Naomi is a full-time digital strategy consultant at IBM while juggling her “side gig” as one of UAE’s top influencers. As you listen to the interview, though, you’ll realize it’s not a “side gig” - she’s got 2 full-time jobs pretty much.

Naomi and I have one thing in common (other than being Indian and loving to eat.) We both studied engineering (she has a MSc in Mechanical Engineering) but our professions have nothing to do with our academic degrees.

She’s spoken on a TEDx stage. She’s one of Ahlan!’s ‘Hot 100’ most influential Asians and influencers in UAE. She’s been featured in so many print and digital publications it’d take me several minutes to list them all. She has a black belt in Karate.

Oh, and she’s only 25 years old.

I sat down with Naomi to interrogate her on how she managed to accomplish so much and how she continues to do all the things she’s doing.

To read the full show notes, and get links to the resources mentioned during the episode, visit our blog:

https://blog.ubrik.com/naomi-dsouza

Some "entrepreneurs" are just in the right place at the right time.

Nassim Taleb talks about "Skin in the Game." That's how you figure out who's "Legit" (legitimate) and who's a fraud.

Naaz Noor is LEGIT. U.A.E. born-and-raised. Lawyer by training. Private-banker for 10 years before starting her own business, a legal consultancy. From there, Aseel Consultancy grew into F&B consulting, a co-working space, business incorporation, startup incubation, business services, and more.

For complete show notes, visit our website: https://blog.ubrik.com/naaz-noor

As it turns out, we're being incredibly wasteful and we didn't even know it! From the lights we had on unnecessarily, to the room being too cold, to not carpooling to work, Karl wasted no time rattling off what we could be doing better.

And the funny thing is, these are such easy fixes to implement. That's the problem with the status quo. Nobody cares. It gets to a point where it doesn't even cross your mind there's a better way to do things.

Karl is the founder and CEO of the Neutral Group. To put what they do in layman's terms, Karl and his team work with companies to make their entire supply chain eco-friendly and energy efficient.

Since founding his first start-up in 1990, which was sold to Microsoft in 1995, Karl has overseen the growth of technology companies resulting in three personal trade sale exits, two trade sale exits on behalf of external investors, and the leadership and preparation of two companies for IPO. Karl has 20 years international experience of managing technology businesses and was recognized by the World Economic Forum in 2004, as a Technology Pioneer.” He was voted “Innovator of the Year 2011” by the Middle East LOG magazine.

Karl holds an MBA from Henley Management College, a B.Eng.(Hons) Industrial Engineering from the University of Hertfordshire, and is an Adjunct Lecturer at the Masdar Institute in Abu Dhabi.

As far as "big business" experience goes, Karl is as credible and authoritative as they come. Which is why, when he talks about the impact businesses have on the environment and what we can do about it, people listen.

I, for one, thoroughly enjoyed my conversation with him. And, in preparing for our chat, I was shocked at some of the facts and figures I came across. You'll have to watch the full interview to find out what they are.

Read the full show notes: https://blog.ubrik.com/karl-feilder

I'm joined by Nabeel Azeez, direct response copywriter and marketing consultant. He co-owns a boutique content marketing agency, Dropkick Copy, with his brother. And he's the author of a soon-to-be-published book on personal branding called, Dragon Energy: The Tao Of Personal Branding. (Links are at the bottom of this post.)

Nabeel and I haven't known each other that long. My business partner - co-owner of Ubrik, Sheyaf Hashim - and him go way back. Here are a few interesting facts about Nabeel. He's been consulting full-time for just 2 years. And he's completely self-taught! Guess what he was doing before that?

Procurement at a shipping company!

The crazy thing is he doesn't just know how to write copy, even though that's his specialty. He has a working understanding of every branch of digital marketing! And he learned it all himself. I know several career marketers who've been doing this full-time for much longer than Nabeel but are nowhere near his level.

Enjoy the show!

For complete show notes and links to resources, visit our blog:

https://blog.ubrik.com/nabeel-azeez

But to me, here's the most impressive thing about him:

He's joined the best of both Western and Middle Eastern business culture, to help his customers in a truly unique way. I honestly can't think of any other local consultant with his skillset, academic credentials, and vast experience.

