Government
viable solutions.
Time for truth – and some therapeutic conversations. But first, kudos to the Dubai Lynx and Campaign Middle East teams for pulling off spectacular events that not only had every seat in every room filled, but also had people on the edge of their seats.
AW Rostamani Group’s Sara O’Hara and Lulu Group’s V. Nandakumar share marketers’ perspectives on key topics to prioritise, including the authentic ‘why’ and the retailer’s dilemma.
From Grand Prix-winning campaigns to special honours awarded to advertisers, agencies and networks, here are the top moments from Dubai Lynx 2025.
Has pitching become more transparent?
20 WHISPERS, CRESCENDOS AND A SYMPHONY
Motivate Val Morgan’s Sahal Valliyot shares a musical metaphor representing the highs and lows of video advertising’s effectiveness. 28 ‘THE DATA IS TELLING YOU SOMETHING; STOP IGNORING IT’ 6th Street’s Hitesh Malhotra says it’s time to invest in channels where marketers control
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Conversations on and off the stage pointed to the fact that the Middle East marketing industry is accelerating – creatively and technically – at breakneck speed fueled by technology and talent, but the potholes of procurement, pitching and pricing need to be patched up on priority.
Agency-client relationships have taken a step beyond transactional but, unfortunately, the very real problems of unclear evaluation criteria, shifting goalposts, lack of feedback and transparency, as well as confidentiality concerns and intellectual property (IP) infringements haven’t been adequately addressed.
Leaders have shared concerns about marketing being at the bottom of the procurement priority pile, and quite a few procurement teams turning a deaf ear to marketers with no clear understanding of strategic value. As a result cost has become the sole criteria and agencies have become vendors rather than collaborators. This has resulted in unclear briefs and skewed evaluation processes.
The time has come to bring client-side marketing teams, procurement teams, agencies and adtech players to the same table and have very real conversations – not just about finances, but also about structure, brand and the potential for long-term value creation. The industry has reached a consensus that the needs of the hour are transparency, standardised brief structures, and crystal clear communications.
Marketers need to communicate better with sales, product and finance. Agencies need to stop relinquishing their IP, diluting their offerings, bowing to baseless margins and abandoning differentiation. Procurement needs to be brought onside through conscious collaboration and deliberate discussions about the fact that long-term benefits and cost-efficiencies can be derived by strategic value delivery and enhancing trust.
The post-pitch process also requires a closer look. Ghosting, window shopping, nepotism and copy-pasting creative ideas ‘with a twist’ need a zero tolerance approach.
Industry leaders are also primed and ready for a regulatory body that can define pricing structures and remuneration for pitches, especially where a a clear investment of time, creativity and strategic thinking is demonstrable.
Can we collectively agree to go beyond complaining behind closed doors? It’s time for action and change.
As a leader shared in this edition’s cover story, “World-class ambition demands world-class partnership – procurement included.”
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has selected Khaled AlShehhi, Executive Director of Marketing and Communication at the UAE Government Media Office, to join its jury panel, making it the first time that a government sector representative from across the globe has been chosen for this role in the festival’s 72-year history.
The appointment of AlShehhi to the PR Lions Awards jury reflects the festival’s recognition of the UAE’s achievements in shaping innovative, forward-thinking marketing communications. This also marks the first time that an Emirati national has been chosen as a juror for the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.
Commenting on the appointment, Simon Cook, CEO of LIONS, said, “We are delighted to welcome Khaled AlShehhi to the PR Lions jury. His innovative work in government communications and ongoing commitment to creative excellence in the region and beyond, means he is well placed to represent the region on the global stage.”
“The UAE Government Media Office’s consistent success at Cannes Lions – winning for three consecutive years – and the UAE’s ranking at eighth in the Cannes Lions Global Creativity Index highlight the remarkable strides the nation has made in recent years,” Cook added.
The UAE Government Media Office has earned more than 220 international accolades, including multiple Cannes Lions awards,
Al Arabia Outdoor Advertising has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Abu Dhabi-based investment holding company Multiply Group’s media vertical to explore joint investments in the global out-of-home advertising sector. The agreement signals the companies’ intent to expand beyond the MENA region with a focus on acquisitions, market growth and the integration of advertising technology. The two companies will assess opportunities in emerging markets while advancing the development of digital advertising infrastructure. The MoU includes a provision to explore investments in artificial intelligence and data-driven advertising platforms, such as supply-side platforms, aimed at optimising audience targeting and improving operational efficiencies.
a fourth-place global ranking in the Effie Index for effective marketing, and recognition as the 2022 Global Brand of the Year by the AME New York Festival. AlShehhi has also been widely recognised across the industry. He was named Advertising Person of the Year at Dubai Lynx 2023 and earned the 2023 Loeries Marketing Leadership and Innovation Award, becoming the first Middle Eastern recipient in that show’s 45-year history. Among his other accolades are the 2022 Effie MENA Honorary Award and the 2022 World Media Group Award for Content Leadership and Innovation. AlShehhi said, “It is a privilege
to join the Cannes Lions jury, an opportunity that not only underscores our organisation’s achievements globally but also highlights the UAE’s belief in the power of creativity to shape impactful government communications. For me, true creativity begins with a heart-racing insight, and it only grows stronger when you dare to bring it to life. If an idea doesn’t shake you a bit, it’s probably not bold enough to capture hearts and transform realities.”
As a juror, he will join global industry leaders at Cannes Lions this June to evaluate groundbreaking PR campaigns, culminating in the Awards Show on 20 June 2025.
A new carbon intelligence platform, Climaty.AI, has launched in Dubai with a promise to embed climate accountability into the heart of advertising.
The solution is designed to deliver sustainability metrics and optimisation tools across TV, OOH, print, radio, and digital in one seamless platform. It aims to help brands track, reduce, and offset the environmental impact of their entire media mix – not just digital. Advertising is a significant contributor to global emissions.
According to Climaty.AI, a single campaign can generate up to 70 tonnes of carbon dioxide – the equivalent of 45 million plastic straws. Yet most current carbon calculators are limited in scope and siloed in approach. Climaty.AI aims to change that.
“Marketers and agencies today are looking for tools that empower better decisions – not just greener ones, but smarter ones,” said Ravi Rao, Managing Partner at Climaty.AI.
He joins to lead the sustainabilityfocused agentic AI startup’s expansion in the region and globally. With more than 35 years of media and marketing leadership across India, South Asia and the Middle East, including as the former CEO of GroupM MENA and Mindshare MENA, Rao brings deep expertise in driving growth and transformation for global brands.
He claims that until now, carbon tracking in advertising has been limited to digital formats, often handled by standalone calculators or post-campaign audits. Climaty.AI aims to change that by integrating carbon measurement into the core of media planning and execution, offering:
• Real-time visibility into campaign-level emissions across all media channels.
• Actionable reduction strategies through programmatic and infrastructure optimisation.
This regional campaign seeks to transform how parents approach child safety in cars. Insights revealed that many parents believe that holding a child in their lap is as safe as using a child car seat. The Bridgestone MEA film emphasises that it’s not. As part of the campaign’s larger initiative, the tyre company has offered valuable insights on safety protocols and practical advice that can help create a safer and more informed environment. Rolled out in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Morocco, the campaign aligns with Bridgestone’s E8 Commitment, which particularly emphasises emotional and empowerment.
• Automated offsetting options integrated into existing workflows.
• Agentic AI to enhance creative, targeting, and media performance.
Already piloting with global clients, Climaty.AI aims to support brands across markets with a shared goal: to future-proof media performance in a world of rising climate accountability and regulatory pressure.
“We’re not here to reduce your efforts,” Rao said. “We’re here to support you – making your strategy and execution faster, sharper and cleaner.”
Uber has launched its Journey Ads offering in Saudi Arabia. The expansion is supported by digital advertising solutions company Aleph, which will navigate the sales of the new advertising solutions to local brands and agencies.
Journey Ads aims to engage riders throughout their trip, from the moment they request a ride to the time they reach their destination. With the availability of this inventory, advertisers in Saudi Arabia can now engage with consumers through the Uber app.
Ad formats offer both static display ads and video ads, enabling advertisers to drive awareness and engagement at key moments of consumer attention. Advertisers can pick from a variety of targeting capabilities, including contextual relevance based on trip details, time of day and user preferences. The ads aim to be delivered to the right audience at the right moment. Brands will also have the opportunity to personalise relevant content according to a user’s past trips and orders. Uber riders can still set their ad preferences and opt out of certain personalised ads. This collaboration will enable advertising agencies and local businesses to take advantage of Uber’s ad placements, reaching highly engaged users seamlessly.
Aimed at capturing the everyday moments that shape early childhood development, this campaign is part of IKEA’s ongoing regional brand narrative, which celebrates real-life family moments. Rooted in the insight that many toddlers take their first steps by using nearby furniture for balance, the campaign was designed to highlight how IKEA is present in everyday life, in moments that truly matter. IKEA furniture is consistently pictured as a backdrop to meaningful moments in various households. With visuals photographed by Ale Burset, the campaign has been rolled out across out-of-home, print, digital, and social media platforms in the Middle East.
Publicis Media Middle East and talabat have entered a new strategic partnership aimed at helping brands align media investment more closely with shopper behaviour across the MENA region. The collaboration marks the first of its kind
between the media network and the regional on-demand delivery platform.
Bringing together Publicis Media’s expertise in performance marketing with talabat’s access to real-time consumer insights, the partnership is
To introduce its limited-edition collection, adidas Originals launched an experiential and digital campaign, which captures how two of the brand’s most beloved sneakers – the Samba OG and Handball Spezial – have been reimagined to blend craftsmanship with cultural heritage. The campaign highlights artisans who have shaped communities in Dubai, Riyadh and Cairo through their craft. Each pair of sneakers showcases the neighbourhoods’ names and the precise coordinates of the artisans’ stores, and three types of laces have been created, inspired by traditional crafts in the UAE, KSA and Egypt. Dream Girls Tailor in Dubai, a 40-year-old shop, plays an instrumental part in the campaign.
Agencies AKQA and Red Havas
designed to offer brands more effective, datainformed ways to engage customers and drive measurable outcomes.
“As the leading on-demand platform in grocery and retail, we’re always looking for ways to help brands create stronger, data-driven connections with their customers,” said Wassim Makarem, Chief Retail Officer, talabat. “By working together, talabat and Publicis Media are bridging the gap between media and commerce, empowering brands to run more effective, results-oriented campaigns.”
The collaboration offers advertisers access to talabat’s platform data to inform audience segmentation, campaign planning and real-time optimisation. According to the two companies, the goal is to create more personalised experiences and improved return on media investment, without relying on third-party data sources.
“Commerce is about more than just visibility; it’s about impact. This partnership gives our clients access to smarter, data-driven commerce solutions that help them engage consumers in more meaningful ways and drive real business results. By combining media, creativity, and technology, we are helping brands maximise every opportunity in this space,” said Elie Milan, Chief Performance Officer – Middle East, Publicis Media.
The announcement comes as regional advertisers increasingly seek integrated commerce strategies that combine audience insight, campaign performance data, and platform-native ad solutions.
With e-commerce playing a larger role in consumer decision-making, initiatives like this reflect a broader shift toward media strategies grounded in behavioural data and business outcomes.
Yas Island brought to life a series of episodic ads reuniting Bollywood superstars Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar and Abhay Deol – the trio loved for their roles in the 2011 Bollywood film Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, which inspired a generation of consumers to travel. Capturing the spirit of adventure, friendship and living life to the fullest, and identifying a decade-long sentiment for a sequel, Yas Island brought the Bollywood trio together for the first time in 14 years against the backdrop of the unforgettable experiences that Yas Island offers. The campaign instantly became a cultural phenomenon, igniting conversations, organic shares, and widespread fan enthusiasm, raking in 1.5 billion views on social media.
Agencies Momentum, Initiative and Weber Shandwick Production house Dejavu
MCH Global’s Uli Stanke shares how agentic AI and the experience paradox are shaping the future of experiential marketing.
n an era where time is increasingly precious, the rise of agentic artificial intelligence (AI) – intelligent systems that autonomously handle tasks, make decisions and adapt to real-time needs – will revolutionise how people live.
By freeing individuals from mundane chores, agentic AI creates more opportunities for adventure, connection and engagement, generally, and also with brands.
Agentic AI is transforming daily life by taking on repetitive tasks that eat away at our time. For the everyday person, these systems can manage schedules, handle shopping lists, or even book travel itineraries, saving hours that would otherwise be spent on logistics.
Gartner predicts that by 2028, 15 per cent of day-to-day decisions will be made autonomously by agentic AI, up from near zero in 2024.
This liberation from routine tasks means more time for people to immerse themselves in meaningful experiences – whether attending
“When people are freed from planning, seeking and managing, they have more capacity to conquer, enjoy and engage.”
particularly in a young, dynamic market eager for meaningful connections.
This paradox demands that experiential marketing delivers not just occasions, but culturally relevant, emotionally charged moments that linger long after the lights dim.
At MCH Global, we’ve seen how culturally resonant work can cut through this clutter. Our collaboration with the Sharjah Light Festival transformed public spaces into mesmerising canvases, blending art and technology to captivate diverse audiences.
festivals, exploring pop-up activations, or connecting with brands at conferences.
For experiential agencies, this is our moment to shine, because more free time means more chances to create moments that stick.
Yet, having more free time doesn’t automatically translate to deeper brand engagement.
It’s something our creative and strategy team has been deliberating and we’re calling it the ‘Experience Paradox’: in a world where people are constantly immersed in experiences – from scrolling social media to attending live events – it takes something extraordinary to break through the noise.
Brand experiences in the region must leverage bold, innovative storytelling to stand out,
Similarly, our work with Coca-Cola Europe crafted immersive activations that celebrated shared values, while our projects with Ford delivered high-octane, adrenaline-fueled experiences tailored to the region’s love for automotive culture. These initiatives succeed because they understand cultural nuances, ensuring every moment feels authentic and impactful.
The convergence of agentic AI and the Experience Paradox underscores a profound truth: time is the currency of experiential marketing. When people are freed from planning, seeking and managing, they have more capacity to conquer, enjoy and engage.
This creates a virtuous cycle for brands. More time spent with brands translates into deeper connections, stronger advocacy and measurable return on investment.
However, the challenge lies in crafting experiences that stand out in a crowded landscape.
The AI agent market is projected to grow from $5.29bn in 2024 to $216.8bn by 2035, reflecting the transformative potential of AI in freeing up time for consumers, which brands can capitalise on.
The future of brand experiences will play on seizing these newly created moments of consideration.
As general AI use hands people back their time, brands have a golden ticket to engage them with bold, unforgettable experiences that cut through this Experience Paradox and open doors towards a new wave of possibilities.
By Uli Stanke, Managing Director, MCH Global, Dubai
Has the pitching process become more transparent within the Middle East brand and marketing industry?
Rolande El Ghusayni
Account Director, PR, Memac Ogilvy – UAE
Aimee Peters
Regional Head of Brand, Partnerships and B2B Marketing, HSBC MENAT
It’s true that pitching has become more transparent, and hopefully fairer, in the region. But it is not enough. Evaluation criteria is not openly available, discussed, or challenged – by either side. The process isn’t clear and differs widely from those who expect full creative to those who take a more partnership approach. And from a client perspective, costs vary massively. I think we are heading in the right direction but we need the same amount of effort put into raising standards and governance as we put into winning awards ... and until then, both sides will continue to begrudge the process.
Over the years, we’ve participated in a wide variety of tenders each with its own unique pitching approach. Government RFPs tend to follow a regulated and structured tendering process, often managed through formal portals and led by procurement departments, offering clear frameworks and timelines.In the private sector, we’ve experienced a mix of procurement-led and technical-led pitching processes, which are mostly driven by marketing and communications teams. This often leads to a more content-focused and strategic dialogue, allowing agencies to engage at a subject-matter level. We’re also seeing a growing interest from international firms in setting up comms operations in our region, particularly from Asia and other global markets, due to the continuous growth of UAE and the wider GCC markets. These companies bring impressive professionalism and ambition to the table, but there is a need to navigate local markets with a deeper relevance and know how. This diversity in pitching approaches reflects the region’s dynamic business landscape. Overall, we’ve seen a steady shift toward greater transparency and structure – a positive sign of the industry’s continued alignment around best practices.
Showkat Nabi Rather
Senior Account Manager –Sustainability and ESG Communications, Gambit PR and Communications
YESBased on my experience working both client-side and now agency-side, I’ve seen the pitching process become noticeably more transparent. In markets such as the UAE, where transparency and accountability are high on the agenda, pitches have become more clear and realistic, as companies understand that long-term relationships are built on trust. Technology has also played a major role in this shift. From digital briefing platforms to real-time collaboration tools and performance tracking systems, the process is now more structured and data-driven –enabling better alignment, clearer expectations, and honest conversations.
Mazen Jawad CEO, Horizon Holdings
The quality of a pitch process often depends on both the company and the individuals or team managing it. When a client invests time and facilitates genuine human interaction – where we can truly understand their needs and expectations – it boosts our motivation and reinforces our belief in the transparency and authenticity of the process. As a result, we’re more likely to fully commit to the pitch, delivering work that can meaningfully impact the client’s business performance. Pitches become exciting when the process feels fair, personal and free from unnecessarily exhaustive deliverable lists.
Katie Bawler
Strategic Communications Consultant, House of
Comms
There has been some progress with the agency pitch process, but we still have a long way to go. It can often feel archaic and transactional, like it is a numbers game, with many clients looking for strategic or creative work for free. Huge amounts of time are being invested by agencies, but how often does the winning agency use anything that was presented? Once clients start to invest more into the pitch process in terms of briefings, and become considerate of agencies’ time, the more strategic and valuable the output will be. The process should be centred around mutual respect and chemistry, which will ultimately dictate how successful the working relationship will be.
NOThe Middle East’s dynamic markets are full of marketing opportunities, but getting it right takes fairness and clear communication. In my experience, some adjustments need to be made to pitching processes to build genuine partnerships. For example, brands and agencies could introduce paid pitches to respect the work put into ideas. Bringing in neutral third parties to judge proposals on creativity, cultural fit and fresh thinking, rather than just price, will help build trust and encourage innovative solutions. By focusing on teamwork and fair practices, everyone can create a space where new ideas and creativity shine, pushing marketing forward in the region.
Rizk
Haddad Head Of Monetisation and Operation – MENA, Walee
The Middle East’s pitching dynamic is undergoing a meaningful recalibration toward greater transparency. As brands prioritise sustained partnerships, there’s a growing demand for structured briefs, clearly defined evaluation criteria, and consistent, actionable feedback. Digital platforms, such as procurement portals and pitch management tools, are enhancing accountability, streamlining workflows, and reinforcing process integrity across the pitching journey.
Agencies are now expected to take on a more consultative role, offering strategic insights, analytical frameworks and specialised expertise in business and technology. While challenges remain – particularly around speculative work and budget clarity – the prevailing shift toward transparency is fostering more focused, respectful and outcome-driven client-agency relationships.
Angelo De Guzman Marketing and PR Manager, Grand Plaza Mövenpick Media City
The pitching process is more transparent now, especially when both sides are clear from the start. At Grand Plaza Mövenpick Media City, we always outline our exact requirements and make sure agencies know the project could go to an agency, be handled in-house, or not move forward at all. There’s no guessing involved. We only engage agencies that are just as upfront – those who clearly state who will manage the account, what the team looks like, and what they can or can’t deliver. This saves time, avoids misalignment, and keeps expectations realistic. Transparency is key to efficient decision-making.
Karlyn Bautista
Senior Marketing and Communications Manager, Waldorf Astoria – Dubai Palm Jumeirah
From a brand perspective, we make a conscious effort to ensure the pitching process is clear, structured, and fair. This includes sharing comprehensive briefs and aligning on evaluation criteria from the start. That said, there are still areas we’re continuously working to strengthen, such as providing more visibility on the number of agencies involved, offering feedback and being as upfront as possible about budget expectations. Transparency remains a priority, and we believe that greater clarity in these areas can further empower agencies to put their best foot forward.
How Think Human turned real estate communication into real connection for ONE Development.
ONE Development didn’t begin with a masterplan or a marketing brief. They began with a question: What do people truly want from the spaces they live in, invest in, and grow with?
That question – simple, but deeply human –became the heartbeat of a brand shaped by Think Human, the integrated creative consultants behind One Development, the region’s fastest-growing, international real estate developer founded in the UAE. ONE Development didn’t launch with just a logo or a campaign – it launched with intent; with empathy; and with a deep desire to connect. Think Human brought that vision to life through a bold yet intimate brand idea: “Inspired by You”: Three words that shifted the focus from selling spaces to sparking meaningful conversations.
“People don’t remember the slickest ad. They remember how a brand made them feel”
- Ahmed El Sherbini, CEO of Think Human
“With ONE Development, our goal wasn’t to create a brand that talks louder – it was to build one that listens better. A brand that feels real, honest and human, because when a brand feels human, people don’t just notice it – they trust it,” El Sherbini said.
CAMPAIGN
Think Human launched “Inspired by You” as a fully integrated, cross-market campaign that was rolled out across print, outdoor, digital, PR, brand ambassadors and physical experiences. But more importantly, it was guided by three key pillars:
• Authentic voices
• Aspirational storytelling
• Human-centred design
In an industry often driven by specs, square footage and sales cycles, that one question became the foundation of something far more meaningful – a brand built not from blueprints, but from insight.
“Inspired by You” wasn’t a slogan. It became a brand belief – a declaration that every property, every project and every touchpoint should reflect the lives, routines, ambitions and desires of the people it serves.
“We wanted the brand to be real, personal, less about real estate, and more about real life,” said Ali Al Gebely, Founder and Chairman of ONE Development. “Think Human helped us go beyond the traditional developer story to create something intimate, emotional and lasting.”
The “Inspired by You” story wasn’t just told through campaigns – it was reflected through the people chosen to represent it.
For ONE Development, brand ambassadors aren’t chosen for fame – they are chosen for alignment. With Think Human driving the strategy, each voice was carefully selected to embody the aspirations, values, and cultural nuances of ONE’s audiences.
To connect with the Indian market, especially NRIs and aspirational families, Kareena Kapoor Khan was chosen because her blend of modern sensibility, strong family values and timeless appeal made her a natural extension of the brand.
“These aren’t just partnerships, They’re reflections of our core values.”
- Ali Al Gebely, Founder and Chairman of ONE Development
“Our brand ambassadors embody the authenticity, aspirations and connections that define who we are. They bring our message to life, making it real and relatable for people everywhere,” Al Gebely said.
In the Middle East, Amir Karara brings commanding presence and grounded persona to the brand, reflecting the strength and ambition of a new generation of homeowners. Raya Abirached adds warmth, trust and a global voice — making the brand global, yet intimate across borders.
And taking the brand to new heights, ONE Development partnered with the legend, Amr Diab to co-create ONE/AD a hospitality holding company
More than a conventional developer, ONE Development is emerging as a storyteller, a community architect and a visionary that places human connection at the heart of urban living to deliver distinctive residential and hospitality experiences. Think Human and ONE Development have built more than just a campaign; this is a creative framework that proves real estate branding can be emotional, intuitive and deeply human.
Campaign Middle East offers government clients, brand-side marketers and creative agency leaders the opportunity to vent their concerns in a therapeutic ‘safe space’. Here’s a look at how the conversation went.
By Anup Oommen
Anup Kondakundi, Global Head –Marketing Strategy and Brand Transformation, Ajmal Perfumes, says, “Lack of transparency, unclear parameters and shifting goalposts are pressing concerns within the Middle East’s marketing landscape. These issues can lead to mistrust, inefficiencies and potentially losing valuable partnerships.”
Muriel Lechaczynski, Chief Growth Officer, TBWA\RAAD, adds, “Too often, pitches are rushed, briefs are overloaded, timelines are unrealistic, and true partnerships get lost in the process. Brand owners must reclaim the pitch, creating space for conversation, collaboration, freedom and chemistry –the ingredients behind great, disruptive work. Creativity isn’t a line item – it’s a growth engine. World-class ambition demands world-class partnership –procurement included.”
That said, as procurement takes on a greater role in identifying agency partners – especially in the GCC region – the industry has a real opportunity to become a force for growth. However, leaders state that this will require an imminent move away from mere cost-cutting (or cost-savings), and a move toward sustainable, strategic value generation.
Ghada El-Kari, Chief Strategy Officer at W Group Holding, who oversees a portfolio including Hypermedia and DXTA, adds, “Procurement should be about maximising value, not just minimising costs. Media procurement in the region often feels like navigating a moving target. One day, the priority is cost-cutting; the next, it’s innovation – yet the criteria for decisionmaking remain unclear.”
‘‘PROCUREMENT SHOULD BE ABOUT MAXIMISING VALUE, NOT JUST MINIMISING COSTS.”
Product, price, place and promotion: the industry wakes up to the four Ps of marketing every morning. Yet, the three Ps keeping industry leaders up at night are: Procurement, pitching and pricing.
Campaign Middle East opens Pandora’s Box on these themes and, unsurprisingly, the woes of the marketing world pour out.
SENIOR LEADERS SPEAK PLAINLY: IT’S COST-CUTTING VERSUS VALUE GENERATION
From this seemingly small box of misery emerges conversations around: deficient or overweighted briefs; lack of transparency; dearth of feedback; shifting goalposts; unclear evaluation criteria; price-based decisions; confidentiality concerns; intellectual property infringements … all of which affect existing partnerships.
Echoing these thoughts, Shahbaz Tiavar, Global Deputy Head of Procurement for Luxury and Lifestyles Brands, Accor, says, “In most cases today, the current procurement approach emphasises cost-cutting rather than prioritising long-term strategic value. This aggressive focus on price negotiations may provide immediate
savings but can undermine creativity, quality and sustained strategic relationships.”
Tiavar adds, “When cost becomes the primary driver, it limits the potential for innovation and adaptability, crucial in today’s fast-paced and competitive market. The status quo may appear sustainable in the short term, yet it risks stifling growth and innovation if not balanced with strategic long-term value consideration.”
However, other leaders state that procurement doesn’t always prioritise cost-cutting over long-term strategic value – or rather, there’s no case for why it should.
Ali Rez, Chief Creative Officer, Impact BBDO, shares a story: “There’s a brilliant account management person I used to work with – Paul Hastings. Paul once took two photographer portfolios to a client and their procurement team. One was much pricier than the other but, of course, was much more incredible. Paul laid out both portfolios before their procurement teams and said: ‘When people see the brand ad from Photographer A, they will say: This brand has done such an amazing ad, and when they see the ad from Photographer B, they will say: This brand has done an OK ad, but at least they saved some money.’ Value is the key word here – and brilliant procurement seeks value. Hence, logic would dictate that the quality of the work should be prioritised 10 times out of 10.”
What needs to change? A little bit of everything – and everyone – by the looks of it. Some leaders call for procurement teams to gain more expertise and a better understanding of brand and marketing. Other leaders place the onus back on agencies who are undervaluing themselves, rather than standing up for the strategic value they bring to the table.
Khaled AlShehhi, Executive Director of the Marketing and Communications Sector at the UAE Government Media
product and abandoning differentiation in pursuit of being all things to everyone. In such an environment, ambiguity thrives. If everyone promises everything, then clarity becomes unnecessary, even inconvenient.”
When viewed through this lens, an alternative viewpoint arises. Procurement’s orientation toward cost efficiencies is neither surprising nor new. It is, quite literally, their mandate: to get the most value at the most affordable prices.
Bagri explains, “What’s unsustainable is the agency’s willingness to reduce creative and strategic value to a price-perunit calculation. The issue isn’t procurement being too aggressive; it’s that agencies that lack conviction in the distinctiveness of their offering have made themselves interchangeable. And once that happens, price inevitably becomes the only negotiating variable. This model isn’t just unsustainable; it’s
already in decline. And not because someone designed a better system, but because the current one is collapsing under its own contradictions.”
One of the leaders also threw in a curveball – suggesting that the industry turn procurement on its head – to move from cost-based to value-based procurement.
Office, shares a well-balanced take, saying, “Much of the perceived ‘lack of transparency’ arises from limited procurement expertise in the industry and clients who aren’t fully clear on budgets or scopes. Often, requirements shift or projects are postponed, creating the impression of ‘pitch theatre’ and free idea-gathering, even if unintentional. Understandably, this leads agencies to losing trust, investing heavily without return, or sometimes bowing out of pitching.”
Ideally, a well-structured procurement process should integrate both financial and technical criteria, with client-side marketers working in tandem with their procurement teams to balance cost and strategic value.
AlShehhi adds, “When marketing’s voice is sidelined or overshadowed by pure price considerations, agencies are forced to compete on cost instead of creativity. Short-sighted budgeting ultimately erodes brand equity and stifles innovation. At the same time, agencies should recognise that big results don’t always require big spending. This shifts the conversation from ‘we need more budgets’ to ‘we need the right idea’.”
Calling on agencies to be better versions of themselves, Akhilesh Bagri, Chief Creative Officer, Serviceplan Group Middle East, says, “This is not a failure of procurement, it’s a reflection of an ecosystem in which agencies have ceased to value their own time and output. Agencies have incrementally relinquished their own authority, diluting their
‘‘AGENCIES HAVE INCREMENTALLY RELINQUISHED THEIR OWN AUTHORITY, DILUTING THEIR PRODUCT AND ABANDONING DIFFERENTIATION.”
Accor’s Tiavar explains, “Value-based procurement would focus on the total cost of ownership (TCO) rather than just initial costs. This strategy emphasises building strong, long-term relationships with suppliers who contribute to the overall success of the organisation. For instance, this calls for brands to partner with suppliers who offer innovative solutions that align with long-term business goals, which can result in sustainable growth and a competitive advantage.”
A pivot to solutions within this conversation results in a consensus of cautious optimism: the Middle East brand
and marketing industry can do better, simply because it must. Leaders agree that the way the industry currently operates is unsustainable, likening it to a bubble bound to burst.
This consensus results in a clarion call for transparency, standardised brief structures, crystal clear evaluation criteria and honest feedback.
Alok Gadkar, CEO and CCO, Tuesday Communications, says, “The
‘‘THE IMMEDIATE PRIORITY IS STANDARDISING BRIEFS WITH CLEAR OBJECTIVES, TIMELINES, BUDGETS AND EVALUATION METRICS.”
evaluation criteria would be an excellent start.”
post-pitch processes need to be addressed. While we do get a wellstructured document from a few companies that follow guidelines of standard operating procedures, the reality is that soon after the submission there is a huge gap. What’s completely missing is feedback and substance in terms of why an agency didn’t make the cut. If the request for proposal (RFP) didn’t convert, the agency deserves to know why the competitor won it. The truth is: an RFP that was on ‘turbo’ speed operates at a snail’s pace after the submission.”
