In this special episode of The MadTech Podcast, ExchangeWire CEO Rachel Smith is joined by Abdelnabi Alaedinne, regional director for digital & partnerships at UM MENAT, to discuss the evolving media and advertising landscape in MENA.

Their conversation delves into emerging trends in the region, critical skills for media planners and strategists to effectively utilise AI, and balancing AI-driven efficiency with human creativity and strategy.

We're delighted to be heading to MENA for our first ever ATS Dubai event in November. If you're interested in commercial opportunities at the event, contact sales@thewirecorp.com.

Innovation and Trends in MENA

The MENA region is a hub for new trends, formats, and advertising innovations that are adopted globally. MENA-based brands spend a significant portion of media investment (25-30%) on promoting their products to the rest of the world.

Abdelnabi identifies three key areas: 1) Gaming 2.0, offering full end-to-end brand experiences; 2) programmatic out-of-home, which is seeing massive growth in GCC countries as static units become digital and measurable; and 3) retail media, leveraging clean rooms and transactional data for precise, personalised targeting.

The Role of AI, Planners, and Strategists

Relying solely on AI in media planning risks predictable, bland advertising that fails to build differentiation. AI tools from major tech platforms often overlook brand nuances. For example, creating identical plans for a budget and luxury airline. This leads to a cost game, turning marketing into a race to the lowest CPM.

Distinctive brand building requires a "triangle": AI insights, human-led strategy, and collaboration with key partners (creative agencies, clients, media partners). Human touch remains essential, through prompt engineering and critical evaluation of AI outputs.

Beyond ROI and Traditional Funnels

A challenge for the industry is balancing efficiency with effectiveness. While AI tools can guarantee a specific ROAS, brands may become overly reliant on paid media and neglect creative brand building. Short-term ROI obsession is detrimental to long-term brand equity.

The traditional marketing funnel is collapsing; the linear path of awareness, consideration, and conversion no longer reflects consumer behaviour. Precise data and AI-driven insights make lower-funnel optimisation less relevant, as the focus shifts to building direct brand-consumer connections and loyalty from the initial interaction.