When you have finally launched a business company in Dubai, the ever-growing luxurious city and business hub of the Middle East, and can’t wait to get working with a strong management team, the biggest challenge of hiring the right people awaits you at the doorstep.

Before you begin your tedious process, which will undoubtedly have a huge impact in your journey onward, check out some of the most common hiring mistakes that start-up CEOs make and that you may want to avoid at any cost.

• Hiring someone out of familiarity or generosity: When you are stepping in the professional field, try to maintain a relevant distance between your personal and professional life. As Dubai is a small community, you may come across many friends or relatives who need a favor. However, offering job opportunities to people based on their bonding levels rather than the productivity will force you to compromise work qualities. Therefore, hiring someone who’s more appropriate and experienced for the job will help you to get out of many awkward situations.
  

 

• Constantly hiring inexperienced people: Dubai is indeed a safe haven for people from the less developed countries to try out their luck and there is a great chance that you will meet many of these inexperienced people in need of a job with proper training. However, constantly hiring and training inexperience people will cost both time and money and keep your attention away from more serious concerns.

 

• Speedy hiring process: It is all right to be hyped up about the upcoming business and feel like going with the hiring process as quickly as possible, but a speedy process may leave you with many inexperienced or charismatic personae who may not possess the necessary qualities to carry out the job. On the contrary, taking a bit more time increases your chances of forming a passionate and well-balanced team.
  

 

• Hiring illegal immigrants: When you are launching a business in Dubai, you need to keep its surroundings in mind too. With thousands of immigrants from other countries, there remains a huge possibility that many will have their work visa expired or soon to be expired. You may also hire workers who do not have an immigrant or a worker visa and fall into legal complications. An effective way to avoid this is to remain extra careful during the hiring process and employ workers with a clean background.
  

 

• Creating cultural restrictions: Although many have already stepped out of this habit, yet it is not unseen that many CEOs tend to set their own rules and restrictions during the hiring process. However, this method is not always beneficial for the company as it eliminates a lot of competitive and efficient workers beforehand.
  

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As you can see from the above-mentioned points, hiring is not necessarily an easy or an unimportant step. You have to set the bar as high as possible and get the best out of the choices laid in front of you. By remaining strict to your requirements and staying true to your company’s wellbeing, you can easily avoid these mistakes and form your dream team.

For more information about planning your startup launch in Dubai and UAE, do not hesitate to contact us and we will be glad to assist.

Being one of the world’s high ranked economies, it is not surprising that the UAE is becoming a safe and attractive haven for entrepreneurs to launch their business. Whether it is an app for comfortable lifestyle, an elegant restaurant or a street side clothing store, it is by no means an easy task to create a massive positive response among your target audience in this competitive arena. However, you can turn the table around if you invest a bit more time and effort in using social media to do at least half of your job.

Why you need social media strategy

With the enormous success of social-commerce in the last fifteen years, many brands are now following the trend of digital promotion which help them to reach out to their potential consumers who use various social media platforms and gain a higher sales rate. Therefore, keeping some tips and tricks on mind before starting up will help you to ensure brand promotion, customer acquisition and successful business. We even recommend to include these strategies in your UAE startup business plan.

Social media strategies for effective start-ups in Dubai and UAE:

• Create or improve your brand’s social media profile: As much attractive as it sounds to create profiles in all the social media platforms you are familiar with, you may want to stick to the ones which meet your product and services the most. Whereas jewelries, clothing & apparel are mostly sold in Facebook or books & magazine, IT related items are sold more on Pinterest. Therefore, know your product and the target audience first, then create and further improve your profile.
  

 

• Maintain strategic contents: Depending on the products you are launching, post good-quality articles, videos, podcasts, infographics etc. while maintaining regularity and relevance. As users will notice your posts for a mere second while scrolling, add pictures or colorful texts along with your contents to draw attention.
  

 

• Communicate with your target audience: Maintaining a friendly and helpful tone of voice is the most essential step while boosting your start-up. Remember how you are competing against hundreds of already established brands in Dubai and UAE and give your customers a reason why they should choose you. Therefore, be as much responsive as possible, handle negative comments in a diplomatic way and accept your faults humbly if the situation demands it. Moreover, attach a contact number or an email address with your profile for further assistance.
  

 

• Perform promotional activities: Even though the most effective way to gain maximum attention is by going for paid promotions, you can also create small contests where your followers have to share or recommend your contents to their friends. Additionally, you can go for live streaming, offer bonus and discounts etc. As UAE is packed with thousands of small communities, successfully attracting one will help you gradually reach the others.
  

Well, now that you know about the importance of social media strategies and how to step up your game in this sector, we hope that these effective steps curated by our digital marketing specialists will help you to boost up your sales in no time!

If you are serious about developing a marketing plan for your Dubai and UAE based startup or SME, make sure you contact us now and one of our marketing experts will get in touch.

Troubled about which marketing plans will work for your start-up in Dubai? Or are you just confused about how to create a marketing plan for your UAE based SME?
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Well, either way you have found the right guide to help you through your confusions and disconcerting thoughts. This article will guide you step-by-step through the whole process of creating a powerful marketing plan for your business in Dubai. Let’s start!

1)  Put your business out there and put together a short, most preferably a raw and sweet illustration of your business.

This process is called ‘situation analysis’ and don’t worry it sounds simpler than you think. Highlight how your company stands out from the rest and what unique benefits you have to offer, include a short description of your services or products. Then put your slogan, logo and unique feature on all your marketing collateral including website, business cards, brochures, social media, banners...etc.

So, mainly in the 1st step try simplifying your strategies, and get to know your business’ unique selling proposition at the rawest level then make it seen everywhere.

