars 2 Clorox 3 Raid 4 Tek 5 Fairy 6 Dac

2009 297 282 99 96 84 66

Source: PARC

2009 Media Split %

July-August 2010 Gulf Marketing Review 87

DIARY

Developing A Successful Web Portal Strategy IIR ME Date: July 25-28 Venue: Hyatt Regency Hotel, Dubai T: +971 4 3352437 W: iirme.com/portal

EVENT OF THE MONTH

Lebanon’s tourism sector saw a 35 per cent increase in 2009, hosting more than 2 million visitors throughout the year, according to IFP Expo. And with expectations to continue this rise, the 13th International Jewellery, Watch and Luxury Exhibition For the Middle East will run across four days in July with a full itinerary. The programme includes exhibitions, red carpet shows, jewellery cat walks, press conferences, an awards ceremony, workshops and seminars. The event will also host new product launches, as well as conduct trade and brand promotions. As a business and consumer platform, the event is expected to attract local, regional and international delegates and media. Beirut’s Fashion Week will be held simultaneously. Beirut Jewellery Week – Joaillerie Liban IFP Expo Date: July 20-23 Venue: Beirut International Exhibitions and Leisure Center T: +961 5 959111 F: +961 5 959888 W: www.ifpexpo.com

July Syromotorshow 2010 Projex Exhibitions Services Co. & Allied Expo Date: July 1-7 Venue: Damascus International Fairground T: +963 11 2317114 F: +963 11 2320316 W: syrmotorshow.com JITCOM 2010 Sanaa Intl Exh Center Date: July 5-11

Venue: Sanaa Expo Centre, Sanaa T: +967 614090 W: exposanaa.com Beirut Public Relations Forum 2010 Traccs Date: July 7-8 Venue: Gefinor Rotana Hotel T: +971 4 3672530 F: +971 4 3672531 W: traccs.net

90 Gulf Marketing Review July-August 2010

August Jordan Build 2010 Amman International Fair Date: Aug 2-5 Venue: Expo Jordan T: +962 6 5540412 F: +962 6 5540413 W: jordanbuild.com Iran Motor Show 2010 Mashad Intl Exhibition Co. Date: Aug 4-8 Venue: Mashad Intl Exh Centre T: +98 511 5019409 F: +98 511 5013312 W: expo.ir/international Homes Middle East Expo Centre Sharjah Date: Aug 19-Sept 4 Venue: Expo Centre Sharjah, UAE T: +971 6 5770000 W: expo-centre.ae Ramadan Fair 2010 Expo Centre Sharjah Date: Aug 19-Sept 11 Venue: Expo Centre Sharjah, UAE T: +971 6 5770000 F: +971 6 5770111 W: expo-centre.ae Ramadan & Eid Exhibition KIF Date: Aug 26-Sept 4 Venue: Kuwait Intl Fairs Ground T: +965 25387100 (9 lines) F: +965 25393872/8123 W: kif.net

September The Internet Show Terrapinn Date: Sept 21-22 Location: Abu Dhabi T: +971 4 7094500 F: +971 4 3473889 W: terrapinn.com/2010/ middleeast MidEast Watch & Jewellery Show Expo Centre Sharjah Date: Sept 28-October 2 Venue: Expo Centre Sharjah, UAE T: +971 6 5770000 F: +971 6 5770111 W: mideastjewellery.com October 10th International Automobile Show Expo Centre Sharjah Date: October 14-18 Venue: Expo Centre Sharjah, UAE T: +971 6 5770000 F: +971 6 5770111 W: int-autoshow.com Erbil International Fair 2010 IFP Expo Date: October 18-21 Location: Erbil International Fair Ground T: +961 5 959111 F: +961 5 959888 W: ifpexpo.com

GMR EVENTS 2010 GEMAS effie Mena Awards 2010 Venue: Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai Date: November 4 T: +971 4 3910760 F: +971 4 3908737