UAE advertising - Dubai advertising and Qatar advertising

Advertising is not in itself going to improve a business's revenue, done badly it will simple be a cost that is a negative on the bottom line. Advertising has to be effective in delivering increased revenue, and it can be by engaging with the right type of audience and helping them make the decision to purchase. Driving Growth in the UAE advertising has developed a successful approach to advertising which is helping their clients achieve the return on advertising investment they need.

Poor ROI
As mentioned above, not all advertising is effective at delivering a ROI. Even the most expensive and high-profile advertising can culminate in a very poor ROI.  

Match.com
UK online dating company Match.com came under fire in 2016 for their London Underground billboard campaign.  The billboard featured a red-haired and heavily-freckled female with a caption along the lines of even people with imperfections can find their perfect date.  It wasn't long before the company was heavily criticized for suggesting freckles and ginger hair were imperfections.

Bic

Bic South Africa released an advertisement on World Women's Day in 2016 that was immediately branded as being very sexist.  The ad suggested that whilst women were great at looking good, when it comes to thinking they should leave that to the men.

Starbucks

The release of the Starbucks Christmas cup is always eagerly awaited. The effort for 2016 was underwhelming according to most customers, a simple design with a red cup and the green Starbucks logo.  However, due to the amount of publicity this received, it's hard to say that Starbucks were negatively affected.  No such thing as bad publicity as they say.

McDonald's

In 2102, McDonald's launched a social media campaign which was meant to encourage people to share their inspirational stories with the world. Unfortunately, the campaign was hijacked and instead many provided their horror stories of visits to McDonald's restaurants.

Heinz

Heinz foods suffered an embarrassing situation recently, they had a QR code registered to them as part of an advertising campaign.  The campaign ended in 2014 and Heinz didn't renew the code subscription.  With a long shelf-life, some Heinz products remained on the shelves of supermarkets beyond the date of the campaign. The QR code had been reassigned to another company, an adult entertainment company.  Heinz customers scanning the code received a nasty surprise.

The above examples serve to show that even the biggest companies can have an advertising fail.  If you would like to know how Driving Growth can help your company deliver an effective advertising campaign.

Tags: Dubai advertising, UAE advertising, Qatar advertising 

UAE Advertising - Qatar Advertising and Dubai Advertising

Development  

Advertising in business has been around for almost as long as business itself has.  In its most basic form, it can be traced back to ancient civilizations but the more sophisticated type we see now can probably be traced back to the 19th Century, when newspapers and magazines were the media of choice.  In the 20th Century the advent of TV, radio and the internet have been something of a revolution for Dubai advertising .  In the UAE, Driving Growth are a company with expertise in the field of advertising, able to help clients develop their advertising campaigns to enhance their businesses.

Innovative Ads - Bou Khalil 

There were some successful advertising campaigns in 2016 in the UAE, each using innovative or unique means to appeal to their target audiences. Bou Khalil, the supermarket chain, were aware of the trend towards not giving money to beggars because many believed the money was not being spent wisely by the recipients.  They introduced a scheme whereby would-be donors could buy a voucher to give to the beggars - the voucher could then be exchanged for food and other essentials.

Nestle 

As part of a campaign to encourage children to drink more water, Nestle developed an app that allowed kids to see what was going on in their stomachs.  It's theme was a storybook with a fish character, Tummyfish.

HSBC 

HSBC bank had a great idea to welcome in the new year, and to encourage people to follow their dreams and aspirations.  They placed gifts at various places in Dubai (including a bicycle, surfboard and headphones) and the first person to find them had a great start to the year.

ADTCA 

The Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority developed a diverse media campaign to highlight the Emirates as a great place to visit for cultural experience and natural resources.  It had press, TV, radio and digital exposure.

Daman 

Daman, the insurance group, developed an innovative advertisement in two regional magazines to promote the health benefits of Vitamin D.  The advertisements only became visible when exposed to sunlight.

Emirates 

Emirates Airlines, based in Dubai, developed a social media campaign where seven of their employees were seen travelling around the world in a series of 90 videos.  These seven were known as "Globalistas."

K9 

Dubai dog shelter K9 had an interesting ad aimed at raising funds for their shelters.  They portrayed their dogs as models, with each dog having a portfolio and being available for hire as a model.

Samsung

Samsung developed an ad in response to the problem of short-sightedness caused by holding device screens too close to the eyes.  The screen app - Safety Screen - would warn users when the screen was too close.

Lipton 

Lipton shopping trolleys were modified to incorporate fitness trackers into their handles. The trackers would show steps taken, distance covered and calories burnt in an effort to promote general health improvement.

The above are just a selection of innovative advertising campaigns seen across the UAE in 2016.

For further information on how Driving Growth can help companies develop advertising campaigns, or the other services they can provide.

