What do Esports, LinkedIn and Saudi Arabia have in common?
They were all topics of discussion at ITP Live’s annual influencer marketing Summit last week. The day was jam-packed with panel talks on everything from “Gaming Industry Takeover” to “How To Reach The Saudi Audience.”
Brand reps, marketers and influencers gathered at the Address Dubai Mall, to hear expert panelists like Christo van Wyk (Regional Director at Meltwater) and Matthew Sliedrecht (Marketing Director at Cleartrip) share their insights on the best practices, when it comes to running data-driven influencer marketing campaigns (“What To Do With All This Data”).
Sara Abu Zahra from Facebook’s Strategic Media Partnerships team talked “What’s New At Facebook”, while LinkedIn influencers dished out tips on making the most of the networking platform for professionals on “Mastering LinkedIn: Best Practices for Brands and Influencers”.
The day concluded with a very insightful panel talk on reaching the Saudi audience, with YouTube content creator Fahad Sal (@mrfahadsal) stressing the importance of creating content specifically for the Saudi audience when attempting to tap into that market via a publisher, influencer or content creator’s channels.
“With the Saudis, you really have to resonate with them, especially in terms of your custom, the way you speak, your family name. Something that makes them feel like ‘Wow, this guy represents us,’” he said.
Sounds like a no brainer, right? In the past, this wasn’t always the case.
Shafika Houcine, Head of Digital Experience at OSN, made it clear it’s important to produce content specifically for the region if a brand, marketer or content creator wants their message to resonate with the Saudi audience.
“We have to have originals from this part of the world. We have to create content from MENA, for MENA and to create content from Saudi, for Saudi,” she said.
One of the most interesting takeaways of the day? The world of gaming influencers and esports is taking the world by storm, including the influencer marketing industry.
According to Habib Chams, Founder and Manager of Digital Games Conference Dubai, the global gaming industry is valued at $137 billion. Fans are more invested than ever before in their favorite games and gaming influencers. He shared this information with attendees on the “Gaming Takeover Panel” at the beginning of the Summit.
ITP Live Influencer and gaming content creator Ahmed Al-Nasheet (@DVLZGame) pointed out many fans and players become emotionally invested in their favorite games, in the same manner fans of a television show become invested in the series. This is why many gaming influencers and content creators have very high rates of engagement on their social channels.
“I think the whole concept of gaming, if you don’t understand it, is like a movie and you’re the star,” Amr Nassouhy (@nsoo7y), another gaming influencer, said during the panel discussion. “Every single person who plays the game is the movie star.”
Or every single person who watches their favorite influencers play from the comforts of their smartphone.
Overall, ITP Live’s Summit made it clear that there are plenty of untouched avenues and underutilized methods when tapping into a target audience with the power of influencer marketing.
A special thank you to all our moderators, panelists and speakers for participating and sharing their insights. And thank you to the Address Dubai Mall (@adhdubaimall) for hosting our Summit.
Were you able to attend ITP Live’s Summit? What are your thoughts on the day? Let us know in the comments below.