Archive for category: News

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 07 May 2019:  Ahmad Itani, Founder and CEO of Cicero & Bernay Public Relations (C&B), has been selected to be the Vice Chairman of PRCA MENA, the leading PR association for MENA with a network covering PR and communication across 13 countries within the region.

PRCA MENA was launched in 2016 with the aim of raising standards in PR and communication. The association exists to provide members with industry data, facilitate the sharing of best practice, and create networking opportunities.

Ahmad Itani MPRCA said: “Having belonged to the industry for the better part of 20 years, I am honoured to join the prestigious ranks of PRCA MENA as a Vice Chairman. The regional public relations landscape is consistently changing and adapting, and PRCA MENA is the pillar that brings industry professionals and luminaries together to formulate the future of communication. I, therefore, pledge to uphold this assignment with integrity and look forward to helping define the sector in the region and beyond.”

Francis Ingham MPRCA, Director General of PRCA MENA said: “’I am delighted to welcome Ahmad Itani as the new Vice Chairman of PRCA MENA. His expertise and stature will be of inestimable value to us as we grow in size and scope throughout the entire region. I look forward to working together closely over the coming years”.

Ahmad is a firm believer in ‘letting the facts do the talking,’ pushing the boundaries of brand communication to new heights and keeping abreast of the rapid evolution of the communication industry. He motivates his team to combine a mastery of traditional PR skills with a command of new-age and visual storytelling, and under his guidance, C&B has grown its presence to 19 countries spanning the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent.

PRCA MENA works for the greater benefit of the industry by lobbying on the industry’s behalf and provides an international framework within which its members can develop global networks and new business referrals.

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About Cicero & Bernay

Cicero & Bernay Public Relations (C&B) is an award-winning, fully integrated communication agency. It delivers bespoke traditional and new media strategies and campaigns to some of the region’s most prominent brands through its expert multilingual team. Established in 2005 and headquartered in Dubai, C&B has a network of affiliate offices in 19 countries in the MENA region and Indian subcontinent, and an innate knowledge of local business in each of these locations.

Our ethos is to let the facts do the talking, from making a measurable impact on our clients’ businesses through research and insights to developing innovative ideas and result-oriented campaigns that deliver long-term, positive ROI. The foundation of all our work lies in attention to DETAIL – Data, Explore, Target, Assemble, Interpret, and Leverage.

Dubai, UAE, 27^th February 2019

Leading international business communications consultancy Instinctif Partners has kicked off the year by expanding its team for its MENA business, headquartered in Dubai. The addition of new team members follows a year in which double-digit revenue growth was achieved by the regional operation.

Khaled Fansa has joined the team as Consultant. A native Arabic speaker with over six years’ consultancy experience, Khaled will support the team’s Arabic content and media relations strategies, Arabization of international material and original copywriting. He has previously worked on corporate communications strategies for global brands including LG, Lenovo, Fitbit, Mashreq, Yahsat, Adidas and Porsche. Khaled also has an in-depth knowledge of the healthcare sector, having worked with pharmaceutical businesses including Novartis, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim and AstraZeneca. Khaled holds certificates in Business Communication and Marketing, and Human Resources Management from the London College of Management.

Toni Francisco has been hired as Administration Executive, joining the team from JP Morgan. She brings her HR experience in the fields of recruitment, compensation and benefits; and onboarding and offboarding of staff. She has also worked in marketing, supporting event promotions and product activations.

Samantha Bartel, Managing Partner, Instinctif Partners MENA, commented:

“As one of Instinctif Partners’ fastest growing regions, we are delighted to expand the team with the addition of two new members. Khaled’s experience will enable us to work more closely with Arabic media and enhance the range of services for our expanding client portfolio across the region, while Toni will strengthen our operations and support the team as we set our sights on further growth.”

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Notes for Editors

About Instinctif Partners:

Instinctif Partners is a leading international business communications consultancy with six practice areas: capital markets, corporate, public policy, content & creative, engagement and insight & research.

It is a specialist in reputation, influence and engagement. It works with clients across multiple and complex audiences combining deep insights, expert storytelling and creative delivery to change behaviours, emotions and perceptions.

Instinctif Partners currently employs 400 people in 15 offices across eight countries across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia and North America.

The company is one of the fastest growing consultancies in its industry, and in the past year alone has won or been shortlisted for over 30 awards, recognising both client work and the growth of the business as a whole. Accolades include International Agency of the Year 2018 & 2017 at the PR Week Global Awards, Outstanding Large Consultancy of the Year 2018 at the CIPR Excellence Awards, Corporate Consultancy of the Year 2017 at the EMEA SABRE Awards, and City Agency of the Year at the PRCA City and Financial Awards 2016 & 2017. Instinctif Partners also won Gold at the PR Week Best Places to Work 2018 for Large Agency and was named by the London Stock Exchange as one of 1000 Companies to Inspire Britain.

Website: https://instinctif.com/mena/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/instinctif-partners-mena/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Instinctif_MENA

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/instinctif_mena/

Contact

Michael Hylton

+971 4 369 9353

michael.hylton@instinctif.com

The Public Relations and Communications Association Middle East and North Africa (PRCA MENA) welcomes ASDA’A BCW as the association’s newest Member.

