“The event is being held in response to the increasingly critical role that social media is playing in networking in the Arab region. Governments and businesses alike have taken notice of the potential offered by the increased penetration of social networking tools, and its active role in the integrated marketing communications mix,” Khamis Al Muqla, President of IAA Bahrain Chapter, said.
“With this in mind, we are honoured to have David Bullock, co-author of Barack 2.0, as the guest speaker at this gathering, sharing with us his insights on the topic “How to go from a start-up to an established brand in 18 months using new media”. We look forward to hearing his insights in particular with regards to business networking.”
Bullock has a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Delaware and brings an engineer’s perspective to social media. His focus is helping businesses drive sales and find new roads to success. He is a nationally recognised speaker and trainer providing coaching and consulting services to businesses.
Al Muqla said that with its database growing steadily, the IAA Bahrain Chapter has embarked on a membership drive and hopes to register 100 members in the next few months. This initiative is intended to encourage new talent to join the association and bring forth fresh ideas and approaches that can potentially benefit the media industry. The IAA invites all parties related to the industry to join in and looks forward to developing and improving it together. The Association also wishes to announce that the Berlin School of Scholarship for Excellence in Communications has now been extended to all Chapter members worldwide. This scholarship is an excellent opportunity for those members who are interested in pursuing MBA programmes.
“The advertising and marketing industries work hand in hand, particularly in the Arab region where the sectors are still emerging. This kind of information sharing is what social media is all about, and we are privileged to have such a renowned author share his insights with us. With the rapid growth of Social Media Network users in the World – as Worldwide Facebook users reached 773 million+ and WorldWide LinkedIn users reached 130 million+ where Bahrain has more than 380,000+ users on Social Media networks with almost 50% online penetration,” Ali Sabkar, Social Media Club Bahrain Chapter President said, who lauded cooperation with the IAA Bahrain Chapter for hosting the gathering.
“The Social Media Club which brings together experienced social media and e-marketing professionals, has been keen on holding this major event in Bahrain for coaching and training young entrepreneurs and specialists on the basics of social media, uses of social media networks such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, MSN and other websites, planning media campaigns through the social media networks in addition to the exchange of expertise and best practices in this field,” Sabkar, said.
“The Bahrain Chapter is part of the world Social Media Club and holds monthly meetings and gatherings for all community groups to educate them about the social media and e-marketing, information and telecommunications technologies in addition to disseminating the social media culture for the good of the whole community,” Sabkar, added.