2nd October 2011, UAE.

Dan Healy, the CEO of the Dubai-based research company Real Opinions, which conducted the research, commented: "The regional airline industry has gone through a transformation in recent years, emulating what happened in the regional flights sector in Europe at the turn of the millennium. The prolific growth of low cost airlines and the resultant consolidation in this industry segment has naturally created winners and losers, but passengers are the real winners as they now have more choice to better match their budget and required service levels."

In a further boost for the aviation industry, the introduction of low cost airlines also appears to have grown the overall market as 87% of the 538 respondents agreed that "Cheaper airfares encourage me to fly more often in the region". This is backed up with a sense of adventure to journey where they haven't been before with 86% supporting the statement ''I like experiencing new cultures and adventures".

The parallel growth of the Internet in the Middle East has also come at an opportune time for

low cost airlines; more than 90% of respondents agreed that "There are greater cost savings and choice when you search and book flights online".

Healy added: "We have been very active in the region researching the evolution of the Internet and advertising practices from a consumer's perspective. Our past research has shown that 72% of UAE Internet users have purchased online and flights are top of the list."

However, the research indicates there are still travellers who prefer to deal with travel agents, and on average 67% of travellers reported travel agents now also include low cost airlines in their quotes.

About the Research
The research was conducted online using the Real Opinions UAE online panel for 1 week Wednesday 20^th to Tuesday 26^thJuly 2011. It was conducted in both English (58%) & Arabic (42%) with n=538 respondents.

About Real Opinions
Real Opinions is a full-service market research company, specialising in online media, with global and Middle East research expertise and best practice. Based in Dubai, Real Opinions has proven ability to help strategically guide and assess the effectiveness of campaigns.

Real Opinions abides by the codes of conduct from ESOMAR, an international organisation for market research.

For more information about Real Opinions, visit http://www.real-opinions.com or follow @realopinions on Twitter.

To contact them and for any inquiries about this research project:

inquiry@real-opinions.com
www.real-opinions.com

2nd October 2011, Dubai

1st October 2011, Dubai, UAE

Here is an infographic of the research we conducted on smartphones and apps back in April 2011 in the Middle East with over n=2000 smartphone users from our online panel. We'd like to thank Research in Motion (BlackBerry) for sponsoring this research to help make it possible.

The 2012 research results will be presented at The Mobile Show in Abu Dhabi from 17th to 18th April 2012, hosted by Terrapinn.

For in-depth information on this research or our ability to conduct research with smartphone users across the Middle East, please contact us: inquiry@real-opinions.com

26th September 2011, Dubai, UAE
Real Opinions research results in Middle East with over 2000 Internet users and 250 businesses decision makers.

The latest research by the Dubai based research company Real Opinions suggests that Middle East businesses are ignoring the voices of an estimated 70 million Internet users in the region and hampering the growth of the e-commerce industry.

Just 6% of Middle East Internet users claim to purchase online regularly and this increases to 33% for those who have ever purchased online. There is a potential to grow this to 72% purchasing online with those that want to purchase online for the first time. The research results show that a lack of trust exists for 43% and unsuitable payment options for 36% prevents them from purchasing online.

Of those websites who have set-up online to take payments, there is still room for improvement as 1 in 10 claim they haven’t made a purchase because of poor website design, 17% were not able to process orders after making a decision to purchase and 23% said deliveries are unreliable.

Dan Healy, the CEO of Real Opinions who conducted the research commented, “There is a tremendous opportunity in the Middle East for e-commerce to grow, particularly for UAE businesses to expand their marketplace from 3.5 million in the UAE to over 70 million in the region. There is a demand for more local business to give Internet users the convenience of transacting online and 27% claim they haven’t done so as they haven’t been able to find them online. Much of the transactions being done at the moment are just for airlines, hotels and paying utility bills.”




With Middle East Internet users spending an average of 4 hours online each day, there is also an opportunity for Middle East business to efficiently target and engage with their target audience. Real Opinion’s research with Middle East business decision makers estimates that digital marketing on average will capture 28% of marketing budgets across organisations in the coming 12 months. Despite this claimed investment in digital marketing, 37% still claim their organisation’s usage of digital marketing is poor. Backing this us is 30% claiming that their ability to assess digital marketing ROI is poor and a further 12% actually didn’t know their organisation’s assessment of ROI, questioning the ability of attracting an even greater share of the marketing budget with this lack of understanding on how to do this.

