The first part of this series, which focused on consumer research, found that price, reliability and technology were key factors for those considering purchasing a new vehicle. Chinese brands were characterised by low levels of criticism and high proportions of positive coverage on pricing, technology and reliability.

In addition, Chinese automotive brands – especially BYD – are increasingly seen as industry innovators. The brand garnered more than double the volume of coverage where brands are positioned as innovative (1,189 articles) compared to other Chinese brands such as Geely (402) and Xpeng (298), as well as established brands including BMW and Volkswagen (284 and 251 respectively).

BYD was also found to have contributed 41% of all positive coverage on Chinese brands, and had a higher proportion of positive coverage compared to other Chinese brands and established brands.

Within the MENA region Chinese brands secured the most articles where they positioned as innovative in the UAE (75%), which helped elevate the presence and perception of Chinese brands across the wider Middle East region. Numerous articles were published by UAE media on BYD, highlighting the investment the company has made into innovation and technology. Other outlets also praised the inclusion of the Chery Tiggo 8 in the Dubai Police Fleet, noting that the model was chosen specifically as Dubai Police required vehicles equipped with the latest technology.

In Saudi Arabia, high levels of confidence were reported in media narratives relating to pricing, reliability and technology. In the first part of this series, these factors were found to be the most important or consumers when purchasing a vehicle, highlighting that Chinese brands have found a winning formula for growth despite the automotive industry’s challenging and competitive landscape.

This prestigious accolade is a result of his vast contribution to the development of data-driven PR and digital management, and was presented to him during the 2022 MEPRA Awards on December 8.

The Middle East PR Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award is given to an exclusive and influential group of individuals who have contributed in a major way to the advancement of best practices within the PR and communications industry.

Nahawi has helped shape the region’s PR and communications industry by providing groundbreaking media monitoring support and evaluation programs for his clients at Carma, which includes over 3,500 brands and organizations across the world.

Furthermore, Nahawi has led the digital sphere with his agency Socialeyez which looks to empower organizations to build more meaningful relationships with their target audience. The award-winning agency has offices in four countries and represents 120 clients across both the private and public sectors.

Nahawi said in a statement, “For well over a decade, I have been on a mission to help our clients better measure PR and become more tech-enabled, data-driven, and connected communicators. My family, my teams at Carma and Socialeyez, and our clients inspire me every day to strengthen our position as the lead media intelligence and digital engagement provider. I am grateful to be a part of this industry and honored by the Middle East PR Association’s prestigious recognition, which I am delighted to share with my teams.”

MEPRA Chair Kate Middtun, who presented the award, concluded, “We are incredibly grateful for Mazen’s enduring commitment to purpose, continuity, and integrity in our industry.”

Carma will be responsible for all media monitoring and measurement, providing Socialeyez with key insights for the social media strategy and content plan that the digital agency will now head up. Socialeyez will work with Abu Dhabi Customs as the lead agency for social media strategy, management, and content development.

Through actionable insights, Socialeyez will be able to automate advice and recommendations, aiming to give users a highly relevant service that is completely personalized to their needs, goals, and behavior.

Mazen Nahawi, CEO of Carma and Founder of Socialeyez, said in a statement, “This award once again demonstrates how clients across the region are looking for specialized insights to work hand in hand with social marketing capabilities which are agile, scalable, and most of all have perfected all things related to Arabic social-media content. Carma provides niche monitoring and insights from all key platforms including TikTok, Snapchat, TV, and trade press. Socialeyez is the go-to partner for the most creative and demanding clients who need to combine strategy, creativity, and insights at high speed.”

The report also highlights key trends in Islamic banking; the most notable being a general rise in influence of Islamic banks within the finance sector in general and rapidly growing engagement with audiences in both regions.

This growth is attributed to several factors, including pandemic-influenced financial uncertainty and the exposure of instances of global corruption that make the overall transparency and collaboration advocated by Islamic Banking increasingly appealing.