Accor’s Tiavar adds, “Transparency in procurement processes is crucial to foster trust and efficiency within the Middle East brand and marketing landscape. Addressing any concerns related to unclear parameters and shifting goalposts can significantly enhance collaboration and outcomes.”
Government clients, brand-side marketers and creative leaders also agree that there ought to be better compensation for time and effort spent on proposals and pitches – with some going as far as to say that ‘better’ holds good assuming there’s any compensation at all.
Impact BBDO’s Rez says, “I’m surprised that there is no advertising regulatory body mandate that time spent on a pitch must be compensated. It’s time for a change. I also find it to be such a waste of resources when an agency is selected for the pitch work, but the pitch work never actually runs. This has always baffled me. A lot in this industry needs to reform for it to function better – for both agencies and clients. This doesn’t necessarily mean standardised briefs but, yes, clearer
Ajmal Perfumes’ Kondakundi adds, “Developing innovative ideas and comprehensive strategies require significant investment in time, talent and resources. Fair compensation acknowledges this effort and encourages agencies to contribute their best work. This approach not only enhances the quality of campaigns but also builds stronger, more respectful client-agency relationships.”
The UAE Government Media Office’s Khaled AlShehhi points to global best practices and the growing adoption of paid-pitch frameworks or partial ‘pitch fees’, agreeing that creative work shouldn’t be given away for free.
However, AlShehhi also adds, “From my perspective, the immediate priority is standardising briefs with clear objectives, timelines, budgets and evaluation metrics. If a brief is unclear or lacks major details – such as budget – agencies should have the courage to walk away, thereby educating clients and elevating standards.”
Serviceplan Group Middle East’s Bagri agrees, arguing that while it is reasonable to expect fair compensation and standardised evaluation, this misses a more fundamental point.
Bagri says, “Agencies have normalised the act of giving away their most valuable intellectual property without safeguards
or remuneration. Over time, this has created an expectation: that creativity is free, and available on demand. This is not the fault of clients or procurement. The industry built this precedent and enforced it through silence. Until agencies assert the value of their time, their ideas, and their people, no amount of structural reform will restore balance.”
But AlShehhi chooses to close discussions on a positive note.
He says, “In some projects, we compensated agencies for their proposals when they demonstrated a clear investment of time, creativity and strategic thinking – and even purchased the rights to selected creative concepts for future use out of respect for their contributions.”
AlShehhi concludes, “While the industry may not be fully ready for universal pitch compensation yet, I believe this step-by-step shift is on the horizon, ultimately benefiting clients and agencies alike.”
BRAND FOCUS
AW Rostamani Group’s Sara O’Hara discusses the essential thread that weaves leadership, culture, trust and connection together.
In today’s world, where trust is increasingly elusive and purpose is paramount, the traditional playbook for leadership can often fall short.
We have long equated the concept of leadership with mastering strategies, undergoing training and participating in development programmes.
Yet, whilst these elements do play a role, in my experience, the true engine of impactful leadership is something far deeper and more personal.
It’s an innately understood and genuinely embraced ‘why’, the fundamental force that guides a leader and forms the very essence of their core purpose and values.
Throughout my career, I have observed the acute influence of an authentic ‘why’ on an organisation’s success and reputation. In an era demanding transparency, the absence of this ‘why’, or worse, claims of a superficial one in attempts at purposewashing, falls short at best and is damaging at worst.
Increasingly, audiences are closely scrutinising the alignment between words and actions, making authenticity not just desirable but essential to avoiding distrust and disengagement.
The impact of a genuine ‘why’ ripples outward, serving as a visionary anchor that shapes the essence of leadership. It guides strategic decisions and provides a consistent framework for navigating both challenge and change.
A leader anchored in their core purpose operates with clarity, principle and conviction. It is this that inspires confidence, not just in their own actions, but also in the teams they lead, fostering a shared vision that goes beyond the transactional nature of work.
Further, this ‘why’ doesn’t remain confined to the leadership suite; it permeates the entire workplace and is a key component of cultivating a purposeful and motivated culture. When employees understand and
“TRUST IS A POWERFUL DIFFERENTIATOR, DRIVING LONG-TERM LOYALTY AND RESILIENCE IN AN INCREASINGLY WATCHFUL AND INFORMED WORLD.”
believe in an organisation’s fundamental reason for being, engagement and commitment flourish.
In this environment, they see their individual contributions as integral to a larger mission, fostering a heightened sense of belonging and shared value.
We live in a time where information flows freely, and inconsistencies are quickly exposed and so trust – both within the organisation and outside of it – is the ultimate currency. An authentic ‘why’ forges a solid foundation of this trust. When leaders and organisations consistently live their core purpose, they build a reservoir of credibility with
employees, customers, investors and the wider community.
This trust is a powerful differentiator, driving long-term loyalty and resilience in an increasingly watchful and informed world.
Furthermore, the power of a genuine ‘why’ extends to attracting and retaining those who aren’t just looking for a job or a product, but for alignment with their own personal values.
Increasingly, people are making conscious choices about where they spend their time and money, seeking out brands, businesses and leaders whose core purpose resonates with their own.
The ‘why’ creates a powerful connection, forging more meaningful relationships built on shared values and mutual interests.
As the Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at AW Rostamani Group, I’m in a fortunate position to fulfil my own ‘why’ daily within a company that truly strives to create positive change. From its inception, the Group was built on the core belief of facilitating meaningful social impact.
Recognising its role beyond a business but also as a custodian of the future, the Group’s ‘why’ has always been deeply ingrained in contributing to a better world – for generations to come.
This purpose informs our decisions, shapes our culture and guides our interactions, forming the foundation of our relationships with customers, partners and people.
Ultimately, in this age of transparency, the power of a genuine ‘why’ is more critical than ever. It is the essential thread that weaves together leadership, culture, trust and connection.
For those striving to build a meaningful and lasting legacy beyond simple success alone, embracing the authentic ‘why’ is the fundamental and only path.
By Sara O’Hara, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, AW Rostamani Group
Remember when marketing meant making a great TV ad and calling it a day? Simpler times. Now it feels like we’re building the plane in mid-air – navigating shifting social algorithms, outdated procurement processes, and an insatiable demand for content.
As someone responsible for the marketing and communications mandate of a multinational retail chain, my job isn’t just to sell products. It’s to keep the brand relevant, distinctive, and efficient across geographies and demographics. But with digital platforms evolving daily and everyone in the office suddenly an expert on viral content, staying ahead is a full-time hustle.
The truth? The rules are changing faster than we can adapt. Social media has democratised marketing but also saturated it. Traditional procurement models feel outdated. Pitching remains inefficient. And pricing often has little to do with outcomes. So how do we cut through the noise, stay relevant, and meet everyone’s expectations – internal and external?
custom strategies without any guarantee of winning the business – or being paid for the effort. Meanwhile, brands sit through rounds of presentations that often sound eerily similar.
It’s a broken system. Pitching prioritises performance over partnership, theatre over trust. The best agency relationships thrive on shared culture, mutual understanding, and collaboration – things that can’t be judged in a single presentation. Alternatives exist. Paid pilots let brands test-drive agencies before committing. Chemistry workshops help assess real-world compatibility. Instead of running talent shows, we should build models that reflect how we actually work together.
Let’s talk pricing. The traditional time-and-materials model – where agencies bill by the hour – feels increasingly disconnected from business realities. As a retailer, I don’t care how long it takes to develop a campaign. I care whether it drives footfall, conversions, and brand affinity.
Performance-based models, where agencies are incentivised based on results, are gaining traction. But they come with challenges. What counts as success? Short-term sales? Social engagement? Brand equity?
The answer lies in hybrid models. A base fee ensures agency sustainability, while bonuses are tied to clear metrics. This aligns incentives and encourages smarter, outcomedriven work – without asking agencies to gamble their livelihoods every time.
Content conundrum: less noise, more meaning
The demand for always-on content has exploded. But as quantity rises, quality often dips. Platforms like TikTok and Instagram have created a content churn culture, pushing brands to publish more, faster – often without considering meaning. Is more really better? Or are we just adding to the digital clutter?
Effective brands are resisting the treadmill. They’re investing in fewer, better stories – crafted with purpose, not just speed. This means valuing creativity, not just chasing algorithms. It also means finding balance across paid, owned, and earned media – where authenticity and storytelling carry weight alongside media spend.
Rethinking procurement: from costcu ing to value-creating Retailers love process, efficiency, and control. But when those instincts are applied to marketing procurement, they can be counterproductive. The traditional request for proposal (RFP) process often turns into a rigid, box-ticking exercise that favours cost over creativity.
Marketing isn’t a one-size-fits-all commodity. Yet procurement often treats it like buying office chairs – searching for the cheapest vendor instead of the right creative partner. This leads to agencies investing time and money into pitches that emphasise price over performance. The result? Mediocre work that ticks boxes but doesn’t move the needle.
We need a more flexible, collaborative procurement model – one that values creativity, agility, and long-term partnership over short-term savings. Marketing is about insight, storytelling, and impact. Treating it like a commodity undermines its potential.
The pitching paradox: is anyone winning? Agency pitch processes are exhausting – for both sides. Agencies pour weeks into
Lulu Group International’s V. Nandakumar calls for marketers to cut through the noise in a fragmented world.
Final thoughts: loyalty, agility and the myth of ‘viral’
Modern retail marketing demands a smarter, more strategic approach. That means challenging outdated procurement models, rethinking how we pitch, and building pricing structures that reflect real business value. It also means shifting from a content mindset of ‘more’ to one of ‘meaning’.
We’re not just here to sell more stuff –we’re here to build brands that stand the test of time.
But here’s the kicker: I still get asked, “Why are we tied to just one agency?” or “Why can’t we create broad guidelines and let multiple agencies chase viral moments?”
To that I say: viral content might win attention, but consistency builds trust. And trust builds brands.
Yes, agility matters. But so does strategic alignment. That’s why we don’t treat every campaign like an open audition. Loyalty shouldn’t be expected only from customers. If we want enduring results, maybe we need to show a little of it ourselves.
By V. Nandakumar, Director – Marketing and Communications, Lulu Group International
In today’s advertising landscape, cross-platform video measurement allows tracking of impressions across all screens and devices. As this capability evolves, marketers face an important question: Should all video impressions be weighted equally when evaluating campaign performance?
Imagine video advertising as a piece of music played across different venues. A symphony performed in a grand concert hall creates a fundamentally different experience from the same piece played through smartphone speakers. Similarly, video advertisements create varying levels of impact depending on their presentation environment.
As advertisers distribute their messages across multiple platforms, they must understand how each platform – cinema, television, or social media – contributes uniquely to their campaign’s success.
Consider how you typically engage with videos across different platforms. Social media often involves rapid scrolling, with each video receiving mere seconds of partial attention. Television viewing frequently occurs alongside other activities – cooking, conversations, or checking phones. Cinema, however, creates an environment dedicated to one purpose: focused viewing.
National CineMedia research reveals that 97 per cent of moviegoers watch cinema ads, significantly outperforming other premium video ad platforms (35-38 per cent). When viewers engage with an entire ad without distraction, they’re more likely to absorb the brand message. Nielsen’s research demonstrates that ads viewed to completion drive 20-30 per cent higher purchase intent compared with partially viewed advertisements.
Think about the difference between viewing a painting on your phone versus standing before it in a gallery. This same principle applies to video advertising. Cinema provides 100 per cent screen coverage on an imposing scale, while mobile platforms typically display ads in small windows covering just 27 to 32 per cent of their already limited screens. Full-screen viewing ensures every detail
Motivate Val Morgan’s Sahal Valliyot shares a musical metaphor representing the highs and lows of video advertising’s effectiveness, from barely noticeable impressions to powerful, immersive experiences.
becomes noticeable and impactful. The immersive viewing experience enhances brand perception and trustworthiness.
The Video Advertising Bureau reports that advertisements in full-screen premium environments drive 44 per cent more sales compared with standard digital display advertising.
Consider enjoying a meal at a fine restaurant versus eating the same food from a takeout container. The environment shapes our perception of its value. This principle extends to advertising in cinema versus other platforms. When we experience movies in theatres, we engage with premium
entertainment representing the pinnacle of storytelling and production value.
This creates a ‘halo effect’, where the positive qualities of the entertainment experience enhance the perception of associated advertising.
Research by Channel 4 and Vevo demonstrates that consumers are five times more likely to view advertising within non-premium content as low quality.
Imagine trying to memorise a phone number – comparing a quick glance while distracted versus applying focused attention in a quiet environment. Cinema advertising operates on similar principles of memory formation.
The cinema environment creates what neuroscientists term ‘peak experiences’ –moments our brains are particularly likely to convert into long-term memories, through the combination of focused attention, impressive screen size and professional sound systems.
Cinema creates ‘flashbulb memories’ –vivid, detailed recollections that persist over time. Motivate Val Morgan’s research in partnership with AC Nielsen in the UAE found that, on average, a moviegoer recalls three to four ads from a single cinema exposure. Additionally, Val Morgan research indicates that 10-second cinema advertisements can generate at least 49 days of memory encoding, particularly among audiences aged younger than 40.
Consider how differently you respond to humour viewed alone versus in a theater filled with laughing people. Cinema creates what psychologists term ‘collective effervescence’ – the shared emotional experience that emerges in group settings.
Recent DCM studies (2023-2024) highlight the importance of this positive mindset: 60 per cent of moviegoers report feeling connected during the cinema experience, and 78 per cent report being in a positive mood while watching films. This emotional engagement enhances advertising receptivity, transforming standard brand messages into memorable experiences.
Traditional video metrics often fail to encompass cinema advertising’s full value. While cross-platform measurement evolves, understanding these fundamental differences across platforms remains crucial for informed marketing decisions.
Cinema provides an unparalleled combination of focused attention, optimal viewing conditions and emotional engagement that creates distinctively powerful advertising impressions. For brands seeking lasting impact, cinema offers an environment where their messages can truly resonate – much like a masterpiece deserves display in perfect gallery lighting rather than as a small digital image.
By understanding these distinctions, marketers can better orchestrate their video campaigns across platforms, ensuring each element contributes its unique strengths to the overall marketing strategy.
By Sahal Valliyot, Deputy Manager for Marketing and PR, Motivate Val Morgan
Impact BBDO’s Ghassan Kassabji discusses what procurement teams can do to unlock better value from their agency partners.
As someone who has spent years at the intersection of creativity and business, I’ve seen first-hand how procurement can be both a catalyst and a constraint. When it works well, it enables transformative partnerships. When it doesn’t, it reduces the value of what we do to numbers on a spreadsheet.
One of the core challenges we continue to face is the disconnect between marketing and procurement. Marketing teams are focused on driving growth, building engagement and shaping long-term
brand value. Procurement teams, meanwhile, are often measured by how much they can reduce costs and optimise for short-term savings. These objectives don’t have to be at odds, but they can work against each other without alignment. Creativity performs at its best when goals are shared, partnerships are built on trust, and agencies are seen as strategic partners, not just line items on a spreadsheet.
That disconnect often reveals itself during the pitch process. Agencies are still being asked to deliver full creative proposals with limited briefing, no collaboration, no compensation and highly compressed timelines. It has quietly become an accepted norm in the industry. But the model doesn’t hold up if we step back and apply common sense. No architectural firm would be expected to draw up blueprints without a contract. No technology company would build a prototype without an agreement in place. Yet even the most experienced and awarded agencies are routinely asked to commit significant resources without knowing if the work will ever progress. It’s not just inefficient; it’s fundamentally flawed. The expectation becomes harder to justify when agencies with global scale, proven results and deep resources are evaluated with boutique operations offering vastly different scopes, structures, and experience levels. The result is often an uneven comparison that favours cost over capability. That approach might satisfy procurement key performance indicators (KPIs) in the short term, but risks compromising the quality and consistency of the work over time.
Agencies consistently delivering world-class creativity invest significantly in talent, infrastructure and innovation. That includes areas such as AI, which is already reshaping how we work. AI can optimise, analyse and accelerate but still needs human oversight to ensure relevance, resonance and cultural nuance. Clients are already asking agencies to integrate AI solutions, but they must also understand that this requires ongoing investment and talent development on the agency side. You cannot ask for future-ready thinking while still applying outdated procurement models. And then there is the question of timing. Agencies thrive on momentum. We build teams quickly, respond to evolving client needs, and sometimes invest ahead of the brief. However, that momentum is lost when decision-making is delayed and payment cycles stretch over months. It creates operational strain, limits reinvestment and chips away at morale. In other industries, such delays would raise red flags. In advertising, they’re often tolerated as part of the process. That needs to change.
The most successful client-agency relationships we see are the ones where procurement, marketing and agency
“A PITCH SHOULD BE THE BEGINNING OF A PARTNERSHIP, NOT A CONTEST OF WHO CAN GUESS BEST UNDER PRESSURE.”
teams are all aligned on what success looks like. The pitch process is clear, structured and respectful in these cases. The evaluation criteria go beyond price and include strategy, cultural fit and proven results. Payment terms are reasonable, timelines are realistic and the agency is given the space to do what it does best: think boldly and execute brilliantly.
So, what can procurement teams do to unlock better value from their agency partners?
Start by reframing creativity as a growth driver, not a cost. Align KPIs with marketing to ensure you’re measuring what matters. Build pitch processes that respect the time and talent invested, especially when asking for original thinking. If you’re evaluating a shortlist of experienced, strategically capable agencies that are relatively at par, consider floating a request for quotation (RFQ) instead of a full request for proposal (RFP). Why work on strategies and creative platforms that may never see the light of day? It wastes resources on both sides and rarely delivers the best thinking. The best work happens when agencies and clients collaborate closely, not when agencies are forced to work in isolation to guess what a client needs. Creativity is iterative, built on conversations, challenges and feedback. A pitch should be the beginning of a partnership, not a contest of who can guess best under pressure.
Finally, apply the same urgency to decisions and payments that you expect from agencies in delivery. Agencies thrive on momentum. They are built to move fast, respond to change and, sometimes, invest in ideas before contracts are even signed. When systems slow that momentum down, the potential of the partnership is rarely fulfilled.
By Ghassan Kassabji, CEO Dubai, CGO MENA, Impact BBDO
And it arrives: the long-awaited media request for proposal (RFP) hits our inbox. It starts with a humble request – registering on portals that feel more complex than applying for a trip on SpaceX.
Filled out the stack of forms? Check. Clauses you can vaguely understand but absolutely have to agree with? Check. All this before you even get sent the actual brief. Almost like going on a blind date – not sure if all that effort is going to be worth it.
So you do what you are told: register on platforms, sign terms and conditions even more elaborate than the Ambani wedding –all before a single brief has been shared. Occasionally, you’re even asked to agree to payment terms for work that hasn’t been awarded to you yet – but you do. Because without this, there’s no moving forward.
Then, the much-anticipated brief arrives. Sometimes, it’s a thing of beauty – well thought out and structured; the product of a marketing team who clearly understand the power of communication. Other times, it looks like it was written by an intern who works at the design department of DIY furniture store – here are lots of pieces scattered in different packets – good luck! Nevertheless, we rally.
One person in the agency bravely takes ownership, and soon becomes the most unpopular team member for weeks to come. A brainstorm follows – ideas are tossed around, there are some loud “Nahs”, but thankfully some even louder “Ahas”. Everyone seems to interpret things differently. Questions and clarifications are meant to be sent back to the client.
Responses are shared with all participating agencies because fairness is key, so that extremely intelligent question you asked that could lead to discovery. Now, everyone is privy to it. Occasionally, you’re thankful someone else asked the seemingly obvious thing you were ashamed to.
Then, the actual work begins. Long days that often turn into long nights. Timelines? Tight. Expectations? High. Pot noodles and crisps? Critical. And slowly but surely, through a combination of caffeine and utter
“FEEDBACK IS WHAT SEPARATES A TRANSACTIONAL INTERACTION FROM A PROFESSIONAL PARTNERSHIP.”
panic, you produce a masterpiece. It’s strategic. It’s insightful. You’ve even discovered customer segments the client hadn’t thought of – surely we get extra points for that?
You hit send. Then you check your sent items or the portal to make sure it has actually gone. There is a collective sigh of relief. Lives go back to normal – well, at least whatever normal is in agency life. Eventually, the email arrives.
Sometimes it’s a polite “Thank you for your submission, unfortunately your proposal did not qualify on this occasion.” Other times, it’s a “Congratulations, you’ve been shortlisted. You will be invited to present in person on May 1.” No mention of why for either response, of course. The mystery is part of their charm.
And so begins the agency post-mortem. Was the insight too bold? Were we not out-of-the-box enough? Did we forget to swap slide 24 with slide 42? You speculate. You spiral. But eventually, you move on.
Now that you understand a pitch from the agency perspective, let me get to the point. Agencies put a tremendous amount of effort into these pitches. We know it’s a competitive process. We’re not asking to win every time, just most of it. In all seriousness, what we are asking for – pleading for, and are deserving of – is feedback. Not the
Team Red Dot’s Raksha Khimji reveals an avenue to a win-win reality, where brands get stronger ideas, agencies get more innovative and the marketing ecosytem is elevated.
generic email that could have been written by someone junior in procurement. We’re talking about actual, useful and unfiltered feedback.
A paragraph, a sentence or even bullet points of what flew and what flopped – we’ll take it. Because feedback is how we get better. It’s how we understand your business priorities and your expectations.
It helps us sharpen what resonated and discard what didn’t make the cut.
Feedback is not about being diplomatic or polite. It’s about raising our standards. Feedback is what separates a transactional interaction from a professional partnership.
If you want better, more relevant, more evolved responses from agencies, feedback is your biggest flex. If you want an industry that’s constantly levelling up – start with real feedback.
In fact, if agencies were guaranteed meaningful feedback, we’d try even harder with every pitch. Because when you know someone’s going to take the time to thoughtfully respond, you’re far more inclined to up your game.
It’s a win-win, really. Brands get stronger ideas. Agencies get more innovative. And the marketing ecosytem elevates in totality.
So here’s my humble request; if you’re going to reject an agency, tell them why. If you’re going to move one forward to the second round, tell them why as well – they will fix what can be fixed in the interim.
Even a line or two is better than the deafening silence of client courtesy. In the end, good feedback helps everyone –your brand included. Because better agencies do better work; better work makes better clients; and in the end, everyone wins – even if we lose that particular pitch.
By Raksha Khimji, Managing Director, Team Red Dot
We’re all here for the same reason: to develop the best ideas we can. To grow brands, elevate experiences, and ultimately drive business. For our clients and for ourselves.
But here’s the truth: no matter how smart the thinking, if it doesn’t move the business forward, it’s just thinking. And in today’s environment, where value isn’t always the priority, that’s a dangerous place to be.
The fundamentals of marketing have evolved. Yet procurement processes haven’t kept pace. That’s not just outdated; it’s dragging the whole system down.
Pitching has become a performance sport. Long hours. Stretched teams. Creative resources pulled from live accounts. And for what? A decision often driven by procurement checklists built around cost, not capability. We all talk a big game about value, then hand the final call to the guy counting decimals in a spreadsheet.
And while headlines may celebrate ‘X wins Y account’, they rarely mention the five or six agencies who poured time, thinking and heart into work that never saw the light of day. For them, it wasn’t a PR moment, it was another late-night pitch that no one will ever see, paid for with anxiety and Advil.
Because behind every pitch is a team running on fumes. A strategist skipping bedtime stories. A designer reworking Keynote slides between coffee and collapse. A writer chasing meaning at 3am, rewriting lines no one will read.
These aren’t abstract costs; they’re very real ones. You don’t see them in the case study. You don’t hear them in the debrief. But they’re there. And they add up. To turnover. To fatigue. To brilliant people quietly exiting the industry because the maths no longer makes sense, not financially, not emotionally. The system isn’t just flawed. It’s failing the very people who make it work. Add to that the formality of the ‘three-agency minimum’, where some participants know they’re not really in the running. Compliance boxes ticked. Minds already made up. Or the classics: renewals tied to tighter fees and bigger scopes, wrapped up in a phrase such as ‘giving something back to the business’. The only ROI in this endeavour is burnout. Because the worst outcome isn’t losing; it’s winning for the wrong
reasons. Undercutting to land the account. Overpromising to make it past procurement. You win the business, then lose your margins, your energy, and sometimes, the very spark that made the work great in the first place. That’s not a win. It’s a warning.
Let’s be clear: Numbers matter. Budgets matter. Accountability matters. But if procurement becomes the only lens, we’ll continue commoditising an industry that was built on differentiation. And once everything feels the same, no one wins. Not the brands. Not the partners. Not the people doing the work. Because sameness doesn’t sell. Not in a boardroom. Not in a browser tab. Not to a generation that scrolls past anything that doesn’t earn its place.
When agencies are reduced to interchangeable vendors, brands become forgettable by design. What starts as cost-cutting ends as culture cutting. And audiences always notice. So how do we fix this? We start by being fair. Not just fiscally, but structurally. If business metrics are
“NO MORE PITCH CATTLE CALLS. PRE-QUALIFY, THEN INVITE. LET THE BEST FIGHT IT OUT.”
key – and they are – then so is the potential for long-term value creation. Pitching should reward vision, not just presentation polish. It should assess how an agency will help a brand evolve, not just deliver a campaign.
Clients should feel empowered to engage multiple strategic partners, because open windows bring in fresh air. But let’s also reduce waste. No more pitch cattle calls. Pre-qualify, then invite. Let the best fight it out. Three agencies, maximum.
Budgets should be shared upfront. Always. Agencies deserve the choice to walk away before investing weeks of
unpaid labour. Finding out the budget after you’ve bled all over the pitch deck isn’t just disrespectful, it’s perverse. And what if agencies were incentivised through performancebased models? What if contracts had built-in bonuses for impact, creativity, and growth, not just for being cheaper than the next guy? That would keep everyone sharp.
Of course, it’s easy to critique. Harder to act. And agencies aren’t blameless here. We helped create this system. We undercut each other. We said yes too often, for too little, while quietly teaching clients to expect the world for free. We complain to each other in private but rarely speak up in public. We should. Because if we don’t, we deserve the mess we’re in.
By Roy Aftimos, CEO, C2 Comms
The Romans’ Jacquelyn Moulds shares how procurement teams can raise agency value beyond tactical deliverables.
It’s a tough time to be an agency. You could be forgiven for feeling as though your perceived value is at an all-time low. While agencies strive for creative differentiation, tangible insight and invaluable consultancy, procurement frameworks increasingly focus on cost-cutting measures and tactical deliverables.
This has contributed to a lack of creativity, little differentiation and consistent budget cuts, raising crucial questions about the future of the industry in the region. At the heart of this issue is a troubling trend: the creative thinking that once formed the lifeblood of agency work is increasingly going unpaid and undervalued. In turn, we risk losing sight of the very essence that drives effective communication –innovative thinking and storytelling.
Taking a macro view of it, when agencies and their creative ideology are reduced to a checklist of tactical, service-based deliverables, we don’t just limit the potential of innovative PR and campaigns, we diminish the overall impact our industry can have on the world.
Agencies thrive on ideas. Ideas challenge norms, provoke thought, create movements and moments. They require
“AGENCIES NEED PARTNERS WHO RECOGNISE THAT GREAT IDEAS REQUIRE INVESTMENT – NOT JUST IN MONEY, BUT IN TIME, TRUST AND A BIT OF DARING.”
an understanding of context, culture, behaviour and value. These are the elements that drive real impact but don’t always show up on the quote card – things like brand reputation, consumer engagement and market influence. I’m preaching to the choir when I say the true value of these services goes far beyond the numbers.
Addressing these pain points wouldn’t just streamline pitches or align procurement processes. It could elevate the level of creativity agencies are so eager to showcase, helping shift the industry in the region toward a more creatively led future. There’s a real opportunity for procurement teams to not only rethink their role in the equation, but also to help shift from a transactional mindset to one that prioritises long-term partnerships.
This is where agencies are seen not just as vendors, but as collaborators. This change requires courage and vision from both sides, along with an understanding that investing in creative thought, particularly in PR, is an investment in the future of brands and their ability to connect meaningfully with audiences.
Not all this falls on the shoulders of procurement teams. Often, the disconnect lies between what a brand truly needs and the commercial frameworks that have been set. But it does beg the question: are procurement teams being given the chance to fully understand the bigger picture? Agencies need partners who recognise that great ideas require investment – not just in money, but in time, trust and a bit of daring. Otherwise, we’re left with campaigns that do little for brands and even less for the agency world. And that would be a dismal fate indeed.
So, consider this a call to arms. It’s time for agencies, communications and procurement teams to work more closely together to foster an environment where creative thought is not just respected but celebrated. Together, we can reshape our industry.
By Jacquelyn Moulds, Client Engagement Director, The Romans
There’s a growing issue in the Middle East that no one seems to be talking about, at least not publicly. It’s the lack of respect for agency creativity during the pitch process. For boutique and mid-sized agencies especially, this isn’t just a frustration; it’s a recurring threat to our time, our resources and our intellectual property.
We’re not talking about sour grapes for losing a pitch. Losing is part of the game. We’re talking about brands that invite agencies to pitch, absorb the best ideas, then go dark, only to reappear weeks later with creative work published, rebranded and uncredited. If it sounds brazen, it’s because it is.
The regional pitch culture, particularly in the UAE and GCC, has normalised a model where ideas are treated as ‘free samples’. Clients cast wide nets, pulling in five, 10, sometimes more agencies to respond to time-consuming RFPs. The reality is that only a couple were ever seriously being considered. The rest are there to inflate the sense of competition or extract ideas to Frankenstein into something in-house.
This kind of behaviour is harmful to all sides and erodes trust, undermines agency motivation and damages how the region is perceived globally. Having worked in Europe and the UK, the contrast is stark. While idea theft can happen anywhere, what’s different here is how often it happens and how little shame or accountability there seems to be when it does.
What makes this worse is the complete lack of communication after the pitch. In recent experiences, our agency has been ghosted, not by junior executives, but by senior marketing leads and procurement officers. These are individuals whose job it is to lead relationships with external partners. If they cannot take the time to offer a respectful “no, thank you,” then they shouldn’t be issuing requests for proposal (RFPs) in the first place.
One government-backed client recently invited us to submit ideas for a campaign launch. We went through two full rounds of feedback, with revisions made each time. Then, silence. Not even an automated rejection email. Weeks later, we saw one of our creative concepts live on their channels, just slightly tweaked.
