Major higher educational institutions exert efforts on social media to establish relationships with students, aspirants, alumni and other stakeholders. These efforts have been increased in the worldwide pandemic of COVID-19 as institutions are left only with social media channels as a medium to communicate and build their branding. Therefore, it is important to examine the various Facebook posts that become important for delivering the information and building a positive association with its stakeholders. The current study adopted the content analysis method to examine the various posts of the top 20 Indian universities during June 2020-November, 2020. The results revealed that university type, post category and post format were the important factors to increase the reachability (likes and shares) and engagement (comments and total engagement) of the post with its stakeholders during the above-stated period. Additionally, the posts in the category of events and announcements recorded the highest engagements. The current study also examined that the top relevant comments, content (positive sentiments and negative sentiments), gender, and users were not the factor in increasing engagement. This study provides strategies for universities to increase reachability and engagement concerning content creation and its format on social media platforms.
Digital marketing has replaced traditional marketing approaches due to an increase in the access to internet and communication technologies across the globe. In addition, it has created an opportunity for SMEs with limited market and funding to promote their brand across different regions, supporting balanced regional development. In this context, Saudi Arabia has been promoting the growth of SMEs through various initiatives as a part of its vision 2030 programme. Accordingly, NEOM city, a multi-billion project was launched to support businesses, innovators, entrepreneurs, and researchers by proposing the city as a hub for international entrepreneurs. However, it is unclear how the local SMEs and their approaches toward digital marketing would be impacted, and how the city can support them. This paper analyses and evaluates the impact of digital marketing on SMEs performance in Saudi Arabia, and its implications for developing NEOM city. An online survey questionnaire instrument was used for collecting data from 358 entrepreneurs and business owners categorised under SMEs. Low-cost marketing mix with techniques such as email marketing, social media marketing are preferred by SMEs. Cultural, economic, and technological are the major factors identified influencing the adoption of digital marketing by SMEs. Digital marketing reflected more positive impact on strategic performance (customers and employees’ satisfaction) than financial performance (profitability and sustainability) of Saudi Arabian SMEs. Saudi Arabian SMEs reflect their readiness and preparedness to reap the benefits from the Saudization programme, with a few minor issues related to socio-cultural, technological, and labour challenges.
The purpose of this article is to prove the need to perceive revenues as a manageable variable by applying an active approach to companies’ management during the COVIDization of the economy. In this regard, the article illustrates the role of revenues as a factor and as a result. Revenues underlie the formation of all major financial indicators. They are key measures of a company’s growth and performance. This dual nature of revenues is revealed in the context of economics, accounting and financial management. Their importance determines the need to adopt an active approach to revenue management of the economy during COVID-19 pandemic or other similar future occurrences. From a theoretical point of view, the active approach has been justified in the context of the classical strategic management methods emphasising the leading role of marketing. The main research hypothesis tested is that in the conditions of a sharp change in the economy during COVIDization, the importance of the active approach of operating revenue management as the main variable (KPI), cannot be understated.
This paper focuses on developing a tourist destination in the UAE, alongside the Sustainable Development Goals of increasing work opportunities and economic growth. The UAE has long recognised the importance of tourism for developing its economy. Abu Dhabi registered five sites in the UNESCO list of global heritage in 2011, and one of these sites is in the Oasis city of Al Ain. There is a potential for Al Ain to grow as a tourist destination, as part of the UAE nation brand. The research approach is mainly quantitative, using marketing research techniques such as Discrete Choice Analysis and Max-Diff to ascertain consumer preferences. The present study uses the 178 online questionnaires completed out of about 350 respondents. The findings of this study pose several practical implications. In the first place, it will determine how Al Ain can fit within a brand architecture of the Abu Dhabi Emirate or the UAE nation brand. Secondly, it can shed light on brand associations and the brand identity that Al Ain must pursue. It is considered that this piece of research can contribute to the development of Al Ain as a tourist destination and help organisations such as Abu Dhabi Department of Tourism and Cultural with the promotional messages and the positioning of Al Ain.
Today’s world changed tremendously after the COVID-19 pandemic. This crisis has, in turn, started or accelerated some of the globalisation processes that took root after the fall of the Berlin wall. A free to movement of people and goods without borders restrictions has allowed free zones, foreign direct investment, and so forth. This continuous evolution was perceived to be unbounded. With COVID 19, the beginning of a new era started. The increased closure of countries, appearance of regional differences, and the return to the state as a player limiting and regulating the markets is a reality. This was not anticipated before the COVID-19 global crisis. On the backdrop of this, technological advancements have facilitated the raise of new global powers. There seems to be an involution to the times of the cold war with all its mechanisms of restrictions. To complicate matters further, the use of the medical discoveries such as COVID vaccination have been deployed in the battle for political and economic influence.