Tags: Qatar advertising, Dubai advertising, UAE advertising 

Dubai Web Design, Abu Dhabi Web Design and Qatar Web Design

Developments
In order to see how web design has changed and developed over the years, it is worth taking a look at a website from 15 years, 10 years and 5 years ago and comparing them with what we have today.  You will see some significant differences.  This is true across the globe, including Dubai web design, Abu Dhabi web design and Qatar web design. In 2017, we can expect to see some further developments in web design based on current trends.

Composition
More open composition is being seen more and more.  In the past, the screen was static and the elements stayed where they were, these days things are moving around, and even moving on and off screen.

Asymmetry
Previously, symmetry was the standard, with everything being balanced vertically and horizontally.  This changed in 2016, with many designers choosing to go for the asymmetric look.

Chaos
If you were to compare the websites of yesteryear with today, you could be forgiven for thinking things are chaotic now.  They are only apparently chaotic, with the traditional themes such as texture, colour, size etc still being followed, just less obviously.

Richness
The trend is also towards richer patterns, backgrounds and designs.  Dashes, stripes, dots, grid patterns and less boxy buttons are becoming the norm. The general theme is moving away from standard towards variety.

Animation
Animation has always been around in web design, but now it is a much bigger feature.  The smooth scrolling between elements, content appearing and disappearing on the screen are amongst the popular animation effects we are seeing much more of.

Typeface
The actual typeface used now is also different from before.  The tendency in the past was towards simple block typefaces, with perhaps headers using something a little different.  These days, we are seeing more contrast between different typefaces on the same page.  The size of typeface is also changing, with the move towards bigger is better.

Colour
In terms of colour, there is often a connection between the colours used and the website owner, resulting in a somewhat fixed range of colours which can be used.  That said, wherever possible, designers are tending to incorporate more darker and dimmer shades and tones in their designs.

Trend
If we wanted to draw a theme around the developments, we could say the trend is moving away from minimalism, but that's not to say minimalist websites don't have their place.

If you would like to utilize the expertise of Driving Growth to help you develop your companies website design, visit them.

Tags: Dubai web design, Abu Dhabi web design, Qatar web design 

Digital Media and Social Media Marketing

Digital Media and Social Media Marketing

The Potential

Dubai digital marketing and Qatar digital marketing can reach a combined population of more than 5.1 million people, so you can see the opportunities are great. Also, it's interesting to note that the proportion of the global population going online is increasing apace, with the numbers doubling every half-decade. With over half of the world now online, It makes perfect business sense to market products through digital and social media. 

Growing the Business

Having set up a business, the key is to develop and grow the business until it reaches its full potential. Of course, you can do this by yourself, but do you really have not only the time, but also the skill-set required to fully exploit your business's potential? Possibly not, and that's where companies such as Driving Growth, a Dubai based company with expertise across Asia, Europe, North America and The Middle East, can help.

Services

Driving Growth offers a full range of services to help you maximize your business's potential.  These include branding, public relations, live events, advertising, digital marketing and social media marketing. 

Strategies

Don't forget, with over half the world's population now online, and with that number increasing steadily, digital and social media marketing strategies can really help you grow your business. Driving Growth can help you develop and manage your website, develop apps and online games as well as integrated online search and display campaigns. Dubai social media marketing can utilize platforms such as Facebook, twitter and LinkedIn to reach a potential audience of more than 2.5 million - that's 2.5 million potential customers for your products and services!

6-Step Approach

Driving Growth has developed a 6-step approach to helping businesses develop This begins with an initial audit, an analysis of customer needs and wants, implementation of a branding strategy, utilization of various marketing channels, including digital and social media, with ongoing benchmarking to ensure success.

If you are ready to maximize your business's potential, Driving Growth can help you.


Tags: Dubai social media marketing, Qatar digital marketing, Dubai digital marketing

UAE Branding Agency for your Food Business

You will definitely need help from a UAE branding agency like Driving Growth when brand building your food business. It is a challenge to succeed in the food industry. With McDonalds, Subway and other food company giants around, you can get intimidated easily and even opt out sooner than you think. You can do it on your own, of course, especially if you have the mindset and determination for it. But working with an expert branding team will help you get started with solid foundation and assist you towards achieving your goal steadily.

The Food Industry

The food industry all over the world is a fiercely competitive one. A single product alone can have thousands of brands competing for top sales in the UAE. And with this competition, you need all the help you can get.

Your love for food will not be enough for you to survive in the food business industry. People agree that this is one of the hardest industries to get into. Planning your food business is the most important thing. A detailed business plan will get you started steadily. And once you have built your foundation, implementation comes a little bit easier. You just need to be flexible and adapt to whatever change you may need to take. And remember, the Driving Growth group can do this easily for you.

Brand Building for Food

When starting with the food business, you have to take into consideration every media you can use to get your brand recognized. Here are some of the tips you should consider in brand building for food.