In another instance, a well-known food and beverage (F&B) brand asked to use our creative proposition after awarding the work to a different agency. When we sent a quote to license the idea – a fair ask, considering the hours invested – we were told it was too ‘expensive’. They used it anyway. Apparently, integrity didn’t make it into the budget.
After being burned too many times, we made it a global agency policy: no pitch without a signed non-disclosure agreement (NDA). It must include clear IP clauses. We also include disclaimers in all our decks, and we’re exploring watermarking creative visuals. It’s not fool-proof, but at least it gives us a layer of recourse and filters out unserious prospects.
We’ve also started pushing back on poorly constructed RFPs. If a brief looks
Crowd’s Tom Berne says that it’s time to end idea theft in the Middle East.
like a fishing expedition including vague goals, impossible deadlines, no clarity on budgets, then we won’t waste our team’s time. We ask whether a shortlist has been created through a proper request for information (RFI) process. If not, we recommend it. Brands need to do their homework before dragging 10 agencies into a free-for-all.It’s not just about theft – it’s about respect.
Let’s be clear: large network agencies may have pitch teams ready to absorb the hit. Most mid-size and boutique agencies don’t. When we’re asked to pitch, we’re pulling in real resources –strategists, creatives, designers, project managers, who are taken off client work to prepare something meaningful. That time has a cost.
“CLIENTS NEED TO STOP TREATING PITCHES LIKE OPEN BUFFETS AND START TREATING AGENCIES LIKE THE PARTNERS WE ARE.”
Procurement teams need to be better educated too. Their KPIs are often tied to getting the ‘best deal’, but creativity is not a commodity. It’s not about who can do it cheaper; it’s about who can do it better and who will partner with your brand to deliver lasting value.
It’s time for the industry to implement clearer, stricter standards around pitching. At a minimum, this should include:
Mandatory NDAs before creative work is shared
RFI shortlisting to avoid unnecessary creative pitches
Feedback within seven days of final submission
Respectful rejection emails. Yes, this should be a basic requirement.
If brands can’t commit to these standards, they shouldn’t be asking agencies to commit their time.
Let’s raise the bar. If we want the Middle East to be seen as a serious hub for creativity and innovation, clients need to stop treating pitches like open buffets and start treating agencies like the partners we are.
By Tom Berne, Managing Director, Crowd
Boopin UAE’s Zeena Kurd discusses what ensues when the scope of work doesn’t match the real ask.
In theory, a scope of work is the backbone of any client-agency partnership – a contractual blueprint that lays out the work to be done, timelines, deliverables and costs. However, in reality, it’s the starting point of a journey filled with shifting priorities, unplanned demands disguised as ad hocs and an unspoken expectation for agencies to stretch beyond their remit –often without a proportional increase in fees or recognition.
With marketing shifting into an always-on, real-time ecosystem – led by data, performance and agile creative – the traditional scope of work (SOW), built for static campaigns and quarterly deliverables, no longer fits the bill.
One of the key issues lies in the procurement process. Requests for proposal (RFPs) are often awarded based on the lowest cost rather than the most accurate or strategic approach to address the requirement.
Agencies, pressured to win business, undersell themselves in the pitch stage, offering a minimal SOW to secure the contract, fully aware that additional tasks will emerge once the work begins. And they do. Almost all the time.
What starts as a monthly content plan soon balloons into influencer coordination, real-time community management, video production, event support, crisis management and strategy
“WE NEED TO STOP TREATING THE SCOPE OF WORK AS A FORMALITY AND START TREATING IT AS A LIVING AGREEMENT.”
– without renegotiation. This ‘scope creep’ eats into resources, burns out teams and erodes the profitability and sustainability of agency work.
Agencies are not blameless either. In a competitive landscape, many still overpromise, presenting dream scopes with reduced rates and inflated expectations, hoping to ‘figure it out later’.
This might damage client trust and sets unrealistic industry standards. I’m sure most of us within the industry have seen those ads on Instagram selling an entire social media scope of 100 posts for AED 100 per month…
These trends create a distorted perception of the value of agency services. Clients begin to believe that high-quality, strategic, creative work can be churned out at minimal cost, not realising the effort, expertise, talent and coordination it truly demands. As a result, teams become reactive rather than proactive, constantly firefighting and losing the headspace needed for creativity and innovation. So, what’s the way forward?
First, we need to move from fixed, outdated SOWs to dynamic, living documents – scopes that evolve with the needs of the brand and are revisited quarterly. Procurement teams should be trained in the nuances of modern marketing, understanding that today’s deliverables aren’t just outputs – they’re tied to performance, agility and integration. Every deliverable today is more layered, whether it’s a 30-second video that needs to serve multiple platforms or a static visual that needs 10 versions and language adaptations. This complexity needs to be acknowledged in the scope.
Second, there must be more transparency in scope and pricing. Both sides need to engage in honest, databacked conversations about what’s possible within budget and what’s not. Hourly rates, resource mapping and output-based pricing models can help rebalance expectations, something we’ve been working on religiously at Boopin. We’ve even introduced tiered SOWs for some clients, allowing them to adjust their expectations and deliverables monthly based on campaigns and needs or seasonality – a model that’s proven both scalable and fair.
Third, we must normalise mid-contract scope reviews. Just as performance is evaluated quarterly, so should scopes be. If a brand begins to require three times the deliverables within the same retainer, it should trigger a discussion, not become the new normal. Agencies must also build internal mechanisms to track scope creep and empower account leads to speak up when the line is crossed.
Finally, pitching itself needs a rethink. Clients must respect the intellectual property and effort agencies pour into pitches, while agencies should push back on unreasonable timelines or unrealistic asks without fear of losing the bid. True partnership starts with mutual respect –and that includes respecting the scope.
If we want to build a healthier ecosystem in the region, we need to stop treating the SOW as a formality and start treating it as a living agreement – one that protects the creative process, ensures fair compensation and delivers better outcomes for brands.
When scope matches reality, everyone wins: brands get better work, agencies thrive and teams are energised to keep pushing creative boundaries.
By Zeena Kurd, General Manager, Boopin UAE
In an increasingly crowded marketplace, brands face the dual challenge of maintaining creativity while efficiently managing budgets.
This has become even more dire with the latest string of US tariffs sparking a trade war, and its domino effect on all markets.
Striking this balance is essential for fostering innovation while ensuring long-term effectiveness. There are a few key strategies brands can employ to maximise their creative potential without overspending.
The selection of strategic partners is pivotal to ensuring that creativity. Brands should seek partners such as agencies, suppliers and others who not only share a similar vision and business outlook, but also understand the unique nuances of their target audience.
For instance, a tech startup may benefit from collaborating with a nimble marketing agency that specialises in digital innovation, rather than a large
firm that may lack the agility to respond to fast-paced changes in the tech landscape.
Nimbleness is key to jump on trend bandwagons. Similarly, petrolhead partners help fuel the passion for marketing automotive brands.
Moreover, the size of the partner is crucial. Larger partners may offer broad resources and extensive networks, but they often allocate less attention to smaller brands, leading to a dilution of creative effort.
On the other hand, smaller agencies may lack the necessary clout to elevate a brand’s message effectively.
Therefore, brands must identify partners that strike the right balance – partners that are large enough to provide substantial support yet small enough to offer personalised attention and commitment to the brand’s vision.
To ensure that creativity thrives, it is imperative that the brand team communicates their vision clearly with
LOTUS Cars’ Ramzi Atat explains why creativity is essential to cut through the noise in a world inundated with marketing messages.
“EVERY MARKETER IS GOOD WITH BIG BUDGETS; FEW MARKETERS ARE GREAT WITH LITTLE BUDGET.”
partners and extended teams. The client needs to bring the partners on the journey and get their emotional and rational buy in.
This shared understanding fosters a cohesive direction, ensuring that all parties involved are aligned and working towards common objectives.
Regular collaborative sessions and brainstorming meetings can enhance this alignment, allowing for the exchange of ideas and fostering a culture of creativity. When everyone is pulling in the same direction, the potential for innovative ideas increases significantly.
The concept of synergy, where the outcome is greater than the sum of its parts, is vital in maximising every dollar spent.
By leveraging the strengths of each partner, brands can create a more impactful narrative that resonates with consumers.
For example, a co-marketing initiative between complementary brands can lead to cost-sharing opportunities, while also enhancing the creative messaging through a combined approach.
This collaborative effort not only optimises budget expenditures but also amplifies creative output, ensuring that marketing messages stand out in a saturated environment.
A tyre brand needs an automotive brand to market its product, a luxury car and a luxury suit sound like a match made in heaven.
In a world inundated with marketing messages, creativity is essential to cut through the noise. Brands must remember that simply throwing money at a problem does not equate to a smart business solution.
While larger budgets may facilitate expansive campaigns, I always say, “Every marketer is good with big budgets, few marketers are great with little budget.”
By Ramzi Atat, Head Of Marketing and
Relations
6th Street’s Marketing Director Hitesh Malhotra explains why it’s time to invest in channels where you control the levers and plot your way to sustainable returns on investment instead of short-lived spikes.
Let’s be real: every marketing channel is following the law of diminishing returns – we know it but won’t talk about it. Above-the-line (ATL) advertising doesn’t move organic traffic, as such. Rather, it creates a mirage of sorts because your digital guys are scaling paid to support the brand campaigns to get you non-repeatable visitors. Unless there is a significant change in product features or user experience, you are likely to get nanoseconds of attention from new users.
Influencer marketing has become more about taking a hero, getting a spike in engagement and zero conversions. Die a villain with micro creators featuring data sleuths for code tracking, validations, return windows, fake followers, affiliate frauds and micromanagement.
SEO takes forever. Google’s shifting goalposts with constant algorithm updates are disappointing. AI-generated content is everywhere now –helpful, but risky if you’re not careful. Competition is wild. So, quality content, strong user experience (UX), and legit backlinks are table stakes – among listicles, Reddit threads, and maybe AI one-boxes that’ll wipe your traffic next year anyway. Core web vitals? Mobile-first? Non-negotiable. Lastly, if you’re not tracking performance religiously, you’re flying blind. SEO is a grind, and it’s only getting more complex – adapt or get buried.
CRM AND FIRST-PARTY MARKETING
First-party data validation? Check. Sanitising more than 90-day inactive customers? Also, check. But wait; what if existing customers are not responding to five promos in a row? Boom, Gmail throws you straight into the spam folder.
WhatsApp? Crazy expensive on a cost per thousand impressions (CPM) basis. Performance ads are cheaper, hands down. Building a high-quality
first-party (1P) data pipeline is a grind – and no, less than 30 per cent open rates and less than 1 per cent clickthrough rates (CTRs) aren’t going to cut it. Measurement? Don’t even get me started. Last-click makes zero sense here. People check emails in the morning, ignore them, then see your ad mid-lunch, recall the email, and click that. Ever thought about looking at CRM through the lens of first-click attribution or click-assist ratios in Google Analytics (GA)? You should.
Affiliate marketing? Fraud is everywhere. It’s still cannibalising your paid marketing as much as 35 per cent – only disguised. And most people won’t care enough to share anyway.
Somewhere out there, someone’s entire job is to make sure that just when you’ve cracked the latest reel algorithm, it gets nerfed – all in the name of ‘a brand handle isn’t the same as a creator’s handle’.
So, you boost the post, get a tiny lift and a few hours later, it’s gone. Rinse, repeat and welcome to the never-ending hunt for the next algorithm hack. The wheel of time continues, and so does the misery of budget allocation. Every channel is now mature. We’re living in the post-hype phase of a long-tech cycle. When a marketing strategy works, everyone jumps on it. Then it stops working. Customers tune out. Prices go up. ROI nosedives. It’s just supply and demand.
This is the funnel we learnt over the last two decades (Refer: Graphic 1).
If you are a startup, you can’t play the sacred games. Look at the shift. (Refer: Graphic 2)
FAG refers to machine learning-based algorithms: Facebook ads, Amazon ads, Google ads; IAGI refers to signal/aggregated algorithms: influencers, Apple Skan, Google, Instagram.
WHAT NEXT? GEN AI AT SCALE IS YOUR WEAPON
Customers are numb to the same polished, corporate-sounding noise from big brands. You? You get to show up weird, fresh and unfiltered – and that flash of novelty actually matters.
Tools today make it extremely easy: spin up avatar-led TikTok videos with Symphony, drop your product catalogue into GPT prompts, get that ‘too cool
to care’ vibe using Midjourney or Leonardo, upscale it to look pro with Magnific, toss it into Runway or Videoleap and – boom – you get 100 videos in 100 minutes.
No agency. No brief. Just vibes, speed and attention. Lastly, get your own tracks on suno.ai. No intellectual property (IP) infringements and no Gen Z bashing.
AVOIDING THE CLASSIC ‘SPRAY AND PRAY’ TRAP
Balance your budget. On the left of Graphic 3, we’ve got your typical channel breakdown. Performance Max (PMAX) and Advantage+ (ADV+) are eating up 70 per cent of your budget. But look at their funnel position: lower funnel (LF); their signal strength: poor to very poor; and what you’re getting in return: low return on ad spend (ROAS), high cost per order (CPO). Now peek at the 3D plot. We’re mapping three key dimensions here:
- X-axis: Time
- Y-axis: Business profitability or ROAS
- Z-axis: Funnel position.
What this shows is pretty simple: if you’re overly reliant on low-funnel, short-term tactics (hello, red dots), you might be profitable right now, but you’re likely stuck in a crowded, expensive part of the map. You’re not building for the long term. The sweet spot? It’s where time, funnel diversification and profitability meet – that nice cluster in the middle. That’s
where the green squares (combined focus) live. Top of the funnel (TF) or mid funnel (MF) channels such as search or shopping and Reels or Stories have controllable signals. Even though they get less budget love, they punch above their weight over time.
TL;DR: don’t dump your budget into black-box lower-funnel automation just because it looks efficient today. Spread it out. Mix short-term wins with longterm bets. Invest in channels where you control the levers – and plot your way to sustainable ROI instead of short-lived spikes. The data’s telling you something. Stop ignoring it. Finally, yes, your product actually has to be good. Even the best marketing won’t save you if your product leaks users. Think of marketing as a multiplier. Multiply zero, and you still get zero. But if your product is strong, a little bit of smart, scrappy marketing can go a long way. In summary, most marketing is awful, but that’s just a sign that we need to get creative again. New products need new tactics. Stop copying the incumbents. Big channels are for big companies. You need to be faster, weirder and scrappier.
The 2025 Dubai Lynx Awards returned to Emirates Golf Club, where 129 winners were recognised for raising standards of creative excellence in the MENA region. Grands Prix were awarded to standout work from the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Jordan.
This year, Dubai Lynx introduced new categories, including Use of Humour, reflecting shifts in storytelling in the region. The following pages highlight the work that took home top honours on the night. Visit dubailynx.com to view the full list of Grand Prix, Gold, Silver and Bronze awardees. CREATIVE COMMERCE, DIRECT, GLASS: THE AWARD FOR CHANGE
Title: Selfless Shelves
Client: Puck
Agency: FP7 McCann, Dubai
Production: Tres Content, Dubai
Media: PHD Media MENA, Dubai
PR: Current Global, Dubai
Other Awards: Gold Lynx x 2 (Brand Experience & Activation, Media); Silver Lynx – Direct; Bronze Lynx x 2 (Direct, Outdoor)
Title: Highlight Your Balls
Client: Testicular Cancer Society
Agency: FP7 McCann, Dubai
Media: Magna Global, Dubai / UM Birmingham / Universal Media House, Dubai / Universal Media, London
Other awards: Gold Lynx (Social & Influencer); Silver Lynx x 2 – (Healthcare and Social & Influencer)
Title: The New President
Client: Annahar Newspaper
Agency: Impact BBDO, Dubai
Production: Addition, New York
Media: Annahar Newspaper, Beirut PR: Impact BBDO, Beirut / Impact Porter Novelli, Dubai
Other awards: Silver Lynx – Brand Experience & Activation
Title: Everything Or Nothing
Client: Riyadh Season
Agency: BigTime Creative Shop, Riyadh
Production: La Casa Films, Providencia / Riff Raff Films, London
Post-production: 750mph, London / Stitch, London / The Hogan, London / The Mill, London
Other awards: Gold Lynx – Film Craft; Silver
Title: Obsession
Client: Riyadh Season
Agency: BigTime Creative Shop, Riyadh
Production: Riff Raff Films, London
Post-production: 750mph, London / Selected Works, London / The Hogan, London
Other
PR
Title: The Second Release
Client: Billboard Magazine
Agency: SRMG Labs, Riyadh
Production: Billboard Arabia, Riyadh / Eyedia Production, Riyadh / SRMG Labs, Riyadh
PR: Billboard Arabia, Riyadh / SRMG Labs, Riyadh
Other awards: Gold Lynx – Audio & Radio; Silver Lynx – Integrated; Bronze Lynx x 2 (Glass: The Award For Change, Entertainment)
Title: Careem, Beach
Client: Careem, Dubai
Agency: Careem, Dubai
Production: Careem, Dubai
Post-Production: Careem, Dubai
Other awards: Gold Lynx –
Title: 5 VS 5
Client: Riyadh Season
Agency: BigTime Creative Shop, Riyadh
Production: Firevision SFX Sofia / Icon Films Sofia / Prodco, London
Post-Production: Cabin, London / Number 8, London / Selected Works, London / TMLS As, Oslo Other awards: Silver – Entertainment; Bronze – PR
Title: Unsilence The Crowd
Client: Sela x Newcastle United
Agency: Sela, Jeddah / VML, London
Production: Sela, Jeddah / VML, London
Post-Production: VML, London
Media: Spectacle, London
PR: Spectacle, London
Other awards: Silver Lynx x 3 (Design, Brand Experience & Activation x 2); Bronze Lynx x 2 (PR, Entertainment)
Title: Bribe Bucket
Client: KFC
Agency: TBWA\RAAD, Dubai
Production: Piloto, Sao Paulo / Power League Gaming, Dubai
Media: Hearts & Science, Dubai
Other awards: Bronze Lynx x 2 (Social & Influencer, Media)
Title: Insured Billboards
Client: Easypaisa
Agency: Impact BBDO, Dubai
Production: BBDO Pakistan, Lahore / Rabbit Hole Films, Karachi
Media: OMD, Dubai
PR: Ishtehari Karachi
Other awards: Silver Lynx – Media
Client:
Agency:
Post-Production:
Other
Title: Birthmark Stories
Client: Hungerstation
Agency: VML, Riyadh
Production: Dreambox Films Riyadh
Other awards: Bronze Lynx – Creative Strategy
Title: Uncensored Press: Breaching the Algorithm
Client: Al Joumhouria
Agency: TBWA\RAAD, Dubai
Production: Keira Rathbone, Typewriter Artist, London
Media: OMD, Beirut
Title: Journey Into Herstory
Client: Al-Futtaim Toyota
Agency: Al Futtaim Motors Toyota, Dubai / Memac Ogilvy, Dubai
Media: PHD Media MENA, Dubai
PR: Gambit Communications, Dubai
“Iwish I’d been part of that” – that’s the feeling I’m always chasing in a jury room. And judging Film Craft at Dubai Lynx this year gave me quite a few moments like that.
It was a chance to hit pause and truly dive into the region’s best work – not just the big, loud ideas or the flashy execution, but the stories with soul. The kind where you feel the love, the labour and the craft in every frame.
One question echoed throughout our jury room: what made us stop in our tracks? It wasn’t always the most expensive work. Often, it was the most honest or the most intentional – the ones where every element elevated the others.
Simplicity, I believe, is one of the biggest opportunities for film craft in MENA and beyond right now. We saw some great examples – clear, emotionally resonant storytelling that left space for the idea to shine. But, in many cases, there was still a lot of visual and audio noise. Too many shots. Too much dialogue. Too many ideas packed into one execution.
In today’s world, simplicity is becoming a superpower. Audiences are overwhelmed – they’re not waiting to be impressed. If a story doesn’t grab them in the first five seconds, it’s already lost. So, as filmmakers and creatives, we must be ruthless. Does every second of this film earn its place? Is every moment adding to the story, or just filling space?
Trimming the fat doesn’t mean losing emotion. Quite the opposite. When we simplify, we make room for feelings. For silence. For tension. Remember Bouncy Balls for Sony Bravia? This is what I’m talking about.
Another essential ingredient of great film craft is collaboration – when storytelling is elevated by the composition of disciplines. Stunning visuals alone aren’t enough. You need a smart edit to build pace and tension, sound that draws the viewer in and direction that gives everything purpose. When it all clicks, that’s when craft sings.
One of the biggest conversations in the jury room was how we tell our stories – and how often those stories reflect the culture they’re coming from. MENA is such a diverse and vibrant region, and when the work leaned into that – through music, language, humour, wardrobe – it stood out. These weren’t just ads. They were snapshots of a place – its mood and rhythm.
But I’d love to see more of that. I’d love to see more confidence in using traditional storytelling and cultural references – not as decoration, but as the foundation. There’s clearly an appetite for something rooted, real and local. And it’s not about choosing between global ideas or regional identity – the real magic happens when the two meet, merging into something truly one-of-a-kind.
Now, of course, no 2025 op-ed would be complete without talking about AI. And here’s the truth: while AI is growing fast on social platforms, it hasn’t yet made a big splash in the region’s film craft. Most of the entries we saw were still grounded in traditional production and post techniques – and that’s a good thing. Because traditional craft is still king. And AI, for now, works best when it’s used by humans who understand storytelling. When AI is in the right hands, it can speed things up or open new creative doors. But it’s not a shortcut to a great idea. And it’s certainly not a replacement for human intuition when it comes to craft. The emotion
“GREAT CRAFT IN FILM IS MORE THAN JUST TECHNIQUE; IT’S WHEN EVERYTHING YOU SEE AND HEAR COMES TOGETHER IN SERVICE OF THE IDEA.”
Aisha Blackwell, Jury President for the Film Craft category at Dubai Lynx Awards 2025, delves into heritage and AI while investigating where MENA’s film craft is headed.
and resonance that come from real storytelling still can’t be faked. Not yet.
One area I’d encourage MENA creatives to explore more is shorter-form storytelling. We saw plenty of great 90-second-plus films –and some were truly beautiful. But as attention spans shrink and platforms evolve, there’s huge value in being able to tell a powerful story in 30 seconds. That’s not easy. But when it’s done well, it’s unforgettable.
To circle back to simplicity, I see it not just as a creative direction, but as a wider trend. It brings us back to the basics of advertising – creating awareness for products and their features. Purpose-driven work still has its place, but the economy is pushing us back to showcase tangible value and clear USPs.
Combined with platform shifts and changing formats, these trends are already shaping the future of film craft.
To the creatives, producers, account directors and clients who poured their hearts into this year’s work: thank you. We saw it. We debated it. We felt it. We rewarded it –and celebrated it.
Great craft in film is more than just technique; it’s when everything you see and hear comes together in service of the idea. That’s when the magic hits – when everything falls into place.
By Aisha Blackwell, Head of Production Services, Serviceplan MAKE Germany
From Riyadh to Dubai, the 2025 Young Lynx Academy empowered the region’s rising talent with immersive learning experiences, industry-led challenges and a sense of community.
The next wave of creative talent from across the MENA region stepped into the spotlight at this year’s Young Lynx Academy, powered by Publicis Groupe Middle East. This immersive programme, blending hands-on learning, expert mentorship and real-world creative challenges, returned bigger and bolder than ever. With an exciting new expansion into Riyadh, the 2025 edition marked a significant leap in both scale and impact, further extending the Academy’s reach across the region.
“Powering the Young Lynx Academy is more than just supporting an initiative, it’s about investing in the future of our industry,” said Bassel Kakish, CEO, Publicis Groupe Middle East & Turkey. “We’re proud to help create a platform that empowers young minds, fosters bold thinking, and builds the leaders of tomorrow.”
From more than 230 applications, 20 rising stars aged 30 and younger were selected for each edition, a highly competitive process that brought together some of the most promising young talent from agencies and brands across MENA. Over the course of two intensive days, participants experienced keynotes, panel discussions, speed networking, and a high-stakes live brief challenge designed to push boundaries and spark bold ideas.
The newly launched Riyadh edition was a major milestone, reflecting the Kingdom’s dynamic and fast-growing creative economy. Participants were given a live brief from PepsiCo, tasked with developing bold and culturally relevant ideas under pressure. After intense collaboration and expert mentorship, the winning team – Anas Alnaqeeb, Freelance Creative Director; Bayan Al-Sebani, Art Director, AKQA; Nada M. Fityani, Strategic Planning Manager, Focus Agency; and Abdulwahab Mohammed Alanazi, Marketing Communications Representative, Saudi Electricity Company – stood out for their innovative thinking and clear understanding of consumer insights.
A line-up of top-tier speakers, including Fizo Younis, CCO, Publicis Communications KSA & Egypt; Hanin Hamza Aloufi, Head of Group Marketing & Corporate Communication, BSF and
Saud Saadoun, General Manager, Bold Creatives, part of The Bold Group, delivered powerful sessions that explored leadership, local market trends and the importance of creating meaningful work.
BIG IDEAS IN DUBAI
In Dubai, participants were challenged with a brief from Nestlé, asking them to devise an outreach campaign for NxL, a virtual ‘skills of the future’ learning platform, to support youth employability.
The brief sparked compelling, insight-driven ideas and the winning groups – Hamze Shahrour, Manager – Media, Starcom; Melisa Dzene, Account Manager, MediaPlus Middle East; Nikol Buenaventura, Senior Copywriter, Havas; and Saba Hassan, Social Media Manager, Al Sayegh Worldwide – impressed the jury with their creative solution to the brief. Both winning teams were celebrated on stage at the Dubai Lynx Awards Ceremony, earning well-deserved recognition in front of the region’s creative elite.
“The Young Lynx Academy is a standout initiative in our programme; it’s where potential turns into possibility,” said Kamille Marchant, Festival Director, Dubai Lynx. “Watching these young creatives tackle real-world briefs with such passion and fresh thinking is a reminder of the incredible talent rising in our region.”
LEARNING, LEADERSHIP AND LASTING IMPACT
Both editions offered participants a unique blend of hands-on learning and inspiration. In Riyadh, sessions focused on developing creative concepts, navigating the industry in Saudi Arabia, and delivering with cultural relevance. In Dubai, standout speakers included Simon Cook, CEO, LIONS, Lara Mansour, Vice President – Brand, ADNOC Group and Tahaab Rais, Chief Strategy Officer, Publicis Groupe ME&T – each sparking enthusiastic discussions and questions from the room.
Beyond the sessions and the brief challenges, the Academy fostered something deeper: community. Many participants described the experience as “transformational”, citing newfound confidence, clearer career goals, and valuable connections with peers and mentors.
With its expansion into Saudi Arabia and increasing brand involvement, the Academy is fast becoming a vital launchpad for the region’s emerging creative leaders – and a sign of even bigger things to come.
More information about Dubai Lynx’s year-round initiatives can be found on dubailynx.com.
From Network of the Year to Dubai Lynx Golden Palm Award –here’s a snapshot of the agencies, networks and individuals honoured with the highest distinctions at Dubai Lynx.
A look back at the celebrations and standout moments from the 2025 Dubai Lynx Awards night.
The creative industries are beautifully unique – operating within fluid frameworks of meaning, interpretation, and innovation.
We are proudly postmodern, naturally interpretivist, and endlessly imaginative. And that’s not a weakness. It’s our superpower.
Yet, somewhere along the way, I think we may have become too modest. Too polite.
We all know those few flamboyant personalities who could outshine even the cast of Dubai Bling – and we love them for it.
But when we look past the glam of awards shows and galas, I sense an underlying hesitation: a subtle imposter syndrome lurking beneath the surface.
In recruitment fairs and industry conferences, I’ve noticed that communications intended to inspire the next generation of creative talent to enter the industry is sometimes lacking.
No one would expect a law firm, engineering practice, or university to hire people lacking formal training in core competencies.
Except, in our own world, we’ve occasionally overextended the welcome
“‘ANYONE CAN BE A CREATIVE AND WORK IN ADVERTISING’ IS A POISONOUS POSITIONING. AND, IT’S ALSO WRONG.”
Imagine yourself as a young person hearing how one career requires very strict qualifications as an entry prerequisite, and another is inclusive.
The logical strategy would be to aim high, and then if you didn’t succeed you would have the safety net of a creative career: “If it doesn’t work out as an accountant, I’ll just go work for ...”.
Then think as a parent: Which education pathway would you seek to guide your child into? No mother or father thinks of their child as being less than above average, and no-one would
mat with the generous and gold star statement “anyone can be creative”.
Top-tier talent doesn’t chase ease. They’re drawn to challenge, rigour, and prestige. They want to climb. To earn it. To belong to something remarkable. Back in the day, my peers and I chose an advertising and marketing degree not because it was easy. But because it was hard.
It was positioned as an elite programme and required us to get higher grades than other general business degrees.
And from day one we were directed to aim for a career at a top-tier agency such as J. Walter Thompson. We were challenged with math’s puzzles from Zenith Media and Carat, and brought to London to present creative strategies to account directors at Ammirati Puris Lintas.
IAA Board Member and Middlesex University Dubai Senior Lecturer Stephen King shares why it’s time for storytellers, brand builders, and cultural architects to reclaim confidence.
knowingly send a youth down a path to mediocrity.
“Anyone can be a creative and work in advertising” is a poisonous positioning. And, it’s also wrong.
I would argue that advertising recruitment messaging should be revised to show exactly what we offer – a career that demands the best, because it is the best.
While diversity matters, we shouldn’t undersell the intellect, craft, curiosity and dedication to the human experience required to thrive in our industry.
Advertising and strategic communications
careers are incomparable to other professions – we serve a different function.
As storytellers, brand builders, and cultural architects, it’s time we reclaimed our confidence. We need to be clearer about our value and start owning our worth.
After all, we don’t run a discount aisle. We run the red carpet.
By
Stephen King, International Advertising Association (IAA) Board Member and Senior Lecturer at Middlesex University Dubai
In a world saturated with content, capturing consumer attention has become a high-stakes game. While traditional outdoor advertising –billboards, bus shelters, transit ads –once relied on big visuals and catchy taglines to make a splash, today’s most effective campaigns are embracing a more immersive, narrative-driven approach: transmedia storytelling.
Transmedia storytelling is the technique of telling a single story or story experience across multiple platforms and formats using current digital technologies. Each medium contributes uniquely to the narrative, adding depth and engagement while encouraging audiences to actively participate in the story.
This concept isn’t new – it actually has deep roots in Hollywood, where some of the biggest blockbuster franchises pioneered the approach long before marketers caught on.
