205 | Page UAE – Market Entry Handbook

Source: Agra CEAS based on Euromonitor International: Consumer Lifestyles, 2018 and UAE social media usage statistics
(2018), https://www.globalmediainsight.com/blog/uae-social-media-statistics/
Designed with Piktochart
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6.1.1.1 Social media platforms

As noted in section 3.3, the UAE had a social media penetration rate of 99%, the highest in the world
along with Qatar206207. Social media marketing is growing in importance, given that:
• In total 8.2 million of people use social medias;
• On average, people spend more than 2.5 hours a day on social medias; and,
• UAE consumers are very likely to turn to social media influencers for recommendations on
food, especially those aged between 18 and 40.

Therefore, it is essential that companies interested in the UAE market optimise their marketing
strategies across multiple platforms. The top social media platforms offer several opportunities to
advertise, as outlined below.

WhatsApp
With almost eight million active users in 2017, WhatsApp is the most popular social media platform
in the UAE. This instant messaging app does not allow companies to develop large-scale marketing
strategies, as it lacks commercial advertisements features for now. Nonetheless, one-to-one chats,
broadcast lists and groups can be successfully used to:
• Create a brand identity to interact with users and spread the word about brands;
• Offer one-on-one advice to inspire new uses of a product;
• Offer advice and service to high-value consumers.
It should be noted that, while a very popular messaging platform, the call functionality of WhatsApp
is blocked in the UAE.

Facebook, YouTube, Instagram

With around 7.8 million users in 2017, mostly English-speaker male users, and millennials, Facebook
is the second most popular social media platform in the UAE. YouTube, with 7.5 million users comes
next. Video-sharing platforms are very popular in the UAE, where the average young people aged
between 15 and 24 spend over one hour a day watching videos online. Although very popular,
YouTube faces the competition of Instagram, which has around five million users. The social network
is indeed increasingly being used by young people, especially teenagers208209.

Tips to advertise products on social networks: Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram

• Custom account/page: One way to enhance brand awareness on Facebook and Instagram is
to create an account/page specifically for the UAE, and post content in Arabic and/or
English. Instagram is particularly useful to highlight the visual identity of the brand, while
Facebook accounts enables interaction with the consumers including keeping them up to
date with companies’ news. A successful post on these social networks can increase traffic

206
Euromonitor International: Consumer Lifestyles, 2018
207
What’s driving Middle East’s rush to social media?, https://www.zdnet.com/article/whats-driving-middle-
easts-rush-to-social-media/
208
Euromonitor International: Consumer Lifestyles, 2018
209
Everything you need to know about social media and UAE consumers, https://itp.live/content/3359-what-
you-need-to-know-about-the-uae-and-its-social-media-consumption
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to the company’s website. In this respect, understanding the target consumers and what
best gain their attention is crucial.

• Paid advertising: Facebook and Instagram allow to start a paid campaign, which can be
personalised according to the final goal (e.g. attract new followers, send traffic to the
website), the audience, and the budget. The audience can be selected on the basis of several
criteria e.g. location, gender, interests etc.

• Influencers: working with

an influencer is key to
enhancing brand awareness
and penetrating a specific
target audience. On the
right an example of an
influencer’s Instagram paid
post advertising a European
cheese. Through native
speaking celebrities the
brand can indeed connect
more personally with target
users. Furthermore,
influencers’ advertising ensures more exposure through spreading the brand among their
followers. Influencers can be remunerated with a fee, or (mostly micro-influencers) with an
exclusive experience (e.g. a discount), and/or recognition (e.g. share their posts on the
company’s social media accounts). The link below identifies 15 food bloggers/social media
influencers in Dubai: https://www.grafdom.com/blog/top-15-food-bloggers-to-follow-in-
dubai-influencers/

6.1.1.2 Food blogs

Another successful strategy to promote a product in the UAE is to work with food bloggers to write a
promotional post on their blog. The tips indicated in section 6.1.1.1 are valuable also with regards to
food blogs. Popular food bloggers are also influencers who often cross over between written blogs
and social media platforms (as the link above demonstrates); therefore, working with them often
means the opportunity to expose the brands on several platforms.

6.1.2 Traditional Medias

Television
Television remains an important source of entertainment and news in the UAE, despite the growing
penetration of digital channels. Daily viewing has indeed increased between 2014 and 2016;
currently almost three quarters of Emiratis watches television every day. The UAE has more than 72
TV channels, including Dubai TV, Sharjah TV, MBC, and Al Arabiya, which are the most popular ones.
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Nonetheless, amongst the traditional media, the television is the least used for advertising purposes
in the UAE. 210

Print media
Self-censorship is dominant in print medias, and all publications are required to follow official
guidelines in order to be approved by the National Media Council. Nonetheless, the UAE have the
largest print media advertising expenditure in the whole Gulf region. Although readership is
declining (only one quarter of Emiratis reads newspapers every day), this channel still accounts for a
large share of advertising expenditure in the Emirati market. Newspapers are the leading print
media for marketing purposes. Among the most famous newspapers there are Gulf News (which is
very popular among expatriates, as it is in English), Khaleej Times, Al Khaleej, and Al Ittihad.