·         Your brand identity must be “delicious” to the public. Your brand name, logo, colors, styles and packaging must adhere to what your market considers appealing.

·         In UAE advertising, digital marketing and in traditional ones, images matter. Quality images of food cause hunger and make people crave your product. Having good pictures will make people want to go and eat at your place or buy your products at once for immediate consumption. Make use of it effectively in every aspect of your brand building.

·         Live events including food attract people effectively. Make sure your UAE event management does not forget about this. A successful live event will be a key factor in your brand’s success. Your audience will be sure to remember your brand because of the experience and may even talk to others about it.

Remember that although you can survive food branding on your own, you will still need help in order for your business to last. And that’s what Driving Growth is for.

Tags: UAE branding agency, Driving Growth group, UAE advertising, UAE event management 
 

Tips for Successful Qatar Mobile App Branding

It is widely acknowledged by makers of UAE mobile apps and other mobile app marketers all around the world that it's not enough that they create apps for their users. More importantly, they need to sell their apps for their campaign to be successful. But this is easier said than done. How can a marketer like you succeed in your mobile app branding campaign?

First of all, you need to understand that you can't rush into making a mobile app for one or several platforms. In terms of marketing, this isn't the way to go. Take note also that there's no single platform that can be suitable for all mobile app brands.

If your market is in Qatar, for instance, there are three types of mobile app brands you can turn your Qatar mobile app into. These are:

a.     Mobile web apps that are designed to make browsing easier and more fun for users. An excellent example of this is Google Maps.

b.    Apps that offer users a unique experience in using mobile apps, such as Foursquare and Shazam.

c.     The more traditional app brands that give users instant access to products or services.

Regardless of the type of mobile app brand you want to achieve, what's important is that your Dubai mobile app focuses on your consumers. It has to capture a user's attention, stay consistent with the expectations of the users, and of course, deliver a quality user experience, too.

Below are some tips on how your mobile app branding can be successful:

1. Always remember that your app should be about your consumers. Yes, you need to make your mobile app fun to use and more unique than other apps, but make sure that it still offers value to your customers.

2. Do some deep analysis of your users' motives for using your app, and what their exact needs are. Having this information will help you come up with an appropriate and successful marketing and branding plan.

3. Test your UAE mobile apps thoroughly first before you submit them to an app store. You don't want your app to freeze or crash from time to time as this will definitely affect your brand image in a very bad way.

4. Make sure your mobile app is easily referable. You want your users to invite other people to use your app so it could get higher ratings. Of course, the higher your positive rating, the more popular your app will become.

You shouldn't be wasting your time thinking about how to launch a successful Dubai mobile app. We at Driving Growth can do it for you! 

Tags: Qatar mobile app, Dubai mobile app, UAE mobile apps 

UAE PR in Branding

Going hand in hand, UAE PR and branding will definitely result in customer loyalty and increased sales. Let’s take Nintendo’s Wii U, for example. Through their clever public relations campaign on men and women over 25, they sold almost 100 million consoles worldwide on 2007. How did they do that? What is public relations all about? And what is its role in branding?

Public relations in Branding

Public relations in branding is communicating a brand’s credibility to key audiences who can somehow make a difference in business. Simply put, it is telling the brand’s story to those who matter. These people who can affect business results, sales for one, can be customers, media analysts, public persons and influencers, and shareholders. PR consists of promotional activities such as Dubai live events, in order to connect with the public and make a strong and lasting image.

It is often referred to as earned media, while paid media are the advertising campaigns. This is understandable since ads cost money and PR is earned through making relationships and telling stories, thus, gaining coverage.

PR, however, is not all good. If you can earn coverage for the good stuff, you also get it if something bad happens. And a good PR team, one like the Driving Growth group, should know how to handle these matters and still put your brand in a positive light.

What is the Goal of Public Relations?

Public relations is not always a complicated matter. The skills needed in PR can be learned and practiced on. That’s why many brands handle their own PR. Public relations, however, requires precision. You always have to know what to say at the right time and at the right place. And these companies handling their own PR soon ask why their campaigns don’t go as well as they should. And regret not getting a professional PR team.

·         Bear in mind that public relations’ important goal is to “control”. Control the conversation and flow of information about your brand.

·         The most promotion should get to the right people. It matters where your press releases go. Know your target persons, research on them if you must.

·         Get people to recognize your brand. Don’t beat around the bush when campaigning. Be clear and precise and get your message understood.

·         Think of your net gain. Let your PR team acquire new customers and increase sales. Get people excited and be the talk of the town.

These are simple goals aimed at getting information out to your target market.  Don’t over think PR. Send out good information and get the public interested. Your UAE branding agency will make sure you do this right. Just check out Driving Growth.

Tags: UAE branding agency, Driving Growth group, Dubai live events, UAE PR