THE HOLLYWOOD ORIGINS
Transmedia storytelling first gained traction in the entertainment world, with franchises such as Star Wars and The Matrix setting the gold standard. George Lucas’s Star Wars universe expanded not only through its films, but also through novels, animated series, comic books, video games and even theme park attractions – each medium adding layers to the story and building a richer world. Similarly, The Matrix didn’t just live on the big screen. The Wachowskis extended their narrative through animated shorts such as The Animatrix, video games such as Enter the Matrix and interactive web content – all essential to understanding the larger storyline. This interconnected method of storytelling laid the groundwork for the way brands and creators now think about engaging audiences across multiple channels.
When applied to outdoor advertising, transmedia turns static spaces into dynamic entry points for a larger, multi-platform narrative journey.
FROM STATIC TO STORY: THE EVOLUTION OF OUTDOOR
A standalone billboard can only say so much. But what if it could lead audiences into a world they could explore further –through mobile interactions, social media, augmented reality, or even real-world activations? Enter transmedia outdoor campaigns.
Rather than being the story itself, the billboard becomes a gateway. For example:
A mysterious QR code on a mural leads to a character’s Instagram account.
An interactive bus shelter features a riddle that ties into a branded online game.
A digital screen shows only a glimpse of a film’s backstory, inviting viewers to unlock the full narrative via an app.
These experiences don’t just advertise; they invite audiences to co-create and live the story.
Heriot-Watt University Dubai’s Dr. Stavroula Kalogeras on how transmedia storytelling is transforming outdoor advertising.
Transmedia storytelling works by allowing different parts of a story to unfold across multiple platforms – each offering a unique piece of the narrative puzzle. A billboard might introduce a mysterious character, while social media reveals their backstory, a mobile game lets users step into their world and a short film deepens the emotional arc. This layered approach creates a more holistic, immersive experience that feels less like advertising and more like meaningful engagement. It’s especially effective for younger audiences who prefer to discover content organically rather than be interrupted by traditional advertisements. By inviting them to explore, participate and piece together the story on their own terms, brands earn attention rather than demand it.
Netflix’s Stranger Things Season 4 used urban projections, missing person posters and themed pop-ups to create an eerie presence in cities before the show aired. The story unfolded across social media, augmented reality filters and on Spotify tailored to fans’ viewing habits.
Nike’s You Can’t Stop Us campaign combined outdoor murals with geotagged Instagram posts, fitness app challenges and real-time user-generated content that added layers to the core story of resilience and community.
HBO’s Westworld took it a step further with a city-wide scavenger hunt in Austin during the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival, featuring cryptic signage, in-world experiences and a fully interactive website that tied back to outdoor placements.
Start with the story, not the space: What is the narrative you want to tell? Who are the characters? What’s the conflict or mystery? Your outdoor creative should tease or ignite the journey.
Connect the dots with tech: Use QR codes, near field communication (NFC) chips, AR filters, or geolocation tools to transition users from physical to digital. Make each platform additive: Avoid simple duplication. Let each touchpoint (poster, video, app, live event) contribute uniquely to the story.
Encourage user participation: Let fans interact, unlock secrets, or even shape outcomes. This boosts emotional investment and viral sharing.
Plan for long-term engagement: Transmedia storytelling isn’t just a one-off stunt – it’s a narrative arc. Design your campaign to evolve over days or weeks.
From the galaxies of Star Wars to the mind-bending reality of The Matrix, transmedia storytelling has long captivated audiences by building immersive, interconnected worlds. Now, that same magic is reshaping how brands use outdoor advertising. Transmedia turns passive moments – waiting for a bus, walking down a city block – into moments of discovery. In an age when attention is the ultimate currency, turning a billboard into a gateway to the story isn’t just smart – it’s essential. Outdoor media can either be a powerful standalone platform for transmedia storytelling or seamlessly integrated with indoor, digital and experiential channels to create a cohesive, multi-sensory narrative journey. Whether it’s the entire stage or just one scene, outdoor has the power to move the story forward.
The future of advertising isn’t just about being seen. It’s about being experienced.
By Dr. Stavroula Kalogeras, MBA Programme Director, Edinburgh Business School, Heriot-Watt University Dubai
Co-Founder & Chief
Creative Officer,
The Hanging House
RAKTDA (1):
RAK is finally owning its ‘adventure emirate’ identity and I love that. The tone is warm, the humour lands, and it stands apart from its glossier neighbours. That said, with a line like ‘our vacation,’ I wish we met some of the people from RAK. The campaign stepped into emotion and community but could’ve taken it further. In a world where travellers are seeking authenticity, that human layer felt like a missed opportunity.
PUCK – ARLA FOODS (2):
This one stuck with me. The contrast of devastation outside and hope simmering in a kitchen was powerful. Food here wasn’t just comfort; it was agency. It’s poetic, raw, and exactly how purpose-driven storytelling should feel: honest, intentional, and quietly impactful. More of this, please.
DELIVEROO X HUMANTRA (3):
The stunt ticks the right boxes – it’s timely, experiential, and certainly got people talking. That said, the resemblance to Carlsberg’s ‘drinkable’ billboard from years ago is hard to ignore. I’m all for borrowing inspiration but a little twist would’ve helped it feel fresher.
DUCAB (4):
I’m a sucker for nostalgia – it’s a cheat code to the heart. And Ducab nails it. The storytelling is simple but effective, striking a warm emotional note without overplaying it. It feels honest, relatable, and quietly confident.
VOLVO X ELECTROMIN (5):
10/10 for ambition. I respect the bold move to use AI, and they deserve credit for pushing boundaries. But the result felt more artificial than absorbing. Great creative tech should disappear into the storytelling and not distract from it. If we’re doing AI, let’s make it invisible in the best way.
TAREK KHALIL
Managing Director – MEA, VICE
RAKTDA (1):
RAKTDA brilliantly demonstrates that how you tell a story matters. Their take on the classic ‘this sucks/this rocks’ format delivers genuine charm and visual impact. The ‘Not a vacation/Our vacation’ payoff lands perfectly because they’ve earned it through truth rather than empty promises. It’s not reinventing the wheel of tourism marketing, but it showcases RAK’s strengths and makes it look genuinely appealing. Sometimes, executing a simple idea well beats trying too hard to be clever.
PUCK – ARLA FOODS (2):
I’m cynical about purpose marketing, but this one actually lands for me because it’s centred on actual human stories rather than brand heroics. It backs up emotional storytelling with a genuine financial lifeline. The ‘you dine, they thrive’ approach creates lasting impact rather than the usual temporary misery spectacle that makes brands feel good while changing nothing. In an industry that regularly exploits tragedy for brand points, this delivers something real: cultural preservation with economic benefit. Beautiful and genuine without commodifying Lebanese resilience.
DELIVEROO X HUMANTRA (3):
This is attention-grabbing smart disruption with perfect Ramadan relevance. Advertising you can literally consume breaks the fourth wall between promotion and product at a time when thirst is front of mind. The concept brilliantly serves a genuine need rather than just being another tone-deaf Ramadan campaign. Refreshing in more ways than one.
DUCAB (4):
Genuinely impressed with how they connected invisible electrical cables to visible human emotions – using Ramadan as a narrative lens rather than just slapping on a seasonal filter. Very cool. And the emotional crescendo works because it’s unexpected from an industrial brand. They cleverly visualise how their cables literally power life’s meaningful moments, and they find genuine relevance most seasonal campaigns lack.
VOLVO X ELECTROMIN (5):
The AI-generated approach falls short both technically and emotionally in my opinion. While the concept of resilience resonates, the execution is emotionally flat. Good storytelling should make you care, but this piece feels like it was created by machines and algorithms that don’t. I’m yet to see any AI-generated content that delivers something genuinely memorable. The robots aren’t taking our jobs anytime soon.
RAKTDA
Title: Not a Vacation ... Our Vacation Agency: Impact BBDO Production house: Goldmine Films
Puck – Arla Foods
Title: Recipe for Change Agencies: FP7 McCann, Current Global Production houses: Craft, Tres Content
Deliveroo x Humantra
Title: ‘Drinkable’ Billboard Agency: Aces of Space
Ducab
Title: Ramadan Production house: Press Play Productions
Volvo x Electromin
Title: Come Back Stronger Agencies: LION Creative, Platformance, PR Arabia
Managing Director of Cicero & Bernay Communication Partner
As third-party advertising costs rise and privacy regulations tighten, companies are reevaluating their digital presence. Increasingly, major businesses are transforming their websites, apps and loyalty programmes into advertising platforms, using first-party data for targeted content and improved consumer engagement – a practice known as Owned Media Networks (OMNs). OMNs enable brands to control the narrative,
enhance loyalty, and provide relevant, context-driven experiences within their ecosystem. Retail giants such as Amazon and Walmart have set the benchmark, and recent innovations by United Airlines with their new OMN, Kinective, have turned flight screens and digital itineraries into ad spaces, offering brands direct access to their audience. Early adopters hold an advantage by securing partners, building infrastructure and setting
pricing models to enhance customer interactions more effectively before the market becomes saturated. Analysts expect owned media to become a standard revenue stream for most large enterprises within five years. It’s a promising frontier – but one that demands thoughtful strategy. Those who move early are more likely to shape the space than play catch-up.
66%
Marketers will increase their owned media leverage in the next 12 months.
Samsung Ads has introduced GameBreaks, an interactive ad format for connected TV (CTV) that replaces traditional commercials with playable minigames. Designed to enhance viewer engagement during ad breaks, this format leverages interactivity to improve brand recall. In a competitive CTV landscape, GameBreaks offers a distinctive proposition for advertisers seeking more dynamic and immersive advertising solutions.
37%
Corporations use owned media primarily for brand-building.
Come on Barbie, let’s go viral
A recent AI-driven ‘Barbie Box’ trend has seen social media users turn themselves into personalised action figures using ChatGPT. Brands such as Nissan and BMW have followed suit and created their own AI-generated figures. By joining trends like this, companies position themselves as innovative and aligned with the digital culture zeitgeist, creatively connecting with modern audiences.
Estimated market share of Owned Media Networks by 2029 in the global advertising industry. 17.5%
#NOT
A new ChatGPT feature enabled users to transform photos and memes into Studio Ghibli-style art has sparked controversy. While embraced by fans and brands, Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki has been critical about the trend, highlighting ethical concerns over copyright infringement and AI's lack of human sensitivity, emphasising the need for dialogue and transparency on how AI models are trained.
Al-Futtaim Automotive has named KATIB BELKHODJA as Marketing Director for Toyota and Lexus in the UAE, placing the senior group executive with wide-ranging divisional experience in a key leadership role across its two flagship brands. In his new position, Belkhodja will oversee the full spectrum of marketing and communications activities for both Toyota and Lexus. His remit includes strengthening brand equity, driving full-funnel performance marketing, and enhancing customer engagement, with an emphasis on data-driven strategies and the integration of AI-powered tools across the marketing mix.
Assembly MENA, the media agency within the Stagwell network, has appointed ZUBAIR S. SIDDIQUI as Chief Operating Officer. Reporting to CEO Faisal Dean, Siddiqui will oversee growth strategy, commercial investments and media partnerships with regional stakeholders, with a focus on advancing the agency’s omnichannel media and digital commerce capabilities across the region.
Publicis Groupe Middle East has appointed JOHN NOLAN as Head of Sport and Commercial Investment MENA. In this newly created role, Nolan will lead the Groupe’s commercial investment and sports marketing initiatives in the region, driving innovative content partnerships, sponsorships and revenue growth
opportunities for clients. Nolan’s remit includes developing strategic partnerships with sports federations, broadcasters, and content owners, as well as leading sports sponsorship and activation strategies.
Integrated growth and transformation agency Créo Global has named JAIMESHA PATEL as its Chief Executive Officer, in line with the agency’s focus on performance marketing, strategic creativity and business transformation rooted in real-world impact. With more than 20 years of international experience across the UK, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, Patel brings a strong track record of leading integrated marketing efforts and scaling teams for some of the world’s most recognised brands.
Sprinklr, a unified customer experience management platform for modern enterprises, has appointed AMJAD AL SABBAH as Group Vice President for Middle East and Africa, to drive strategic growth of Sprinklr’s platform across the regional markets. He joined Sprinklr in 2018 and has since played an instrumental role in establishing the company’s regional footprint and driving digital transformation initiatives in the MEA market.
The Network Communication Group has named CLAUDE ABBOUD as General Manager for its Saudi Arabia operations, marking a strategic move as the agency group strengthens its presence in the Kingdom’s advertising and communications
landscape. Abboud brings more than 25 years of experience in strategic communications and media and his leadership background spans multiple sectors and geographies.
Creative experience agency LIGHTBLUE has appointed ADEL NOUEIHED as Managing Director. In his new role, Noueihed will lead the agency’s operations across Dubai and Riyadh, working in close partnership with Co-Founder David Balfour and Partner Craig Borthwick. Together with the wider leadership team, he will focus on driving strategic growth, strengthening client relationships, and pushing the boundaries of creative innovation across the region.
Relevance International has expanded its global footprint with a new office in Dubai, which will be led by HANNAH BURDEN, who is joining as Director of Public Relations. With almost 20 years of experience, half of which has been in the Middle East, Burden has led corporate, consumer, strategic and integrated communications campaigns in the UAE and UK, across various industries including aviation, leisure, tourism and business services. Her role will include driving the agency’s growth in the Middle East, helping forge new partnerships, and expanding the agency’s client base across the region.
Over the past month, The Spin received a score of submissions from around the world. As always, April 1 was particularly interesting, with several brands investing in a good laugh. However, not all of them got it right.
Some humorous ads such as the Dyson Airbrow, ‘Subwhey’ Protein Shakes and Whisker’s cat litter-scented candles were extremely on-brand and well received, while a few others, including such a certain iced tea team’s ‘Rest in Peach’ creative didn’t turn out peachy. Firstly, the ‘Rest in Peach’ post was timed a tad early, released on March 31. Secondly, consumers stated that they didn’t see the follow-up post on their feeds, which clarified that the first was a prank. A certain Swiss-based competitor’s UK social media account was quick to pick up on the gaffe and trolled the comments section.
Meanwhile, a consumer of a regional clothing brand sent The Spin a wonderfully shot Ramadan ad featuring a Lebanese actor and singer, whose song in the campaign video states that she chooses to wear only the brand’s clothes. The irony? The singer reportedly doesn’t don any clothes produced by the regional brand throughout the ad spot, although the backup dancers do. Clearly, a groovy tune, excellent videography, a great set and a celeb endorsement can all fall flat if the strategy isn’t sound.
Another follower of The Spin sent in a photograph of a billboard at a hotel with unnecessarily punny copy on it: “Whichever floor you’re on, you’ll find our service
on another level.” Turns out, the service on the top floor of the establishment wasn’t great.
The Spin’s inbox also welcomed some interesting online and offline ads, including one selling ‘crackpots’ instead of crock-pots while another offered a ‘sale’ on Kroger pineapples with no discounted pricing.
In the age of AI, clearly human involvement is still required. The Spin came across a huge real estate billboard with an obviously AI-generated creative displaying funny fingers, while another digital ad displays a service expert drilling into a television.
That said, it does look like humans could do with an AI copy editor, as well, if they have downsized their human one. Case in point: a recently released news article touts the launch of a ‘big’ 5mm billboard; an outdoor salon ad misspells ‘ordinary’; and an ad which claims its purchaser has been ‘making brands look good since 2019’ has a typo that’s hard to spot on the first take.
Campaign Middle East is changing. We’ve listened carefully to conversations in the market; we’ve tracked trends tactfully; and we’ve decided to evolve and grow. For the first time in 16.5 years, Campaign Middle East has decided to publish content in Arabic – offering leaders who think in Arabic the opportunity to inform, educate and inspire regional audiences in Arabic, while retaining thought leadership in English.
If this bilingual edition resonates with you, we would love to hear your thoughts on it. Drop us a line. That said, this edition also draws a line in the sand. The cover of this magazine has decided to challenge one-dimensional representations of Saudi Arabia to showcase a global, social, cultural, economic and geopolitical superpower. We have decided to represent the reality of Saudi Arabia – a land thriving with incredible brand experiences, entertainment, events, arts, music, sports, travel and tourism, and modern conveniences, while also rich in heritage, culture, tradition and breathtaking natural landscapes.
Leaders who have contributed to this magazine have opened up about the bold fusion of Saudi’s proud legacy marrying innovation; about brands retaining the authenticity of their origins while remaining relevant to their young audiences; about agencies preserving the stories of the past while breathing new life into how these stories are shared and experienced.
Cue: culturally relevant humour, local influencers and cultural icons, homegrown tech and talent, new virtual channels of community-driven conversations such as esports and gaming platforms, and a generation that is vocal about its values and expectations.
Saudi leaders have shared how one-way government communication – formerly founded on the top-down playbook of persuasion – has given way to bottom-up storytelling, which is, in part, led by Gen Z. This generation has demanded a seat at the table to co-create, offer feedback, actively engage with initiatives, and immerse themselves into the story of progress and collective growth.
Consumers have called for brands to go beyond the buzzword of ‘localisation’ and embrace Saudi Arabia instead, because they are highly sceptical of advertising but extremely proud of their national identity. Content that looks like it was adapted from elsewhere simply won’t resonate. While the rest of the world is drowning in content that’s morphed into noise, debating privacy, and latching onto AI-led trends – such as Studio Ghibli – Saudi consumers have reconnected to their roots, moving the conversation far beyond the motifs of time and attention to a world where trust, transparency, empathy and diversity flourish in culturally resonant societal settings.
Add to the mix the incredible impact of sports – such as football, Formula 1, tennis, boxing, padel, mixed martial arts and golf; the incredible impact of entertainment – such as music festivals, theme parks and gigaproject destinations; the incredible impact of global conferences, summits and symposia; and the incredible impact of tourism and travel opportunities – and we begin to see a land blossoming with incredible brand-building collaborations, sponsorship deals, strategic partnerships, naming rights, merchandising, and media and marketing tie-ups.
Saudi Arabia is no longer merely a great investment; it is primed to lead the world. And, as one of the industry leaders stated within this edition says, “Marketing in Saudi Arabia is not just evolving; it’s being reinvented.”
Anup.Oommen@motivate.ae
Motivate Media Group
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EDITORIAL: Motivate Media Group Editor-in-Chief Obaid Humaid Al Tayer | Managing Partner and Group Editor Ian Fairservice Campaign Middle East Editor Anup Oommen | Senior Reporter Ishwari Khatu | Junior Reporter Shantelle Nagarajan | Junior Reporter Hiba Faisal Group Editor - Arabic Rehab A. Barham
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ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES: Chief Commercial Officer Anthony Milne | Publishing Director Nadeem Ahmed Quraishi (nadeem@motivate.ae) Sales Manager Tarun Gangwani (tarun.gangwani@motivate.ae)
PRODUCTION: General Manager S. Sunil Kumar | Production Manager Binu Purandaran | Assistant Production Manager Venita Pinto
HAYMARKET MEDIA GROUP: Chairman Kevin Costello | Managing Director Jane Macken
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Diriyah Company’s Nicola Cope says balancing the past, present and future is key to modern destination marketing.
In today’s rapidly evolving world, brands are often faced with the challenge of staying relevant while trying to retain the authenticity of their origins. This is particularly true at Diriyah Company, a Public Investment Fund (PIF) gigaproject part of Saudi Arabia’s tourism and cultural development.
To address this challenge successfully, we are blending the rich cultural heritage of the region with a bold, forwardthinking vision. Preserving the past and breathing new life into it, using innovative methods to share this legacy with the world, we are redefining destination branding.
Bold fusion of heritage and innovation Diriyah, the historic heart of Riyadh, holds profound cultural significance as the birthplace of the Kingdom and a
UNESCO World Heritage site, carrying a legacy of immense historical value.
However, at Diriyah Company, we are committed to more than just preserving this iconic site. Diriyah’s identity is not only shaped by the conservation of its past but also by the innovative ways we bring its heritage to life.
Through architectural design, storytelling, technology and global engagement, we are creating a dynamic future city that bridges the past and present. One such example of innovation was an activation in 2024 to support our National Day celebrations.
With more than 60 per cent of Saudi Arabia’s population under the age of 35, we sought new, relatable ways to raise awareness of our rich history.
This led to the creation of our first map within Fortnite, enabling us to directly target this audience through the gaming world. This fusion of cultural heritage with modern technology lies at the heart of Diriyah’s evolving brand identity.
Storytelling as a key element of brand identity
Like many other destinations, one of the most powerful tools Diriyah uses to shape its identity is storytelling. However, what sets the Diriyah development brand apart is the utilisation of a unique proposition that enables the values of the destination to be authentically brought to life and serve as a platform of expression through multi-channel execution.
Diriyah, The City of Earth, represents the significance of this location, both metaphorically and physically, and serves as the foundational communication platform for the narratives that highlight its cultural and historical importance.
The visual expression of this identity further enhances the brand’s storytelling with an authentic expression of the land and environmental elements that are true to this place. We consistently aim to build a deep emotional connection with our audiences.
Visitors are not just walking through the streets of the historic citadel; they are experiencing the stories that have shaped Saudi Arabia’s identity.
The use of storytelling in our branding goes beyond physical moments; it extends into digital platforms, cultural programmes and even global activations
and partnerships, not only attracting but also renewing audiences. It’s essential to keep abreast of communication trends globally and adapt strategies accordingly. By sharing stories globally, Diriyah can position itself as a destination brand that is both deeply rooted in the past and forward-thinking in its approach to sharing its heritage with the world.
Balancing authenticity with aspiration
In many ways, Diriyah Company is at the forefront of a new wave of Saudi branding – one that balances authenticity with aspiration. While the region’s heritage and cultural landmarks are preserved, Diriyah, the City of Earth is simultaneously positioning itself as a symbol of future growth and prosperity for Saudi Arabia.
The brand’s messaging and visual identity evoke a sense of pride in Saudi Arabia’s past while also suggesting the excitement of what lies ahead.
This balance between authenticity and aspiration is crucial in helping shape Saudi Arabia’s cultural and economic narrative around the world. Diriyah is not just promoting itself as a historical site but as a destination for global investment, tourism and cultural exchange. By highlighting the region’s unique position as the birthplace of Saudi Arabia and a symbol of its future, we are offering a compelling narrative that appeals to and resonates with local and international audiences alike.
Throughout my career, one thing that always stands true is that authenticity is key to successful brand-building. Diriyah Company certainly sets an example in how to preserve heritage while embracing innovation. By fusing Saudi Arabia’s rich heritage with a bold, future-forward vision, we are redefining destination branding on the global stage.
This commitment to authentic storytelling and global engagement ensures that the region’s historical legacy is not just preserved but brought to life in exciting new ways. As Diriyah, the City of Earth, continues to evolve, it will undoubtedly play a major role in shaping both Saudi Arabia’s cultural identity and its economic future. In doing so, it proves that a modern brand can indeed be built on historical foundations.
By Nicola Cope, Brand Executive Director, Diriyah Company
The world is changing, and so are the ways governments communicate. For Saudi Arabia this is particularly true because, with 60 per cent of the population under 30, we are a young nation with many outward-looking, talented and aspirational Gen Z members of society. Young Saudis are active in their communities, confident in their culture and eager to share their stories with the world.
For those charged with sharing these stories, communication isn’t just about new platforms or new tools, it’s about connecting audiences through their shared values, common dreams, familiar perspectives and life experiences.
These connections are not only made among Saudis and expats in the Kingdom; increasingly, we are seeing international audiences wanting to understand more about what life is really like in Saudi Arabia as the positive impacts of Saudi Vision 2030 are steadily coming to fruition across multiple dimensions of everyday life.
Fundamentally, the pace and intensity of these people-to-people connections being forged domestically and internationally, coupled with increased curiosity and openness about learning more about Saudi Arabia, mean that we need to rethink the rules of engagement in government marketing and communications. And that calls for rewriting the playbook, too.
For too long, government communications and marketing have centred around persuasion – using one-way communication to sell an idea, a new initiative or a brand. But that top-down playbook is less effective now.
As a globally connected cohort, Gen Z’s perspective extends beyond their immediate surroundings, demanding a different sort of conversation that is authentic, transparent, relatable and engaging. And nowhere can this be seen more than on digital channels.
This generation is more likely to trust a friend’s Instagram story, a short-form video from someone they relate to, or an honest reflection than a polished statement distributed through official channels.
In fact, 92 per cent of Gen Z respondents in a recent survey said they prioritise authenticity over things such as wealth and fame. Approximately 56 per
“Old methods of top-down messaging are giving way to more inclusive, relatable and interactive forms of storytelling.”
cent of them say they don’t trust brands and 40 per cent of them look for reviews from influencers before making a decision on a product or on an offer.
So how does this translate to designing effective government communications?
Gen Z is a generation that embraces many identities; it’s not simply about nationality. It’s about their jobs and their hobbies, their family and social lives, and it’s about connecting with those around the world who share those identities and who similarly want to be in charge of their own narratives.
Khalid Bin Asakir from Saudi Arabia Vision 2030’s Quality of Life Programme discusses a new generation and a new playbook for communicating with Gen Z.
At the strategic level, we need to understand these interests and values through effective market research and to leverage them in our communications approach to foster engagement.
At the tactical level, government communications are no longer about broadcasting information from a central podium, but about bottom-up storytelling. We need to harness the credibility and creativity of real people to tell their stories, connect with our audiences and engage them in dialogue so that they can make up their own minds. This shift is transforming every aspect of how we communicate.
At the Quality of Life Programme, we recognise that the way we communicate with younger audiences must be different. We’re drawing on that very Gen Z interest in shared identities – jobs, hobbies, families, friends and experiences – with a marketing approach that embraces people-to-people, human-to-human campaigns.
We don’t tell people what life is like in Saudi Arabia, we ask our talented creatives, sportspeople and entrepreneurs to tell their authentic stories themselves, because their stories make up the wider Saudi story in all its nuance, complexity and depth.
The success of this approach is clear. Our campaigns engage young Saudi talent to help tell their stories about their experiences in arts, culture, heritage, sports and community development to raise awareness about the Kingdom’s growing cultural and entertainment landscape.
Their stories are personal and focus on how their passions are fostered, their dreams realised and their social lives enhanced by an increasingly engaging and vibrant society. The impact can be felt domestically and internationally.
We are encouraging more young people to participate in these activities to improve their own quality of life and build connections, while also shifting global perceptions about the quality of life in Saudi Arabia.
What we are seeing is the dawn of a new era in government communications – one when authenticity, transparency and real human connection take centre stage. The old methods of top-down messaging are giving way to more inclusive, relatable and interactive forms of storytelling.
If we are to successfully engage with the younger generation, we must be prepared to embrace these changes fully. In other words, communication is not merely a business industry any more.
It’s an industry where success is defined by a solid understanding of other areas such as psychology, sociology and anthropology that focus on understanding people, societies and generations.
By Khalid Bin Asakir, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Quality of
Life Programme, Vision 2030
Bloomberg Media Studios’ Ashish Verma shares his take on B2B strategies in times of change.
Businesses across industries are navigating an increasingly uncertain landscape. Economic volatility, evolving trade policies and a renewed focus on efficiency are reshaping how companies operate and compete, leaving brands grappling to realign in an era of shifting priorities.
How brands respond to these changes, whether they lean in or retreat, will determine their relevance and success in the months ahead.
For business-to-business (B2B) brands, the stakes are especially high. Fear of alienating customers and pressure from investors often paralyse decisionmaking, leading companies to avoid risk at all costs. But inaction comes with consequences.
Research shows that 96 per cent of marketing leaders believe B2B brands should be bold, provocative and forwardthinking, according to The Power of Provocation report. Playing it safe doesn’t just stifle innovation, it renders brands
invisible at a time when standing out is essential.
Three guiding principles can help B2B brands rise above the uncertainty and drive success in 2025:
1. Make trust your North Star Trust is the cornerstone of brand building, especially in B2B. According to Bloomberg Brand Accelerator, trust begins with transparency and authenticity.
Brands that understand their audience as people with values, challenges and aspirations will be the ones to earn their
“Brands that earn trust, remain visible and tell meaningful stories won’t just survive – they’ll thrive.”
interest not just when it comes to getting their attention but also when it’s time to make a purchase decision.
Building brand trust has never been more intertwined with driving demand for your brand. Trust isn’t built overnight, but every interaction, message and decision contributes to positioning your brand as a reliable, understanding partner.
For example, Red Sea Global, Saudi Arabia’s regenerative tourism destination, recognised that earning trust required more than visibility; it demanded sustained transparency and authenticity.
Through a partnership with Bloomberg Media, we built credibility via thought leadership events and human-centric storytelling.
By spotlighting regeneration through real stories, we reshaped perceptions and forged meaningful connections with a high-net-worth global audience.
2. Context changes everything
Where your brand shows up matters as much as what it says. In times of uncertainty, many B2B brands retreat, worried about seeming out of touch.
But the data doesn’t support this approach. Decision-makers seek partners they can rely on during this time. Instead, brands that partner with credible platforms and authoritative voices not only stay visible but also amplify their impact.
According to Bloomberg Media’s Corporate Reputation Study, a majority of global business leaders see ‘partnerships with reputable organisations’ as one of the top three challenges in building a strong corporate reputation.
Strategic, authentic and consistent presence, backed by trust, keeps your brand top of mind.
3. Reclaim the art of storytelling
The old rules of B2B marketing no longer apply. Today’s audiences, whether at work or at home, expect creativity, emotion and human connection. Storytelling isn’t a luxury; it’s essential to breaking through.
As major networks scale back content – the number of new US television shows dropped 7 per cent in 2024 and 17 per cent in 2023, according to Luminate –brands have a growing opportunity to step in and co-create the next wave of programming.
Injecting cultural relevance, whether through humour, drama, or deeply personal narratives, enables brands to tell stories that reflect their values and connect on a deeper level.
Periods of upheaval are when true leaders emerge. In today’s cluttered and competitive media environment, capturing attention isn’t just important – it’s everything.
The brands that earn trust, remain visible and tell meaningful stories won’t just survive – they’ll thrive.
By Ashish Verma, Global Head of Creative and Bloomberg Media Studios
ROSHN Group’s Ghada AlRumayan shares how sports have become a language for building brands in Saudi Arabia.
Sports have long been an integral part of Saudi Arabia’s social and cultural fabric. From neighbourhood streets and schoolyards, where informal matches once fostered a spirit of camaraderie, the country’s sporting landscape has evolved into a dynamic, structured ecosystem.
Fuelled by widespread public enthusiasm and a clear national vision for talent and infrastructure development, sports today are no longer a recreational afterthought – they are a central pillar of Vision 2030, uniting communities, shaping identity and signaling a confident path to the future.