Another question for business to consider is their mix of investment in digital marketing appropriate for their objectives. The most popular digital marketing investment for Middle East businesses is ‘Email marketing’ with 14%. Balancing this up with the opinions of Middle East Internet users, just 20% claim they have ever bought something because of an email they’ve received and 42% reject emails by claiming they will never influence them to buy. The next most popular digital investments were in ‘Website display ads / ad networks’ (13%) and ‘Social media paid for ads’ (11%).

Healy commented, “With 86% of Middle East Internet users claiming they belong to a new generation of Arabic society, the challenge is for Middle East businesses to catch-up with the needs of these new digital natives”.

This research was carried out leading up to ‘The Internet Show’ in Abu Dhabi presented by Terrapinn which includes a free exhibition running on 27th and 28th of September which aims to help businesses to use the Internet better.

Matthew Wallhead, General Manager of Terrapinn added, "The power of digital and social media channels are becoming increasingly powerful ways for businesses of all sizes to communicate with the target audience. With this opportunity comes some major challenges and amongst them is identifying which channels are offering the greatest ROI. Visitors to The Internet Show are looking for solutions and partners who can help them measure the effectiveness of their digital campaign and I am sure they will get the answers they are looking for by engaging with all of the exhibitors at the show. Entrance to the exhibition and 60+ educational seminars is free”.


About Real Opinions
Real Opinions is a full-service market research company, specialising in online media, with global and Middle East research expertise and best practice. Based in Dubai with globally, Real Opinions has proven ability to help strategically guide organisations with communication, insight and assess the effectiveness of campaigns.

Real Opinions abides by the codes of conduct from ESOMAR, an international organisation for market research. For more information visit http://www.real-opinions.com

Contact Real Opinions for more information:
inquiry@real-opinions.com
Read more!

Real Opinions research results in Middle East with 2,950 respondents. To receive a copy of the full report, register at www.real-opinions.com/research

12th June 2011, Dubai, UAE

The latest research with smartphone users in the Middle East shows the dynamic growth of smartphones and opportunities for app developers with 95% of smartphone users claiming to have apps and 82% download them at least once a month. In a typical month for these smartphone users, 6 apps are downloaded and a third of these are bought.

Although 18% prefer to pay a USD$1 starting price for apps and 13% would pay the full price with all the features and functions, the most appealing business model for 58% is one where smartphone users accept advertising in the app and they are willing to surrender their usage data.

A total of 73% of smartphone users agreed with the statement ‘I like downloading apps that make my life easier’ and this is reflected with the types of apps they are interested in. Communication apps are the most popular for 77% of smartphone users and this is in contrast to just 57% for games. However, the fuller picture is revealed as the popularity of games increases to 69% for full time students and those unemployed. Even 47% of senior officials and managers also find games appealing, but they in particular are more likely to prefer business (60%) and banking/finance apps (56%).

The research was conducted by the Dubai based market research company Real Opinions across the Middle East and sponsored by Research in Motion leading up to the conference ‘Planet of the Apps Arabia’. Dan Healy, CEO of Real Opinions commented,

“We have been witnessing the dramatic evolution of the industry and lack of information available on smartphone users regionally. Together with insight from David Ashford, the Managing Director of ‘AppsArabia’, and the integral support of ‘Research In Motion’ to make this a reality, we conducted this research to help fill some of these information gaps. We hope this will both encourage more investment in the industry regionally and helps more app developers to be successful.”

The potential opportunities for smartphones and app developers is amplified with half of those that don’t have a smartphone expecting to get one within the next 12 months and 7 in 10 of those that do have a smartphone intend to upgrade in the same time period.

4 in 10 of smartphone users are professionals, senior management or officials and 16% are full-time students. The growth of 1 in 5 first time smartphone users is expected to come from full-time students.

