In a world where digital is evolving very quickly, brands can do with all the help they can get. The situation may be truer for larger brands that cannot move as fast largely owing to their size. Asad ur Rehman, Director – Media, Middle East & North Africa, Unilever reminds that in all the noise, it is important to remember that digital is means to an end. “The shift in digital has created conduits for newer ways of doing things and brands must develop the capabilities to leverage these. Mass media had once made brands famous. The conversations today are more targeted and personal, and brands must be able to look at data-led insights coming from digital channels,” he explained.
One form of the newer digital channels that was discussed at the forum was influencer outreach. Quoting the example of Edward Bernays, who by some is considered as the father of modern PR, Mr Rehman reflected that the concept of Influencers was not new to advertising. He said, “PR relies on someone else speaking on behalf of the brand. Influencers are content creators in today’s world that communicate directly to consumers, cutting down middleman, amassing audiences akin to media houses. History has proven the impact that influencers can have when they do things right.”
Digital has put pressure for everyone to change and it is manifested in different ways. To address the quick evolution in the space, Michel Malkoun, COO, DMS – Choueiri Group drew attention to some of the steps that the company is doing to address the new age. “One of our first steps was aggregating publishers to gain scale, and compete in the big game of digital. We turned our focus to premium content as brands began creating stories. We have also invested heavily in our technology stack, building programmatic power,” Mr Malkoun pointed out.
DMS is among the lead players in the data space, arguably bringing together the biggest data pool in the region given its format of aggregating publishers. This has also allowed the company to focus on branded content significantly, and offer programmatic services in the marketplace.
“Relevant messaging to the right audience at the right time for the right price has become much more critical today, as brands are looking for more from less. The more a message achieves these, the healthier will be the metrics of the campaign,” Mr Malkoun said.
Data analytics and insight were perhaps one of the most important areas for both industry leaders as they admitted that digital had become too fragmented to pinpoint a clear direction on what path brands must take. However, as companies began to better understand data, solutions led from it, including programmatic too could play a role in being creative and building a brand.
Mr Rehman and Mr Malkoun were speaking at the ongoing Step Conference 2016 in Dubai, in a session hosted by Mamta Varerkar, Digital Director, Tonic International.
