Archive for category: Five Minute Focus

With the STEP Conference taking place tomorrow, Team TMN sit down with Founder Ray Dargham to find out what we can expect from this year’s event…

Tell us a little more about the concept behind STEP…
STEP started in an art gallery in Beirut, where I’m from. I ran workshops on emergent trends and it was really a space for creative people to connect and was something very organic. I then moved to Dubai and saw an opportunity for STEP to become bigger and better.

Even though STEP has grown since it began in Beirut, the core element has stayed the same – it’s essentially a cool hub for like-minded people to connect

What can we expect to see and how will this year’s conference differ from previous editions?
To get a real feel for STEP Conference you really have to come and experience the fun for yourself. It has a real festival feel and is so much more than a conference.

Aside from the action packed schedule, we have a food fest area with eclectic local food. Music will be provided by Freshly Ground Sounds and we will have an art area, which keeps the spirit of our beginnings alive.

We know people in the media like to socialise, so we will be having a warm up barbeque the night before and an after party at a top-secret location for all attendees.

This year will be bigger, bolder and better. We have tripled in size, there are three main stages instead of one, and we have leading speakers and attendees from around the world, putting us on a global platform.

There will be more announcements for STEP Conference right up until the event and we will also have a few surprises in store on the day itself.

How does STEP Conference differ from other technology, design and gaming events in the region?
We provide an engaging and disruptive format, and it’s very experience-led. We’re the only conference in the region that mixes entertainment with the commercial side of business for these industries. And most importantly it’s lots of fun!

What can we expect to see from this year’s line-up of speakers?
Three of the top 100 most wanted tech speakers in the world will be there – Dave McClure, Mike Butcher and Jeremiah Owyang will share their stories and reveal the latest trends in their sectors.

Who is your target market and how does your marketing strategy reflect this?
It’s a mix of people, which keeps it interesting. We target the start-up community, including the mentors and investors. People in the digital space in general, as well as gamers, designers, brands and agencies.  Our marketing strategy is targeted, digital centric, with content at the heart to appeal directly to our audience

How can communications professionals get involved?
STEP Conference will reveal the latest trends in digital and will showcase leading global speakers, so it’s ideal for any professional in the media and communications sectors to learn what’s hot in this exciting space.

Are there advertising opportunities?
There are still opportunities for advertising, or as we call it, brand integration. Our sponsors aren’t just names with logos – they get engaged and provide something experiential and meaningful to the audience.

How can members of media attend the Conference?
They can register through the website stepconference.com or go direct to our PR agency – Brazen – who will help. The media lounge is the same as the speaker lounge, so media will get direct access to everyone taking part, which is pretty different.

Are there any future plans for STEP Conference?
Absolutely. Our vision is 10,000 attendees by 2017 and for it to become a global platform in showcasing tech, design and gaming talent and trends.

Dubai is the perfect city to host STEP and get us to that vision. Not only does it have the connectivity and infrastructure, but it’s also a hotbed for the creative and digital scene in the region. The weather and beach help too of course!

Team TMN sit down with Sherry Tenorio, Editor of BIEN, to get the low down on what to expect from Imperial Publishing’s hotly anticipated beauty publication that hits shelves next month…

What is the concept behind BIEN?
The concept is very simple – it is a beauty magazine that allows readers to understand beauty products and solutions, while at the same time entertaining them with fashion, travel and lifestyle features. It educates the readers about the products and services available for them to refine, enhance and project their individuality. It cuts across nationalities, ages and cultural sensibilities as well as gender (the magazine will have a dedicated section for men).

What made you decide to launch bien.ae first?
We decided to launch the magazine´s fast media since it would pave the way to gathering interaction and interest among our target readers as well as potential clients and partners. Also, the website allows us to present the look, feel and tone of the magazine. We believe that the online and social media channels will strongly complement the print publication.

What will the platform offer that is different from the print publication?
The website is different in the sense that we update the features daily, so we can cover announcements, events and reviews the moment we receive the news. The magazine on the other hand will have more in-depth stories and comprehensive articles focused on timely and essential topics related mostly to beauty, health, wellness, fitness, a bit of fashion, travel and lifestyle.