Dr. Corrie and I had a wide-ranging conversation at the Ubrik Media office recently. I had a bit of trouble coming up with a title for this episode. We covered so much ground.

The best, and most important, insight I got was the importance of thinking of business in terms of human relationships. Employer and employee. Client and vendor. Board members. Tribes. When you start to think and behave this way, according to Corrie, you activate the brain chemicals of happiness, trust, and fulfillment. It turns out to be very profitable for you in the long-run.

Enjoy the episode!

For full show notes, visit our blog: https://blog.ubrik.com/corrie-block

She's a PR strategist who's been successful in joining both old-school (traditional media) and new-school (digital media) techniques for her clients and for herself.

What impressed me most is that she walks the talk. All marketers should, this is a given. But some of us tend to neglect our own marketing because we're so busy serving our clients.

I sat down with Briar to discover what's new in PR, and to find out whether or not traditional PR is dead.

Click here to read the full show notes: https://blog.ubrik.com/briar-prestidge

Danish is a serial entrepreneur. Started his first business at 19. Had an exit that made him a millionaire overnight. Went bankrupt over the next year. Then built back up gradually to one of the most prominent businessmen in the U.A.E.

His flagship business, Xische, started off as a marketing consultancy. Today, the Xische brand is an umbrella for a number of initiatives - marketing, strategy, innovation, education, entrepreneurship, and more - working together for a singular purpose.

I sat down with Danish to find out what that purpose is. Here is our conversation.

For complete show notes and links to any resources discussed during the episode, visit our blog: https://blog.ubrik.com/danish-farhan

In the Middle East, people tend to think of 'logo design' when they hear the word branding.

In a nutshell, Branding is strategy made visible through design. It is an enabler of 'your strategy' and 'how you must position your company'.

Branding has shifted over the decades. It's more 'inside-out' than the reverse. It comprises both sides of an entity.

People often confuse branding with advertising. Advertising is tactical whereas branding is more strategic.

Due to digital trends, in this day and time, a mere logo has changed into a living identity instead of being a static 'single form' restricted by rules. Thus, traditional marketing has come to terms with digital.

[Vipul & Sheyaf exchange a few ideas & examples indicating this evolution]

Next comes the Colors aspect. Vipul mentions how Careem & Meeras Holding set their identity apart in the UAE.

Eventually, design keeps returning back to basics, ie. flat design. This is more or so because flat designs are easy to live across multiple mediums.

Branding helps convey what a company gives priority to. And right after a great experience with any brand, it is the 'human feel' that ends up creating affinity & an ever-lasting connection.

Sheyaf mentions how Apple inc. positioned itself as one of the world's biggest brands. He mentions how using a powerful brand leaves a higher level of satisfaction within a user.

To add to this, Vipul mentions how Tesla has never needed to advertise due to it's strong branding foundations. Tesla is a fine example of how people believe in the mission and the vision of a brand that is ready to break the boundaries.

Vipul mentions a tip for both business owners and startups: Bring 5 people in, don't let them talk to each other. Give them a piece of paper and let them write a single word mentioning what the word represents. The next task is to derive results from these.

Additionally, Vipul mentions the success mantra for Zappos.com. All employees are made to learn & embibe customer service processes. Although their logos do not connect anymore, they have created a culture which people identify themselves with, and this is mainly via their staff. Behind the scenes, there's has a deep connection with behavioral sciences. When recruiting, Zappos even pays attention to how their candidate behaves with a taxi driver.

Thus, branding is not just something for the consumers but also for a company's internal employees... to guide them and let them know what they must aim for.

A tip for well-established companies: The brand identity of your company is not engraved on stone. If a person can reconsider buying a new smartphone, companies should be open to re-branding if necessary.

Unlike thinking where to position your name on a business card, true branding is an open way of conveying strategy.

When it comes to design, remember the rule: Less is more. Instead of adding things to something, find out how you can take things out.

A few authors who inspire branding ideas:
- Armin Vit
- Simon Sinek

Vipul mentions how we must also take lessons from two of the richest personalities in the world: Warren buffet & Charlie Munger. They picked up stocks and businesses not only based on figurative values but based on the brand, and it's potential to influence a global populous.

Lastly, Branding is the broadest field one can be in. If you can understand it well, you could be a very good value investor.

Did you enjoy the episode?

