JEDDAH, 27 May — Advertisers and advertising agencies ought to exercise self-restraint while preparing their ads, both in design and content, a top industry expert has said.

“If professionals in the ad world become more conscious of their role and responsibility, and confine themselves to the ‘limits’ taking into consideration the local traditions and culture, there may be no need for any guidelines or regulations,” Talal Dhulaymi, chairman of the Gulf Cooperative Council Advertising Association (GCCAA), told a press conference here yesterday.

“In fact, self-regulation can be the best guide for the industry. Lately, there have been some attempts to stretch the limits by industry professionals,” he added.

The press conference was called to announce a twin event on media and corporate promotion, and banking and investment, which will be inaugurated by Jeddah Governor Prince Misha’al at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s International Exhibition and Convention Center here tomorrow.

The four-day event includes One to One Arabia — Saudi Arabia’s 2nd international exhibition and symposium for media broadcasting, corporation promotion and support services — held concurrently with Saudi Banking and Investment, the Kingdom’s first international exhibition and symposium for banking, investment, insurance and financial services. Al-Harithy Co. for Exhibitions Ltd. is the organizers of the event.

Dhulaymi said the Kingdom had a 50 to 55 percent share of the $1 billion pan-Arab advertising market. Satellite channels take away 70 percent of the market while Jeddah and the rest of the Western Province accounted for the major share of the Kingdom’s advertising business.  “Advertising on satellite channels has not affected the volume in the print and other media so far. However, with advertisers increasingly inclined toward the satellite media, it looks that revenues of magazines may be affected in the long run, but not of newspapers,” said Dhulaymi who is also the group chairman of Promoaction DDB.

According to Dhulaymi, although international ad agencies have been in the forefront in advertising, the scene in the Kingdom is changing, especially in the past five years when a number of tie-ups with local companies have come up. Some enterprising Saudis have even started their own ad agencies.

“Creativity in ads is no longer an imported matter. A new wave of dynamism is sweeping the market with the industry preparing to face the challenges of the future in the context of privatization and prospective World Trade Organization (WTO) membership. This gives scope for more tie-ups and joint ventures,” he said.

He endorsed the view that the Kingdom’s advertising business remained mostly with non-Saudis, especially the Lebanese, who played a pioneering role in the field since the late seventies.

Said Haidar, managing director of ACE UK Ltd., said the opening of the twin event will be preceded by the presentation of Sword Awards, established by the Saudi Research and Publishing Company, for promoting innovation in advertising at the JCCI today.

One to One Arabia, held with the support of Saudi National Advertising Committee and GCCAA, will showcase the latest developments and technologies the industry has to offer and is a “unique opportunity” for professionals in the Gulf media and communications market,saidHaidar.

In a three-session per day format, day one of the symposium covers interactive technology, online advertising and content and below the line promotion, while day two is devoted to direct marketing, integrated PR and optimizing media planning tools. Speakers include Dr. Badr El Badr of Al Alamiah Net, Dr. Sayed Irfan Ahmad of Yahoo and Hassane Saleh of Tihama Promotional Items.

The Saudi Banking and Investment 2001, held with the support of Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority, is directed at answering the many questions facing the industry.

Among the overseas participants is the UK’s fifth largest high street bank, Abbey National. “This is all part of our strategy of taking the bank to our customers,” said Mike Brighton, Abbey National Offshore’s general manager, Dubai Representative Office. “The show suits the profile of a number of Abbey National’s market-leading products and gives us a unique opportunity to network, face-to-face with residents in the Kingdom,” he added.