What differentiates the website further is the level of interaction the readers will get through it. We plan to roll out a review program wherein the readers get samples of the beauty products about to launch or recently launched in the market and then write about them, enabling the readers to receive more samples to try. This is an excellent marketing research opportunity for beauty products and services that aim to promote as well as understand their markets better. So instead of stopping people in the malls to try the product and eventually make them buy the product, we hope that bien.ae will be able to support the brands by providing the sampling opportunities through the website.

Who is BIEN’s target audience?
BIEN will mainly attract women from the range of 18 to 45 years old, who know the importance of self-development in achieving their goals in life. They are working women who know the power of personal grooming and work value. They are the achievers on top of their game, who are continuously on the move and yet know how to squeeze in ´me-time´ in order to keep and maintain balanced wellbeing. They are the mothers who stay at home, but clearly remember the importance of self-image. They are women, of different ages, unique qualities, of different backgrounds, bound by the innate need to be their most beautiful selves.

How will BIEN stand out in the publication market?
There are fashion and lifestyle magazines that have dedicated beauty sections. There are beauty magazines that are targeted to the industry professionals. There are beauty magazines for consumers in Arabic, but there´s no single English language magazine that talks to the consumers directly about beauty. This is where BIEN steps in, stands out and fills the gap in the market.

Will you be working with a dedicated editorial team, or are there opportunities for freelancers?
There is an editorial team working on the magazine but we’re open to working with freelancers as well as collaborations with leading beauty bloggers in the region.

How can PRs get involved?
We welcome updates from PR agencies. The materials they send are essential to ease our research for editorial features and we are also open to working with them through PR activation campaigns.

Are there any advertising opportunities?
Definitely. We currently have a wonderful marketing program that provides advertisers maximum exposure on all our media channels and allows value for investment.

Are there any future plans for BIEN once launched?
Yes. We wish to venture into live marketing activations and event promotions, but we’ll keep everyone posted as we go along. As of now, we’re focused on our beautiful babies, the website and the magazine.

 

Team TMN catches up with Reim El Houni, Managing Director of Ti22 Films, who offers an insight into the upcoming launch of Ti22 Film’s online channel Dubai ON Demand, set to go live early this year… 

Where did the concept for Dubai ON Demand originate?
I have spent a few years visiting the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) show in the US as well as watching industry trends from abroad, and could see the focus on digital was increasing year on year. Over the last couple of years in particular, original content online has started to become more mainstream with players like Netflix and Amazon. What I found even more interesting was watching how YouTube acted as an equaliser with a very low barrier for entry, allowing anyone to put content out there. There has been a big shift in viewing patterns generally with audiences preferring to access content anytime online, so YouTube felt like the place to be. It’s still an untapped market in the MENA region, but I know that it’s just a matter of time.

I’ve been very impressed with a number of online channels and concepts from the US in particular, and feel that it’s time this region aimed for that. So that’s the next goal. I also believe in signs, and although this was something I had started speaking with people about a while ago, the changes at Dubai One were a catalyst, reaffirming that this was the right time with the right team.

Tell us a little more about what we can expect to see on Dubai ON Demand…
You can expect to see a bit of everything! Although predominantly lifestyle, we will be happy to explore niche programming as well.  We have a range of shows at the moment from makeup tips and how-to guides with Aishwarya, to adrenaline-fuelled experiences with Layne, celebrity specials with Dina and comedy news round ups with Nitin. When reviewing all the possible shows we could have done, it came down to what everyone was most passionate about. I believe that if you are passionate about something then you are going to do everything you can to make it work, so I am glad to say we have a team who are each presenting shows they really care about.

Dubai ON Demand is set to go live on YouTube. Why do you think launching an entertainment channel online will be more successful than launching through traditional channels?
I think anyone who is in touch with viewing trends knows that audiences are primarily watching content online than on traditional channels. In the US this will be the first year that online viewing actually surpasses TV viewing. Online viewing is also up by 250% compared to this time last year. Regionally, Saudi Arabia is the largest consumer of You Tube content globally!  As well as all this, we have conducted our own research on where marketers are spending their budgets and they are all shifting towards digital, as the ROI is much clearer than an ad spot on TV.  I have seen this shift through my own company and clients over the last year in particular; so online is the place to be!