ASDA’A was originally founded in 2000 as an independent agency by Sunil John, who continues to lead in the agency’s 20^th year. In 2008, WPP acquired a majority-stake in the firm and became an integral part of the Burson-Marsteller global network. After the recent merger of Burson-Marsteller and Cohn & Wolfe, ASDA’A Burson-Marsteller is now ASDA’A BCW.

The agency has grown exponentially since its inception, now employing nearly 200 professionals across nine wholly-owned offices and seven affiliates in 15 Middle East & North Africa (MENA) countries, serving more than 100 retained clients in the region through five dedicated practices: Consumer and Healthcare, Corporate, Enterprise and Technology, Financial, and Public Affairs. The team has joined PRCA MENA to further grow their internal knowledge and to ensure industry standards are upheld and exceeded.

Sunil John MPRCA, President, Middle East, ASDA’A BCW, said: “ASDA’A BCW is delighted to join PRCA MENA, at a time when the organisation’s mission has never been more relevant. Upholding standards and ensuring the public relations industry is seen as a trusted and accurate source of information is especially important in our era of ‘fake news’ and big data privacy concerns.

“We look forward to working with the PRCA in maintaining the very highest professional standards as well as growing the industry.”

Francis Ingham MPRCA, Director General, PRCA MENA, commented: “I am proud to welcome an agency with the standing and reputation of ASDA’A BCW as PRCA MENA’s latest member, and I personally look forward to working with Sunil John as we address the issues and opportunities faced by our industry across the region.”

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For further information contact:

Francis Ingham MPRCA

Director General, PRCA,

francis.ingham@prca.org.uk

Barry Leggetter FPRCA

barryleggetter@outlook.com

07748 677 504

Matt Cartmell MPRCA

Deputy Director General

matt.cartmell@prca.org.uk

07930 485 333

About the PRCA

Who we are: Founded in 1969, the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) is a UK-based PR and communications membership body, operating in 66 countries around the world. We represent in excess of 30,000 people across the whole range of the PR and communications industry. The PRCA promotes all aspects of public relations and communications work, helping teams and individuals maximise the value they deliver to clients and organisations.

What we do: The Association exists to raise standards in PR and communications, providing members with industry data, facilitating the sharing of communications best practice and creating networking opportunities.

How we do it and make a difference: All PRCA members are bound by a professional charter and codes of conduct, and benefit from exceptional training. The Association also works for the greater benefit of the industry, sharing best practice and lobbying on the industry’s behalf e.g. fighting the NLA’s digital licence.

In pod(cast) we trust

Six million people in the UK (11%) listen to a podcast each week according to RAJAR figures, with the BBC billing 2018 as ‘the year of the podcast boom’. And with the number of podcast downloads crossing 2.6 billion globally last year, and radio reaching more households than TV in the region, podcasting is primed to take off over here.

Whilst it is still in its infancy in region, the likes of Gulf News’ Dirhams and Dollars and the Kerning Cultures to name but a few, are creating captive and attentive audiences, that are both building high levels of trust and communities with engaged people. The opportunity for brands is absolute, and it’s those who are thinking ahead of the curve that are already captialising on its renaissance.

A to the B-Roll

B-Roll is often overlooked by PR professionals, but its power to secure TV coverage is huge. With that in mind, I believe in 2019 we will see more emphasis placed on the importance of B-Roll.

In short, B-Roll can determine whether you clinch that slot on a TV or online channel or a journalist pressing the delete button. It can often be the difference between trophy and mediocre coverage and with TV coverage often considered the ‘holy grail’, it should play a vital role in campaign planning. Often overlooked, B-Roll essentially consists of loosely edited footage captured to enrich a story you are telling. Far from being a polished piece of video content, its aim is to provide news broadcasters with a sequence of supplementary footage from which they can cherry pick the content they require to develop their own news story.

So with news teams are often working with limited resources, constantly working against the clock to deliver their news items for the TV bulletins, and broadcasters not always able to dispatch a crew out to cover a story, producing some well-crafted B-Roll could just be the ticket to delivering an impactful, engaging story.

Values Adds

2019 will be the year of the details. Gone are the days when AVEs and “PR values” are being seen as an accurate way to measure the effectiveness of a campaign. There is not one standard measurement that can be applied to all online coverage for instance that suggests one website has the exact same value as another, so there will be more emphasis on the replacement of these archaic forms of measurement and more scrutiny over evaluative measures.

Clients will demand more analysis on results to demonstrate effectiveness. Ultimately, demonstrating a tangible ROI will always go back to the extent to which a campaign can impact the business bottom line. Demonstrating tangible business outcomes will therefore be key.

Live video

Just three years on from the launch of Facebook Live, 2019 will also be a big year for brands growing their use of live video.

Communicators are now using live video to break news, make news, for thought leadership and internal comms exercises. The power of live and the potential it has is huge; not only is this apparent through the level of transparency it offers, but live has a higher level of trust because of its authenticity.

By tapping into communities via social media and wider, brands can create a two-way level to further build advocacy and trust. Higher production values now exist with live video, so gone are the days of shaky Facebook Lives delivered on a smartphone, and in their place are multi-camera live online streams that look slick, high end and are well thought out.

Live videos are not purely the domain for social however. There is a huge opportunity for brands to maximise the currency of live and extend its value beyond social media, and into traditional media, with new sites actively looking for editorial content of this nature. Working the content hard so that live videos also appear on the client’s website as well as pushed the existing client databases are just a few ways to ensure the power of live is realised through the value it delivers.