Marketing professionals are unanimous that the single most important challenge they face in executing their strategies is identifying the right platforms that effectively reach out to the intended audience for active customer engagement.
Emaar Retail LLC, the premium leisure and entertainment provider in the region, is setting in motion a new trend in marketing, whereby the focus is not only on offering viable platforms that can help tailor the intended messaging but also in promoting long-term customer engagement for the partner brands.
The marketing platforms offered by Emaar Retail have the distinct advantage of being associated with globally renowned and iconic attractions, and cover the broad spectrum of branding requirements. These include mega display walls to maximise ‘eyeball marketing’ as well as unique customer engagement opportunities.
In the past 24 months, Emaar Retail, through its leisure and entertainment components in The Dubai Mall and Dubai Marina Mall, has built a strong partnership network of global and regional corporates and institutions.
Having hosted more than 6.5 million visitors at its leisure destinations, Emaar Retail has already joined hands with leading regional organisations and global brands such as Emirates, Samsung, Coca Cola, General Motors, Emirates NBD, P&G, ENOC, Standard Chartered, du and Visa, among other Top 100 global brands.
Emaar Retail is offering brand building and marketing opportunities for its partners primarily through KidZania®, the first and only one of its kind, award-winning children’s edutainment centre in the region. Over 40 of the world’s leading brands and the region’s premier organizations have partnered with KidZania® leveraging the outreach potential it offers. Businesses can also draw on the marketing potential offered by SEGA Republic, the largest of its kind indoor theme park; Reel Cinemas, the premier megaplex; Dubai Ice Rink, the Olympic sized ice rink and Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo.
“In today’s dynamic and fast-changing market environment, it is imperative for businesses to effectively diversify their marketing channels and identify opportunities that assure outreach to a definitive audience,” says Mr Arif Amiri, Chief Executive Officer, Emaar Retail LLC. “As a key business hub in the region, Dubai is also at the forefront of innovative marketing initiatives, and Emaar Retail is scaling up the opportunities through a very innovative approach where the focus is long-term customer engagement.”
“Emaar Retail’s diverse leisure and entertainment components at The Dubai Mall and Dubai Marina Mall are perfect vehicles for further strengthening brand building strategy by offering the unique and unprecedented opportunity to connect with thousands of customers,” adds Mr Amiri.
“Welcoming more than 40 million visitors in its first year of operation, The Dubai Mall, for example, offers the best platform for ‘eyeball marketing’ and effective customer outreach through tailored programmes. For the partners, the association is even more prestigious as they are being part of an iconic destination frequented and talked about by visitors from all over the world.”
Mr Amiri says that the leisure and entertainment portfolio of Emaar Retail has created definite niches in the market already, and serves as powerful and unique marketing platforms that are unprecedented in the region. “The various components of Emaar Retail appeal to distinctive audiences – from children to adults – thus giving businesses the opportunity to tailor their messaging for specific audiences. Most importantly, we create a truly global playing field – where our marketing platforms have a global resonance that matches the requirements of our partners.”
Emirates NBD, the region’s leading financial organisation, for example, utilises the opportunity offered by Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo at The Dubai Mall – which attracted more than 1 million paid visitors in less than six months of its opening. Emirates NBD strengthened its branding through large displays at the white wall at Dubai Aquarium in addition to offering the bank’s cardholders several exclusive discounts for the Aquarium’s walkthrough tunnel experience.
In another key partnership, Emaar Retail has joined hands with global financial major Standard Chartered Bank to offer an extensive range of initiatives for the Bank’s customers at Dubai Ice Rink and Reel Cinemas in The Dubai Mall. The bank’s brand promise, ‘Here for good,’ is displayed on the Middle East’s largest indoor advertising board measuring 64m x 20m on the wall at Dubai Ice Rink.
Standard Chartered has also adopted one of the Platinum Movie Suites at Reel Cinemas and hosts free weekly screenings for many of its Priority and SME customers. Several lifestyle initiatives have been rolled out at Dubai Ice Rink, including discounts for the bank’s credit and debit cardholders.
Emaar Retail’s KidZania® has specifically been partnering with leading Dubai-based brands, offering an unprecedented opportunity for businesses to engage with children. Leading brands have tied-up with the children’s edutainment centre through tailored activities that are in line with the professional role-plays.
“Emaar Retail’s leisure and entertainment experiences host several thousand visitors every day, making them among the most popular destinations in the region,” says Mr Amiri. “Brand building is not only about visibility but also about reaching the right audience through the right channel in the right manner. Emaar Retail’s leisure and entertainment portfolio fits business needs, and is the newest trendsetting medium for successful marketing outreach.”