You have a number of well-known personalities from regional media that will be collaborating with the channel. How did this come about?
Once I had decided that this was the time for the project, I contacted the team, gave them an idea of what I wanted to work on and asked if they would be interested in exploring it with me. Fortunately they all said yes! We met several times where I shared some of my learning and talked through the vision of the project. I’m very keen to develop a channel of high standard that is as interactive as possible and build a community. We are only as good as our last show and only as good as people think we are, so it really is about involving the public as much as possible. As I had worked with many of the presenters before in the capacity of an Executive Producer, an element of trust was already there and many of them are close friends. Our core team also reached out to a few more personalities who we felt could add value and be a great fit. It’s an exciting, diverse group and I think will be a great team to deliver some interesting and fun content.

Who will Dubai ON Demand be aimed at?
All of our content is in English and focused on the expat community, specifically in Dubai. Having said that, many of our shows have a much more general and wider reach and by being online our content is available for anyone to watch globally. I would say we cover a wide age range with some shows appealing to a younger group, possibly as young as late teens and some probably appealing to an older demographic. We will be putting some niche content out there which may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but that’s fine. I am quite happy for Dubai On Demand to become a channel of niches; looking into content that local TV wouldn’t necessarily create shows for.

Will there be advertising opportunities with the channel, and if so, how can agencies get in touch?
Yes there will be. We are currently speaking with a number of potential sponsors who are interested in getting involved with the channel. We welcome opportunities to speak with brands and agencies who are interested and we are exploring all suggestions, from product integration to potentially custom producing certain shows. As well as this, we will be offering more traditional advertising options. Agencies can contact info@ti22films.com if they would like to explore advertising opportunities with Dubai On Demand.

How can PRs get involved?
Our team has great relationships with PR companies, and we want to build on those and develop even stronger ties. Our aim is to be the must-watch channel for Dubai, so for that to happen we need to make sure our content is up to date and our cameras and presenters in all the right places. So, we encourage PR companies to get in touch and let us know what’s new! We do want to ensure that the content is a natural fit for our shows and we still prioritise the audiences viewing experience, but if the content will add value, then there is a lot of opportunity there. We would also love to give viewers access to exclusive events and celebrities in town, so we’re interested in everything that’s new and exciting in Dubai.

As Dubai ON Demand aims to fill the gap left by the closure of Dubai One, do you have any specific plans to attract Dubai One’s TV audience digitally?
To be honest, I think it will happen naturally. Our goal is to create interesting, fun content, and get viewers and the audience involved in ensuring we are producing what they want to see. That’s a general strategy to attract an audience and in time I am sure the Dubai One audience will find us too.

The launch of this channel will surely set trends in the UAE – are there any plans to expand Dubai ON Demand?
I’m a believer in having big goals, continually striving for them and setting new ones.  Having said that, I don’t think we should run before we can walk.  The next year is about getting Dubai On Demand out there and ensuring our content is as strong as it can be. Dubai on Demand is very scalable and although we are starting with nine personalities and shows, we have brainstormed over 30 others, so once our foundation is solid, there is definitely scope for the channel to grow.

What can we expect to see next from Ti22 Films?
Our mainstream business – producing films for corporates and broadcasters – is still going strong and we have plans to expand our team and offerings especially with the whole shift in the market towards digital. We hope to stay active on the international festival scene as well, but Dubai On Demand is a big part of our focus for the next year. We have a few other ideas up our sleeve but also believe we need to take one step at a time… so watch this space!

We catch up with Medea Nocentini, Founder and CEO of Consult and Coach for a Cause, to discuss the recent C3 Starter Program event geared specifically towards budding entrepreneurs and integrating CSR initiatives…

Tell us a bit about the C3 Starter Program…
The C3 Starter Program is a full-day training program that introduces potential social entrepreneurs and volunteers to social enterprise concepts, as well as to the C3 philosophy. Participants benefit from workshops and networking sessions to clarify all the steps necessary to set up a social enterprise in early stages of development. For business professionals who are looking to hone their skills, the Starter Program provides them with basic consulting and coaching skills and offers a framework to support emerging entrepreneurs in an effective manner.

