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Huda Kattan & Taim Al Falasi among UAE's top ten beauty, grooming and lifestyle influencers
Leading global luxury and lifestyle communications network, SERMO, has launched its third annual Influencer Index – its analysis of the top digital influencers and rising stars in its 18 markets worldwide. The Index is designed to help clients keep on top of the ever-growing influencer talent pool - 79% of brand decision makers cite identifying the right influencers to work with as their biggest challenge.
The Index lists a global top 18 which, along with the top 10 lists from each market, when connected by SERMO’s partner agencies, comprise the new global media. Vlogger and media personality, Taim Al Falasi was among the global top 18 list for luxury lifestyle influencers and is one of the top 10 luxury lifestyle influencers in the UAE. Taim was also named by Arab business magazine as one of the most powerful women in the region and twice the world’s most influential young Arab.
This years’ Index also includes a dedicated section on beauty and grooming influencers – an industry that’s led the way in influencer marketing and which continues to innovate. According to Euromonitor International (EMI), consumers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia spent $6.85 billion on beauty and personal care in 2015. In the UAE that equates to $247 per capita spent on cosmetics and personal care, more than any other country in the Middle East and ninth worldwide.
As the beauty industry continues to thrive, owing most of its success to social media, beauty influencers in the UAE have managed and continue to create content that satisfies and benefits their followers. No stranger to the beauty world, Huda Kattan is among the global top 18 beauty and grooming influencers and one of the top 10 beauty and grooming influencers in the UAE. As her empire continues to grow globally so does her credibility as the world’s top beauty influencer.
Tanya Hughes, president of SERMO Communications, comments “Global clients come to us for ‘global’ media coverage, but there’s really no such thing as truly global media. Even the major publishing houses can’t press a button for global reach. Together, we believe these influencers constitute the new global media - they’re more flexible and trans-border than traditional media. And when connected via our network partners can create global online reach for brands that delivers real business impact. Our service at the same time, helps influencers grow their global profile.”
“The SERMO Influencer Index gives us a deep understanding of the rising power of these social media influencers in a digital-first media reality. Charting the evolution of the UAE’s top luxury lifestyle and beauty influencers over the last three years, and benchmarking their performance across our 18 SERMO markets, reveals how these digital tastemakers are now shaping rather than following industry trends. The rate at which the sector is maturing and the increasing dominance of these influencers on the purchasing decisions of consumers presents exciting opportunities for brands,” said Louise Mezzina, partner of Mojo PR.
The 2017 Index updates the network’s global and local rankings of influencers using its unique 70:30 digital influence algorithm - 70% data (an influencer’s total audience reach) + 30% human judgement (a score based on SERMO agencies’ experiences of the influencers’ professionalism, creativity and peer influence). SERMO partners use the same algorithm when designing bespoke influencer marketing campaigns for clients at both local and global levels. This year, SERMO has partnered with influencer relationship management technology provider, Traackr, on the data element of the Index.
The 2017 Index includes:
· Seven key trends in influencer marketing – including the dominance of Instagram, the rise of ‘travelling’ influencers, male influencers embracing the growing grooming market, and the backlash from a new breed of sarcastic influencers from China.
· A closer look at beauty and grooming influencers around the world and highlights the ways in which beauty brands are innovating and why they’re the sector to watch in influencer marketing
SERMO’s top 10 list of Luxury Lifestyle Influencers in the UAE
Taim Al Falasi
Mahmoud Sidani
Karen Wazen Bakhazi
Emkwan Mo Khan
Nadya Hassan
Ahmad Daabas
Tamara Al Gabbani
Elias El-Indari
Michelle Karam
Dana Hourani
SERMO’s top 10 list of Beauty and Grooming Influencers in the UAE
Huda Kattan
Laura Farrant
Joelle Mardinian
Al Reem Saif
Mona Kattan
Najla Kaddour
Sheida Babareza
Mariam Rod
Mohammed Hindash
Eljammi Gozalli
As influencers come and go, it is important to note who are the next big players in the UAE’s digital world. The report identified two rising stars in the luxury lifestyle space, Anum Bashir and Dee Mohamud, while in the beauty and grooming space Dina Sharif and Archana Nair are fast becoming the ones to watch in the region.
To download a copy of The 2017 SERMO Influencer Index, click here.
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About SERMO
Clients in the fashion, beauty, luxury and lifestyle sectors value the connections, creativity and attention to detail that local boutique consultancies deliver. But they also want a global, strategic perspective and the thought leadership that traditionally resides with major, one-size-fits-all networks.
SERMO, the first ever international lifestyle and luxury communications network, offers clients the best of both worlds. Founded by Talk PR in 2009, the network is now made up of 17 independent boutique communications consultancies, with offices in 22 cities across 18 countries, over 500 staff and over £32million fee income.
Clients get a strategically sound plan that will seamlessly travel the globe plus local implementation by the most well-connected local agencies.
Whether it’s a short term tactical project to deliver high impact editorial and social media engagement or a longer term full service strategy, SERMO will tailor the right service for your international communications needs, to deliver inspiring brand-building campaigns that resonate in each local market.
This is why SERMO’s members are the trusted partners of some of the world’s leading luxury and premium lifestyle brands.
© Press Release 2017
