2014 Winners & Shortlists

The Campaign

The “soul of the city” campaign sought to re-launch the Al Ghurair Centre, Dubai’s oldest shopping mall, as Dubai’s original urban community with a reinvigorated look and ethos. The campaign encapsulates the integration of old and new Dubai whilst highlighting its commitment to supporting art, music and culture, to re-establish the heartbeat of the city in the centre of Deira. The integrated campaign took a three-pronged, PR-driven approach, seamlessly communicating the campaign’s key messages through PR whilst supported by advertising and social media. The challenge was that new residents and visitors to Dubai were unaware of the Al Ghurair Centre. The objective was to increase understanding through increased media exposure by constructing live events that celebrated both local and international talent. It was hoped that original, large-scale events and ongoing free entertainment would create media interest and increase footfall through attracting visitors. Community interaction created greater word of mouth whilst editorial, adverts and social media posts educated the target audience that the centre is more than a typical shopping mall. Events included Battle of the Bands, Street Con urban art fest and ongoing street theatre where above and below the line communication merged effortlessly, communicating the same message that the Al Ghurair Centre is the “soul of the city”. The main communications tactics and key PR elements used included press releases, media alerts, proactive and reactive media relations, media hosting, interviews (broadcast and print); profiles and features both with English and Arabic media.

The Brief

Objective - Increase awareness that the mall exists for the community via public events promoting art, music and culture - different to any other mall. Measurement - Positive media exposure, social media interaction and footfall. Targeting - Dubai residents and tourists of all ages who may or may not be aware of the mall. Research carried out prior to the campaign: • SWOT analysis of competitor malls • Footfall • Social media interaction • Media monitoring to assess their support before the campaign • Media landscape - potential coverage opportunities for specific tactics

Results

All three elements built on each other to increase awareness, meeting the objectives to increase media exposure (advertising and editorial), social media interaction and footfall. October 2013 – February 2014: Ave - $370,340, PR Value $1,111,020 Facebook followers increased by 35,000 and check-ins by 60,000 Street Theatre AVE: $27,193.95 Urban Circus • Footfall: +27% James More - illusionist • Footfall: +13% Voca people - singers • Footfall: +22% Battle of the Bands • 5,000 in attendance • Nearly 2,000 Facebook shares • AVE: $12,837.59 Street Con • Footfall: +87% • Nearly 4,000 likes • AVE: $69,392.85

Execution

The campaign launch coincided with the unveiling of the mall’s expansion (October 2013). Two events, Battle of the Bands (November 2013) and StreetCon (February 2014) were strategically complemented with ongoing street theatre events. Editorial created a call to action to participate and watch "Battle of the Bands" two day competition. The weekend's final in the mall, supported by Tag fm, capitalised on footfall. This created interaction with entrants, a spectacle to attract visitors and strong picture stories. StreetCon’s 10 day urban art fest, held in the inner roads, gave it an urban edge. Art and consumer media attended and artists appeared on radio and TV. Events rolled out quarterly, maintaining momentum, ensuring the mall’s commitment to support culture, art and music was vocalised. The campaign ensured adverts and editorial were disseminated at the same time, supported by Facebook. The “soul of the city” sound bite was integrated at all levels.

The Situation

Al Ghurair Centre is Dubai’s original mall. Located in Deira, it encapsulates the ‘soul of the city’, integrating entertainment, shopping and dining. For three decades it's stood as the urban heart of Dubai, welcoming nationalities of all ages, residents and tourists, merging culture and heritage. As the oldest mall, many other players have since entered the competitive retail market. After a 2 billion AED expansion, the opportunity to create a unique point of difference, capitalising on its eclectic urban location existed. This needed to be communicated to the immediate community and wider population of Dubai.

The Strategy

Reliant on strong editorial support, “soul of the city” campaign was created to filter through print, online, social and broadcast media in an easily understood manner. Phase one: Generate business-related/ news coverage on the expansion. Phase two: Sustain “soul of the city” coverage with consumer editorial by creating media interest - large-scale, creative, public events with picture opportunities. Phase three: Ultilise story opportunities; human interest angles and launch event element to heighten pre, during and post event coverage. The human interest element was supported by profiling individual acts and artists and interviews with individuals used in the advertising campaign for third-party endorsement to vocalise key messages. Phase four: Strong broadcast push across TV and radio stations in the region All events were hosted in and around the mall to showcase the expanded venue and integrated with outdoor and print advertising and a comprehensive social media strategy to initiate awareness.