Please leave us a rating and review on iTunes.

Hussein is the COO of Hug Digital, where he's been for 2 years.

He has a background in traditional advertising, made the switch to client side, then decided to try his hand at digital.

Hug Digital has been in business for 7 years, with 122 employees spread out across Dubai, Cairo, and Trivendrum.

If you're in the agency game in Dubai you've probably seen Hussein around. 

He's a go-to expert in social media marketing and a sought-after speaker at industry events. 

Topics Covered

• How has social media marketing changed in the past decade?
• The importance of agencies being transparent with clients about kpis and analytics
• How well are businesses leveraging changes in social media?
• Case study - new initiatives can backfire if not managed well
• Don't focus on sales. Focus on brand building
• Which trends are worth paying attention to?
• What is Hussein's approach to dealing with algorithm changes?
• Who are some of Hug Digital's clients?
• Which tools does Hug Digital use to manage its business?
• Final recommendations and insights

For complete show notes visit our website: What's new in Social Media Marketing?

Please subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes.

Topics Covered

• Paid Search
• Search Engine Optimization
• Content Marketing
• Social Media Marketing
• Email Marketing
• Mobile Marketing
• Marketing Automation

For complete show notes, visit our website: The 7 Pillars of Online Marketing

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes.

There are a ton of colorful characters and more than enough drama to keep you entertained.

As a marketer, it's one of the best niches to pay close attention to.

It's so saturated the marketing needs to be very sophisticated if you're going to be successful.

These guys and girls are amazing at content marketing, creating a personal brand, growing an audience, and selling to their audience.

Recently I came across a marketing tactic I haven't seen before - a strength coach taking email marketing and dialing it up to over 9000.

His name is Alexander Juan Antonio Cortes.

He's a bodybuilder, personal trainer, fitness writer, and published author.

He's written for prestigious publications like EliteFTS and Ironman magazine.

A few months ago he transitioned to online business full-time (he used to have a day job as a personal trainer.)

After coming across email copywriting maestro Ben Settle, Alex decided to start emailing his list 3 times a day, 7 days a week.

I've heard of people mailing their list several times a week, but never mailing daily, let alone several times a day

So, I just had to pick his brain about it.

Enjoy the interview, and let me know what you think in the comments below.

Topics covered:

• Who is Alexander Juan Antonio Cortes?
• Why did Alex decide to email his list 3 times a day?
• How is he able to produce so much content?
• What has the feedback from his subscribers been like?
• List segmentation and product development based on subscriber feedback
• People don't read so repeat important messages
• How Alex uses his personal brand to filter his readers
• Email list growth of 579% over 90 days
• Open rates and click-through rates are above average
• How Alex makes it easier for his audience to consume his content
• How long-form emails are more popular with Alex's subscribers
• How does Alex generate revenue from his emails?
• As he grows his list revenue will compound
• Unsubscribe rates are about average
• Alex's perspective on marketing in general (best part of the interview)

A complete transcript of the interview is available here: 

http://dropkickcopy.com/grow-your-email-list

Please remember to subscribe and leave us a rating and review on iTunes:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/digital-disruptors/id1202633889?mt=2

Topics covered:

• What is digital marketing?
• Problems facing digital marketers in Dubai
• Offline and online components of digital marketing
• The currency of digital marketing is attention
• Digital marketing contextualized: the marcomm framework
• The marketing mix
• Consumer psychology and digital marketing
• The importance of setting KPIs
• Our focus: online marketing
• Resources to understand digital marketing

Complete show notes are available on our website - What is Digital Marketing?

Please subscribe and leave us a rating and review on iTunes.

How to leave an iTunes rating and review.

All packaged in easy-to-digest episodes featuring unfiltered, no-holds-barred banter between old friends.

We'll also be featuring some of the growth-hackiest fresh-take-havers from the hottest businesses in Dubai.

We live and breathe digital marketing. And we've over 100 businesses in the U.A.E. along the way.

We are going to change the way Dubai does business. One episode at a time.

Links from the show

Exclusive Interview: How Jared Kushner Won Trump The White House

PRServe - PR for Startups

This show is brought to you by

Ubrik Media - http://ubrik.com

Dropkick Copy - http://dropkickcopy.com

Please subscribe and leave us a rating and review

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