AppsArabia’s David Ashford added,

“While there is consumer demand for regional apps, the main challenge has been the willingness of consumers to pay for apps and the options for method of payment. This research shows that users don’t mind in-app ads if the app is free to download and use. But this often isn’t enough of a revenue stream for publishers so entrepreneurs are exploring other ways to combat piracy, such as in-app purchases and try-before-you-buy.”

About the Research
The research was conducted online survey using the Real Opinions online panel throughout the Middle East for 1 week from 6th to 13th April 2011. It was cconducted in both English (23%) & Arabic (77%) with n=2,950 respondents.

About Real Opinions
Real Opinions is a full-service market research company, specialising in online media, with global and Middle East research expertise and best practice. Based in Dubai with consultants in London and Singapore, Real Opinions has proven ability to help strategically guide organisations with communication, insight and assess the effectiveness of campaigns.

Real Opinions is an accredited member of ESOMAR, an international organisation for market research. For more information visit http://www.real-opinions.com

Contact Real Opinions for more information:
inquiry@real-opinions.com
Read more!

31st December 2009, Dubai, UAE
Results of Global Study in UAE, Saudi, USA, United Kingdom, Russia and Germany.

On the eve of the new decade, research results have been released to show that 2010 is expected to bring cheer to the UAE; the economic recovery is expected to start in the last quarter of 2010 and fully recover in the second quarter of 2012.

Research conducted by the Dubai based market research company Real Opinions shows that according to consumer opinion in the UAE there emphatically has been an economic downturn for the vast majority of residents. Just 15% in the UAE believed there is no economic downturn.

Whether directly impacted by the economic downturn or a cautious attitude is adopted due to imminent fear of, average household expenditure is said to have decreased for 7 in 10 UAE residents. In percentage terms for these residents spending less, this amounted to a decrease of 26% in average household expenditure in a typical month. However, 1 in 4 UAE residents claim to not have been impacted with 19% reporting no change at all and 6% actually increasing expenditure.

Dan Healy, CEO of Real Opinions who conducted the research, added “Back in April 2010 we reported that UAE expatriates predicted a recovery starting in the UAE by November 2010 and these latest research results back this up. This optimism back then was emphasized with the expectation that the UAE would do so the quickest globally. However, the property market is expected to play a key role in this looking forward as 7 in 10 who had invested in property claimed at the time to be in negative equity and this situation doesn’t seem to have improved much since then.”

In terms of the contentious role of the media reporting on the economic crisis, just 1 in 5 (21%) in the UAE believe that it has been balanced with 4 in 10 (42%) of the opinion that it was talked down and in turn the issue under played. Just 3 in 10 (31%) believed it was talked up, making the situation worse.

Healy added, “To help put these results into perspective, we also conducted this research online in 5 other countries, namely United Kingdom, USA, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Germany with a total of over 1,500 respondents. In terms of the media’s role in reporting the economic crisis, 7 in 10 (72%) residents in the United Kingdom felt the media had actually made it worse by talking up the economic crisis, the highest of the countries surveyed. Despite the media reporting, the survey results show that the consumer economic reality wasn’t as bad in UK as other countries surveyed. The UK had one of the lowest percentages reporting a decrease in household expenditure (58%) and rate of percentage decrease was also comparatively low (20%).”

Healy further commented, “Media and in particular the Internet play a key role in the dissemination of information (whether objective, well researched or perpetuating rumors) which in particular can impact upon consumer opinion on subject matters which might be out of their comfort zone (e.g. such as the intricacies of the global finance industry and economics). Our past research has shown consumers tap into a multitude of traditional and new media sources to understand situations better. The majority of their opinions sit in the middle of all these perspectives and most importantly reiterates their own economic reality. We believe our research results serve the purpose of doing exactly that, reflecting the reality of residents in these countries. An increase in consumer confidence and in turn expenditure can be one of the key drivers to a recovery and this research shows when this might be.”

The results in the countries surveyed show that this is a global economic downturn uniting them all. The highlights in some of the countries surveyed include:

Saudi Arabia - Saudi Arabia reported the least impact upon average household expenditure with 53% claiming a decrease. However, a disparity seems to be opening up as those who did report a decrease reported the largest drop in household expenditure of all the countries surveyed with a 28% decrease. In contrast, there were 38% who reported either an increase (15%) or no change (23%).

