1,410 UAE consumers were surveyed for the event revealing important online trends

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 2nd of June 2009: Google hosted a day for the top agencies in UAE, in an initiative to point businesses to the hotspots in online media. The event consisted of a two day session, attended by Google's AdWords team in UAE and over 100 digital media specialists representing the leading local and multinational advertising agencies.

Google brought the UAEs agencies together to help them understand consumer behaviour on the Internet and how they can make use of the tools the web has to offer to reach new audiences. 

The sessions focused on the importance of helping business get online through online advertising highlighting Search engine optimization (SEO), the strength of keywords, how AdWords works, content-targeted advertising, campaign setups and visitors attraction.

"Our objective is to provide agencies with tips and advice to help them push their clients online in this financial crisis" said Husni Khuffash, Google's Business Development Manager in the UAE. "Online means better and more relevant audience reach, lower costs and higher ROI. The region has much to learn when it comes to online marketing and we believe this is the perfect time to initiate the transition to the digital age".

In preparation for the Agency Day, Google surveyed 1,410 consumers in UAE about their purchasing behavior, and was able to build an accurate picture of online/offline research/purchase segmentation, use of search engines and attitudes to online shopping in UAE in 2009.

The data gathered from the survey was revealed to the agencies as part of the training, aiming to stress on the importance of getting online. The results reflected the increasing sophistication of consumers in purchasing behaviors and the need for businesses to update their online presence to capture this market.

The internet enables companies to market themselves to their potential customers in a way that is flexible, targeted and cost-effective.  There is a lot of potential for the web in the region as the Middle East and North Africa saw the fastest growth in Internet users in the world between 2000 and 2007 - over 1000%. From 2007 to 2008 alone, the number of Internet users rose by 44%. 

The main highlights from the UAE report are:

  • More than 69% of respondents have bought something online.

  • Amongst UAE residents, the Internet is the 'information tool' used most often when researching possible purchases across a range of categories including digital cameras/camcorders, mobile phones, cars as well as hotel reservations.

  • Search engines are the most used source of online research information (81% of respondents). Manufacturer websites (49%), Directories and local listings (27%), retailer websites (26%), and online auction websites (25%) are also very popular.

  • Search engines are used most for research in relation to technology (67%) and travel (48%) products.

  • Google is the preferred search engine in the UAE with (58% preferring google.com and 38% preferring google.ae)

  • In general, as a mean average across the 20 products listed in the survey, 11% of all product purchases were researched and purchased online; 28% were researched online but purchased offline; 5% were researched offline but purchased online; and 56% were researched and purchased offline.

  • Credit/debit cards (64% of respondents) are the most common payment method when making online purchases

  • 74% of the UAE online users notice sponsored links, and of those who do notice them 7% almost always, 6% regularly, 45% sometimes and 22% seldomly click on them.

  • While one third of UAE respondents say the current economic crisis has not changed their shopping habits, an almost equal proportion say the recent financial turmoil has led to less of their shopping being done online. This may be related to the fact that many of their online purchases may have fallen more into the 'non-essential/leisure' categories (i.e. travel and event tickets) which people choose to cut out during difficult economic times.

  • In the UAE, English (76% of respondents) is by far the most popular 'search' language (likely to be related to the highly multinational nature of UAE society) vs. 23% preferring to search in Arabic.

-Ends-

About Google Inc.
Google's innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top web property in all major global markets. Google's targeted advertising program provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit www.google.com.

For further details about the research or the agency day please contact:
Mohammad Zaher
Consultant
Impact Porter Novelli, for Google
m.souleiman@ipn.ae
+971 50 7400474
+971 40 330 4030

Joanne Kubba
Google
Global Communications and Public Affairs Manager,
Middle East and North Africa
Jkubba@google.com

© Press Release 2009