In daily life across the Kingdom, sports pulse with meaning. They bring people together, energise public spaces and transform ordinary moments into celebrations of pride. From football and basketball to equestrian sports
and racing, athletic experiences spark emotional connections that linger well beyond the final whistle.
Whether through casual neighbourhood games or international tournaments, the rhythm of sports has become deeply embedded in the nation’s collective heartbeat.
Naturally, this rise in prominence has transformed the role of sports in marketing. No longer limited to logos and banners, sports have become a cultural catalyst – redefining how people relate to brands, how they express belonging and how lasting impressions are formed.
This shift demands a purposeful approach, one that emphasises authenticity, cultural relevance and sustained engagement as cornerstones of meaningful brand impact.
“For brands, sports offer a dynamic arena to earn trust, express relevance and leave a legacy.”
ROSHN Group recognised early on that sports could serve as a powerful bridge between our brand and the communities we serve. This conviction led us to invest not only in events, but in experiences that leave a mark.
From becoming the title partner of the ROSHN Saudi League – the Kingdom’s premier football competition – to aligning with milestone moments such as Formula One in Jeddah, LIV Golf tournaments in KAEC and Riyadh, the Riyadh Marathon, coastal rowing events in Jeddah and inclusive sports initiatives supporting athletes with disabilities, our presence has been intentional.
We chose to be visible and engaged in places where passion lives – often before the global spotlight arrived – because we believed in their potential from the start. Today, that belief continues to reward us with long-term relevance and a brand identity rooted in the nation’s energy.
Globally, sports have proven to be one of the most powerful platforms for audience engagement. Across markets, brands are turning to sports not just to amplify their visibility, but to shape public perception and inspire emotional loyalty.
In Saudi Arabia, the momentum around sports marketing is accelerating, with organisations increasingly recognising the scale, emotion and cultural significance sports can mobilise.
As spending on sports activations reaches new highs, marketers must approach the space with clarity and conviction. Visibility alone is no longer enough – what matters is how purposefully a brand aligns with audience values, how intuitively it understands the tempo of the sport and how effectively it delivers substance over spectacle.
Entering the sports space without a clear strategy is a fast track to irrelevance. One-off appearances fade quickly in an arena built on consistency, trust and
emotional resonance. Every partnership must begin with a forward-looking plan rooted in a deep understanding of the sport, its culture and its audience.
This philosophy is evident in our ongoing partnership with the Saudi League, where our involvement extends far beyond matchdays. Throughout the season, we create tailored experiences designed to strengthen brand affinity, elevate community interaction and contribute to quality of life.
In Saudi Arabia, brand recognition is not taken for granted – it is earned.
Audiences look beyond the surface and expect brands to deliver genuine value and purpose. It’s no longer about placing a logo at a venue; it’s about demonstrating why your presence matters.
During our partnership with LIV Golf, we curated a family-centred experience where children engaged with a custom putting course while parents explored our developments through immersive digital features.
It was the right time to translate brand identity into shared experience. Without meaningful interaction, even the strongest brand can fade into the background.
While global tournaments and star athletes dominate the headlines, long-term impact begins at the grass roots. Brands looking to contribute meaningfully must support the spaces where ambition takes root and talent is nurtured.
ROSHN Group focuses on everyday moments that shape tomorrow. We organise football and volleyball tournaments within our SEDRA community in Riyadh – not for the cameras, but for the people. These events may not make international headlines, but for the youth who participate, they offer recognition, encouragement and a sense of belonging.
As part of this community-driven approach, we also formed internal sports teams representing our major development projects.
These teams, made up of employees from across the company, began their journey on the very fields we’ve developed in SEDRA.
It’s a simple yet powerful expression of how we live our values – from the inside out. This initiative fosters a culture of wellness, teamwork and authentic engagement, creating stronger connections between our people and the communities we serve.
Loyalty is built through presence, not promotion. And in Saudi Arabia’s landscape today, sports are no longer moments – they are movements. For brands, sports offers a dynamic arena to earn trust, express relevance and leave a legacy.
ROSHN made the deliberate decision to engage with purpose and consistency. What emerged is a brand shaped not by advertising – but by experience.
By Ghada Alrumayan, Group Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, ROSHN Group
Declared by the Ministry of Media as the Year of Media Transformation, 2024 marked a pivotal moment in Saudi Arabia’s ambitious push to modernise its media sector, with targets set to grow the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) contribution to SAR 16bn and create more than 11,000 new media jobs by year-end. Going forward, one can expect continued investment in this space.
The marketing landscape in Saudi Arabia is undergoing rapid transformation. With the rise of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven strategies and women as significant economic contributors, the industry must navigate an evolving ecosystem demanding authenticity, innovation, and cultural relevance.
But brands must ask: are they truly addressing today’s consumer needs, or simply pouring resources into external agencies and strategies while neglecting foundational issues such as product quality, logistics, packaging, export and import operations, and the right in-house talent?
AI and digital content
Artificial intelligence is no longer a buzzword; it’s a fundamental tool reshaping how brands engage with consumers. In Saudi Arabia, where digital transformation is at the forefront of Vision 2030, marketers must integrate AI to create personalised experiences, data-driven strategies, and seamless customer journeys.
But here’s the catch. AI is only as effective as the strategy behind it. You can’t expect an elderly person to enjoy a virtual reality (VR) journey when you’re selling off-plan properties to them. It’s essential to understand the demographic shifts in the market and tailor AI efforts to meaningfully engage them.
The new force in the Saudi market
Women in Saudi Arabia are no longer just passive buyers. They are powerful decisionmakers, trendsetters, and influencers. With the Saudi female labour force participation rate at 36.2 per cent, there’s a clear increase in their buying power. Behind every great man is a woman making that purchase order.
According to recent data, Saudi women now control more than half of the country’s household spending. This shift demands that brands acknowledge this power and connect authentically. Many continue to operate under outdated assumptions about female
consumers, failing to adapt messaging and strategies – causing missed opportunities. Brands must develop more meaningful, inclusive marketing approaches that reflect the diverse, empowered role of women today. Let a woman market to a woman.
Are you selling what you think you are?
This is the painful bit. The ultimate question for many brands today is whether their product is truly ready for market, or if they’re pushing it out simply because they were told to.
It’s easy to be seduced by international agencies promising groundbreaking campaigns. But the core of any successful brand lies in the authenticity and quality of the product itself.
If your research and development (R&D) phase didn’t lead to a compelling, highquality product, no amount of marketing will save it. Re-read that phrase – it’s really a break-it or save-it situation.
Many brands invest significant resources into selling a product that isn’t wellresearched, doesn’t solve a real consumer need, or simply isn’t up to par.
Without a solid foundation, your brand could find itself on the wrong side of market dynamics, no matter how sophisticated your strategy may be.
You don’t want to spend millions on a branded drink that looks great but tastes … you know what I mean.
Are you hiring the right people?
There is an emerging gap in the integration between global strategy and local relevance.
“If your R &D phase didn’t lead to a compelling, highquality product, no amount of marketing will save it.”
Are international marketing teams equipped to truly understand Saudi consumer behaviour, preferences and culture?
Too often, local talent is sidelined in favour of global agencies that might not grasp the nuances of the market. Brands must ensure teams are equipped with the right tools and possess local knowledge.
Trust your local hire to give you advice instead of the person who looks like a million bucks, flown in this morning from somewhere that’s not Saudi. This means investing in the right talent for the right roles to create impactful, culturally relevant campaigns.
Saudi Arabia is filled with unwavering talent. The creativity here is among the best in the region. Give these creatives the right tools and KPIs, and see them fly.
Marketing’s moment of truth
2024 was a landmark year for governmentled initiatives in Saudi Arabia’s marketing, media and creative sectors. From hard infrastructure such as financing funds, academies and regulatory frameworks to soft support such as events, campaigns and recognition, the state has taken a multipronged approach to develop this segment of the economy. As Saudi Arabia continues its drive towards modernisation, marketing’s role has never been more critical. The interplay of AI, digital content, and women’s economic influence presents a unique opportunity for brands to rethink their approach.
However, true success comes from product authenticity, having the right talent, and marketing strategies that speak to today’s empowered Saudi consumer. Reputation is at the heart of any brand’s success in this market.
By Jana Bader, Managing Director, Supreme Hospitality KSA
Supreme Hospitality KSA’s Jana Bader talks about the intersection of AI, women’s buying power and authenticity in marketing.
In an era of rapid technological advancements and evolving patient expectations, marketing and branding have become essential tools for building trust in healthcare institutions.
The global healthcare sector is facing unprecedented challenges, including equitable access to care, workforce shortages and the burden of chronic diseases. At the same time, technology has enabled significant improvements and breakthroughs in healthcare delivery, and it continues to evolve rapidly.
In this dynamic landscape, healthcare providers and institutions must effectively communicate their value, build patient trust and enhance engagement, all while consistently delivering quality patient care. Successfully doing so is critical not just to building strong brands, but also to building sustainable health ecosystems for the future.
“Strategic marketing and branding can help bridge the gap between technological advances and patient care.”
Like many countries around the world, Saudi Arabia faces a range of healthcare challenges, some of which are specific to its local context. The population has grown to more than 33 million, with expatriates accounting for approximately 40 per cent, which adds complexity to healthcare planning and delivery.
Non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular conditions account for 73 per cent of all premature deaths, underscoring the need for preventive care initiatives. To meet the nation’s growing healthcare needs, the Kingdom will require an additional 175,000 healthcare workers, including doctors, nurses and other professionals.
Recognising these challenges, Saudi Vision 2030 aims to drive a comprehensive transformation of the Kingdom’s healthcare sector, improving quality, accessibility and sustainability. Key initiatives include accelerating digital health adoption, expanding and upskilling the healthcare workforce, and fostering public-private partnerships to
enhance service delivery diversity. These investments are essential, but their success will also depend on patient awareness and trust – a critical, yet often overlooked, component of healthcare transformation.
Strategic marketing and branding can help bridge the gap between technological advances and patient care. As healthcare systems introduce telemedicine, AI-driven diagnostics and digital health platforms, patients need reassurance that these innovations improve – not compromise – their care.
For instance, patient confidence in the quality and security of virtual care is essential for the adoption of telemedicine. Similarly, AI-powered diagnostics and robotic surgeries require clear communication about their safety, accuracy and patient benefits to demystify new technologies and build trust. This process must begin long before a patient enters the operating room.
Patients want to understand, trust and actively engage with the care available to them. Studies have shown that educating patients about their conditions and treatment options increases their likelihood of adhering to treatment plans, leading to reduced hospitalisations and improved health outcomes.
Empowerment also increases patient satisfaction. Without authentic, patientcentric storytelling and consistent messaging around standards, the most advanced health technologies may struggle to gain acceptance, challenging efforts to expand and improve access and ultimately transform health systems.
Yet, funding for healthcare communication lags behind other areas of the industry. In 2024, the global healthcare advertising market was valued at $42.28bn and is projected to reach $44.56bn by 2025 – a fraction of the worldwide healthcare services market, which reached $10.3 trillion in 2021 and is growing at a rate of almost 10 per cent annually.
Meanwhile, the healthcare IT market was valued at $663bn in 2023, growing at an annual rate of nearly 16 per cent. The medical technologies market is expected to reach $886bn by 2032. These figures highlight a disconnect. Investments in health technology and digital infrastructure should go hand in hand with health communications.
Patient care is always the top priority, alongside research and innovation; however, only with a commensurate focus on communication can we realise the actual benefits of technological advancements.
As healthcare undergoes rapid transformation globally, branding and marketing are no longer optional – they are strategic imperatives to building a more resilient and accessible global healthcare system.
King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre’s Muhannad A. Kadi shares the need to build trust in a
high-tech, digital world.
By Muhannad A. Kadi, Chief Corporate Communications and Marketing Officer, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre (KFSHRC)
Since 2018, Saudi Arabia has been engaged in a profound and wide-ranging conversation with itself about its identity and place in the world. Culture has been and continues to be at the forefront of that conversation.
Across art, music, sports, gaming, literature, heritage, crafts, museums and media there is a visceral energy. Having spent eight years in Saudi Arabia as Head of Events for Ithra, Aramco’s Centre for World Culture in Dhahran, I got to witness firsthand the beginnings of the country’s remarkable cultural resurgence.
In common with many countries in the Gulf, the cultural landscape is defined by a top-down approach with significant subsidy and direction from the government about cultural and creative entities and cultural manifestations – including live events.
Where Saudi perhaps differs is that with a large and young population that is majority Saudi there is also plenty of grass roots activity; indeed, there always has been, albeit not so obvious as it is now.
Jack Morton UAE and KSA’s Stephen Powell explains the move from events to experiences that shape a nation.
“Saudi Arabia is informing the global cultural ecosystem from its unique perspective.”
Saudi nationals are not just importing ready-made culture but are taking cultural forms from elsewhere and adapting them to the specific Saudi context.
Saudi manga is a prime example. It is visual art, music and film – historically, the most important forms in terms of reference material for marketers and advertisers – where Saudi is carving out its own identity and getting noticed across the world.
Vision 2030 has enabled huge investment in cultural forms and intellectual property (IP) and it is paying off. Perceptions of the country are changing, driven in part by a culturally charged series of campaigns by Visit Saudi and promotion of major events such as Noor Riyadh, Al Ula Arts Festival and MDL Beast that have all grown to be internationally recognised and globally influential. Riyadh Expo 2030 and the FIFA World Cup in 2034 will only serve to stimulate further interest and engagement with a burgeoning cultural and creative sector.
The Islamic Biennale in Jeddah is a prime example of how Saudi is informing the global cultural ecosystem from its unique perspective. The intersection of fine art and faith is as compelling and moving as any exhibition I have seen in recent years – not least because the work from an extraordinary range of global artists is imbued with meaning that transcends aesthetics or form. It is further evidence of a true cultural Renaissance.
This renaissance – in the sense of a re-engagement and realignment of cultural values and forms combined with an extraordinary affinity with digital technology and a voracious appetite for content – has created a rich environment for those of us who work in the creative, cultural and communication sectors. It would be wrong to characterise the sense of new beginnings in Saudi Arabia as signifying a lack of cultural maturity or to see the Saudi market as simply some gold rush boom town.
Filmmakers, for example, have been around for a very long time there and have honed their craft in sometimes difficult circumstances. Saudis are great communicators and very good storytellers with a nice line in ironic humour – take a look at the work of Telfaz 11 on Netflix. There is even a specific initiative QSAS, dedicated to immersive storytelling. As a result, Saudi nationals respond to good storytelling, especially work that has the ring of authenticity, and an attention to detail and sophistication; international agencies take note, coffee pots and camels will not win you work.
Heritage plays its part, but it is a heritage that is complex and multifaceted
with very distinctive regional differences – and like the Arabic language difficult and time consuming to fully comprehend and highly nuanced. Saudis are not only building a distinctive contemporary Saudi cultural identity but also taking time to communicate that to themselves and the wider world.
The proliferation of conferences, summits and symposia on cultural subjects ranging from youth empowerment to digital wellness has been a new and developing capability for us at Jack Morton and has given us access to the cross currents of culture. In our other work – brand activations, launches and live events – there has not been one project, be it the inauguration of a new Saudi airline, the FIFA World Cup Host Nation announcement or adidas’ retail activation in a major gaming tournament, that has not had a clear and specific cultural brief from the client.
One cultural and societal shift has been the increasing role of women in the wider workforce and especially in the cultural and communication sectors across government entities and commercial operations. Bright, well educated, multilingual and culturally savvy women are running companies, museums, galleries, cultural initiatives marketing departments, festival and event teams and controlling significant spend across all aspects of experiential. They are expecting you to turn up with your A-game and an informed point of view, and expect to see Saudis and other women in key positions on the other side of the table.
A recent PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) article aligning cultural heritage with business growth highlighted the enormous economic benefits that come from investment and promotion of culture and cited Morocco and Japan as countries that have followed similar strategies to Saudi Arabia with great effect. Saudi Arabia has 150 cultural facilities in the pipeline, representing $80bn by 2030, all focused on its objective to be a cultural hub, to diversify its economy and provide meaningful employment for its young, energetic workforce.
For us, in the business of creating culturally relevant experiences, this is great news both as opportunity for growth but also for creative inspiration and some of the most interesting work you can find in the communications sector today. My own professional ‘rebrand’ from Executive Creative Director (ECD) to Executive Culture and Programming Director shows how seriously we at Jack Morton are taking this.
By Stephen Powell, Executive Culture and Programming Director, Jack Morton UAE and KSA
SSUP World’s Najib Sabbagh discusses why the strategic advantage remains with humans owning insights.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is accelerating, but so must human creativity. In the rapidly evolving marketing landscape of the GCC, and Saudi Arabia specifically, AI is no longer experimental. It is now part of our day-to-day workflows, whether it is utilised for image generation and automated copywriting or consumer behaviour prediction and campaign performance analysis.
OpenAI’s Sora now can deliver cinematic content from a single line of text, while production pipelines are being simplified by Adobe Firefly, and platforms such as Midjourney and Runway help teams creatively visualise and edit video in minutes. Not only is speed and volume changing agencies and internal teams, so is accessibility.
AI is already delivering real business value through efficiency, scale and cost optimisation, which leads marketers to one critical question: where does human creativity stand in all the AI advancements, and where does it retain its competitive advantage?
You can’t automate insight
While AI delivers executional efficiency, it still lacks lived experiences. It can simulate behaviour and tone, but it cannot interact with consumers or products in real environments.
This matters because the most relevant marketing strategies in our region are fundamentally built on contextual understanding, cultural relevance and consumer observations. These come from teams who have interacted with
consumers, experienced the products and interpreted local nuances. Human ideation remains essential because the most impactful ideas still emerge from the ground up and are shaped by real-world observations.
AI should be a creative partner, not a replacement In practice, I believe AI should be used to support ideation, not substitute it. According to the 2024 AI Marketing Report survey, 70.6 per cent of the 1,290 marketers polled believe AI can outperform humans in key marketing tasks. However, only 34.1 per cent of marketers report significant improvements in their outcomes from AI.
“Creativity grounded in local culture and audience insight will always feel more authentic and credible than AI-generated content.”
This demonstrates that while AI can drive operational efficiency, human creativity still plays an essential role in delivering impactful results.
We’ve seen brands such as Coca-Cola embrace AI to enhance creative campaigns without letting it replace the human element. Coca-Cola utilised AI-enabled tools to personalise advertisements in real time based on consumer behaviour to create relevant content without sacrificing the company’s brand values. This is a positive example of using AI as a tool to
amplify creativity, not as a substitute for the insights that come from realworld experience.
Clear boundaries are now a strategic best practice
With generative content comes new risks. Deepfakes, algorithmic bias and content duplication are no longer theoretical; they are relevant concerns that affect brand trust and market credibility. I believe it is critical for organisations to define the boundaries of AI’s role early and clearly. This includes determining where automation is needed, and where human validation is mandatory. These decisions need to be built into creative operations, not handled retroactively.
In markets such as Saudi Arabia and the wider GCC, authenticity isn’t just a creative choice, it’s a core requirement. Audiences expect brands to be genuine and aligned with their values, making it essential to build trust through every interaction.
Across the region, governments are actively shaping the digital economy with forward-looking strategies. Initiatives such as Saudi Vision 2030 and the UAE’s Digital Economy Strategy show us that innovation must have a context: our cultural identities and national goals of development must coexist within the modern digital era.
The marketing and advertising industry will need to evolve alongside this shift. It’s important that tech adoption doesn’t move faster than cultural relevance or brand integrity. At the end of the day, creativity grounded in local culture and audience insight will always feel more authentic and credible than AI-generated content with no real connection to either.
Looking ahead: The strategic role of AI in a human-centred future AI will continue to evolve, and it is not unreasonable to assume the future of AI may involve systems getting closer to a human experience in the application of AI, the technology itself and robots with human capabilities.
The technology may eventually facilitate human-like experiences in an array of environments that we have not yet seen in real-world experiences.
Until we reach the point where AI or humanoids can physically interact with products or environments like we do, the strategic advantage is going to remain with humans owning insights.
In this next phase of marketing, AI’s role will continue to complement human ideation. Our ability to truly understand culture, behaviour and context cannot be replicated by AI, regardless of how advanced it is getting. AI can assist, but it cannot replace the lived experience of creatives, who engage with the world firsthand.
By Najib Sabbagh, Founder and CEO, SSUP World
Digital marketing in Saudi Arabia – a country defined by hyper-connectivity, high mobile penetration, rapidly evolving ICT infrastructure and a youthful population with strong purchasing power – was always destined to thrive.
As Vision 2030 gains momentum, the Kingdom is transforming into a dynamic global player, even amid global economic uncertainty.
Confidence in the Kingdom is surging, and at the core of this optimism is Saudi Arabia’s largest demographic: Gen Z.
Accounting for nearly 40 per cent of the population, Saudi Gen Z is the Kingdom’s most diverse, educated and digitally fluent generation. They are highly aspirational, socially aware and deeply connected to the nation’s transformation.
What sets them apart is not just their digital fluency or global mindset, but their unshakeable belief in their role within Vision 2030. They don’t just observe change; they’re actively shaping it.
This belief system forms the lens through which they interpret the world
“Focus on fewer causes or moments, but invest in them deeply and consistently.”
and, consequently, how they interact with brands. For any brand hoping to win in Saudi, especially with Gen Z, old marketing playbooks must be discarded.
Familiar strategies won’t work on this generation, which – while sharing traits with global Gen Z – also carries unique cultural and national expectations.
One of the biggest shifts brands must understand is that traditional localisation no longer works. Saudi Gen Z is highly sceptical of advertising, yet extremely proud of their national identity. Content that looks like it was adapted from elsewhere simply won’t resonate.
Today, global and regional brands must create content that feels made for Saudi, ideally made in Saudi and, even better, made by Saudis.
This local-first, culturally rooted approach is the only way to gain authenticity and relevance. Anything less feels disingenuous to an audience that values realness above all.
Saudi Arabia is evolving at breakneck speed. The cultural landscape is shifting, traditions are being reinterpreted and new norms are being written in real time.
For brands, this means that yesterday’s insight might be irrelevant today.
A trend embraced today could be a cliché by tomorrow.
Annual trend reports are no longer enough. Brands need to stay plugged into real-time cultural conversations, monitor national initiatives and remain agile. The Kingdom is in a state of flux, and success belongs to brands that are not only aware of this but excited by it.
Connect with personal values, but don’t ignore the national vision
Saudi Gen Z, like their peers around the world, are drawn to brands that reflect their personal values: individuality, authenticity, innovation and inclusivity.
They want to feel seen and heard. But what makes this generation in Saudi unique is their deep alignment with national values and a shared vision for the future.
For brands, aligning with this national sentiment can build a powerful, emotional connection. Whether it’s supporting women’s empowerment, celebrating local arts and culture, backing entrepreneurship or championing sustainability – tapping into the national narrative creates longerlasting impact.
Even seasonal activations around Ramadan, Eid or Saudi National Day – when done meaningfully – can reinforce community, tradition and social connection.
But there’s a caveat: Gen Z can detect inauthenticity instantly. Overpromising or opportunistic brand behaviour won’t go unnoticed – and won’t be forgiven.
The key is to commit to less, but commit wholeheartedly. Focus on fewer causes or moments, but invest in them deeply and consistently.
In short, the brands that thrive will be those that co-create Saudi Arabia’s future with its Gen Z youth – speaking their language, sharing their ambitions and moving at their pace – because the Kingdom isn’t just a growth market; it’s marketing’s next frontier.
By Rawad El Dahouk, Head of Strategy, TBWA\RAAD Saudi Arabia
TBWA\RAAD Saudi Arabia’s Rawad El Dahouk explains why brands that thrive in the future will be those that co-create Saudi Arabia’s Gen Z youth.
Mediaplus Middle East’s Hatem Fakih shares the need to go beyond translating content to truly understand what makes audiences engage and become brand advocates.
Saudi Arabia’s digital scene is evolving fast, and so are consumer and audience expectations. With 99 per cent internet penetration and a population that is increasingly on their mobiles, brands have adapted to the new way of connecting with them.
More than 70 per cent of Saudi nationals prefer Arabic content, yet Arabic makes up only 1 per cent of the total content that they access on the internet. That’s the main gap that brands can’t afford to ignore. Content localisation isn’t just about translating content into Arabic. It’s about understanding cultural nuances, audience behaviours and media consumption. It also requires marketers to truly understand how Saudis engage and upload content on various platforms. Artificial intelligence (AI) is playing a big role in bridging this gap, but human creativity is what keeps the messaging authentic.
Local content is not a nice to have; it’s a must have Saudi consumers expect cultural authenticity from the brands they prefer. A brand that just copies global best practices cannot cut through the noise.
McDonald’s Saudi Arabia has mastered this. Instead of reiterating the generic global communications for their products, it regularly localises messaging, offers and product names. The launch of the Shawarma Mac was a direct shout out to the Saudi food culture, and it immediately clicked with audiences.
Another case in point: Abdul Latif Jameel (ALJ) Motors – Toyota’s Ramadan campaign was not typical seasonal marketing. The brand leaned into cultural insights, storytelling and nostalgia, making it emotionally relevant.
Brands must understand customer behaviour –what makes Saudi consumers share, engage and talk – and communicate in Arabic to have an edge.
Arabic content and AI
AI is changing how Arabic content is created, but it’s still far from perfect. The prevalence of a variety of local dialects means that traditional Arabic should not be a one-size-fits-all across all communications and content. Also, AI often fails to understand cultural context, so what resonates with a Saudi audience might not work in the UAE or Kuwait.
As a result, brands are combining AI-powered tools with human oversight. Some key trends shaping AI in Arabic content include: AI-powered Arabic copywriting tools: Platforms such ChatGPT and Google’s Bard are being used to
“Brands must invest in localised Arabic content and local talent, smart AI strategies, and culturally relevant messaging.”
generate Arabic content, but local adaptations and context proofing are still essential.
Voice search optimisation: This area is still low performing in the Saudi market. However, with the emergence of smart assistants, brands that tailor content for spoken Arabic searches on devices such as Yango’s Yasmina will have a big advantage. AI-based e-commerce and enhanced personalisation: Platforms such as Amazon, Jahez and Nana use AI to offer more localised recommendations, ensuring that Saudi consumers see products and offers that are relevant to their preferences and geography.
Saudi-specific SEO and social media
In terms of Arabic search engine and optimisation (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM), audiences search differently in Saudi Arabia. Most agencies still focus too much on English-based SEO strategies or create a strategy based on an Englishfirst approach and then ‘Arabise’ it.
However, Google searches in Saudi Arabia are largely in Arabic. The way people phrase searches also differs regionally. While someone looking for a family car in English might type “best family car in
2025,” a Saudi user is more likely to search “أفضل
2025”.
Arabic optimisation, long-tail keywords and colloquial slang tend to rank higher and attract the right audience. The challenge is to find the right local talent who can adhere to such requirements.
Saudi Arabia is one of the world’s top global markets for social media usage, and each platform plays a different role:
TikTok and Instagram Reels target younger audiences. Short, localised Arabic videos go viral fast. Brands such as Almarai and Mobily are using this format more frequently for better engagements. X (Twitter): Saudi brands such as Toyota KSA actively engage with consumers through trending topics on X. The ALJ Motors – Toyota’s Corolla Cross campaign used X live event tools, teaser videos and live streams to drive engagement.
Snapchat: Localised augmented reality (AR) filters and storytelling drive deep engagement for brands that are active on this platform.
LinkedIn is a rising platform for Arabic B2B content. This platform is being extensively used to showcase government and corporate development.
AI is the new kid everyone is raising for efficiency, but it can’t replace emotional and cultural relevance, especially in a socially developed market such as Saudi Arabia.
AI surpasses human capabilities in terms of data-driven personalisation, speeding up copywriting and offering predictive insights based on analysed trends. However, human creativity wins in terms of building an emotional and cultural connection with Saudi Arabia’s communities, where humour and nostalgia are important. Culturally embedded campaigns that require authenticity, empathy and a deep understanding of cultural sensitivities also given human creativity an edge over AI.
As a result, Saudi brands need to find the right balance between depending on AI and depending on local talent.
That said, the future of Arabic content in Saudi Arabia will largely be driven by more AI-powered Arabic chatbots, localised virtual and augmented experiences, hyper-personalised content and advancements in Arabic natural language processing (NLP).
By Hatem Fakih, General Manager – Saudi Arabia, Mediaplus Middle East
A deep dive into how Create., a leading regional agency, used AI to resurrect 600 years of Saudi history – and went far beyond campaign objectives to claim several awards.
As AI tools were still finding their place in the creative world, Create., a regional agency known for pushing boundaries, was already making history.
The brief? Bring to life the 600-year-old story of Diriyah’s role in the Hajj pilgrimage – without any archival imagery, relying solely on oral records. What Diriyah had was a vision.
For centuries, Diriyah served as a vital stop for pilgrims journeying to Makkah. But its story –and that of the Imams who safeguarded these routes – had faded from public memory.
With a bold challenge from the passionate team at Diriyah Gate Development Authority (DGDA), Create. partnered with Manga Productions to build what history never documented: two fully visualised films capturing the legacy of these spiritual guardians and the city that protected them.
Commenting on how this campaign was brought to life, Dana Al-Azem, Business Director, Create., said, “AI was the tool, but culture was the canvas. Our goal wasn’t just awareness—it was connection.”
Using AI tools such as Midjourney and detailed research, the team recreated historically accurate visuals – down to clothing, portraits and environments – based on sketches from Manga Productions and approved by the Saudi Royal Court.
These weren’t merely imaginative illustrations, but deeply researched visual narratives rooted in oral history and brought into the digital age.
Tamara Qaisieh, Senior Account Director, Create., added, “Diriyah has countless stories to tell, and we used innovative tools like
31.7 million impressions
31.9 million video views
767,000 social engagements
10,000 new followers on Diriyah’s platforms
78 per cent increase in positive sentiment
Midjourney to bring this one to life – turning a lack of archival material into an opportunity for creative, youth-driven storytelling.”
The resulting campaign, Diriyah: The Road to Hajj, struck a powerful cultural chord –setting a new regional benchmark for AI-powered storytelling.
The campaign also won Gold at both the NYX and VEGA Awards in the Social Campaign category – cementing Create.’s position at the forefront of culturally driven innovation in the region.
This campaign – along with a series of other key initiatives such as the Diriyah Global Seminar, Saudi Founding Day and Eid celebrations at Diriyah, created in partnership with DGDA – helped reintroduce Diriyah’s rich heritage to the world.