United Kingdom - In the United Kingdom with the highest perception that their media had actually talked up the economic crisis, there was a comparatively low 58% who claim to have decreased household expenditure and by 20% less. They reported the highest percentage claiming no change in expenditure for 1 in 4 residents (25%). The outlook is most pessimistic in the UK than in other countries, with a full recovery to the height before the downturn not expected until mid 2013.

USA - There were 3 in 4 residents in the USA (75%) who reported a decrease in household expenditure and this was the highest of all the countries surveyed. The percentage decrease in expenditure was also a comparatively high amount of 28%. This decrease of 28% closely matching the percentage reported in Saudi Arabia but with it having a wider impact on 22% more USA residents.

In the first half of 2010, Real Opinions will be conducting workshops in Dubai to assist organizations with effective decision making, harnessing digital opportunities and integrating innovation onto their organizations.

Healy added, “ We hope these research results will help build confidence for consumers and help organizations to make better decisions leading up to the expected recovery’. A full report of these survey results for each country is available from Real Opinions.

Research Methodology
The research was conducted using an online research methodology in each of the countries. The number surveyed in each country was All (1,568), UAE (306), Saudi (257), UK (213), USA (253), Russia (354) & Germany (185). At a total level, the margin of error of results is calculated at approximately +/- 2.5% with a CI of 95%.

About Real Opinions
Real Opinions is a full-service market research company with global and Middle East research expertise and best practice. Based in Dubai, Real Opinions has proven ability to help strategically guide effective decision making and communication.

Real Opinions is an accredited member of ESOMAR, an international organisation for market research. For more information visit www.real-opinions.com

Real Opinions Executive Team
Dan Healy, founder and CEO of Real Opinions, has over 10 years online research experience and has held senior executive roles in London in the New Media team of NOP, Nielsen//NetRatings and setting up offices for YouGov in the Middle East as their Regional Research Director.

Contact for More Information
Dan Healy
CEO
Real Opinions
inquiry@real-opinions.com

Media Coverage
UAE residents cautious about spending but expect fast recovery
Emirates Business 24/7

Consumers expect recovery this year
7Days

UAE consumers expect economic recovery in 2010
AME Info

UAE buyers see economic rebound in 2010
Arabian Business

16th June 2010, UAE
Internet Users Concerned About Internet Privacy

Global survey shows that 3 in 4 UAE Internet users are concerned about their Internet privacy and prefer advertising based upon what they do online rather than who they are.

New research from Real Opinions shows that 60% of UAE Internet users favour behavioural targeting for customised advertising and Internet content, whilst 76% said their searches for products and visits to websites should never be monitored unless they have given express permission to do so beforehand.

Dan Healy, the CEO of Real Opinions said “One of the key opportunities for Internet advertisers is to efficiently target their key audience. Our research shows that customers want more sophistication from advertisers in reaching out to them by better understanding what they are looking for online rather than who they are. Take the example of buying an annual holiday. You might only do this once a year but when you do you’d like to see all the deals on offer and not at any other time during the year. This is the key moment for advertisers, it’s the here and now period when customers are making an evaluation and possibly a transaction online right away."

The survey clearly shows that consumers are increasingly attracted to the convenience and relevance that behavioural targeting brings to online content but also have concerns regarding the ways in which data collected about their online habits is being collected. Privacy concerns have resulted in fierce debate in Europe and North America where new legislation is being discussed to protect online privacy and recent communications from both Google and Facebook regarding privacy of Internet users has attracted a great deal of media attention. In particular, Adobe has been addressing concerns about the practice of some organisations using Flash cookies to regenerate HTML cookies (Internet history) that may have been intentionally deleted by Internet users.

UAE based Internet users were surveyed as part of the global 11-country Here & Now study by Real Opinions which sought to ask Internet users for their opinions on the debate of Internet advertising, privacy concerns and preferences.

Of all the global respondents surveyed, the story was similar with 65% saying they prefer to give express permission before searches and visits to websites are monitored. This was particularly so with concern respondents in UAE (76%), South Africa (77%) and Australia (91%) respondents.

