ABU DHABI: Media companies could look forward to a dynamic future in the Middle East and North Africa if they addressed industry regional challenges, conference delegates in the UAE were told.
Speaking on Wednesday at the Global Media Congress in Abu Dhabi, CEO and chairman of Choueiri Group, Pierre Choueiri, highlighted the untapped growth prospects in the MENA region for the media and advertising sector.
He pointed out the unique challenges faced by the region and the crucial role content and data could play in steering the industry toward success.
He told Arab News that events such as the GMC were vital in offering the chance to “talk about the problems and to try to solve them and to keep it always as a hot subject.”
He said that over the last decade, the media and advertising sector had expanded rapidly in the MENA region, positioning it as one of the world’s most attractive business growth hubs.
However, Choueiri noted that the sector had yet to reach its full potential, citing factors such as underutilized data analysis, and recommended tailored communication strategies for youth, in a region where 70 percent of the population was aged below 30.
He added that “content is king” and must align with platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook, to speak the language of young people.
He highlighted the brief attention span of the young generation, with the first five to six seconds of content being critical for engagement.
Choueiri said: ‘If you have the right content, it means that you’re capturing your audience, and that content should talk the language of that audience.”
To determine the unique selling point of MENA content, he pointed out the importance of research, urging firms to invest time and resources in understanding consumer behavior and aspirations through data.
“We need research and that is super important because from the data you will know the consumer research, consumer behavior, consumer aspirations.
“From the data you will be able to know what the audience would like to consume, and how they would like to consume it,” he added.
Choueiri said his company had worked for 16 years with Saudi media conglomerate MBC, a “beautiful journey” that ended in 2021.
He added that his media group was actively engaged with key partners and undergoing a comprehensive transformation which involved adapting to the digital age and continually evolving to stay abreast of technological advancements.
