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The social network
Influence is a funny thing. Once upon a time it could be traced to charismatic leaders delivering impassioned speeches. Today it is an ideal waged on an entirely new front, by keyboard warriors from behind smartphones or computer screens, where a tweet can topple business empires and an a selfie crash the internet. Chosen with the help of HTC – digital pioneers in their own right – Esquire meets some of the UAE’s most influential internet types, the online trailblazers responsible for hauling the UAE into a new world of web-based awareness, one hashtag at a time.
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HISHAM WYNE
MC and digital content specialist. Hosts local comedy night, One Night Standup hishamwyne.com Twitter: @HishamWyne/ 4,500 + followers
I try to avoid the jargon of digital. It encompasses too many things. The idea of digital is having a conversation. The tools have changed, the immediacy has changed, but the essence of marke
JOE AKKAWI
Founder of PAZ Marketing, Sky News Arabia tech pundit and digital marketer joernals.com Twitter:@JoeAkkawi/ 3,200+ followers
There’s a massive demand for Arabic content online now. In general, there’s a big global boom, but particularly for the Arabic language. Saudi Arabia is a big reason for this; they have the number one Twitter penetration globally, so along with their YouTube consumption, they’re dominating two of the largest platforms. Everyone is now very aware of where they need to be, but we haven’t yet established the what and the how. While demand is high here, there’s still a lot more for people to understand as far as digital is concerned. Facebook has recently expanded its office in Dubai, from two people to 18. So they’re finally seeing the interest here. Hearing ‘I know you from Twitter’ is a good selling point, people realise what you’re about before they meet you, so remember to be careful what you say on there. The quality of bloggers in the region depends on the industry. There are spheres which haven’t peaked yet; the automotive one being a good example. There are no car bloggers out here, but if I say “Name me a fashion or a tech blog” you’d give me a few straight away. The tech blogging scene has become a community. It’s still grounded, they really love the products, but they might not even reply to an email unless you pay them – I think that’s ridiculous. But you have the real product reviewers and then you have the ‘bag collectors’, who go to an event just for a nice freebie. The rulers of Dubai have invested a lot in digital. They drive every initiative online so everyone becomes aware. What HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum has done with #mydubai is phenomenal. His Instagram is his personal life, not about power. He relates to everyone.
FARRUKH NAEEM
Social Media strategist and tech blogger. FarrukhNaeem.com. Twitter: @farrukhnaeem/14,000+ followers.
I’m one of the first advertising bloggers. There was a time in the early 2000s when people weren’t aware of the creative campaigns that were being one in the region, so I wanted to bring all these to their attention. My website became a hub for creative directors, sourcing talent and people from all over the world. One of the first comments I received was from someone in America, asking what was required to
be a creative in the advertising industry here. That really set the tone, as I saw that people really wanted information about the creative and marketing scene in the Middle East, and how they could join it. I never thought of using my blog for money. But when I went independent, the market already knew me as an authority on advertising and copywriting. On a good month I was getting an enquiry a day, asking: “Could you do our writing for us?” Whatever Google or banner advertisements would have paid me, a single phone call asking me to do a website or brochure advertisement paid me thousands. It was a business tool for me, but felt more like writing a book. My tech blog is solely my opinion. I started working independently as a consultant, and then I launched this other website that built my personal brand. There are some faker bloggers out there who want to make money and become famous, but they can’t survive for long because users look for a neutral opinion that they can trust. Most people that I know start blogs out of passion. Money only comes later for them. “Which platform should I be using?” is a question that a lot of people have now. As a consultant I teach businesses about which medium is right for them. Don’t be on everything just because it exists. If you’re very visual, then Instagram would work for you. If you’re good at punchy messages, then choose Twitter. A lot of brands are overwhelmed by social media. They see what everyone is doing and feel they need to do it as well. But the way people consume content on different platforms is different. Most big news breaks on Twitter, and it doesn’t have the algorithm that Facebook has. Facebook decides what you see on your news feed, Twitter doesn’t. But there aren’t enough consultants like me to tell clients what they don’t need to do.
ASHRAF GHORI
CEO at Xpanse CGI, award-winning artist and filmmaker ashrafghori.com Twitter: @AshrafGhori/ 97,700+ followers
I’m an artist first. I started off with illustration work and do a lot of comic book stuff. I created the first CGI science fiction film in the UAE, called Xero Error. The ‘Twitterati’ of the UAE has become quite a close knit group. Twitter is where I met a lot of genuine people, as opposed to other platforms which weren’t as engaging as far as I was concerned. My involvement in social media is divided in two. For my professional work it’s Xpanse CGI. We’re a digital creative agency working behind a lot of brands. We do their websites, animated intros and so on. The other half is personal. I engage with my Twitter followers at east once a day. I usually tweet about art and stuff – anything to do with the geek culture, such as comics, games and movies. Online tutorials are really popular. You get lots of engagement, and people make a point to thank me on mine, which is really nice. Twitter is everybody’s calling card now. If you’re not there, you’re missing out. Look at the brands who’ve jumped on to Twitter, there’s a really viable social media connection happening. A lot of brands used to just focus on their websites, then some of them just focused on Facebook. Now it’s balanced out a bit. Choosing the right platform to sell yourself depends on your business. Naturally, Facebook is a great vertical, but it can be a bit faceless from an engagement point of view. I think it pays to have an all-encompassing grasp of social media. For me though, you have the best tools to reach the right audience on Twitter.
EMKWAN
Tech and lifestyle video blogger, UAE’s top English language vlogger youtube.com/avorahtv/youtube.com/emkwantv Twitter: @emkwan / 25,000+ followers
My YouTube career began in the UK, and I bought those fans with me here. One of my channels is related to technology and lifestyle, we call it The Geek Lifestyle, and the other channel is a personal, video diary. EMKWAN is a pseudonym. I spent two months researching how I was going to present myself before I put up my first video, a BlackBerry piece. Two weeks later BlackBerry asked if they could use the video and send me some phones. I got into social media properly through a family business. We had shareholders of a particular age and they wanted me to demonstrate how social media could work. That was in 2010, back when YouTube was all cat videos and Facebook was just used for wasting time. YouTube is consumed more in Saudi Arabia than anywhere else, so I think it’s the most emerging digital platform in the region. Instagram is also crazy for both for the local and expat market. The engagement level is through the roof. Other video bloggers are riskier than me with content. It’s not always family friendly stuff. I want to position myself as a serious contender, but I want to be known as someone who provides content relevant to locals as well expats. Embracing the digital world here takes time. Of course, the region is lagging behind the UK and US from an online standpoint, but what the UAE government has done to push things towards digital is commendable. I wouldn’t be surprised that when we do catch up, we surpass the UK and America in terms of digital engagement.
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