Business & Money | Tuesday 3 October, 2017 6:49 am |

Brands in the Middle East and North Africa will soon have access to a full suite of data-driven influencer marketing solutions in the region as TRACCS, one of the largest PR networks in the region, and Open Influence, one of the leading influencer marketing firms headquartered in Los Angeles, join hands to launch ‘Open Influence MENA’ by early 2018.

 

‘Open Influence MENA’ combines TRACCS’ industry-leading communication capabilities, and Open Influence’s proprietary technology platform and global expertise to unlock real-time insights to help clients maximize ROI of their influencer strategies, by allowing them to make calculated and informed decisions. TRACCS and Open Influence have already commenced collaborative work for existing regional clientele, as both organizations gear up for the formal partnership announcement by the beginning of next year.

 

TRACCS’ diverse portfolio of clients, which the network serves from its 14 offices and affiliates across the region, will benefit from Open Influence’s extensive global footprint that includes dedicated offices in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, London, Milan and Hong Kong, as well as its proven track record in delivering highly creative and engaging content.

 

Mohamed Al Ayed, President and CEO, TRACCS, said: “As a leading, home-grown PR network, it is imperative that we have our finger on the pulse at all times, and it is our responsibility to continuously provide industry benchmarking services, solutions and consultancy. Several industries across the world, by choice or compulsion, have adopted a knowledge and insights-driven approach to strategic decision making. TRACCS has always been recognized and acclaimed for deploying research-driven strategies and tactics for clients, who have increasingly been looking to us to provide meaningful data and information as a catalyst for increased competitiveness and top-of-mind recall. Following the synergies between PR and social media that led to the widespread integration of the two communication disciplines, influencer marketing has rapidly evolved as an immensely preferred contemporary marketing solution. The partnership between TRACCS and Open Influence is in direct response to this growing need.”

 

 

“Although still in a relatively nascent stage in the region, influencer marketing is steadily becoming a crucial component of mainstream marketing strategies – creating a massive opportunity for brands to better influence their target audiences. Through deeper insights and results-oriented solutions, ‘Open Influence MENA’ will help clients achieve their engagement goals while also enabling us to consolidate our digital offering.”

 

Marco Marranini, COO Europe, Open Influence, said: “The communications sector in the Middle East and North Africa is evolving at a phenomenal pace, and we are pleased to expand our footprint to a market ripe for the next wave of digital transformation. Influencer marketing has already picked up pace in the region, and with ‘Open Influence MENA’, we’re excited to work with companies and provide them with the tools and insights they need to engage with influencers as passionate storytellers inspiring deeper connections between their brand and its audiences. Further, TRACCS’ region-wide presence complements our network of offices in the US, Europe and Asia, and we look forward to harnessing our synergies to develop highly impactful campaigns for our clients in this part of the world.”

 

With a network of 8 offices spanning 5 countries, Open Influence’s award-winning influencer marketing experts have conceptualized and executed 1500+ tailor-made campaigns for some of the world’s top and most discerning brands including Disney, Puma, Ford, Barilla, L’Oréal, Huawei, Unilever and Qantas among many others. Open Influence’s competitive advantage is the proven ability of its social engineers to leverage and combine industry insights, derived from a deep understanding of the influencer landscape, with a proprietary full-fledged analytics platform and process diligence, to provide full service influencer marketing solutions that match client requirements and deliver consistent ROI.

 

‘Open Influence MENA’s’ service portfolio will include Influencer Search, Community Building, Content Creation, Talent Coordination, Audience Analytics, Tracking and Reporting in addition to Creative Strategy among others.