Together, these projects supported Saudi Vision 2030’s goal of spotlighting the Kingdom’s past while embracing the future through innovation and digital storytelling.
Diriyah: The Road to Hajj was only the beginning.
Since the success of the Diriyah campaign, Create.’s presence in the Kingdom has grown significantly. Their expanding client roster includes Public Investment Fund, NEOM, The Royal Commission for AlUla, and Kimpton Hotels, and more.
Their ongoing partnership with Diriyah Gate Development Authority continues to thrive –with Create. most recently providing live, multi-location coverage of Founding Day celebrations, sparking national pride, unity, and cultural connection.
Driving this momentum is Mahmoud Shaban, newly appointed Business Lead for KSA, leading a team that fuses bold creativity with cultural authenticity – crafting stories that bridge past and future, and resonate from our region, to far beyond our borders.
“This is just the beginning of how we’ll use AI to preserve and elevate the region’s stories,” Shaban said.
Buidling on the success of the Diriyah campaign, Create. has gone on to pioneer other AI-powered experiences such as a groundbreaking course portal for Dubai Economy and Tourism.
Developed to support entrepreneurs across every stage of their journey, the platform features over 70 lessons across seven subjects, in both English and Arabic – delivering 140 video modules and integrated online tutoring.
Romain Colomer, Experience & Innovation Director, Create., concluded, “At Create, we are pioneering AI-powered education for the region – redefining how knowledge is created and delivered at scale. This is the future of learning: adaptive, scalable, and deeply impactful.”
A roundup of some ‘made-for-KSA, by-KSA’ campaigns
this year.
Client: Riyadh Season
Agency: BigTime Creative Shop
This cinematic film aims to capture the drama of the highly anticipated rematch between light-heavyweight boxers Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol. Set in a grand European opera house, The Last Crescendo tells the story of the two boxers through three dramatic acts. Directed by Alan Masferrer and shot over four days in Serbia, the film blends the art of opera with the raw drama of boxing. The soundtrack, composed by Philip Kay, was written specifically for the film, adding another layer of emotional depth.
Client: Rexona Arabia x Saudi Arabian Football Federation Agency: and us
To celebrate the unstoppable determination of the Saudi Arabia Women’s National Football Team, this campaign showcases the team’s grit, resilience and relentless pursuit of their goals as they continue to break boundaries and inspire a new generation of athletes in the Kingdom. Narrated through the voices of young girls who dream of a future in football along with the National Team themselves, the campaign underscores a collective vision: the Saudi Women’s National Team is not stopping until they achieve whatever they set out to achieve.
Client: HungerStation
Agency: VML Dubai
HungerStation introduced Social Feed – an AI-powered feature that allows users to turn any food post on social media into an orderable dish. The campaign taps into changing consumer behaviours, particularly the influence of social media on food choices. It also builds on HungerStation’s ongoing efforts to rethink how users engage with food delivery. By blending social media habits with ordering, HungerStation created a platform where food seen online is now part of its menu.
Client: Foodics Agency: Foodies Block
Client: Budget Saudi
Agency: FP7 McCann KSA
To redefine how people celebrate special moments, Budget Saudi launched a campaign to encourage Saudi audiences to take virtual expressions of celebration into reality. The campaign invited consumers to share details on special moments, whether a birthday, promotion or a personal achievement. Those who celebrated online were brought together by Budget for a real-world celebration supported by emoji-style hearts, claps and confetti. The car rental company also leveraged influencer Abdulaziz Bakr, someone who is typically only seen on a screen, to the activation in an effort to foster a deeper sense of community beyond the screen.
The cloud-based restaurant management tech and payments platform celebrated 10 years through this campaign by prompting audiences towards nostalgic moments with reflections on how restaurants operated 10 years ago. “Remember when paper was used to take orders?”; “remember waiting in long lines just to place an order?”; “remember paying in cash and struggling to find spare change?” With a teaser reel followed by a brand video and four short-form social media videos, which were amplified through Saudi influencers, Foodics organically gathered more than 3.2 million impressions within the first week of the campaign’s launch.
Client: Beyond ONE Group – Virgin Mobile KSA
Agency: Swing
This relatable integrated campaign promotes Virgin Mobile KSA’s Switch Postpaid Plan by drawing inspiration from the daily inefficiencies
Client: Disney+ MENA
Agency: Science & Sunshine
that have consumers overpaying for underused experiences. The brand took a comedic route to bring its brand values of heartfelt service, delightful surprise, smart disruption and insatiable curiosity to life. Three hero films served as the centrepiece for the campaign, accompanied by a media mix of social media, digital-out-ofhome, digital platforms and point-of-sale placements to ensure maximum visibility and impact.
To tie together Saudi storytelling with iconic entertainment options available on the streaming platform, Disney+ MENA released three short videos on its Disney+ Saudi Arabia Instagram account, inviting audiences to showcase how mainstream entertainment becomes a part of everyday Saudi households. Picking from six of its top performing content offerings, the campaign showcases fine-dining kabsa inspired by Disney’s Ratatouille and FX’s The Bear, Wolverine-inspired toothbrush claws, and a father singing beloved Disney tunes. From dallah coffee pitchers and folded ghutras by the door, every scene hints at how the streaming platform is immersed in Saudi culture and households.
Client: Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Toyota Agency: Serviceplan Experience
To address a digital challenge in Saudi Arabia, where local consumers commonly search for their vehicles using informal Arabic nicknames (terms the company’s official website couldn’t use), Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Toyota leveraged off-page SEO techniques to turn a technical obstacle into a creative breakthrough. Serviceplan Experience developed an off-page SEO strategy that placed the informal nicknames into backlinks and anchor tags. Collaborating with trusted publishers and bloggers, the team ensured these high-volume terms linked back to Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Toyota’s website.
Client: Golden Chicken
Agency: Tarek Nour Saudi Arabia
This campaign taps into the universal problem of deciding what’s for dinner, and the most common response to that question from friends, colleagues, and family: ‘Anything!’ While it might seem like a straightforward answer, the response frequently leads to a stressful and overwhelming decision-making process, especially for young mothers and busy individuals. To address this, Golden Chicken positions its products as a solution, simplifying the decision and providing the perfect meal solution.
YALLA, AROYA CRUISES
Client: AROYA Cruises
Agency: Social Clinic
Former Real Madrid football star Cristiano Ronaldo, who now plays for Saudi football club Al-Nassr FC, has been spotted in a new advertising campaign, alongside his partner Georgina Rodríguez, for AROYA Cruises, the cruise line owned by Cruise Saudi, a PIF-funded company. The campaign took a cinematic, playful approach – offering a glimpse into how Ronaldo and Rodríguez turn a regular day at home into a spark of cruise excitement.
MOHAMMED SEHLY Chief Executive Officer, BigTime Creative Shop
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE A MULTIPLE AWARD-WINNING AGENCY THAT ALSO HELPS CLIENTS MEET THEIR BRAND AND BUSINESS OBJECTIVES?
It started with building an exceptional team – talent from diverse creative disciplines and cultural backgrounds, all united by one mindset: How do we push boundaries and go bigger? Insight and research have been core to our process from the beginning, especially when speaking to global audiences. We focus on creating culturally resonant work –storytelling that fans instantly connect with, share, and remember.
But above all, it requires trust. We’re fortunate to work with clients who empower us to think boldly and execute without compromise. That trust has allowed us to explore a wide range of creative expressions – from turning a golf cart into a mobile DJ experience with LIV Golf to designing a bespoke luxury watch with Riyadh Season and Jacob & Co. which was auctioned at Sotheby’s for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
It’s also taken us from a psychological thriller boxing promo voiced by Kylie Minogue that got us our first Emmy nomination to an all-star production tennis film featuring six of the sport’s biggest names. Each project represents a different kind of creative risk – but all share the same DNA: bold ideas, cultural relevance and the trust to bring them to life globally.
These initiatives didn’t just win awards –they delivered impact. They broke out across social, earned global media coverage, and elevated brand visibility. More importantly, they positioned us as a creative force -attracting world-class directors who now seek to collaborate because they believe in the BigTime vision.
None of this would be possible without the belief and support of His Excellency Turki AlAlshikh, Chairman of the General Entertainment Authority and Riyadh Season – a driving force in enabling us to take Saudi creativity global. His support continues to inspire us as we build culturally relevant work that delivers results on local, regional, and global levels.
ARABIA RESHAPE THE WAY THE WORLD VIEWS THE KINGDOM IN LINE WITH VISION 2030?
Our work is shifting global perceptions of Saudi Arabia – not just as a market, but as a creative powerhouse. Through global sports and cinematic storytelling for Riyadh Season, the reaction has been overwhelmingly positive.
“When a message feels native, it sticks. Get it right, and it becomes part of the culture.”
Thanks to Riyadh Season, we’ve produced promos that set new standards – locally and globally. One tennis promo was described as ‘bigger than a Marvel movie’. This momentum earned BigTime a place among the Top 12 Independent Agencies globally – a first for Saudi – and the Independent Agency of the Year recognition at Dubai Lynx, Adfest and Cresta.
IT IS IMPORTANT NOT TO GROUP SAUDI ARABIA WITHIN “MIDDLE EAST MARKETING STRATEGIES”, BUT INSTEAD TO FOCUS ON MARKETING SPECIFICALLY FOR SAUDI ARABIA BECAUSE ...
Saudi Arabia is a distinct nation with five major regions, each with its own subcultures, dialects and humour. With 70 per cent of our population under 30, we’re young, hyper-connected, and culturally fluid.
Marketers must move beyond assumptions. They need to understand us with precision and nuance – like the TikTok algorithm does. Only then can brands truly speak our language.
BRANDS, MARKETERS AND AGENCY LEADERS IN SAUDI ARABIA MUST PRIORITISE ...
Pop culture. If a brand isn’t participating, it risks irrelevance. We don’t respond to hard-sell tactics or recycled real-time bidding (RTB). We want smart, emotional, and culturally in-tune storytelling. When a message feels native, it sticks. Get it right, and it becomes part of the culture.
THE BIGGEST MARKETING DISRUPTION IN SAUDI ARABIA IN THE NEXT TWO YEARS WILL BE ...
The intersection of high-quality content, technology, and gaming. Gen Z sees gaming creators as bigger than athletes. The real opportunity is building content with this audience – content that blends smart storytelling with the platforms and formats they care about.
THE BIGGEST PROPORTION OF MARKETING BUDGET ALLOCATION FOR BRANDS IN SAUDI ARABIA SHOULD BE TOWARDS ... Ideas that work. Not fixed deliverables. When briefs are outcome-driven, not media-led, bold and effective campaigns are born – the kind that truly moves the needle.
LOCAL SAUDI ARABIA ICONS, CELEBRITIES, INFLUENCERS, AND GAMERS WILL HAVE AN EFFECT ON SAUDI MARKETING BECAUSE ... We’re seeing Saudi creators gain real global appeal – from singers and artists to gaming icons. This gives brands a powerful opportunity to collaborate with talent that’s locally relevant and globally resonant.
THE MOST IMPORTANT CHALLENGE THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED WITHIN SAUDI ARABIA CREATIVE, MARKETING, AND ADVERTISING INDUSTRY IS ...
Consistency in creative standards. We’ve proven we can break through. Now, we need to sustain it – through investment in originality, nurturing talent, and committing to ideas that are media-neutral, insight-driven and globally competitive.
MY OPINION ON THE BRAND VERSUS PERFORMANCE DEBATE IS THAT ...
This debate is outdated. Today, the right creative can deliver both brand impact and performance in one shot. When work lands culturally, everything else follows.
Type of agency: Digital marketing
Founded: 2015 info@a2z.media
SERVICES: Fully integrated marketing strategising, paid media management, mobile app and website development, content marketing (social media and email marketing), branding
Type of agency: Marketing and advertising
Founded: 2011 ksa@acceleratemeonline.com
SERVICES: Social media strategy, social media accounts setup and management, content creation, copywriting, design, animation, community management, paid media, print design (flyers, billboards, brochures, menus), production (TVCs, hero videos) and photoshoots.
Type of agency: Creative
Founded: 2013
Head of company: Lulwa Alharbi, CEO/Partner info@acq-c.com
Where intuition meets intellect. A for Saudi by Saudi creative set up, known for its insight generation, in-house production abilities and endearing long client relationships.
SERVICES: Insight generation and planning, creative and conceptualisation, video animation and production, media and campaign planning, social media listening and reporting
CLIENTS: MOC-Jeddah AlBalad, Roshn, Riyadh Season, Riyadh Bank, Panda
Founded: 2019 hello@acquisit.io
Acquisit enables companies’ growth by designing and executing data-driven strategies. Our scope covers all levers of growth marketing from traffic generation to revenue optimisation.
SERVICES: Performance marketing, SEO, CRM, conversion rate optimisation, measurement, Amazon & marketplace management
Type of agency: Public Relations
Founded: 2023
Saudi office: Riyadh ksa@actionprgroup.com
SERVICES: Public relations and social media.
Saudi office: Riyadh Bassel.Sawy@akqa.com
SERVICES: Creative communication, data and media, experience design, technology solutions, content production, brand activation
Type of agency: Media
Founded: 2005
Head of company: Gaston Taratuta Press@alephholding.com
Aleph is a global network of digital experts and technology driven solutions that enables the growth of the digital ecosystem in more than 130 countries, connecting more than 26k advertisers with over three billion consumers.
SERVICES: Advertising solutions, technology solutions, payment solutions, education solutions
CLIENTS: We work with all the big six agencies as well as regional tier 1 and 2 agencies
Founded: 2018
Headquartered: UAE info@atccoms.com
A complete communications partner, delivering integrated solutions. With a scientific data-centric approach – we deliver strategy, media services, creative, digital, web application development and public relations and events
Type of agency: Digital info@brandwillagency.com
Founded in Paris in 1989, Auditoire is a global creative agency with offices in Paris, Shanghai, New York, Riyadh, Alula, Dubai, Doha, London, and Milan. With over 20 years in the Middle East, we excel at crafting impactful experiences that connect brands with their communities. We believe creativity is a responsibility to inspire and captivate. Commi ed to excellence, innovation, and authenticity, we ensure that every event we create not only tells a story but also makes history.
Founded: 1989 (France)
Type of agency: Creative and experiential events
Saudi offices: Riyadh and AlUla
Head of agency: Mehdi Belouahchia auditoire.com
+966 53 638 3068 mehdi.belouahchia@auditoire.com
SERVICES: Creativity and design, event management, guest management, experiential experiences, conferences and summits, shows and ceremonies
KEY CLIENTS: Diriyah Gate Development Authority, The Royal Comission of AlUla, Expo 2020, Cartier, International Olympic Commi ee
AWARDS WON: Campaign – Event Marketing Agency of the Year 2024 (Greater China); BEA World 2024 – GOLD – creative event (CER1); Global Sport Week 2024 –GOLD - sport event; Event Marketing Award 2024 – (GOLD – Best corporate event , GOLD - Best trade show/exhibition/conference)
Founded: 1997
Offices: Beirut, Dubai, Jeddah, Riyadh Chairman: Roger Sahyoun aga-adk.com info@aga-adk.com
Affiliated with ASATSU-DK (ADK), the 3rd largest advertising network in Japan, AGA-ADK is a full-fledged communications agency in the MENA region. Known for its blend of memorable and effective ad campaigns that aim to deliver results. Using data to drive creative solutions, and with a content-first approach, the team focuses on creating relevance in communication in a world where individualisation and hyper-personalisation in advertising is taking lead in building consumer relations.
SERVICES: Full marketing communication services, strategic planning, creative designs, consumer activation, production, branding and corporate identity, content planning and production
KEY CLIENTS: Cenomi, Baeshen, Langnese, Toshiba, Novartis, Mentos, Philips, Tabasco, P&G, Hasbro, Modon, Under Armor, Franklin Templeton
Founded: 1976
Type of agency: Fully integrated communication agency
Saudi offices: Riyadh and Jeddah Head of company: Tony G. Rouhana
Number of staff: 200+(In ME) Horizonfcb.com +966 12 650 3100; +966 50 565 6445 admin.jeddah@alafakmena.com
Horizon FCB (AlAfak) is a creative digital agency. We understand that activating business is critical and so is building brands for long term. We build brands that are both timely and timeless with creativity fueled by diversity, data and technology to drive big business success. We believe that creativity is truly an economic multiplier and that brands can unlock it across everything they do. Whether it’s digital advertising, content creation, branding/ design, performance or retention – we build a powerful advantage over our clients’ competitors.
SERVICES: Marcom and adtech, strategy, branding and identity, integrated communication, digital and social comms, content creation, gaming, online and on-ground activations, retail and shopper experiences, rapid pace production, and innovation and technology, media planning and buying
KEY CLIENTS: Aramco, Barn’s, Tatweer, Basamh, Kimberly-Klark, MBS College, Perfe o Pasta, Radwa Chicken, Sadafco, Majd Pay, PIF, SEDA, Saudi Made
Type of agency: Creative, Digital, Experience, Media
Founded: 2004
Head of company: Abdulrahman Saud
Bassmat is one of the Middle East’s leading marketing agencies designed to empower brands. We offer unique perspectives and strategies on cultural relevance and creativity with bold connections and influence within the metaverse. Bassmat stays at the forefront of the rapid transformation within the regional marketing industry, providing clients with confidence in their brand story. We drive insightful local and international knowledge to contribute to high impact and robust brand outcomes.
Strategies & brands experience (branding strategy, marketing & communications strategy, campaign strategy, developing brand experience).
Creative (brand identity, creative campaign, developing creative content).
Social media & digital PR (social media management, community management, digital PR, reputation management).
Media buying (media planning, media buying online/offline, influencer relations).
Digital content (content creation, creating and developing digital content, developing social initiatives, SEO).
Technology (creative technology, UX & UI solutions, mobile application development, digital transformation).
Experience (brand activation, events, live show).
Analytics and data (monitoring and listening, digital campaign analytics).
A MARKET LIKE NO OTHER Saudi Arabia represents a unique and powerful marketing landscape, driven by its rapidly changing social fabric and ambitious national vision. Unlike conventional regional marketing, Saudi Arabia demands strategies that authentically reflect its transformative narrative. This transformation is not just economic – it’s deeply cultural, reshaping consumer identities and expectations at an unprecedented pace. In this dynamic environment, brands must move beyond mere localisation and strive for deep cultural fluency. Authenticity here is not a buzzword; it’s the foundation of effective communication. Successful campaigns in Saudi Arabia are those rooted in genuine cultural insights and respect for local heritage,
amplifying brand relevance and forging lasting emotional connections with consumers.
The integration of technology –particularly artificial intelligence and immersive digital experiences – is no longer optional. It is the critical differentiator for brands aiming to lead in this market. Saudi Arabia’s youthful population, digitally savvy and innovation-driven, expects sophisticated, engaging, and personalised experiences. Investments in digital innovation, data analytics and cutting-edge content creation are therefore essential components for brand success. The future offers extraordinary opportunities for Saudi Arabia to assert its creative and innovative capacities globally, particularly through monumental events such as the Olympic Esports Games 2027, Expo 2030 and the FIFA World Cup 2035. These platforms provide unparalleled exposure for brands capable of
showcasing Saudi’s unique cultural narrative and digital prowess to a global audience.
Influencers, local celebrities, and gaming icons represent more than just brand ambassadors; they are powerful cultural catalysts who authentically resonate with Saudi youth. Collaborating strategically with these figures can amplify brand messages in culturally relevant ways, driving deeper consumer engagement. Equally important is the commitment to nurturing local talent. Developing a strong pipeline of Saudi creative and technical professionals is vital for long-term innovation and industry leadership. Investing in human capital ensures not only the growth of individual agencies but also the broader vitality of the Kingdom’s creative ecosystem. Last year, we witnessed the launch of the Saudi Media Academy (SMA), and more recently, the SPA Academy – of which Bassmat is a proud member.
Finally, the distinction between brand storytelling and performance marketing must fade. The most impactful campaigns seamlessly blend compelling narratives with measurable performance outcomes, leveraging storytelling not merely for emotional appeal but as a strategic tool for measurable growth and consumer action. At Bassmat, mastering this blend is our core strength and our commitment to excellence in Saudi Arabia’s distinctive market.
Founded: 2017
Head of studio: Ashish Verma, Global Head of Creative and Bloomberg Media Studios
Bloomberg Media Studios is the strategy, creative and content powerhouse within Bloomberg. We move the people that move the world through datadriven storytelling that fuels their curiosity, passion and ambition. Our creative expertise bridges regional and international perspectives with Studios in New York, London, Dubai and Singapore. Our full-service studio in Dubai caters to all key markets in the Middle East and beyond, delivering integrated campaigns across Bloomberg’s digital, OTT, social and events platforms for maximum impact.
Headquartered: New York, NY bloombergmedia.com/studio +971 52 955 2900 anayak18@bloomberg.net LEADERSHIP PANEL
Managing Director of Advertising, Middle East & Africa, Bloomberg Media
SERVICES: Brand positioning, strategy and insights, content development, campaign activation, video production and experiential design.
AWARDS WON: Tellys, Webbys, Cannes Corporate, Collision Awards, Signal Awards and more.
Global Head of Creative and Bloomberg Media Studios
Executive Editor, Bloomberg Media Studios
Saudi Arabia stands apart as a market that demands its own tailored marketing strategy, not one grouped under a generic ‘Middle East’ approach. The pace of transformation in the Kingdom is unprecedented, driven by technology, national ambition and a youthful population where 75 per cent are under the age of 35. This demographic is digitally native, highly connected and expects innovation, relevance and authenticity in every brand interaction.
Traditional marketing plans often fail to keep up with Saudi Arabia’s dynamic evolution, given its pace of change. To be effective, marketing strategies must be agile, data-driven and capable of responding in real time to trends and conversations. Social media plays a central role, enabling brands to engage directly with consumers, build relationships and shape narratives at the speed the country is moving.
Authentic storytelling is at the heart of successful marketing in Saudi. Campaigns should be compelling, culturally grounded and emotionally resonant, reflecting the rich heritage, diversity and aspirations of the Saudi people. Knowing your audience goes beyond demographics, it’s about understanding values,
behaviors and the platforms they frequent, then crafting experiences that align with those insights.
As the largest country in the region, comparable in size to a continent, Saudi Arabia offers vast opportunities in both business and tourism. Its emergence as a global destination is matched by the diversity of its people, cultures and landscapes. This means a one-size-fits-all regional strategy simply won’t work. Each campaign must be built with local nuances in mind.
Technology should be embraced not just as a tool, but as a way to connect and establish deeper engagement. Tech-savvy audiences respond to content that feels current, relevant and provides utility.
Ultimately, marketing in Saudi Arabia isn’t just about visibility, it’s about meaningfully connecting with an audience that is shaping the future. Success lies in being culturally aware, platform smart and innovation driven. In such a fast moving, opportunity rich market, the brands that win will be those that move at the country’s pace while staying grounded in authenticity and purpose.
Office: Riyadh business@brandloungeme.com
Brand Lounge is a strategy-led brand consultancy with a 20-year track record.
SERVICES: Brand strategy, brand design, brand culture, brand innovation, content
Type of agency: Digital Saudi Office: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia letstalk@chainreaction.com.sa
SERVICES: Digital marketing, data and analytics, social media management, video production, creative services.
Type of agency: Creative Founded: 2013 Head of company: Mojib Bin Saud Alajaleen Hello@creativeblend.com.sa
Creative Blend delivers high-quality creative and branding services that blend creativity with value. We aim to be a leading MENA agency, driven by passion, inspiration, diversity, and reliability. Our people are our greatest asset, and we foster a culture that a racts top talent and empowers growth.
SERVICES: Communication, content, design, production, events
Founded: 2011
Head of company: Shadi Abdulhadi Offices: Riyadh, Jeddah, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bengaluru, Jakarta, Shanghai, Singapore and Tirana.
Number of staff: 187 boopin.com +966 11 211 2243 info@boopin.com
Type of agency: Digital Saudi office: Riyadh Head of company: Tom O on talktous@creategroup.me
SERVICES: Digital, design, performance marketing, social media, video production
CLIENTS: Vision 2030, The Public Investment Fund, Royal Commission for AlUla, Diriyah Gate Devlopment Authority, NEOM
Type of agency: Creative Founded: 2013 Head of company: Sari Kazma talktous@dicema.com
SERVICES: Events, activations, social and digital, campaigns, photography and videography
CLIENTS: HPE, SAP, Marafiq, Hungerstation, Foodics
Type of agency: Creative Founded: 2019 Head of company: Yousef Sharbatly m.hubeshi@digitect.com
SERVICES: Strategy, creative, design, events and activations, media and PR
CLIENTS: RCRC, SMACO company
Hello there, we are Boopin!
Boopin is one of the fastest-growing independent agencies, led by a team of more than 180 passionate creators and marketers, each driven by a desire to tell memorable stories and create exceptional experiences for brands and consumers. Our dedicated channel experts work as a team, ensuring we take a tactical approach to each channel while delivering a comprehensive 360-degree response.
TECH PARTNERS: Google, Meta, Twi er, Tiktok, Snap, Oracle, and Amazon.
SERVICES: Performance marketing, media planning and buying, digital infrastructure, digital transformation and automation, customer data platform facilitation and strategy, social content management and production, pr and influencer marketing, dynamic creative, API integration, web/app design and development, SEO and data visualisation
KEY CLIENTS: Abu Dhabi Porta, Lucid Motors, Petromin Stellantis, ADNOC Group, Department of Culture & Tourism, Government Media Office, Baja Foods, GEMs Education, IG Group, Masdar, Informa, Deyaar, Shein, Xiaomi, EVIQ, Pure Health, and Coffee Address.
FOCUSED ON WHAT’S NEXT. ALIGNED WITH VISION 2030.
Type of agency: PR Saudi office: Riyadh ray.eglington@fourcommunications.com
SERVICES: Integrated campaigns; PR; digital marketing; social analytics and engagement; behaviour change
Type of agency: Creative Founded: 2013 Head of company: Ahmed Al-Abdullatif info@genebranding.com
Gene is an award-winning Saudi branding agency, rooted in local culture and driven by global best practices. For over a decade, our team has developed strategically driven brands for clients in Saudi Arabia and the region, finding nuanced ways to resonate with audiences and make a difference.
SERVICES: Brand strategy, brand architecture, brand naming, visual identity development, and brand experience
FP Social
Type of agency: Marketing info@fpsocial.com fpsocial.com
SERVICES: event management, social media, web development, direct marketing, design, public relations, content management, lighting.
Type of agency: Creative Saudi office: Riyadh nouf@hmzah.com
Founded: 2004
Regional offices: Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Jeddah, Kuwait, Beirut, and Casablanca.
Ownership: Horizon Holdings (51% IPG; 49% Rafic Saadeh) bpnmena.com +971 4 332 3304 info@bpnmena.com
CLIENTS: Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Sport, Aramco, The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts, Alrajhi
Type of agency: PR Founded: 2018
Heads of company: Adrianna Dafnis and Marco Binenti service@globalthinkgroup.com
Global Think Group is a strategy and communications consultancy, born in the Middle East, that helps organisations achieve recognition and influence in rapidly changing environments. We blend communications, policy, and research to produce strategies, advice, and campaigns that deliver on our clients’s objectives.
SERVICES: Strategy and advisory, communications and public relations, digital, content, creative
CLIENTS: Quality of Life Vision Realization Program, Global Cybersecurity Forum, Monsha’at, SNB Capital, INFRA, NUPCO
HORIZON HOLDINGS management: Rafic Saadeh, Executive Chairman; Mazen Jawad, CEO; Joe Jabbour, CFO.
BPN MENA management: Antonio Boulos, President; Carlos Yeghiazarian, General Manager; Bachir Zeidan, Head of Digital.
We are a Horizon Holdings and IPG media planning and buying company with a strong network across GCC, MENA and internationally.
Data informs everything we do. We use data to extract actionable insights and create more intelligent media solutions that can uncover value and unlock full market potential for our clients. Our agile business model seamlessly integrates content, context and targeting to plan and implement result-driven high-impact media campaigns.
SERVICES: Data management, customised consumer and category research, strategy and business planning, media planning and buying across all traditional and digital media channels, and ROAS measurement and a ribution modelling.
Founded: 2024 (with 150+ years of legacy from H&K and BCW)
Type of agency: Full-service communications agency Saudi office: Riyadh
Head of company: Sameh Hamtini, Managing Director – KSA Bursonglobal.com +966 011 244 0116 sameh.hamtini@bursonglobal.com; rijosh.joseph@bursonglobal. com
For more than three decades, Burson has led communications in Saudi Arabia. Our 80+ consultants partner with organisations driving Vision 2030, across sectors including sports, gaming, arts, culture, energy and mobility. We enable them to connect with audiences and showcase their role in shaping Saudi Arabia’s transformation. Our diverse team delivers impactful, culturally relevant campaigns that resonate with the Kingdom’s aspirations. Burson amplifies the voices shaping Saudi Arabia’s success, a trusted partner for brands navigating this dynamic market.
SERVICES: Brand strategy and experience, creative services, earned media strategy and media relations, influencer marketing and partnerships, product launches and campaigns
AWARDS WON: Over 30 awards from industry-leading events including MEPRA, Lynx, PRCA, SABRE and Cannes.
Founded: 1984
Type of Agency: Media Intelligence
Saudi office: Riyadh
Head of agency: Mazen Nahawi –Founder & Group CEO carma.com
+966 11 422 0204 CARMASaudiArabia@carma.com
Expertly helping PR and communications professionals demonstrate the value of their work, we collaborate with both global brands and local organisations across a diverse range of industries. We equip PR and communications professionals with the data, insights, and context needed to make be er-informed business decisions.
SERVICES: Media Monitoring and alerts (online media, social media, print media, broadcast media, newsle ers, and executive briefings); PR Measurement (media analysis reports, PR measurement dashboards, social media analytics); consultancy and market research; reputation measurement
KEY CLIENTS: Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Economy and Planning, Saudi Centre for International Strategic Partnership, The Saudi Pro League (SPL), Almarai Company
AWARDS WON: We had the distinct honour of winning 21 categories at the International Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communication (AMEC) Awards. Among these were prestigious titles such as Large Agency of the Year and Most Effective Planning, Research, and Evaluation in the Middle East & Africa.
Type of agency: Creative
Founded: 1979 (Riyadh office opened 2021) oliver.marrio @imagination.com
Imagination is an independent experience design company headquartered in London, with 14 offices worldwide.