Where did the concept for the program originate?
We noticed that entrepreneurs in the region have a lot of great ideas and the good will needed to start an enterprise, but struggle when it comes to taking the business off the ground. For social entrepreneurs, it is even harder because they have to balance business performance and their social mission in order to get their message across in the right way. Moreover, many entrepreneurs cannot afford business coaching and consulting or professional financial and legal advice, especially in the early stages. So, C3 has invited experts from multiple professional areas to train entrepreneurs that are willing to embed a social or environmental mission into their business model.

Why do you feel it’s important for entrepreneurs and startups to be aware of ‘giving back’ to the community?
There’s a reason why companies invest more and more in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Nowadays, consumers expect enterprises to go beyond their core business and become contributors to their communities. Consumers are more informed and demanding, and with the social media tools they can ‘make or break’ a company performance in no time. So it’s important that from the beginning, entrepreneurs implement sustainability principles in their companies, typical of social enterprises, since it guarantees engagement with the target audience and empowers the consumer, giving credibility to the company in return. Moreover, there are strategies to align social and environmental missions with financial performance that have the potential to decrease costs such as marketing, production and employee retention.

What kind of social changes are you hoping to promote and encourage with this event?
At C3 we don’t select entrepreneurs depending on their area of social impact or suggest any specific mission. Nonetheless, we enjoy supporting those enterprises that have the potential to produce systemic change in our country and in the MENA region. Empowering businesses that promote solutions that help the environment, improve education and health, support the elderly or the underprivileged, promote local traditions or arts and culture, is a privilege for the C3 community of volunteers.

Would budding media entrepreneurs benefit from attending this event?
Any entrepreneur will benefit from the C3 Starter’s workshops because we focus on best practices and potential challenges that any entrepreneur can face in the startup phase. We also provide frameworks that will reinforce entrepreneurs’ confidence and self-awareness, as well as coaching tools that have proven to be very effective in the early stage of an enterprise. Of course we include dos and don’ts that are typical of businesses with a social / environmental mission, which we believe will help the long-term sustainability and reliance of any business.

What are your views on the idea that Dubai’s market has become saturated with entrepreneurs and startups?
I believe we are still far from the end! Small and medium enterprises contribute to about 30% of the UAE’s GDP – which is a very high number – but compared with Germany’s level of over 50% we still have a long way to go. Regionally, one of the main goals in terms of development is the creation of 75 million jobs by 2020 for a rising population of youth who face high unemployment rates. Given that very specific challenge, entrepreneurship in the Middle East plays an even more vital role and Expo 2020 in Dubai will be a great opportunity for the entrepreneurial community.

How does the C3 Starter Program help budding entrepreneurs avoid the many pitfalls that startups face in the region?
It introduces the participants to the dos and don’ts when launching an enterprise, offers the best practices to help develop and succeed and presents strategic business models. Participants get help to understand what their biggest assets are and to set up goals for their business. Besides that, being a part of Starter Program guarantees the access to the Accelerator Program – the next step of the C3 training process.

How can people secure a place at the Program?
Workshops are for a limited number of social entrepreneurs and volunteers so as to ensure training quality. To secure a place you need to subscribe through the link EVENTBRITE.

 

 

 

 

Team TMN caught up with Nadia Mankani, Director of Marketing & Communications at Task Spotting, to discuss the launch of the Task Spotting app and its aim to revolutionise market research in the form of crowdsourcing…

Tell us a bit about the Task Spotting app…
Task Spotting is the first app in the Middle East that leverages the concept of crowdsourcing to help businesses gather valuable market insights. Our network of app users are financially incentivised to complete simple ‘missions’, ranging from retail audits to mystery shopping on their smartphones, at the places they visit everyday such as malls, restaurants and retailers.

The information submitted allows businesses to see what’s actually happening on the ground, and for the first time, to experience their product or service through the eyes and ears of their customers. Businesses can reach out to thousands of consumers on their phones, ask them for the market intelligence they require, and receive it back in real time. Customers on the other hand, get rewarded in cash for providing the information, so it’s a win-win situation for both!