A strong focus on digitization and digital offerings across products and services also helped strengthen the overall position of Islamic banks among audiences in both traditional and social media. Carma’s report notes that “Throughout the pandemic, digital services were prioritized, as banks were reported to have enhanced their digital footprint offering multiple solutions. KFH, ADIB, and QIB were stated to have taken the lead to integrate solutions into their strategies, considering AI abilities and the importance of FinTech. Personal finance through portals and transfer systems was introduced, easing financial activities amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The comprehensive data-led study into media exposure and perception of Islamic banks identified not just pertinent topics, themes, and subject matter (notably seamless digitalization, hyper-personalization, and evidence of a commitment to CSR initiatives), but importantly also considered the way in which this content was consumed, how the subject matter was perceived, and how visual the banks in question were across both traditional media and social media.

For the purposes of the study, all relevant traditional (online) media articles were assessed (the report notes that a total of 1,500 articles from online media outlets with specific mentions of these banks were analyzed) as well as all original Facebook and Twitter posts and direct and indirect mentions of the bank on social media (a total of 3,022 relevant posts from Twitter and Facebook, 1,840 Twitter unique mentions, 14,883 retweets, 1,182 Facebook unique mentions, and 279 shares were analyzed).

To cite an example, in the MENA region Carma found that “Three major topics were highlighted in traditional media for the banks: Corporate news, Financial results, and Banking Services. Favorable coverage displayed the banks' financial results and corporate issues entailing growth, the issuing of Sukuk bonds, and initiatives taken to empower banks and communities alike. KFH, ADIB, and Al Rajhi were the most favorable banks as retail lending, COVID-19 assistance, disclosure of financial results, and digitalization positioned the banks positively.”

At the same time, Carma identified prominent conversations and public sentiments on social media: “Social media mentions mainly discussed financial and corporate topics regarding loans, bank accounts, money transfers, sponsorships, and partnerships. The commentary was mainly neutral in sentiment as users inquired about loans and discussed loan offers, partnerships, sponsorships, mergers & acquisitions, recruitment opportunities, and CSR efforts.”

Perhaps most interestingly, the report paid significant attention to brand perception. The results of the study enabled Carma to pinpoint the five most favorable Islamic banks in both MENA and Asia.

Carma utilized its proprietary Favorability Rating System and Sentiment Scoring to look even further into the behavior of these banks, considering social media engagement levels, identifying the topics that gained the most media coverage, ascertaining if this content was received positively or negatively, and establishing in which countries within the region they performed best.

Founder and CEO Mazen Nahawi said in a statement, “The last two years has seen the way in which we live our lives shift significantly – and by using our advanced media monitoring tools, data insight instruments, and analytics, we have been able to create a series of deep-dive reports on the ways in which the world has changed. This report – which dives into the rise of Islamic banking – will no doubt prove invaluable to the banks profiled – and their competitors. Furthermore, it acts as a clear example of how uniquely positioned Carma is to deliver fully tailored, deep-dive reports that provide unique insights and tangible results across multiple industries and subject matters.”

Download the report here.

Devey joins from digital transformation agency Kyan where she was Head of Strategy, helping organizations apply technology and innovation to drive competitive advantage. Having previously led client services as a Director of Metrica and headed up the Gorkana Insight team to bring new products to market, she is well placed to understand the challenges facing today’s PR and Communications professionals. 

With the launch this October of Carma’s first MENA-specific campaign, Devey and her team are set to make a handful of hires to bolster its digital offering across Dubai and Lebanon.

Commenting on her appointment, Devey said, “Carma is at a critical stage in its growth to become a global leader in communications intelligence. My team and I will ensure that both clients and data are at the heart of all decisions the organization makes. I am here to tell Carma’s phenomenal 30-year story and explain why it is now best placed to help communicators plan, prove, and improve their effectiveness. It is exciting to see where the media intelligence industry is going, and how Carma as a truly global player can bring both global scale and crucial regional context. I am passionate about helping communicators, wherever they are on their monitoring and measurement journey, understand the next steps to take to best represent what PR contributes to organizational success. I have joined 500 other experts at Carma, and together we are helping the industry become tech-informed and data-enabled. If we can collectively raise the media intelligence game for all our clients, across all markets, whatever stage of measurement maturity they are at, I believe we can affect a global increase in PR investment. There’s a real passion among the team to do magnificent work and I look forward to showcasing those efforts to the world. Carma is already home to some of the best media analysts in Dubai, Beirut, Riyadh, and the wider MENA region – it is my mission to hire and grow some of the best marketers in the Middle East too, while also helping to tell Carma’s story.”

Devey reports to Richard Bagnall, CEO Europe & the Americas and co-Managing Partner.