SERVICES: Consulting, destinations, content and live experiences
Offices: Beirut & Riyadh Hello@iMetric.net
Incubeta
Saudi offices: Riyadh and Jeddah hello-mena@incubeta.com
SERVICES: Creative services, digital media performance marketing, social media management, SEO
Founded: 1969
Type of agency: AdTech, MarTech
Head of agency: Rajesh Verma –General Manager, Epsilon
No of staff: 9,320 worldwide epsilon.com/emea +971 4 818 9593 Rajesh.verma@epsilon.com
Type of agency: PR
Founded: 2013
Head of company: Samantha Bartel-Al Khalaf helloMENA@instinctif.com
Strategic reputation advisors, partnering with our clients to navigate change, mitigate risk, and build value through strategic communications.
SERVICES: Capital markets and investor relations, fincomms and IPO communications, corporate reporting, sustainability and esg strategy and reporting, reputation management and crisis communications
CLIENTS: Dr Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Services Group (HMG), Savola Group, Abdul Latif Jameel, Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Ma’aden), The National Shipping Company (Bahri)
Type of agency: PR
Founded: 2013
Head of company: Sultan A .Almuzaini info@istabraqlimited.com
Istabraq is a consulting firm headquartered in Riyadh, specialising in public relations, media and communications.
SERVICES: Strategic communications, crisis management, reputational management, digital strategy, media relations
CLIENTS: Aramco, Ithra, Jada fund of Funds, National Development Funds, Misk Foundation
Epsilon is a global advertising and marketing technology company positioned at the centre of Publicis Groupe. We connect advertisers with consumers to drive performance while respecting and protecting consumer privacy and client data. Epsilon accelerates clients’ ability to harness the power of their first-party data to enhance, activate and measure campaigns with confidence. We believe in an open, privacy-first advertising ecosystem.
SERVICES: Epsilon helps clients effectively identify and target new and existing consumers. Marketers activate outcome driven experiences on the CRM, Digital, loyalty and retail media platforms to drive personalisation at scale, all within the highest standards of privacy compliance. AI-driven customer journeys deliver relevance, while transparency in measurement and reporting helps businesses stay in control of their marketing efforts.
KEY CLIENTS: Currys, Deliveroo, Walmart, McDonald’s, Marrio , FedEx, Landmark Group, Entertainer, Alshaya Group, Careem
AWARDS WON: IDC MarketScape for Worldwide Data Clean Room Technology for Advertising and Marketing Use Cases; IDC MarketScape for Worldwide Demand Side Platforms; Forrester Wave™ Loyalty Technology Solutions
Dentsu is the network designed for what’s next, helping clients predict and plan for disruptive future opportunities in the sustainable economy. Taking a people-centered approach to business transformation, dentsu combines Japanese innovation with a diverse, global perspective to drive client growth and to shape society.
Network agencies: dentsu X, Carat, iProspect, Merkle, Dentsu Creative, Dentsu Sports International and Tag
Founded: 2007
Type of agency: Media
Saudi office: Riyadh and Jeddah
Head of agency: Ahmad Haider
No of staff: 200-500 dentsu.com
ahmad.haidar@dentsu.com
Faisal AlGain Head of Growth and Client Engagement, dentsu
Julie Larguier Business Director, Carat
AHMAD HAIDAR
Managing Director, dentsu KSA
IT IS IMPORTANT NOT TO GROUP SAUDI ARABIA WITHIN “MIDDLE EAST MARKETING STRATEGIES”, BUT INSTEAD TO FOCUS ON MARKETING SPECIFICALLY FOR SAUDI ARABIA BECAUSE OF ...
Saudi Arabia’s unique cultural, social, and economic landscape necessitates tailored marketing strategies. Unlike other Middle Eastern markets, Saudi consumers exhibit distinct preferences shaped by local traditions and values. Understanding these nuances allows brands to connect authentically, driving engagement and loyalty. At dentsu KSA, we
SERVICES: Consumer intelligence and data, media strategy, media planning, media buying and investment, performance marketing and commerce, marketing effectiveness, partnerships and innovation, content marketing, influencer marketing, social media, experience platforms, commerce, sports marketing
KEY CLIENTS: Hungerstation, Saudi Vision 2030, Bupa, Jarir Bookstore, Public Investment Fund, Ferrero, Kraft Heinz, Mastercard, General Motors, Riyadh Art, Badael
AWARDS WON: 2 Silvers - MMA Smarties 2024; Highly Commended Award - Athar Awards 2024; 1 Gold, 4 Bronze – MENA Effies 2024; Network of the Year MENA, 1 Grand Prix, 7 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze – MENA Digital Awards
Adib Associate Director, Carat
Stead Client Operations Director, dentsu Creative
INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT
specialise in delivering insights and strategies that resonate with the Saudi market.
BRAND, MARKETERS AND AGENCY LEADERS IN SAUDI ARABIA MUST PRIORITISE... consumer centricity above all. Brand leaders in Saudi Arabia must prioritise understanding their consumers deeply. This involves leveraging data-driven insights to create personalised and relevant experiences. As Saudi consumers become more selective, brands that align with their values – such as sustainability and innovation – will foster stronger connections. We help brands to navigate this landscape effectively, driving loyalty and growth.
THE BIGGEST MARKETING DISRUPTION IN SAUDI ARABIA IN THE NEXT TWO YEARS WILL BE ...
the integration of advanced digital technologies. As consumers increasingly embrace digital experiences, brands must adapt to this shift by utilising AI and data analytics for personalised marketing. This evolution will redefine engagement strategies, requiring creativity and agility to capture consumer attention effectively.
WE’RE EXCITED ABOUT SAUDI ARABIA’S OLYMPIC ESPORTS GAMES 2027, EXPO 2030, AND FIFA WORLD CUP 2035 BECAUSE ... they will showcase the Kingdom’s commitment to innovation and cultural exchange. They will also provide a platform to highlight the creativity and authenticity of Saudi art and culture. We are eager to utilise these events in our clients’ favours, we cannot stop thinking of the amazing campaigns our team can develop. I see that brands can leverage these moments to connect with diverse
audiences, telling compelling stories that resonate locally and globally.
THE BIGGEST PROPORTION OF MARKETING BUDGET ALLOCATION FOR BRANDS IN SAUDI ARABIA SHOULD BE TOWARDS ... digital transformation and content marketing. Personalised experiences for Saudi locals in digital marketing are essential. Investing in digital channels and high-quality content will drive brand visibility and foster deeper connections. This allocation will ensure brands remain relevant and competitive in a rapidly evolving market.
LOCAL SAUDI ARABIA ICONS, CELEBRITIES, INFLUENCERS, AND GAMERS WILL HAVE AN EFFECT ON SAUDI MARKETING BECAUSE... they resonate deeply with their massive number of followers especially Gen-Z who currently dominates the markets and has a very strong voice and purchasing power. Brands must be strategic in selecting representatives, prioritising those who genuinely resonate with their audience. Honest and authentic experiences will always prevail, as consumers are becoming increasingly discerning.
THE MOST IMPORTANT CHALLENGE THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED WITHIN SAUDI ARABIA CREATIVE, MARKETING, AND ADVERTISING INDUSTRY IS ...
the rapid pace of change in consumer preferences and technology. Agencies must be agile and innovative to keep up. Additionally, it’s essential to foster a collaborative environment that encourages creativity while also ensuring that teams have the skills to deliver effective, relevant campaigns in this dynamic landscape.
Type of agency: Events and experiential Saudi office: Riyadh events@inspiregroupme.com
SERVICES: Events; scenic; production; activations; event technology; event design
Type of agency: Media
Founded: 2010
Head of company: Elie Hajjar ksa@jcdecaux.com
JCDecaux the global leader in outdoor advertising operates in more than 80 countries delivering innovative, data-driven ad solutions and empowering advertisers with targeted campaigns. Since 2011, JCDecaux ATA, its Saudi subsidiary, has revolutionized Saudi Ads landscape strategically managing Ads in 25 airports and King Fahd Causeway for maximum impact
SERVICES: Out of home advertising company offers advertising spaces across 25 airports in Saudi Arabia and King Fahd Causeway
Type of agency: Digital info@livemena.com livemena.com
SERVICES: SEO and SEM, pay-per-click management services, online media planning and buying, online viral marketing, social media optimisation, Facebook apps, mobile application development and web development.
Founded: 2012
Headquartered: Riyadh with offices in Dubai and Cairo.
Head of agency: Abdulaziz Albabtaen, CEO extendad.com info@extendad.com
Type of agency: Media
Founded: 2017
Head of company: Founder and CEO Mohannad Ka an info@ka anmedia.com
Ka an Media is a full-fledged media and marketing agency, delivering end-toend solutions for events and brand activations. With a strategic media mix and influencers outreach, we create engaging and inspiring campaigns that drive success. Our expertise ensures impactful brand positioning, audience connection, and exceptional results in projects
SERVICES: Marketing and communication strategy, social media strategy and management, influencers outreach, digital marketing, PR and brand positioning
CLIENTS: Mercedes Benz, Al Saudia, STC, Goody, Al Nahdi
Type of Agency: Creative full service Saudi office: Riyadh dani@lrriyadh.com
We think local and act global. Local insights and Arabic first writing meets international production standards.
SERVICES: Creative, strategy, innovation, production, branding.
At Extend, we create brands that live and thrive within the culture of people. By blending creativity with technology, we design experiences and forge connections that shape how people feel and engage with the world.
Strategy, branding, campaigning, social and digital, media, PR and martech – Extend combines extensive expertise across these areas with its collective of exceptional talent. The group is united by the firm belief that the power of creativity and technology provides answers to questions of sustainable growth.
KEY CLIENTS: Almarai; Esports World Cup; Riyadh Bank; Saudi Esports Federation; Ministry of Sports, Formula E
SERVICES: Brand and marketing strategy, advertising and communication; digital, social and content marketing; integrated media and influencer solutions; data and analytics
AWARDS WON: MMA Smarties, AVA Digital Award, NYX MarCom, Hermes Creative Award, VEGA Digital Award
Founded: 1968
Heads of agency: Tarek Miknas CEO of FP7McCann MENAT; Amr El Kalaawy, Regional Managing Director KSA & Bahrain tarek.miknas@fp7mccann.com ; akalaawy@fp7mccann.com www.fp7mccann.com
Part of McCann Worldgroup and a flagship agency of MCN, FP7McCann is the number-one creatively driven integrated marketing company in the MENAT Region. Award-winning regionally and globally, FP7McCann provides fully integrated marketing solutions, advertising and digital services. It has been named as the most effective agency network in the region for the last eight years in a row and the World’s Number 1 Most Effective Agency as per the WARC 100 in 2021 and 2022.
SERVICES: Brand consulting, business leadership, integrated creative solutions, integrated production, integrated strategy, campaign creation and activation, channel management, consumer journey analysis, content creation and production, social strategy, social listening, social playbook creation, content planning design/UX, digital strategy, holistic analytics, human-tech design thinking
AWARDS WON: Dubai Lynx 2025 - #2 MENA Agency of the Year; Cannes Lions – most awarded agency in MENA 2024, 2023; Clio Awards 2024: 2nd Most Awarded in MENAT; D&AD - #1 agency in MENA 2024; New York Festival Awards - #1 agency in MENA 2024; Ad Age – agency A-list 2024; Global Effie Awards – network of the year 2024; Warc Effectiveness Awards - #1 agency 2024, #1 network 2024; Andy Awards - #1 network, #2 agency in MENA 2024; Golden Drums - #1 agency in MENAT 2024
Havas is a full-service creative, media and PR agency built on a powerful network. Uniting creativity, culture, media and emerging tech to cover the end-to-end customer experience and make a meaningful difference to the brands, the businesses and the lives of the people we work with. Connecting clients with their target audiences from Meaningful Ideas (MBi) to Media Experiences (Mx) – in the context of where they are and through the content, they pay a ention to.
Founded: 2005
Type of agency: Integrated comms Office: Riyadh
Head of company: Dany Naaman, CEO- Havas Middle East me.havas.com/havas-saudiarabia/ info@havasme.com
SERVICES: Communications strategy, media strategy, investment planning and buying, data and KPI planning, programmatic, data analytics, performance marketing, mobile and geo-local, OOH and experiential, media experience (Mx), digital marketing, social media, performance media, ecommerce, brand design, advertising, content creation, website and app development, content studio, community management
KEY CLIENTS: Saudi Tourism Authority (STA), Saudi Monetary Agency (SAMA), Ministry of Tourism, Riyadh Air, Meem Bank (GIB), LG Electronics, Hotel Management Company (HMC), Panda, Aujan, Chalhoub Group, Tanmiah, Naif AlRajhi Investment, Hyundai, Kia, Sanofi, Abu Kass, Hadeed
AWARDS WON: Major global and regional creative festivals including Cannes Lions, London International, D&AD, The One Show, Clios, Loeries, Adfest, MENA Effies.
Founded: 2003
CEO: Amer El Hajj
Number of staff: 750+ (MENA)
Offices: Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (HQ)
GroupM is WPP’s media investment group and the world’s leading media investment company with a mission to shape the ‘next era’ of media where advertising works better for people. The company is responsible for more than $60 billion in annual media investment, as measured by the independent research bureau COMvergence.
Through its global agencies Mindshare, Wavemaker, EssenceMediacom, Keyade and cross-channel performance (GroupM Nexus), data (Choreograph), entertainment (GroupM Motion Entertainment) and investment solutions, GroupM leverages a unique combination of global scale, expertise, and innovation to generate sustained value for clients wherever they do business.
Services & Products
Strategy & Consulting: Communication Strategy, Media Planning & Buying, Investment Strategy & Management, AdTech & MarTech Consultancy, Ecommerce, Client Growth & Development, Digital Transformation Consulting
Data & Analytics: Data Solutions & Analytics, Consumer & Market Research & Insights, Attribution Modelling, Effectiveness & ROI Measurement, Economic Modelling
Performance & Activation: Search, Social, DOOH, Programmatic, SEO, SEM, Ad Operations (AdOps)
Content & Innovation: Content Creation, Content Distribution, Content & Innovation Partnerships
Social Media: Social Media Strategy, Social Media Management, Influencer Relations
Other Services: CRM, Experiential, Sports Marketing & Sponsorships, Gaming, Advanced TV, Advanced DOOH, Integrated Video, Integrated Display, Integrated Cross-Channel, Acceleration (Always-on Transformation of Marketing Organizations), Copilot (AI Solution)
Founded: 1995
Number of staff: 30+
Choreograph is a global data products and technology company, built for a new era that demands a more purposeful approach to data. Choreograph provides a future-proof data system, orchestrating an end-to-end data enablement system that brings our clients’ customer data to life, and empowers them to move with intention.
4 873 6700 mena@groupm.com www.choreograph.com
Founded: 2009
Number of staff: 20+ (MENA)
GroupM Motion Entertainment funds, develops, produces, and distributes premium television, digital content, and awardwinning programming around the globe in partnership with the world’s leading producers, talent, networks, and platforms.
Founded: 2012
Number of staff: 15+ (MENA)
The Goat Agency was one of the first agencies to harness the power of influencer marketing for brands and have delivered thousands of campaigns for brands across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Twitch and more. We see influencer as a fullfunnel marketing channel, and we work with clients to devise strategies that will meet their objectives.
www.groupm-motion.com
www.goatagency.com
Get in touch
+971 4 454 7494
mena@mindshareworld.com www.mindshareworld.com
Mindshare is a media services agency that accelerates Good Growth for its clients in the age of transformation. The solutions we create are both Good for consumers and drive Growth for our clients.
We were the first purpose-built agency created by WPP and today we are 10,000 people working in 116 offices in 86 countries, helping to drive Good Growth for our clients, our people, the industry and the world.
Founded: 1999
Regional MD: Samer Majzoub
Number of staff: 250+ (MENA
Key Clients
Alat, Arab Bank, Danone, du and Virgin Mobile, Ferrero (Levant and Morocco), Henkel, Inma Bank, Mondelez (Morocco), New Murabba, NHC, Nova, Ooredoo Qatar, Property Finder, Qatar Airways, Qatar National Bank, Qatar Tourism, Red Sea Global
Get in touch
+971 4 450 7300 mena@wmglobal.com www.wavemakerglobal.com
Wavemaker is a top five global media network. It’s roster of products and services has been built with a single aim – to positively provoke growth for clients and our people through our new operation system consisting of 3 speeds of growth. We are continually developing our offer to deliver growth in a fast-changing consumer world. Many of our most progressive capabilities are core to clients, including ecommerce, content and precision marketing. Our leading global consultancy has experts to solve any communications challenge, from go-to-market ecommerce strategy to digital transformation.
Founded: 2017
CEO: Marc Ghosn Number of staff: 250+ (MENA)
Key Clients
Amazon, Colgate, Darwish Holding, DiDi, Dubai Islamic Bank, Edita, Friesland Campina, GIG, Honor, Huawei, L’Oréal, McCain, Nestlé, Netflix, Perfetti Van Melle, Total, Yahsat
Get in touch
+971 4 449 4700 mena@essencemediacom.com www.essencemediacom.com
EssenceMediacom is GroupM’s newest and largest agency, committed to delivering breakthroughs for brands in the New Communications Economy. It has disrupted the old models across media, creative, innovation and analytics to find new opportunities for advertisers and deliver truly integrated media solutions.
Our ‘breakthrough’ ambition is underpinned by our commitment to ‘continuous learning’. We aim to ensure our people fulfil their potential by investing in their whole-person wellbeing, careers and capabilities, which in turn helps grow our clients’ businesses.
Founded: 2023
Regional MD: Abdalla El Abd Number of staff: 250+ (MENA)
Key Clients
Adidas, Bayer, The Coca-Cola Company, Etisalat (Egypt), Google, L’Oréal (Egypt), Mars, ORA, PlayStation, Qiddiya, Richemont, Vodafone
Type of agency: Creative
Founded: 1987
Head of company: Sagar Rege sagar@liwa.tv
The region’s first branded content agency and only video marketing specialist, is now in Saudi Arabia. In partnership with Millimeter Films, we bring decades of expertise with a deeper impact – bold ideas and seamless execution under one roof. Strategy-led, idea-first, and execution-agnostic – we craft stories that move people and empower brands.
SERVICES: Strategy, creative, branding, campaign planning, production
CLIENTS: Shell, Hilton, Ministry of Tourism, TFO + Pepsi Rockstar, Saudi Airlines (through Publicis Groupe)
Type of agency: Creative Founded: 2022 Andrea.Jhoolun@mcsaatchi.com
SERVICES: Creative strategic communications, digital, production, PR and branding
Type of agency: Media production conglomerate Headquartered: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia info@mediaturtles.net
HP Listing.pdf 1 24/04/2025 5:41 PM
Type of agency: Creative and production Founded: 2017 Offices: Jeddah info@mefan.co
SERVICES: Social marketing campaigns, creative campaigns, media productions
Type of agency: digital media Headquarters: UAE/KSA/Qatar marketing@memob.com
SERVICES: Location and data intelligence, market research, analysis amd brand lift studies, targeting and attribution, data-driven dynamic creatives, skippable and nonskippable gamified ads execution
Type of agency: Creative Headquartered: Riyadh hi@meshbak.sa
SERVICES: Strategy and branding; creative campaigns
Founded: 2011
Agency: Hewar Group Headquartered: Riyadh Head of agency: Loma Jaber - Managing Director Website: www.hewargroup.com
Type of agency: Marketing and Communications
Email: Info@hewargroup.com +966 54 811 9668
Hewar is a Saudi-born integrated marcom agency with regional presence, global expertise, and local knowledge. With +12 years in the market, we craft bespoke solutions for partners from the public and private sectors across diverse industries. Our +120 Hewarians are the heart of our vibrant workplace, delivering end-to-end services that fit our partners’ needs. Beyond communication excellence, we catalye brand value creation with a flair for absolute creativity.
Zakat,
Founded: 1985 Head of company: Dani Richa Saudi offices: Riyadh and Jeddah No of staff: 60+ impactbbdo.com +966 11 4653550; +966 12 6515566 n.hussain@impactbbdo.com
Part of global BBDO network, Impact BBDO Saudi Arabia was established in 1985 and offers comprehensive and integrated marketing communication solutions, covering a wide and prestigious base of global, regional, and local clients. Our mission is to create and deliver the world’s most compelling content across all mediums and screens. At BBDO, big is a way of thinking and being and we are built to do big things.
SERVICES: Advertising, brand development, corporate and reputation management, digital marketing, event marketing, integrated project management, marketing communications, marketing science, performance marketing, production, social and content marketing, shopper marketing.
KEY CLIENTS: PIF companies, General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI), Saudi Aramco, Ithra, ASMO, Diriyah, Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Industry & Mineral Resources, Royal Commission for Al Ula (RCU), Saudi Electricity Company, Saudi Motorsport Company (F1, Dakar, Extreme E), Saudi Investment Bank, Saudi Coffee Company, Saudi Downtown Company (SDC), SEVEN, Unilever, PepsiCo, Al Rabie
AWARDS: Cannes Lions Global Network of the Decade; World Global Effie Index Most Effective Network; Cannes Lions MENA Regional Network of the Year (6 consecutive years); Campaign Global Awards Best Network MEA (3 consecutive years)
Type of agency: Brand development firm Saudi office: Jeddah, Riyadh, and Cairo hello@milkdesign.co
SERVICES: Strategy, identity, communication
Type of agency: Creative
Founded: 2018
Head of company: Sami El-Quqa Sales@musicgrid.com
MusicGrid partners with some of Saudi Arabia and the MENA region’s most respected brands, delivering world-class sonic branding and music strategies that elevate identity and deepen audience connection.
SERVICES: Sonic branding, creative music, film music composition, curated playlists
CLIENTS: Bank Albilad, ZATCA (The Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority), Monshaat, Jahez, Mercedes
Type of agency: Creative Saudi offices: Dhahran, Riyadh info@om.sa
SERVICES: Advertising and promotional campaigns, marketing communications, design services, internal and external corporate communications
Founded: 1975
Head of agency: Lara Arbid Number of staff: 250 +971 4 445 4040 info@initiativemena.com
Type of agency: Creative Founded: 2025 Head of company: Saleh Lzeik sal@nurum.com
We are a marketing agency where science meets creativity. We understand people and create campaigns that resonate deeply. By combining data with bold ideas, we make marketing that’s wi y, emotional and leaves a lasting impact. We focus on audiences, analysing trends, and transforming insights into strategies that work.
SERVICES: Creative concepts, strategy and planning, digital and media, public relations, film production
CLIENTS: Ministry of Culture, Local Content & General Procurement Authority, Ministry of Finance, PIF, Netflix
Type of agency: Digital Founded: 2014 info@origin.global
Origin specialises in elevating brand experiences through a unique combination of technology and design, creating meaningful connections between brands and their customers.
SERVICES: Strategy and advisory, creative powerhouse, design agency, immersive tech
CLIENTS: Accenture, BCG, PIF, NEOM, Saudia
Initiative is a full-service media and communications agency that unlocks business growth for the world’s most ambitious brands. We believe in the power of media to reshape our industry and orchestrate a brand’s entire consumer experience. We do this through Fame and Flow. Brand Fame is built through widespread awareness, recognition, and interest among a defined audience. Customer Flow is built through engaging and seamless experiences across CX, content and media. When brands unite people in culture, they build Fame; when they connect individuals to unique journeys, they build Flow. Awarded Great Place to Work® in 2024 and 2025.
SERVICES: Media strategy, planning, buying and activation, performance marketing, communications planning, digital and programmatic, media consultation services (data tech, analytics, commerce, and audience planning), content and influencer marketing
KEY CLIENTS: Miral Destinations, Americana, COTY, IFFCO, IKEA, Aljabr Trading Company, Aljabr Finance, Rabbit, Abdul Samad Al Qurashi, SELA, Mayora, Deliveroo, MSD, e&, Aldar Properties, Unilever, BUPA Global, Ajdan Real Estate Development Company
AWARDS: Dubai Lynx Media Network of the Year 2024, 45 MMA Smarties, 18 MENA Effies, 1 MENA Digital Award, 4 MENA Search Awards, 1 Internationalist and 1 Festival of Media Global.
Type of agency: PR
Founded: 2021
Office: Riyadh
Head of company: Ibrahim Almutawa, Managing Partner jummarpr.com
+966 112 172 777 ibrahim@jummar.co
Jummar PR & Communication is a Saudi consultancy specialising in strategic communication, content creation, IPO support, media training and media engagement. Leveraging an experienced team with backgrounds in prominent local and international media groups and PR firms, Jummar serves diverse sectors including finance, real estate, aviation, education, media, energy, sustainability, e-commerce, entertainment and AI. Its strength lies in a deep understanding of local cultural, social and economic contexts, and media landscapes, enabling impactful communication solutions. As the Saudi partner of PROI Worldwide, Jummar further extends its reach and resources.
SERVICES: Strategising and planning, crisis communications, media training, media and social media content, media events
KEY CLIENTS: flynas, ZATCA (Zakat, Tax, and Customs Authority), Imam Turki bin Abdullah Royal Natural Reserve, Burgerizzr, Taiba Investments
AMR ALNAJJAR
Managing Director - Content
IT IS IMPORTANT NOT TO GROUP SAUDI ARABIA WITHIN “MIDDLE EAST MARKETING STRATEGIES”, BUT INSTEAD TO FOCUS ON MARKETING SPECIFICALLY FOR SAUDI ARABIA BECAUSE ... the Saudi market is characterised by a deeprooted culture, strong national pride and a high level of education. These factors, along with many others, influence audience habits and attitudes as the Saudi public places great importance on cultural values and social customs, making it essential for companies to understand and respect these aspects when planning any marketing campaigns. Marketing strategies in KSA need to adapt to these cultural specificities to ensure their success. Campaigns in the Kingdom are unlike any other; they require a combination of respect for culture, knowledge of the community and a strong command of the Arabic language, along with the intelligent use of digital media, which is extremely popular in the Saudi market.
ABOVE ALL, BRAND, MARKETERS AND AGENCY LEADERS IN SAUDI ARABIA MUST PRIORITISE ...
Saudi culture. It influences every aspect of marketing and PR campaigns as social norms
determine how consumers interact with marketing messages, making it a priority to adapt these messages to align with local values and to understand cultural and social contexts. To tailor your messages to the Saudi audience, you must use the appropriate language that respects cultural specificities to promote trust between the brand and the audience. Messages that reflect the respect and understanding of society and appeal to the audience’s needs are more successful and build long-term loyalty.
WE’RE EXCITED ABOUT SAUDI ARABIA’S OLYMPIC ESPORTS GAMES 2027, EXPO 2030, AND FIFA WORLD CUP 2035 BECAUSE ... hosting these global events will position the Kingdom’s cities among the most active and vibrant cities worldwide, stimulating most sectors and economic activities during this period. This will require companies to engage with the public to promote and raise awareness of their brands and ensure the delivery of marketing messages. Consequently, this will create a significant opportunity for the marketing and PR agencies, especially with the expectation that many companies in different sectors will enter the market or relaunch their brand identity to keep pace with these global events and the visiting global audience with diverse tastes and interests.
THE MOST IMPORTANT CHALLENGE THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED WITHIN SAUDI ARABIA’S CREATIVE, MARKETING, AND ADVERTISING INDUSTRY IS ... the lack of a talented workforce that is proficient in Arabic, understands the audience, and aware of the values and concerns of Saudi society. The Saudi market needs to create its own campaigns and avoid replicating other unsuccessful experiences. International models can be quoted, but they must be deeply adapted to suit the Saudi market. Any attempt to replicate these experiences with just superficial changes could backfire on brands adopting this approach.
Type of agency: Creative pgintegrated.com
One of Saudi’s most established agencies, we have 37 years’ experience, in the kingdom, with more than 100 diverse marketing specialists.
Type of agency: Creative pgintegrated.com
One of Saudi’s most established agencies, we have 37 years’ experience, in the kingdom, with more than 100 diverse marketing specialists.
Type of agency: PR and events info@prphenomenal.co
SERVICES: Media relation service, event management, press conference, crisis management, IPO camping
Type of agency: Digital info@pixel-arabia.com
SERVICES: Website design and development, mobile application development, social media management, digital marketing, digital brand design
Type of agency: Creative Founded: 2006
Head of company: Marco Gazzelloni marco@qp.agency
Part of global agency QP, we are QP Arabia, a multi-award winning creative communications agency, expressing creative ideas through high-quality branding, design and film content.
SERVICES: Strategic planning, film production, branding, creative design
CLIENTS: National Development Fund, The Helicopter Company, Unilever, Nestle, Hala
Type of agency: Media Headquartered: Riyadh info@relymedia.net
SERVICES: Media consultancy; digital and traditional media planning; media investment management; market research
LeadGen is a client-centric digital performance agency that has achieved significant milestones, partnering with leading brands in the Saudi market. Our success is driven by a team of digital media strategists and digital experts, empowered by progressive technology and a relentless focus on data-driven innovation. We specialise in bridging the gap between where our clients are today and where they aspire to be, transforming ideas into impactful digital masterpieces. With a unique blend of creativity, cu ing-edge technology, and industry best practices, we bring the essence of marketing to life.
Founded: 2021
Headquartered: Riyadh
Head of company: Elie Zenieh Number of staff: 40 www.leadgenarabia.com hello@leadgenarabia.com
SERVICES: Digital performance marketing, strategy and planning, technology consulting and implementation, data analytics, content and partnerships
KEY CLIENTS: Sports for All, Saudi Motorsports Company, Salam Telecom, IAB –Biennale, Unified Group
AWARDS: Athar Awards: Best innovative campaign - Highly Commendable – SFA; Best not for profit - Highly Commendable – SFA; Best Governmental - Winner – SFA; Business growth team of the year - Winner
We are Landor. World-leading brand consultants. We make brands more valuable. We build brands differently. We work with our clients to define and solve their business problems. We strategically join the dots between our design, experience, measurement & governance capabilities, and always connect our brand work to business outcomes.
Proudly part of WPP.
1. It is important not to group Saudi Arabia within “Middle East marketing strategies”, but instead to focus on marketing specifically for Saudi Arabia because Saudi Arabia’s geographic, demographic, and strategic makeup is distinct from the rest of the region. The country has preserved cultural values that differentiate it even within the GCC. Unlike neighboring countries relying on global expertise for transformation, Saudi Arabia focuses on empowering its own people, emphasizing the importance of understanding local culture. Regional differences within Saudi Arabia require tailored approaches, as a one-size-fits-all strategy doesn’t work here. Vision 2030 plays a key role, aiming to empower local talent and position Saudi Arabia as a global leader in economy, technology, and investment. Global companies entering the market prioritize adapting their operations specifically for Saudi Arabia while serving other markets from within the country.