How did the concept for Task Spotting come about?
Task Spotting is the brainchild of one of our founders, Karim Aly. He had experienced first-hand the challenges of getting quick, reliable data and felt this was a widespread problem with many companies across the region. He came up with the idea of combining crowdsourcing with a smartphone app to help businesses get real-time visibility and market insights, solving a real business problem.

Has this concept been successful in other regions around the world?
There are a couple of US-based companies that are leveraging crowdsourcing in an attempt to help businesses capture information and they have been a source of inspiration for us. However, we have yet to identify any player that is offering Task Spotting’s breadth of data, level of accuracy, or robust analytics.

From a marketing perspective, why would businesses want to get involved with Task Spotting?
Task Spotting enables businesses to gain valuable information, such as competitive and product intelligence, market and customer understanding at any stage of the customer lifecycle, which creates serious competitive advantages from a marketing perspective. If this information is gathered from the outset, a marketing strategy can be based on genuine insight and reliable knowledge of market trends and competitive information, the benefits of which are endless. Companies can better target their products, choose their channels wisely, and allocate their marketing budgets effectively.

Our dashboard is also a marketer’s dream, with some very rich analytical tools built in, including the ability to filter and segment data across multiple dimensions such as gender, age, location, responses etc, as well as trending capabilities; all of which offer a very deep level of customer understanding which can feed into the marketing strategy.

What kind of campaigns does Task Spotting offer for businesses?
The most common applications of the app are mystery shopping, retail execution audits and competitive intelligence surveys. However, the potential applications vary greatly, as essentially it is a platform that connects businesses in need of information with a crowd that is willing and able to provide it, so businesses can use the platform to their benefit depending on what information they are looking for and where their main points exist.

What does the average campaign cost?
Every campaign is different but the pricing model is linear and very simple. It is based on the number of the tasks involved in each mission, and the number of responses that the business requires.  Spotters (app users) are paid between AED 10- 75 per mission, so the more complex the mission, the greater the incentive will have to be for Spotters to be willing to provide the information. Having said that, Task Spotting is a far more financially viable method of gathering market intelligence as compared to traditional market research.

Why is Task Spotting more effective than traditional data research methods?
First of all, most traditional market research houses offer syndicated data released on a scheduled basis. Due to the lag in data collection and use, the results are retrospective and often much less relevant, especially in fast-paced environments such as retail. Task Spotting delivers verified, real-time data from actual customers at precise locations, so that businesses are able to make decisions in days rather than weeks or months.  Basically, we allow businesses to spend less time trying to find problems and more time fixing them.

How do you ensure that the data collected by the app is accurate?
All information collected through Task Spotting is geo tagged and time-stamped to ensure accuracy and reliability. We have also built in dozens of verification mechanisms to ensure that the data is genuine. As the information is gathered through smartphones, businesses can also augment their data with rich media such as photos, videos and audio to complement text-based responses and offer a deeper level of insight.

How can businesses ensure that a Task Spotting campaign is a reputable source of data when implementing it into the marketing strategy?
Businesses don’t need to go through any additional verification processes, as they are able to see on their Task Spotting dashboard when and where each of the missions was completed, so they know that a customer was actually in store at a certain time when they took a picture of a promotional display. In addition, the app only allows location-based missions to be started and completed while users are at the exact location, so they cannot complete a customer service audit while they are at home – it would have to be at the restaurant, where the experience is fresh in their minds and the information provided is accurate.

How can businesses get involved with Task Spotting?
A company needs to simply request an account which they can do through our website – www.taskspotting.com – or they can contact us directly. We help them activate their account and they can immediately start creating missions through their cloud dashboard. All missions need to go through an approval process, but this is usually very quick so most missions will go live in a matter of hours.

You’ve recently launched in the UAE. Does Task Spotting have any plans for expansion in the MENA region? 
Sure we do, this is just the start of our journey! Having said that, we’re currently in the process of learning and fine-tuning through feedback that we receive from our clients and Spotters before we embark on our ambitious expansion plans.