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The UAE and the Middle East offer unique opportunities and challenges for marketers navigating a dynamic, multi-cultural, and multilingual landscape. While countries like the UAE and Saudi Arabia share similarities in culture and habits, their differences—like variations in spoken Arabic—highlight the complexity of effectively reaching diverse audiences.
The media landscape is incredibly fragmented, with over 300 TV channels, 3,000 registered print titles, and countless blogs and digital platforms. For brands, crafting impactful omnichannel marketing strategies in the UAE becomes essential to breaking through the clutter and connecting with audiences. By leveraging omnichannel strategies in the UAE, brands can unify their messaging and provide a seamless experience across traditional and digital platforms in this vibrant region.
In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, digital advertising expenditure has experienced significant growth, reaching approximately $5.5 billion in 2022—a 20% increase from the previous year. Projections indicate that this figure will more than quadruple to $25.5 billion by 2024, positioning MENA as the fourth-largest digital advertising market globally.
Despite this surge in digital ad spending, traditional media consumption remains robust. In 2024, the TV and Video market in MENA is projected to generate revenues of around $12.88 billion, with traditional TV and home video contributing approximately $8.08 billion.
This data underscores the importance for marketers to adopt integrated strategies that encompass both digital and traditional platforms to effectively engage the diverse MENA audience.
The UAE presents a unique opportunity for marketers, boasting a population of approximately 9.55 million, with an impressive internet penetration rate of 99%. Notably, the number of social media user identities exceeds the total population, indicating that many residents maintain multiple accounts across various platforms.
This dynamic audience engages across diverse traditional and digital channels, including television, newspapers, Facebook, Instagram, Google Ad Networks, Snapchat, and TikTok. The average daily time spent using the internet across all devices is 8 hours and 11 minutes, with social media accounting for 2 hours and 58 minutes of this usage. This high level of connectivity and engagement underscores the importance of integrated marketing strategies to effectively reach and resonate with consumers in the UAE.
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Omnichannel marketing is simply unifying multiple marketing channels in a way that creates a logical progression for your target audience to progress from one stage to the next. The various channels (SMS, Email, Ad Networks, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, etc.) need to work together and provide context for the messages your customer receives as they move from one channel to another. The biggest advantage of omnichannel strategies is that it creates a win-win situation for both the consumer as well as the brand. From a brand’s perspective, it improves engagement/conversion rates at a higher ROI; for customers, it provides a connected brand experience regardless of the channel they choose to interact with the brand.
An omnichannel marketing strategy essentially stands at the crossroads that connects in-store retail, e-commerce, customer engagement & marketing.
There are several reasons why retailers and brands in the UAE are perfectly poised to leverage the benefits of an omnichannel strategy to improve brand loyalty.
Omnichannel marketing leverages AI and Big Data to improve personalization and improve ROI by automating the channel mix for every customer based on his/her response and conversion rates. The UAE government has been focused on investing heavily in AI and digital initiatives. His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai recently approved the UAE’s action plan on artificial intelligence and digital economy.
In April 2022, the UAE launched its Digital Economy Strategy, aiming to double the digital economy’s contribution to GDP from 9.7% to 19.4% within ten years.
Omar bin Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications, released a comprehensive plan that focuses on providing tools and infrastructure to support the UAE’s leadership in digital transformation initiatives. The larger business community in the region shares a similar view in terms of technological adoption; a PwC report states that digital transformation is the key priority for 88% of Middle East retail CEOs.
The UAE’s e-commerce market is projected to reach an estimated market volume of $10.56 billion by 2029.
In 2024, smartphone shipments in the Middle East (excluding Turkey) reached 11.5 million units in Q2, marking a 20% year-on-year increase. This surge indicates a growing consumer preference for mobile commerce, with many users finding it both easy and convenient. As the region continues its digital transformation, the trend towards mobile shopping is expected to persist, reshaping the retail landscape.
Millennials, accounting for a substantial portion of the UAE population, are characterized by high digital savviness and significant spending potential. They are among the heaviest consumers of digital content, spending considerable time online daily across multiple channels. Video content networks, especially YouTube is an extremely popular channel within the millennial demographic and their shopping was influenced by YouTube videos/ads.
The UAE boasts a social media penetration rate exceeding 100%, indicating that many residents maintain multiple accounts across various platforms. YouTube leads with 8.65 million users, followed by Facebook with 7.77 million, and Instagram with 6.68 million. Among messaging apps, WhatsApp has the highest adoption rate with 7.77 million active users. A recent survey indicates that 92% of UAE consumers have altered their shopping habits, with a significant shift towards online purchases.
Marketers can leverage omnichannel marketing to create highly engaging, rich media content across multiple platforms to progressively nudge users to the next step in the purchase cycle.
While omnichannel marketing is universally relevant and seeing rapid adoption across the globe, the United Arab Emirates is fortuitously placed to unleash the full potential of the technology.
Capillary Technologies is perfectly positioned to help enterprises succeed with omnichannel strategies in the UAE. Whether it’s engaging millennials through video content, enhancing mobile commerce, or tapping into the growing e-commerce market, Capillary is your partner in creating loyalty strategies that deliver measurable impact.
From driving personalized engagements to automating channel mixes and creating loyalty programs that truly resonate, Capillary empowers businesses to build lasting customer relationships in the region.
Ready to redefine omnichannel marketing and drive loyalty in the UAE?
Omnichannel marketing is the seamless integration of multiple channels to guide your target audience through a smooth and logical journey from one stage to the next.
Omnichannel marketing strategies would work for enterprises in the UAE due to various reasons like huge investments in AI and Big Data, a jump in E-commerce growth, a significant millennial population, and a surge in social media usage.
Capillary empowers enterprises with omnichannel strategies, personalized engagements, and impactful loyalty programs to build lasting customer relationships harnessing the power of AI, ML, and Generative Loyalty.
December 4, 2024 | 6 Min Read
While omnichannel marketing is universally relevant and seei