2011 Winners & Shortlists

Results and Effectiveness

The launch of MiCC was a resounding success. The opening day saw 76,000 footfalls in the mall, and the opening 3 weeks saw over 1 million visitors - a new record for the region, besting even the world's largest shopping centre, Dubai Mall. It was efficient too. Our launch budget was 4 million AED compared to 30 million AED for Dubai Mall. On outdoor media, we had savings of nearly 160%, thus getting very high exposure on a low budget. Various retailers inside the mall echoed the sentiment, confirming their stores saw strong trading.

Creative Execution

Creative execution was a Post-It Note stuck with a pin on a backboard, with friendly, ambiguous handwritten messages, meant to arouse curiosity. They were to act as a 'reminder' that something different is around the corner, and people should take 'note'. No logos or mention of a new mall, just wording. We tactically outlined all major routes leading to the mall and ensured that our message was highly visible. To further stand out, the 'Pin' was produced as a 3D object and fitted on Unipoles We branded Metro Feeder buses in the areas surrounding Mirdif to further extend our reach. The teaser/reveal strategy was supported with leaflet distribution across Dubai. We ran a radio competition on Virgin FM that gave winners a chance to be featured in the radio jingle for MiCC, thus giving the community a chance to be an integral part of the mall.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

With over 70 shopping centres, it’s estimated that Dubai has the highest per capita shopping space in the world – 25.3 square ft/head. In such a dense market and amidst a recession, to have a stand-out launch and ensure footfall was a challenging prospect. The brief was to position MiCC primarily as a community mall that also offered unique stores present in no other mall. UAE nationals living in surrounding areas were the primary target group for this campaign; word of mouth is the main driver for this demographic. They are more likely to visit a new destination if recommended by friends or family. Thus, we decided to go with a 'word of mouth/teaser' campaign to generate hype and let that be the launch platform. Success in the UAE shopping mall category is defined simply as generating more footfall than your competitors and that was our goal.