Radio
The UAE radio market is well developed, as the country has more than 40 stations, 14 of those
broadcast in Arabic and the remaining mostly in English, Hindu and Urdu. The main UAE radio
stations are indeed Abu Dhabi Media Company, Radio Asia, and Arabian Radio Network.

As UAE residents spend long time commuting and given that it is a major source of information for
Emiratis, radio offers an effective form of advertising. Radio is indeed very popular all around the
UAE, with over three quarters of the population listening to it daily for over four hours. On top of
that, radio has almost full penetration among the upper-income residents. For these reasons, radio
is the third most important traditional channel for advertising in the UAE, beaten only by outdoor
and print advertising211.

6.1.3 E-commerce

With the majority of the UAE population based in urban areas, more than 90% of the population
having access to the internet (8.8 million users), and the highest smartphone penetration in the
world (74%), the UAE online shopping market presents an enormous potential. This potential was
largely untapped until 2017, when some of the world’s largest players – including Amazon - entered
the market. Online shopping accounts for a relatively low share of retail activity in the UAE and the
wider region (compared to advanced western countries or Japan and South Korea), but the situation
is rapidly evolving. Some analysts expect the UAE e-commerce market to quadruple in a few years to
reach a value of USD$ 10 billion (from USD 2.5 billion in 2015). 212 Food and beverage sales online
have steadily continued to grow, with high quality items leading the demand. Nonetheless, some of
the persisting obstacles to online shopping include the preference for mall shopping, paying in cash
rather than by credit card, and fear of fraud.

210
Santandertrade Report: Reaching the UAE consumer, https://en.portal.santandertrade.com/analyse-
markets/united-arab-emirates/reaching-the-consumers
211
The reach of radio is growing among UAE population, https://www.nielsen.com/ae/en/press-
room/2018/the-reach-of-radio-is-growing-among-uae-population.html
212
US Export.gov Guide: UAE – eCommerce, https://www.export.gov/article?id=United-Arab-Emirates-
ECommerce
209 | Page UAE – Market Entry Handbook

As it currently stands, the two major e-commerce platforms are Moon and Amazon; both entered
the UAE market in 2017. Amazon has bought Souq.com, the first major online platform in the UAE.
Other notable digital retailers, include Mumzworld, Namshi, Awok, and Wadi.

InstaShop 213 remains the most popular digital application for online food shopping. Furthermore, in
2017 some major offline retailers e.g. Carrefour and Mall of Emirates (both operated by the
conglomerate MAF) launched online sales platforms; while Lulu Hypermarkets launched
Luluwebstore offering online grocery deliveries in Abu Dhabi. Other retailers with online platforms
include Choihrams, Trolley, Grocery online, SOUQ Planet, and Géant Online. The growing interest of
traditional retailers to move into the online food sales market is considered a sign that conventional
shopping methods are coming under pressure by emerging consumer demand for the convenience
to buy food online.

6.1.4 Fairs and exhibitions

In addition to the digital approach, some companies decide to advertise their products on various
trade fairs, which presence on the UAE market is constantly growing. Most of them are endorsed by
governmental ministries and agencies, or other bodies. Exhibitions constitute a promising
opportunity to develop better brand recognition and initiate market interest. However, as some
exhibitions might only reach local audience, it is advisable to research the exhibition’s profile in
advance. On the other hand, some of them might create synergies when accompanied by an online
presence. It is also worth remembering that participation costs are usually directly proportional to
the rank of the exhibition and its scope.

A list of upcoming exhibitions is included in an annex to this document, and further lists may be
found online on websites such as:
• https://10times.com/unitedarabemirates/food-beverage
• https://www.tradefairdates.com/Fairs-UAE-Z2-S1.html
• https://www.guide2dubai.com/events/food/13

6.1.5 Case study: A successful F&B campaign in the UAE

The brand Neuhaus digital strategy is focused on quality and customisation and is based on an
extensive use of visuals (especially catchy images and colours, as well as videos). As illustrated by
images below, Neuhaus is present on the all mainstream social networks, with customised UAE
pages/accounts in English (since the brand’s targets are both Emiratis and expatriates).

213
https://instashop.ae/
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The brand effectively uses social media channels to showcase the customised products which have
been developed for the UAE market. These include, for example, Ramadan and Eid gifts, as images
below show, as well as Easter and Christmas boxes intended for Christian expatriates, among others.

6.2 Advertising regulations

The organisations regulating advertising in the UAE are the International Advertising Association –
UAE Chapter, the National Media Council as well as the Ministry of Health and Prevention.