2) Target the right audience or customers

No business is appealing to every other person. So, narrow down your customers by understanding the standard customer profile by age, gender, location, lifestyles etc.

The 2nd step mostly helps in identifying your customers and now you can use this information to create a profile of your business. This will help you spark new marketing plans, media, and PR campaigns. Defining your buying personas is key for a successful marketing strategy.

3) Communication strategies will help you to bring your ideas to life and it is the heartbeat of your marketing plan

If you aren’t aware of the endless possibilities social media has to offer you, let us tell you that this is a key platform to execute your plans, in a cost-effective manner. Platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram are your topnotch 100% free and user-friendly marketing channels. You can directly connect with your customers and get insights. Of course, paid ads and promoted posts can turbo-charge your social media marketing activities, but start by building an organic presence before scaling up through paid ads.

The 3rd step is to build awareness through different tactics such as email newsletters, loyalty events, ongoing advertisements and also physically reaching your current customers by arranging customer appreciation events.

4) Everything and every idea needs a goal and listing your marketing goals is one of your most important steps​

You have achieved the main foundation of your business and now it is time to create a list of the marketing goals to grow your client base. Don't go crazy and unrealistic with your goals rather keep it of a high standard and realistic.
So start with writing your goals in a measurable way and keep record of the progress to achieve those goals. This makes your targets easier to achieve. For example, your next goal should be to get 20% profit from the sales or reach a revenue of $10,000 dollars per week.

 5)   Fix a budget for your marketing

The need for a marketing budget is a must. Think about how you are going to use the budget and decide if you need to borrow cash or not. Just don’t be stressed over it. It is an investment for your business and you should invest wisely.

So, the 5th step requires you to figure out how much budget is suitable for your business and invest accordingly.

You cannot create a marketing plan overnight but we hope this article will help you to start-up in Dubai. You too can be successful in your business in Dubai with the right approach and entrepreneurial attitude.

For more info about launching a successful start-up in Dubai and UAE, you can always contact us and we will be more than happy to help you out!

The idea of starting up your business in an expensive and resourceful city like Dubai may seem a bit intimidating unless you are familiar with the tips and tricks to stand out among your competitors. In order to help you promote your new business using your limited personal funding, our Dubai based startup experts have curated for you some powerful digital-marketing tips which are sure to boost your business results without breaking your pocket. Here we go:

• Find out Your Target Audience: Before you set out for the real journey, know your target audience by checking out different social media platforms. Dubai is always in need of something resourceful as it is an expat-dominated city. You can get the idea of your potential customers from social media hashtags or by analyzing top keywords researched by users in the UAE using Google's Keyword Planner.
  

• Be Resourceful: As you are starting with a little capital, try to get the maximum benefit out of what you have. Always keep an eye on the product demand and on your competitors. Dubai has an abundance of commercial opportunities and sourcing excellent quality supplies for less money is always possible. Moreover, dealing with the trending items will help you to maintain a stable customer base who will continue to come back to you for more. Make sure you focus on the most important product or service by applying the 20/80 rule: What are the top 20% areas in my business that will generate 80% of the results? That's where you need to focus your time, efforts and budget.
  

• Tell Your Story: No matter what you decide to sell, without a relevant story, you will not receive much attention, A great way to overcome this problem is to pack your website with creative and good quality contents which are not always promotional but tell your customer base about your initiatives, your company’s theme and why they should trust you as a startup brand. If you do not have strong content creators in your team, you can also get standard and high-quality writings from freelancing platforms like Fiverr, Upwork, Elance etc. in an affordable price.
  

• Take Advantage of Social Media: Social media is gradually becoming the best medium for promoting your business. Think about how you can attract the highest number of customers. If your customers are more likely to be impressed by visual contents, then try posting on Pinterest or Instagram. For animated advertisement or just text-based posts, you have Facebook and Twitter. Dubai is a small and closely-bonded city where satisfying one customer can lead you towards many others. So, consider creating a Facebook page or group to create a friendly and more intimate atmosphere.
  

• Publish Creative Content: After starting the initial stage of your business, your main challenge is to strive against other competitors and gradually expand your customer base. Therefore, engage in content marketing by creating and publishing creative content that engages your readers and keeps them coming for more. Experiment with "How to" articles, listicles, short videos...etc. Launching and maintaining a Blog is highly recommended. It also comes with the benefit of improving your natural ranking on Google.
  

• Promote Your Content: Promoting your contents to the right prospects is the most crucial step of your marketing efforts. You can do so by building partnership with an already successful brand or by going solo with well-planned social media promotion strategies. You can arrange contests or create contents in such a way that gives people something to talk about, post, tweet and comment on. If you can afford to invest some money in promotion, you can also leverage Facebook, Instagram, Tweeter, LinkedIn and other social platform’s paid promotional services which are bound to attract a substantial number of potential customers. The more your contents receive attention the higher chance you have to remain ahead of your competitors.
  

• Maintain Communication with Your Followers: Even if you follow all the steps mentioned above, you still want to keep your attention towards your customers. Remember that the customer is always right. Build a helpful customer service so that your prospects are always well-informed. Don’t be afraid to confront in case of a misunderstanding and admit your fault if there is any. As a beginner in the business field, it is normal to make mistakes and learn from it. If you are always interacting with your customers and making them feel valuable to you, they will pay you back by becoming your trusted buyers.
  

 
Last but not the least, bootstrapping your startup is not necessarily an easy task but may become the best decision of your life if you stride carefully. Let us know which of our tips have benefited you the most.

Contact KCCG for additional information or if you need help writing a business plan for your UAE startup, we are always here to help you with your journey.