"Behavioural advertising promises to help advertisers reach the right consumer with the right message at the right time by gathering data on individuals Internet habits," said Carrington Malin, managing director of Spot On Public Relations. "The overall concept is a win-win for advertiser and consumer, providing more effective channels for advertisers and more relevant advertising and content for consumers. However, new behavioural advertising techniques require more monitoring of consumers usage patterns and raise some very real privacy concerns that have become the subject of widespread debate."

The Here & Now survey also found that there are some Internet users that do not accept any trade off between privacy levels and behavioural targeting. When asked about the different options for websites to secure permission for monitoring, 38% of respondents believed that no tracking or monitoring of their online behaviour should be permitted under any circumstances. However, almost 6 in 10 (59% globally and also in the UAE) most preferred the method suggested of a setting in Internet browsers which allows Internet users to set global default levels of privacy rather than on a per website basis. Of note, this was most preferred option by almost 3 in 4 respondents (74%) in India and 67% in China.

“There has been a significant volume of media coverage regarding online privacy and this is an issue that many people have a growing awareness of,” said Healy. “People have learned to become more wary and want more control put in their own hands about what they do and do not share rather than rely on third parties to regulate their levels of privacy.”

Another outcome of the survey was that people were more negative generally about promotions that targeted mobile phones, with 51% of people surveyed in the UAE being against SMS advertising.

About The Research
The Here & Now survey was conducted online using Real Opinions online panel. Research was conducted from approximately 27th February to 7th March 2010. Respondents were given the choice to complete the survey in either English or their local language. 1,535 respondents overall took part in the survey.

About Real Opinions
Real Opinions is a full-service market research company, specialising in online media, with global and Middle East research expertise and best practice. Based in Dubai and London, Real Opinions has proven ability to help strategically guide and assess the effectiveness of campaigns.

Real Opinions is an accredited member of ESOMAR, an international organisation for market research.

Contact Real Opinions for more information:
inquiry@real-opinions.com

27 July 2009, Dubai, UAE

Real Opinions CEO Dan Healy is hosting a market research workshop in Dubai UAE from 27th September to 1st October 2009 with IIR Middle East.

Click for more information and booking.

Here is an outline of the courses (in 2 stages):

Course I: 27 – 28 September 2009
Essentials Of Market
Research Develop A Framework On How To Conduct And Benefit From Market Research

Course II : 29 September – 1 October 2009
Advanced Market Research
An In-Depth Practical Exploration Of Tools, Techniques And Innovations In Market Research Available In The Middle East

24th April 2009, Dubai
A recent survey by the market research company Real Opinions in the Middle East on the first 100 days since US President Obama was inaugurated shows that although the image of the US and leadership on the global stage has improved, performance on issues closer to home in the Middle East are dividing opinion.

There is success for Obama with overall opinion of the US from a Middle Eastern perspective improving by 42%. This is backed up with 35% believing the leadership of US on the global stage has also improved while 43% believe there is no change and just 9% believe it is actually worse. There are also encouraging signs on the subject of the economy with more than twice as many than his predecessor believing they are more confident with the global economy recovering under his leadership (37% improved, 15% worse). However, in terms of key issues such as Middle East stability, the opinion is more closely divided with 20% believing it has improved and 14% believing it has become worse.

Dan Healy, the CEO of Real Opinions who conducted the survey commented ‘Breaking some of these results down to the areas directly impacted by recent events such as those in the Palestinian Autonomous Area (PAA), 19% believed Middle East stability has worsened, 17% believe it has improved while just over half believe it has not changed (54%). When it came to the issue of the Palestinian & Israeli situation, 30% in PAA thought this was worse under Obama’s leadership, which is twice as many as those who thought it had improved on 14%. For half of these respondents, they don’t believe there is any change between Presidents Bush and Obama.

1st March 2009, Dubai
A recent survey by the market research company Real Opinions shows that 4 in 10 expatriate employees in the UAE say they are likely to look for employment in another country and leave the UAE over the coming 12 months.

In terms of job security, 17% of respondents felt they would most likely lose their job or be made redundant over the coming 12 months with 8% of respondents said this had already happened to them.

Q. How likely or unlikely do you think the following will happen over the coming 12 months?