Dubai: One of the most prominent not-for-profit organizations for economic development, the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development has released the results of the comprehensive UAE Consumer Survey which provides insights into consumer behavior across multiple areas, including marketing, social media, digital media, e-commerce, retail, food and nutrition.
The Khalifa Fund UAE Consumer Survey Report is expected to offer reliable data to promote entrepreneurship within the country and serve SMEs with valuable consumer behavior data.
1,884 respondents from a wide demographic, accurately representing the UAE’s population were part of the Consumer Survey.
MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA
With respect to marketing and social media, the report revealed that 40 percent of the respondents found online advertising to be intrusive and unhelpful while another 40 percent of survey participants were neutral towards advertisements as long as they also receive high-quality and free content in return.
PRIVACY
Weighing on their privacy, 35 percent of respondents didn’t not support receiving online advertisements based on their search history, suggesting that businesses should find other more engaging marketing methods to reach their respective target audiences.
PRODUCT RESEARCH
The report revealed that 66.4 percent of online consumers researched before making a major purchase, while 96.10 percent of the respondents use Google as their preferred search engine, further enforcing Google advertising’s potential for offering business growth.
The UAE Consumer Survey Report is yet another tool for the UAE’s entrepreneurial ecosystem to benefit from as per Khalifa Fund’s wide array of versatile services. The in-depth report was developed during the heights of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the aim of providing entrepreneurs with new insights into consumer behaviors; many of the new trends and traits in consumer spending are here to stay, so it’s imperative that we equip SMEs with the knowledge and resources to maneuver in this new-age market.
Ms. Alia Al Mazrouei, CEO of Khalifa Fund remarked about the survey report.
SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE
The report also provides significant insights into the attitudes of the survey participants towards social media use.
The report states that 45.10 percent of survey respondents regularly use business networks such as LinkedIn. 83.30 percent of the respondents prefer using instant messengers such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and WeChat while over 75 percent of the respondents used social networks such as Facebook, Instagram etc.
According to the report, a significant majority, around 92.5 percent of survey participants use social media platforms daily and several times a week, indicating that the UAE is highly social media-oriented.
ONLINE SHOPPING
71.20 percent of the female respondents and 60 percent of male respondents of the survey looked at customer reviews before making an online purchase.
The report also stated that 57.2 percent of female online shoppers preferred to use their phones or tablets to research products and make new purchases.
FOOD AND NUTRITION
Providing some great insights into the attitude of UAE residents towards food and nutrition and found, the report revealed that 73 percent of the respondents make healthy food choices, 45 percent are concerned about food convenience and service efficiency, while 49 percent prefer natural flavors and actively avoid artificial flavors and preservatives.
SURVEY RECOMMENDATIONS
- Businesses should target medium to high-income groups within the market as they represent more than 63 percent of the total population
- The majority of consumers are highly educated so marketing campaigns should offer valuable content as per the interest of the demographic group
- Convenience and flexibility are two very important features that consumers look for when making a purchase, either physically or via online platforms and
- Entrepreneurs in the F&B sector should focus on healthy food and natural ingredients while offering quick and convenient service.