2. Above all, brand marketers and agency leaders in Saudi Arabia must prioritize Talent development, knowledge transfer, and building infrastructure for data management. Data will be the key driver shaping businesses, brands, and experiences in Saudi Arabia. Branding and marketing competencies need significant focus to advance the sector. Investing in local talent ensures the market has the skills required to thrive, while knowledge transfer helps localize expertise. Establishing robust data infrastructure will further support growth and innovation. These three pillars— talent, knowledge, and data—are essential for the future of marketing in Saudi Arabia.
3. The biggest marketing disruption in Saudi Arabia in the next two years will be the transformation happening in the government sector. Government entities are becoming more communication-active, branding-focused, and people-centered across industries like industrial partnerships, healthcare, sports, culture, and tourism. Tourism, both international and domestic, is
emerging as a key pillar, with projects coming to fruition and millions traveling between cities annually—a scale never seen before. Sports marketing and esports are gaining momentum, with Saudi Arabia hosting major events like the Esports World Cup and investing billions into gaming. Cultural initiatives led by the Ministry of Culture aim to highlight Saudi heritage and challenge misconceptions globally.
4. We’re excited about Saudi Arabia’s Olympic Esports Games 2027, Expo 2030, and FIFA World Cup 2035 because these events mark a new era for Saudi Arabia, showcasing its transformation and ambitions on the global stage. Football, deeply rooted in Saudi culture, will expand perceptions and open Saudi Arabia’s culture to the world. These events align with destination marketing efforts and rebranding Saudi Arabia globally, providing platforms to share progress, culture, and leadership with the world.
Mariagrazia
De Angelis, General Manager MEA
Type of agency: Digital
Founded: 2013
Head of company: Ahmed AlSharif meshari.a@rayz.co
At Rayz Digital Marketing, we empower businesses with cutting-edge digital solutions and creative strategies to thrive in today›s competitive market.
SERVICES: Community management, strategy, creative content and design, campaign management, project management
CLIENTS: Elm, Jawazat, Morror, Dominos, STC
Type of agency: Production house info@ritixgroup.com
Ritix Group was established in Saudi Arabia in 2006 to provide effective solutions to develop business in the private, public and non-profit sectors through its consulting, production, media and investment companies.
Type of agency: Digital +966 53 555 3740
We offer innovation and creativity to redefine your experience to connect digitally with your client by creating outstanding websites and applications that offer the best user experience on any device.
Founded: 2005
Head of agency: Lara Arbid
Number of staff: 120 magnamena.com +966 (011) 2152211 info@magna-global.com
Type of agency: Production house mamdouh@rowadmedia.com.sa
SERVICES: Media production, renting, cinema, events management, design, theatre, TV, consulting, training, investment
Type of agency: Creative Founded: 2023
Head of company: Juan Pablo Suerio info@alephholding.com
SERVICES: Brand strategy and development, creative content creation, advertising and marketing, web and digital development, creative and innovative services
CLIENTS: We work with all the big 6 agencies as well as regional tier 1 and 2 agencies
Founded: 2018
Headquartered: Riyadh Hello@sifr.sa
Sifr is a local creative house with international standards. They have pioneered their way in the creative industry since 2018 with exceptional conceptual work surpassing expectations and setting them in a league of their own.
At Magna, our mission is to be the driving force behind our clients’ success by delivering unparalleled media and communication solutions across MENA. Our vision is to redefine industry standards, envisioning a future where businesses thrive through a fusion of great strategies and innovation.
Our expertise enables our clients to benefit from cutting-edge solutions that deliver tangible business results. As part of MCN and globally IPG, we generate outstanding value from research, tools and competitive media rates, enabled through our group’s buying power.
TECH PARTNERS: Adjust, Kochava, Appsflyer, Zapier, Oracle, GCP, Datorama, Flashtalking, Salesforce, Google
SERVICES: Digital and traditional media services, integrated media strategy and activation, communications planning, market research, consulting, social media, SEM, programmatic media, mobile partnerships, analytics and BI, DCO
KEY CLIENTS: Dubai Holding Group, Dubai Properties, Meraas, Jumeirah Group, Dubai Parks & Resorts, Global Village, Nahdi Medical Company, Banque Saudi Fransi, Twinings, Commercial Bank of Dubai, Canon, Parkin, Mountain View, Al Jazirah Ford, BTC Gold
WFounded: 1986
Head of agency (KSA): Samer Abboud Saudi office: Riyadh memacogilvy.com/ae +966 11 293 446 samer.abboud@ogilvy.com
ith more than 40 years of experience in Saudi Arabia, we are deeply rooted in the Kingdom’s cultural landscape and proud to be trusted partners to a diverse portfolio of clients. Our proven track record with leading brands highlights our ability to manage, high-profile accounts.
As part of a global creative network, our longstanding presence in Saudi Arabia gives us an unparalleled understanding of the local market. This deep expertise is further strengthened by Ogilvy’s global reach and decades of industry leadership, enabling us to deliver impactful both locally and globally.
SERVICES: Advertising, public relations, experience, health and consulting
KEY CLIENTS: Ministry of Culture, Green Riyadh, IKEA, World Defense Show, Avilease, SAMI, Asfar, RCU, Expo 2030, Lab7 (Aramco), Diriyah, Ula Development Company, Nestlé
AWARDS WON: MEPRA – Likea (Best PR Campaign, Best vs Budget Campaign)
Data, tech and analytics consultancy
nnalect, OMG MENA's analytics and technology arm, delivers advanced solutions through data scientists and engineers Services include dashboards, automation, and mac ine learning to optimize ad performance
Services: Measurement & Predictive Analytics, Audience Strategy, AI-Driven Creative Optimization, eCom Analytics, and Adtech/Martech Consultancy
Contact: requestsmena@annalect.com
commerce platform and consultancy
Digital marketing and cloud consultancy (Google ecosystem)
Wi h 260+ consultants in 30 locations, TRKKN enhances digital maturity across industries, providing Google Marketing Platform and Cloud consulting to maximize efficiency in a privacy-centric ecosystem
Services: GA Audits, KPI Workshops, GMP & GCP Support, Media Consultancy, Technical Implementation, Cloud Deployment, Digital Transformation, and UX/CO Services
Contact: nfo.mena@trkkn.com
Flywheel drives growth with tailored commerce solutions across 32 countries With 2,000+ experts and AI, we unify Retail Media, Operations, and Marketplace Intelligence to boost sales, market share, and profitability
Services: Strategic Advisory, eRetail & Marketplace Management, D2C & Retail Commerce Implementation, FullF nnel Retail Media
Contact: mena@omnicommediagroup.com
Research & cultural intelligence consultancy
At sparks & honey, we align brands with the future through culture Using Q™, our AI-powered intelligence system, we analyze trends, structure data, and score insights daily to help brands navigate change
Services: Business Transformation, Business Consulting Services, Cultural Trends, Mergers & Acquisitions, Product Innovation, Research & Development
Contact: infomena@sparksandhoney.com
MD is the world's largest media network with more than 12,000 people working in over 100 countries, promising to create what’s next for our clients As a people-centered organization we leverage evidence-based data solutions and the power of empathy to create tailored strategies that drive sustainable growth
Services: Strategic planning & investment management, performance marketing, data and technology consulting and implementation, analytic and e-commerce transformation/marketplace management
Contact: hellosaudiarabia@omd.com | +966 11 216 7796
PHD is a global media and marketing communications agency, driven by innovation and creativity We deliver transformative growth by helping our clients outth nk, outpace and outgrow their competition with intelligence connected across a next generation network that brings everything and everyone together
Services: Media planning & buying; strategic planning; data analytics & technology consultants; social & content marketing; SEO; creative services including dynamic creative optimization
Cont ct: info ksa@phdmedia com | +966 11 216 7796
Pioneering Growth Velocity, Hearts & Science delivers game-changing results through end-to-end solutions that simplify the consumer journey and maximize conversions
Services: Media planning/buying, e-commerce, marketing science, ROI modeling, digital transformation, growth acceleration, Martech, and CRM consultancy
Contact: mena@hearts-science.com | +971 4 450 0450
Founded: 1979
Type of agency: Creative communications
Saudi offices: Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam
Head of agency: Adel Baraja, CEO Publicis Communications KSA publicisgroupe.com mena.inquiry@publicisgroupe.com
Bassel Kakish
Chief Executive Officer ME&T
Bashar Abdulkarim
Chief Talent Transformation Officer ME&T
Publicis Communications KSA is the creative hub of Publicis Groupe, bringing together Leo Burne , Saatchi & Saatchi and MSL in the region. Leo Burne was built on a simple belief that the most creative, effective, and powerful work has people and their behaviour at its core - their needs, wants, dreams and hopes. Saatchi & Saatchi is a fullservice, integrated communications network. They are in the business of ge ing people to fall in love with their client’s products and services. MSL is Publicis Groupe’s strategic communication and engagement company. They champion clients’ interests through fearless and insightful campaigns to build influence and deliver impact.
SERVICES: Marketing communications strategy and consultancy, creative content and production, social and digital media strategy and content, branding, audio-visual production, digital and social strategy, influencer marketing and management, strategic planning, in-store activation, events support.
KEY CLIENTS: Nestle, Aramco, General Motors, Goody, Ithra, McDonald’s GCC & KSA, Nestlé, PepsiCo, Saudia, Sunbulah Group, Sync, Total Energies, Key Car Rental, Al Munajem, Tasaru, Alfa Co., Salam Telecom, Salam Mobile, Hawaei, Saudi Tourism Authority, Globant, Saudi Aramco, Iktiva, Bank Aljazira, Avalon Pharma, Trendyol, Sports Boulevard
AWARDS WON: Cannes Lions – first Lion for Saudi Arabia, Effies, Dubai Lynx, WARC, Loeries, Cresta, NYF, AME, LIA, Jay Chiat, AdFest, Clio, Gerety, One Show, MMA Smarties
Houda Samir
Chief Financial Officer ME&T
PAdel Baraja
Chief Executive Officer Publicis Communications KSA
Ahmed Younis
Chief Creative Officer Publicis Communications KSA & Egypt
Type of agency: Media
Head of company: Tony Wazen, CEO of Publicis Media ME mena.inquiry@publicisgroupe.com publicisgroupe.com
ublicis Media KSA is the media hub of Publicis Groupe, comprising four agencies in the Middle East: Spark Foundry, Starcom, Zenith, and Digitas. Spark Foundry blends start-up energy with scale to deliver innovative media solutions, specializing in luxury, retail, travel, and banking with a focus on one-to-one consumer engagement. Starcom designs Human Experiences that bridge what people want and what brands need to grow, always pu ing people first. Zenith is the ROI agency, driving brand growth through analytics, data & tech, performance marketing, content, and trading. Digitas is the marketing transformation agency that integrates media, creative, data, and technology to deliver modern marketing solutions.
SERVICES: Media Consultancy, Media Planning and Buying, Branded Content, Data and Analytics, E-Commerce, Digital & Performance Marketing Solutions, CX, CI, Measurement
KEY CLIENTS: Royal Commission of AlUla (RCU), Saudia, Spotify, Mora Finance, Savola, Bayara, Sunbulah, Al Balad, Nahdi, JCDC, Sandoz, McDonald’s Jeddah, Al Majdouie, TMG, Samsung, Tree Zode, Neom, Saudi Tourism Authority, Red Sea Global, New Murabba and Salam Mobile, Haleon, Stellantis, LVMH, P&G, Almarai, Aramco, Saudi British Bank, Mondelez.
AWARDS WON: Dubai Lynx, Gartner, WARC, Cannes Lions, MENA Effies, Digital MENA Awards, Ad Age, 2020 Best Place to Work Award, Forrester Wave™, IDC MarketScape, Digiday, MMA Smarties, Festival of Media, MENA Digital Award.
Founded: 1926
Type of agency: Integrated Marketing Agency
Head of company: Bassel Kakish, CEO Publicis Groupe ME&T mena.inquiry@publicisgroupe.com publicisgroupe.com
Publicis Groupe stands as the foremost communications agency holding group globally. Through the Power of One, we are uniquely positioned to help clients unlock growth through the intersection of data, creativity, media and technology. The Groupe enjoys a thriving presence in the Middle East fuelled by the region’s best talent, world-class agency brands and an enviable portfolio of clients. We are organised across four solution hubs: Publicis Communications, comprised of Leo Burne , Publicis ME, Saatchi & Saatchi and MSL; Publicis Media, comprised of Spark Foundry, Starcom, Zenith, & Digitas, Publicis Sapient, our digital business transformation partner and Epsilon, which lies at the core of the Groupe, providing personalised experiences at scale.
SERVICES: Publicis Groupe in KSA is organised across solution hubs, which intersect to provide seamless solutions. Publicis Communications is the creative communications division comprising Leo Burne , Saatchi & Saatchi and MSL. Publicis Media harnesses the power of modern media with brands Spark Foundry, Starcom, and Zenith. Publicis Sapient is the digital business transformation arm. At the core of the Groupe is Epsilon, delivering personalised experiences at scale in the kingdom.
AWARDS WON: Cannes Lion, Campaign Agency of the Year Awards, MENA Effies, Dubai Lynx, Loeries, Jay Chiat, LIA Awards, CLIO, AdFest, D&AD, Cresta.
Type of agency: Digital info@smartsocial.me
Our team is a social media agency; they are not just a group of people who live on the internet.
Type of agency: Digital Founded: 2010
Head of company: Tarek Esper, Managing Director info@social-eyez.com
Socialeyez is the Middle East’s leading team of creative strategists. Its philosophy, “Create No Ma er What,” motivates the team to realise bold ideas and deliver tangible results for its clients. Socialeyez ‹s dedicated in-house teams lead end-toend services, from ideation to execution, including content creation, social media strategy and more.
SERVICES: Content creation, online reputation management, video production, creative strategy, social media design
CLIENTS: Noor Al Riyadh Festival, ENOC, Dubai Games, World Government Summit, Salam Telecom
Type of agency: Digital Founded: 2017 Head of company: Bahar Alharbi info@startupshouse.com
Saudi Arabia’s first private incubator, supports tech-driven startups in establishing and growing in the market. We offer tailored acceleration programs, business development support, and assistance in obtaining the entrepreneur license, easing market entry. With a strong focus on digital innovation, we empower startups to thrive in Saudi Arabia
SERVICES: Specialised media and marketing solutions, branding, digital marketing, multimedia, marketing campaigns
CLIENTS: Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MICT), Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU), SEDCO Holding
Type of agency: Creative Founded: 2012 Head of company: Najib Sabbagh wassup@ssupworld.com
With headquarters in the UAE since 2012 and offices across the MENA region –from KSA to Beirut and through Iraq – Sunny Side Up ignites conversations with an authentic flair for strategy, brand building, and creativity. We are storytellers, brand builders, market shapers, and passionate creators, where innovation and creativity always reign supreme.
SERVICES: Agentive AI services, strategy and creative development, content and social media management, public relations, production
CLIENTS: Dar Wa Emaar - KSA, Nusuk‚ Saudi Tourism Authority - KSA, Tim Hortons –GCC, ORA Developers – UAE, Solitaire Mall – KSA
Publicis Sapient KSA, the digital business transformation business of Publicis Groupe, helps established organisations get to their future, digitally-enabled state, both in the way they work and the way they serve their customers. We help unlock value through a start-up mindset and modern methods, fusing strategy, consulting and customer experience with agile engineering and problem-solving creativity. We combine experience across technology, data sciences, consulting and customer obsession to accelerate our clients’ businesses through designing the products and services their customers value.
Founded: 1990 Type of agency: Digital Business Transformation Head of company: Srinivas Devulapalli, Senior Vice-President MENA, Publicis Sapient Publicissapientmena@publicissapient.com publicissapient.com
SERVICES: Strategy and consulting, customer experience, technology and engineering, enterprise platforms, data and AI, product management
KEY CLIENTS: Neom, ADNOC, Abu Dhabi Executive Office, Saudi Research & Media Group, Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, Diriyah Gate Development Authority, Saudi Company for Artificial Intelligence, Ministry of tourism, PIF and Saudi National Bank Capital
AWARDS WON: 2022 Great Place to Work; Forbes World’s Best Management Consulting Firms; Consulting Magazine Best Firms; MACH Alliance Award; Global Brands Magazine Award; #1 Metaverse Design and Services by Constellation Research
Founded: 2000
Head of company: Reda Raad tbwaraad.com
dan.leach@tbwaraad.com +966 59 699 6842
We are The Disruption Company® – a collective of creative minds and bold thinkers shaping the future of brands in Saudi Arabia and beyond. From the heart of KSA, we harness creativity as a strategic force to help businesses defy convention and claim an unfair share of the future.
Named one of the Most Innovative Companies six years in a row by Fast Company and recognized as Adweek’s Global Agency of the Year in 2024, 2022, 2021, and 2018, we bring world-class ambition and local insight to every brief. Rooted in our proprietary Disruption® methodology, we partner with brands across the Kingdom to unlock transformative growth through every touchpoint — from digital to retail, B2B to experiential, design to content, and everything in between.
Our collective is made up of passionate experts who live and breathe brand experience — and who believe that in a market moving as fast as Saudi Arabia, the bravest ideas win.
-Most Innovative Companies in the Middle East 2024, 2023 & 2022 Fast Company Middle East.
-Great Place to Work Certified 2024 -Best Workplaces for Women 2024 Fast Company Middle East.
-The World's Most Innovative Companies 2025, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019 Fast Company.
-Global Agency of the Year 2024, 2022, 2021, 2018 Adweek.
Al
Nissan, Pladis.
It is important not to group Saudi Arabia within "Middle East marketing strategies," but instead to focus on marketing specifically for Saudi Arabia because… Saudi is moving at its own speed under Vision 2030. A young, digital-first population and a surge of new industries demand messages that speak to local culture and ambition—one size for “the Middle East” simply misses the mark.
Above all, brand, marketers, and agency leaders in Saudi Arabia must prioritize… Deep cultural relevance. Go past surface storytelling to reflect Saudis’ daily habits, values and pride, turning real insights into ideas that feel genuine and foster meaningful connections.
The biggest marketing disruption in Saudi Arabia in the next two years will be… AI everywhere—real-time personalisation, predictive analytics and AI-generated content—leading to hyper-relevant messaging and immersive digital experiences while blending with the Kingdom’s fast-rising entertainment and tech scene.
We're excited about Saudi Arabia's Olympic Esports Games 2027, Expo 2030, and FIFA World Cup 2035 because… They put Saudi on the world stage and open huge canvases for brands to merge on-ground experiences with digital storytelling, earning both local love and global reach.
The biggest proportion of marketing budget allocation for brands in Saudi Arabia should be towards… Data-driven digital experiences—social, gaming, AR/VR and mobile—that let Gen Z and Millennials interact, personalise and share in real time.
Local Saudi Arabia icons, celebrities, influencers, and gamers will have an effect on Saudi marketing because… are the cultural heartbeat. Partnering with Saudi creators, athletes and musicians gives brands instant credibility and authentic, grassroots advocacy.
The most important challenge that needs to be addressed within Saudi Arabia’s creative, marketing, and advertising industry is… Developing and retaining Saudi talent. Growing the next wave of home-grown creatives, strategists and technologists is vital for lasting innovation and success.
My opinion on the brand versus performance debate is that… It’s not an either/or scenario. Successful marketers in Saudi Arabia will be those who can seamlessly merge brand-building with performance marketing, using data insights to optimize campaigns without diluting the creative spark that captures the hearts of consumers in the Kingdom.
Type of agency: Creative
Founded: 2007
Head of company: Steven Hetzer contact@sweetwatermea.com
Sweetwater is an award-winning independent brand experience agency, creating globally renowned work for the world’s greatest brands. We work holistically across the realms of advertising, activation and events with a singular focus on creating disruptive and big ideas that deliver both commercial results and cultural credibility.
SERVICES: Experiential and events, content and brand, guest management and operations, stunts and activations.
CLIENTS: adidas, MDL Beast, Mashreq, L’Oreal, MyClinic
Type of agency: Digital
Founded: 2013
Head of company: Odysseas Ntotsikas welisten@tailwindemea.net
Tailwind EMEA is a marketing technology consultant and integrator. It empowers bold marketers to drive marketing growth by using consulting, technology, and operations to help them transform ‘Mission Critical’ marketing processes. It is the authorised regional partner for Integral Ad Science, Innovid, Unlimitail/CitrusAd, GWI, Microsoft Invest.
SERVICES: Media quality and a ention optimisation, programmatic media buying, digital media auditing and strategy and planning, media management services, adserving and creative personalisation
CLIENTS: Saudi Electricity Company, Digitect, ExtendAds, Bold, Zamakan
Founded: 1939
Type of Agency: Experiential
Ownership: TrueLink Capital
Global President: Jeff Stelmach
Offices: Riyadh, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha
thisisspiro.com
+966 569 795 4505
ContactME@thisisspiro.com
Type of agency: Creative hello@tajalla.co
Tajalla is that companion you can rely on to set your business on the right path and take you by hand to the right audience on the right ride.
SERVICES: Strategy, branding, social media management, OOH, radio ads, video, photography, copywriting, SEO, advertisement, design, motion graphics, signage, web design, infographics, publications.
Type of agency: Full-service agency
Founded: 1973
Saudi office: Riyadh commsservices@tareknour.com
A multifaceted powerhouse, the first communications firm of its kind in Egypt, widely considered to be the pioneer of advertising in the Middle East.
Type of agency: Creative
Founded: 2011
Saudi office: Riyadh sales@telfaz11.com
SERVICES: Content creation, digital storytelling, creative entertainment, media production, creative ideation, influencer management.
This is Spiro. A strategically-led, creatively-driven, leading global experiential agency.
We exist to cultivate powerful bonds between brands & their customers through the channel of experiential.
Through our proprietary experiential intelligence system – our science of a raction – we understand customer drivers & a raction motivators, design to those behaviors, and position brands as the undisputed leader in the hearts & minds of their most important audiences.
SERVICES: Live events, strategy & planning, brand activations, fit outs & exhibits
KEY CLIENTS: Aramco, Tahakom, Riyadh Air, DGA, SAMI
AWARDS: Campaign ME Start-Up Agency of the Year, Chief Marketer Agency of the Year, Hermes Creative Award, ANA Global Ace Awards, Chief Marketer Top 200
Founded: 2004 Holding group: Middle East Communication Network (MCN) / Interpublic Group (IPG) Head of agency: Joe Nicolas +966 11 215 2211 www.umww.com/locations/riyadh
The home of Full Colour Media, UM is a global media agency commi ed to empowering brands to their full potential of growth by leveraging the power of brand pa erns. As the leading global media network in IPG Mediabrands, UM operates in over 100 countries with more than 3,000 people. In the MENAT region, UM is part of MCN, and stands as the largest network, with 12 offices spanning 11 markets. UM was ranked the #1 media agency in MENA by RECMA in 2024 for the 7th consecutive year, and awarded Great Place To Work in 2023, 2024 & 2025.
SERVICES: Media planning and buying, digital and performance marketing, data and analytics, influencer management, consulting
KEY CLIENTS: stc, stc Bank, Jawwy Mobile, mystore, IoT Squared, Center 3, Nespresso, AlSafi Danone, Diriyah Gate, McDonalds, ETi, Trendyol, Upfield, Activision, Saudi Goody Products Marketing Company, AlFanar Trading Company, Mohamed Yousuf Naghi Motors, Boeing
AWARDS: MMA Smarties KSA 2023 (5 Silver, 9 Bronze), TikTok Ad Awards 2024 (1 Bronze), Agency of the Year, MMA Smarties 2022; Effie MENA 2022 (3 Bronze); Effie MENA 2021 (3 Gold, 3 Silver, 3 Bronze); MMA Smarties 2021 (21 Awards including 10 Gold Awards); Dubai Lynx 2020 (10 Awards), Search Awards 2020 (2 Awards); MMA Smarties 2020 (9 Awards)
W7Worldwide is an award-winning independent marketing communications consultancy, that has established itself as a prominent agency in Saudi Arabia. Our understanding of the local market combined with our global reach and knowledge gives us the edge and unique ability to bridge our clients with their audiences.
Type of agency: Public relations and communications agency Heads of company: Abdullah Inayat and Abdulrahman
Saudi office: Jeddah +966-12-661-4579; +966-56-720-1039 w7worldwide.com abdulrahman@w7worldwide.com; a.inayat@w7worldwide.com
Communicating effectively with audiences has become essential for the survival of brands the world over and we utilise our local insight of the market as an innovative solution to this concern. We have extensive national and international experience in the technology, healthcare, government, corporate, consumer, and entertainment sectors and their various subdivisions.
SERVICES: Corporate reputations, corporate communications, reputation management, crisis management, stakeholder mapping & engagement, media outreach and media relations, research & data analytics, executive positioning, public affairs, brand solutions
AWARDS WON: 49 nominations in 2021; ICCO Awards 2021; MEPRA 2021; PRCA MENA Digital 2021; PRCA MENA Regional Awards 2022; Marketing Conference 2.0 Regional
Type of agency: Creative enquiries@tphddbsa.com
DDB is one of the world’s largest and most awarded advertising and marketing networks and part of the Omnicom Group.
SERVICES: Design, advertising
Type of Agency: Public relations/communications Founded: 1998 HQ: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia info@traccs.net
SERVICES: Advisory-based solutions, content, training:
Type of agency: Creative info@ttp.sa
SERVICES: Marketing, marketing strategy, branding, advertising, content creation, art direction
Type of agency: Creative info@ubrand.sa ubrand.sa
SERVICES: Advertising, digital marketing, social marketing, brand development, communication, content marketing, branding, media, media production, and events
Type of agency: Production Houses
Founded: 2010
Head of company: Kaswara Alkhatib Commercial@uturn.me
UTurn is a Saudi-born digital content production company shaping culture through bold, localised content with a deep focus on Gen Z audiences in Saudi Media.
SERVICES: Content creation, sponsored content, branded content, digital production
CLIENTS: Diriyah Season, Jeddah Season, Rabea Tea, E-Sports World Cup, Visa
Founded: 2021
Headquartered: Riyadh (MEA), NY (Global) tarek.khalil@vice.com
SERVICES: Content production, creative consultancy, cultural consultancy, editorial, experiential, production services
Type of agency: Media Founded: 2018 Head of company: Farshad Dabeshkhoy, MD apply@wise.blue
SERVICES: Advanced campaign management, autopilot, automation and verticalspecific solutions, custom reporting and advanced analytics, dynamic ads, A/B testing, creative features
CLIENTS: Gamers8 KSA, Asharq News in UAE, Coca Cola KSA, The Chefz KSA, Alinma Bank MENA, Jarir Bookstore KSA
Type of agency: Creative we@wetheloft.com
SERVICES: Strategy and direction, consultation, brand strategy, communication strategy, art direction
Type of agency: PR Founded: 1983 Saudi office: Riyadh ZHasbani@webershandwick.com
Weber Shandwick is a leading, full-service, integrated, global communications and marketing services agency that brings traditional communications into the digital age.
SERVICES: Corporate reputation; banking and financial services; consumer marketing; government communications; crisis and issues management
Type of agency: Production House Founded: 2009 Head of company: Paul Sabbagh info@wprod.tv
Wonderful Productions is a professional production house uniting local and international talents across various disciplines. We are dedicated to delivering unforgettable experiences, from production to the final result. Our vision is to elevate the production industry by blending top-tier talent with the best resources for flawless results.
SERVICES: TV commercials production, photography and film production services
CLIENTS: FP7 McCann Group, TBWA/Raad, Impact BBDO, Publicis Group, VML
Founded: 2013
Headquartered: Riyadh, KSA info@xelement.co
SERVICES: Advertising & communication, brand strategies & development, marketing consultancy, intergrated media solutions
Taha M. Azhari President
SKhaled Abou Sleiman Chief Executive Officer
audi Arabia isn’t just another Middle Eastern market; it’s the driving force behind the region’s transformation. Powered by Vision 2030, sweeping government investment, digital innovation, and a cultural awakening, the Kingdom is redefining how consumers engage with brands. Unlike other MENA markets, Saudi Arabia has a young, mobile-native population with increasing purchasing power and a strong appetite for global experiences that resonate locally, which necessitates a fresh, intentional approach.
Saudi Arabia stands apart in the MENA region with its young, hyper-connected population, rising disposable income, mobile-native, highly expressive, and driven by a deep sense of national pride and purpose which makes KSA market very culturally-specific, where generic regional strategies fall flat.
At Zamakan, we don’t view the Kingdom as part of a wider blueprint; we treat it as a world-class market with its own rhythm, values, and influence. Success here isn’t about localization; it’s about leading with cultural relevance.
Zamakan is a powerhouse. We move with agility; adapting to our clients’ needs through seamless integration, role alignment, and the amplification of both our in-house teams and theirs. We don’t just support; we partner
We are fully invested in our partners’ success. Through strategic insights, customized training, and fruitful collaborations, we help teams grow smarter. Because we believe that one size never fits all.
We tailor our approach and do things differently. We stand by our commitments, deliver measurable results, and open doors to new opportunities through data-informed decisions.
We are relevant. We are relentlessly curious. We transcend.
Misk Foundation
Saudi Motorsport Company
Red Sea International Film Festival
Future Investment Initiative Institute
“Marketers must embrace human-centric creativity & data-driven precision. It’s about understanding the moments that matter; what people are thinking, feeling, & doing”
Today, brand success is no longer measured by reach alone; it’s about resonance. Saudi consumers are digitally sophisticated and emotionally attuned. They expect brands to offer not just products, but relevance, meaning, and value. Marketers must embrace human-centric creativity and data-driven precision. It’s about understanding the moments that matter; what people are thinking, feeling, and doing, and using that insight to deliver purposeful, personalized engagement. For us, data isn’t just a tool; it’s the canvas for connection.
Over the next two years, Saudi Arabia’s marketing landscape will be transformed by the rise of culturally rooted content ecosystems. As Gen Z comes of age, they are demanding narratives that reflect their values, identity, and national voice. We will see more Arabic-first content, local creator partnerships, and campaigns built around purpose, sustainability, and belonging. Technology like AI and immersive experiences will enable scale; but storytelling will remain at the center.
The divide between brand and performance marketing is outdated. The most effective strategies align both. Performance drives action; but brand builds trust, memory, and long-term equity. At Zamakan, we build marketing ecosystems where every campaign delivers impact and meaning. Performance gets you noticed. Brand makes you unforgettable. In Saudi Arabia, relevance isn’t optional; it’s the benchmark.
By Khaled Abou Sleiman Chief
Executive
Officer - Zamakan
www.mms.net
