JEDDAH: As direct marketing is rapidly evolving, with consumers exerting more control over how they are targeted, an international expert says he looks forward to helping shape the scenario so that people feel like they are receiving relevant and valuable communications as well as protection from identity theft or other misuses.
“The Middle East North Africa (MENA) region is a strategic investment area in this context,” John Meyer, CEO and president of US-based Acxiom, told the media during a tour of the newly opened Acxiom MENA office here over the weekend.
Meyer who is participating in a panel discussion at the Global Competitiveness Forum 2010 during its run from Jan. 23 to 26 in Riyadh, said the secret of success for any corporate house could be a consultative approach in consumer data and analytics, IT, data integration and strategy formulation solutions for effective marketing across digital, the Internet, email, mobile and direct mail channels.
As many as 100 global figures including politicians, business leaders, statesmen and company executives are attending the fourth GCF 2010 organized with the support of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah. The Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority is organizing the forum under the ‘Sustained Competitiveness’ theme, which is aimed at focusing on raising the standard of economic competitiveness through playing an active role in accelerating global economic growth.
Speaking on communication, Meyer will deal with changing the rules of the game and address some of the issues like why large companies are finally starting to use new tools to serve their customers and whether they are successful, how is content creation changing to attract a global audience, how is that content localized, how does new content influence communication channels and vice versa, and what are creative ways that companies use communication to sustain their competitive advantage.
In September 2009, Acxiom Corporation expanded to the MENA market through the acquisition of Direct Marketing Services (DMS) in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, creating acxiom MENA. The new Acxiom MENA organization, led by CEO Yousef Hamidaddin and President Alaa Al-Shroogi, are geared to serve global and regional clients from offices in Jeddah and Dubai. “Operating under the Acxiom umbrella will significantly empower the new company’s capabilities, extending the scope and sophistication for its offering across MENA,” Meyer added.
