Crowd Analyzer, the frst Arabic-focused and internationally-recognized social media monitoring platform releases the 5th edition of its State of Social Media report for 2021. The report aims to empower marketeers and brand managers with accurate, relevant and high coverage data analytics needed to establish a stronger presence in the Middle East. The pandemic has had a major impact on the marketing landscape. While social media marketing was a part of the plan, now it has become the prime tool to communicate with audiences. Budgets are beginning to shift from traditional media to digital media as reported in multiple studies. Communicate will be focusing on the insights on the state of social media in the UAE and KSA. 

 English is the preferred language on all platforms in the UAE, with the a large number of the population comprising of non-Arabic speaking residents. The most popular platform in the UAE is Facebook with the highest number of female users compared to male users, while the least popular is Twitter.

Compared to the UAE, the insights paint a different picture in KSA. Snapchat continues to be the most popular platform in the country. The number of users on Snapchat and Instagram increased, while Twitter witnessed a slight decrease in the number of users. In past years, Saudi Arabia had the highest user base on Twitter. Arabic is the main language used on most platforms except Facebook, which is one of the least popular platforms in Saudi Arabia.

The report monitored a couple of industries to understand how users interacted with the brands in these industries on social media, what kind of conversations were happening, what was the sentiment, etc. The industries in focus are those that are poised to grow exponentially in the coming decade such as e-commerce, on-demand streaming, telecommunication, fintech, etc. 

E-commerce was an industry that experienced massive boom in 2020. Unlike streaming, the numbers are only going to keep going higher in 2021. Major tech titans in the social media space saw the boom as an opportunity to introduce their own e-commerce platform and compete with giants such as Amazon and local e-commerce players like Noon. Social media advertising is an important tool to send users to e-commerce websites. It enables e-commerce brands to not only direct shoppers towards their product or service, but to engage with them and create a sense of community. Hence, it is important to be aware of how consumers use social media. It will give brands the knowledge for the right approach when connecting with the relevant target audience.

The insights from the study show that in the MENA region, ads on Grocery products that can be bought online has the highest engagement rate among shoppers (30%) followed by Electronics and Masks and Sanitizers (24%). This is seen through local e-commerce platform's introduction of Grocery delivery along with other retailers such as Carrefour in the region. 

In KSA, e-commerce shoppers majorly search for electronics products online (50%) followed by Fashion and Beauty. The same trend is observed in the UAE as well. During COVID-19, KSA became one of the most active countries when it came to discussions about e-commerce on social with 22% followed by the UAE with 19%. There was alot of positive online sentiment on the convenience of delivery during lockdown.

On demand streaming is revolutionizing the entertainment industry. Consumers are now more in control; it is now possible to watch any show, movie, or program on your own time. In 2020, there has been a significant rise in this industry due to the increased amount of time spent at home due to COVID. As this industry continues to grow, there will be more competition. Hence, it is crucial to pay attention to consumer viewing habits and preferences, which can be identified through social media listening.

In KSA, when it came to on-demand streaming, the majority of share of voice on social was about subscriptions and payments (41%) followed by content plot discussions. In the UAE however, the majority of share of voice on social was about content plot discussions (39%) followed by subscriptions/payments ( 18%)

During the COVID-19 lockdown, on -demand streaming related conversations weren’t focusing on COVID relevant discussions. Only 1% of brands posted content mentioned COVID, such posts received only 0.3% of total gained interactions

"2020 has been a massive year of change in almost every aspect of our lives. One thing we know beyond doubt, is that our future is digital. Social media platforms are now playing a much bigger role in our daily communications. A lot of brands and industries have expedited their digital transformation plans to adapt to the new normal. With so much happening online, it is now more important than ever to understand where you stand and how you can fit, adapt, and engage with the digital universe," says Youssef Shalaby, VP- Research and Insights at Crowd Analyzer.