Company: Informa Connect, Dubai, UAE
Company Description: Informa is a leading international events, digital services and academic knowledge group. We're here to champion the specialist. Through hundreds of brands and a range of products and services, we connect businesses and professionals with the knowledge they need to learn more, know more and do more. Informa is listed on London Stock Exchange and a member of FTSE 100.
Nomination Category: Marketing Campaign Categories - Specialty
Nomination Sub Category: Youth Marketing Campaign of the Year
 Nomination Title: Najah Education Series
- If you are providing written answers to the questions for this category, you must answer this first question: Specify the date on which this campaign or program was launched:
The soft launch campaign to schools commenced on 1st June 2022.
The visitor campaigns started 8 weeks before each event as follows:
Najah Abu Dhabi: 20th August 2022
Najah Dubai: 30th August 2022
- Which will you submit for this nomination, a video of up to five (5) minutes in length about the nominated campaign or program, OR written answers to the questions for this category? CHOOSE ONE:
A video of up to five (5) minutes
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the nominated video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video.
- If you are providing written answers to the questions for this category, you must answer this second question: Describe the genesis of the nominated campaign or program: the reasons it was initiated, the challenges it was created to address, the problems it was developed to solve, etc. (up to 250 words):
Total 241 words used.
Najah events are the UAE’s leading higher education recruitment fairs.
Education Industry Trends data showed students felt overwhelmed with choice over study options and frustrated by lack of guidance.
Najah events are designed for students to:
- meet local and international higher education establishments
- gain insightful knowledge about studying in the UAE and abroad
- explore scholarship opportunities.
Challenges Addressed
- Visitor Trust
Visitors had poor experiences in 2021 due to Covid-19 restrictions. Low revenues and NPS scores were obtained from both visitors and exhibitors.
In 2022, we concentrated on our target visitor audience to gain their trust back with an innovative content-driven marketing campaign focused on their needs.
- Stringent Email Systems
To overcome stringent spam filtering within school organizations, we hand-delivered leaflets via a concierge service. This bolstered school visits by 607% for Najah Abu Dhabi and 407% for Najah Dubai.
This strategy also became a gateway for schools and students to sign-up for the events' digital newsletters, growing our database and making it easier to access these audiences in future.
- Cost Inflation
With UAE experiencing its highest rate of inflation for 7 years, supplier costs increased while marketing budget reduced 5%.
To overcome this, we:
- optimized digital campaigns using quality relevant content to increase engagement and reduce PPC costs
- changed expensive printed materials to sustainable digital resources
- leveraged economies of scale through bookings for multiple events.
Despite the inflationary pressures, we achieved an incredible 64.7% saving in marketing cost per attendee.
- If you are providing written answers to the questions for this category, you must answer this third question: Describe the development of the campaign or program: the planning process, the goal setting, the creative and media development, the scheduling, etc. (up to 250 words):
Total 246 words used.
Planning
Using Education Industry Trends data, we knew target visitors were primarily GenZ with specific concerns.
They were:
- digitally savvy
- skeptical of traditional forms of advertising and paid ads, with
- strong ethics.
Establishing thought leader authority within Higher Education communities was to be achieved through:
- UAE Government support
- 13 top media partnerships.
With a reduced marketing budget by 5%, we needed:
- sustainable events
- innovative marketing
- solid content plans
- cost-effective strategies.
Goal Setting
The Najah Education marketing campaign objective was to improve:
- previous year visitor numbers
- revenue, and
- NPS scores.
Creative and Media Development
Highlights of our content strategy included:
- 6-month SEO campaign
- 8-week social media visitor campaign
- dynamic video formats such as reels, stories, and LIVE broadcasts reaching 200,000+ viewers!
- ‘Trending Topics’ content on subjects popular with our audiences
- parent-student social media series with interviews on topics
- ‘Student Resources’ page on the website giving guidance on scholarships and study abroad
- email campaigns specific to each audience
- printed leaflets hand-delivered to 400 schools
- toolkits for schools to easily communicate to students and parents about the events
- prioritizing feature articles over paid ads in major broadsheets.
Over 100 creatives were tested in various formats for each audience, with campaigns optimized for the best performing.
Scheduling
We used analytics reports to learn the best performing days and times and scheduled accordingly for:
- email
- social media
- digital campaigns.
We planned carefully to account for multiple exhibitions within the same 5 weeks, avoiding public holidays and the summer school break.
- If you are providing written answers to the questions for this category, you must answer this fourth question: Outline the activities and concrete results of this campaign or program since the beginning of 2021. Even if your initiative started before 2021, limit your response to activities and results since the beginning of 2021 only (up to 250 words):
Total 248 words used.
Activities
We implemented an innovative and integrated approach, utilizing a combination of digital and traditional marketing techniques, including:
- PR – $2.5 million worth of print, TV, radio, digital, reaching 91.2 million
- email campaigns – 30% open rate (2021: 11%)
- social media – 10.4 million organic reach and 240k engagement
- printed invitations – hand-delivered to 400 schools
- acquiring government support with government entities promoting to schools nationwide
- partnerships with media partners and community groups promoting to their audiences and members.
Concrete Results
The combination of quality media, hand-delivered leaflets, and dynamic digital marketing in a range of formats resulted in:
Campaign Success
- Organic website traffic of 115,809 unique users.
- Digital conversion rate of 45%.
- Database growth of 189% to 46k+.
- Live broadcasts reaching 200,000+ viewers!
Outstanding Attendance
- 193% rise in pre-registrations to 25k+ across both events.
- 185% increase in attendance to 21k+, (Najah Dubai attendance up 197%).
- 378% more school groups attending.
- 180+ exhibitors from 20 countries.
Astounding Satisfaction
- Average 40-point increase in Visitor NPS – Najah Abu Dhabi up an enormous 61 points!
Phenomenal Financial Results
- Incredible 32% boom in revenue (Najah Dubai revenue up 45.3%!)
- Amazing 64.7% saving in marketing cost per attendee.
Initial goals were achieved with:
- 185% attendance increases
- 32% revenue increases
- NPS score increases to well above industry standards.
A Grade 12 student praised:
‘Najah surpassed all our expectations this year... I left the event with answers to my questions and my parents informed and satisfied.’
- You have the option to reference here any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 143 words used.
Please find enclosed a PDF supporting document that summarizes the application for Youth Marketing Campaign of the Year
In this document, you will find evidence backing up the application as follows:
Event Overview
- Team photo.
- Quotes from Informa Connect senior management.
- Statistics relating to pre-registrations, exhibitor numbers.
- Details of cost savings and financial returns.
- Graphs illustrating growth in NPS scores for exhibitors and visitors.
Outstanding Growth
- Graphs depicting the increase in attendance numbers.
Campaign Success
- Statistics and graphs illustrating database growth.
Establishing Authority
- Photos of the opening of the Najah Dubai with Government support.
- Details of PR coverage obtained including screenshots of press articles.
- Screenshots of social media posts illustrating the digital campaign.
Outstanding Feedback
- Statistical satisfaction results from exhibitors.
- Testimonials from exhibitors and visitors.
Throughout the document, you will also see photos taken of exhibitors, students, and school groups at the events.
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