A non-developer product manager, learnt HTML at the age of 13, loves technology with a huge passion for the web and Internet and a wannabe geek. Could be used as a bio, no? This is me, and the challenge is obvious from the very first few words; I am a “non-developer” product manager who works most of the time with developers. At the beginning, I thought my technical understanding and knowledge are enough to manage a team of engineers. It helped a lot but, unfortunately, it wasn’t enough. I wanted to be one of them and make sure my requests and deadlines are realistic enough to be delivered. Continue reading →

As more and more people become familiar with social media – many have come up with certain “Netiquette” guidelines. For me, the number one rule is – Never Delete. Continue reading →

I remember once reading Steve Gandara saying “what’s being shared and amplified is often an indicator of what is going on inside the hearts and minds of an individual”.

Human resources departments have tremendously benefited from Social Media in many aspects, ranging from Recruitment & Selection to Corporate and Organizational Structure. Continue reading →

Many businesses are joining the social sphere on daily basis, some with clear objectives and plans and others are just doing it because “they have to”. Few years ago, I used to say if you’re not ready for social media it’s much better for you (as a brand) to stay out of the game, but nowadays it’s a bit different. You HAVE to be on social media and readiness is just out of question; you won’t be able to survive if you weren’t ready.

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We’ve all set up countless lists of New Year’s resolutions. Lose weight, learn a new language, or even save up some extra cash. You jump in with both feet and a big smile on your face believing you’ll get there and get it done. The energy levels are high, but most of us lose it come February.  Perhaps what you really need is encouragement. The human brain is great at resisting change and one of its great counterattack mechanisms is shooting down any memory of it. At TOP, we’re trying to stick to our own resolutions by tapping into the power of social media. What’s the connection you might ask, well then read on… Continue reading →

لاحظنا في رمضان الماضي أن سلوك المستخدمين في تويتر تغير بشكل كبير خلال الشهر الفضيل. وقد أثار ذلك إهتمامنا وقررنا البحث أكثر في هذا الموضوع. حيث قمنا برصد مجموعة من التغريدات المتاحة للجميع من أربع بلدان في المنطقة هي: الإمارات العربية المتحدة، مصر، الأردن والكويت، خلال وبعد شهر رمضان. كان هدفنا هو تطوير إستراتيجيات تتأقلم مع تغيرات عادات مستخدمي تويتر خلال رمضان. Continue reading →

Last Ramadan, we noticed that user behavior on our Twitter channels had changed drastically during the Holy Month. This peaked our interest and we decided to look further into it. We compiled a data set of publically available tweets from 4 countries in the region: UAE, Egypt, Jordan and Kuwait during Ramadan and afterwards. Our aim was to develop new strategies that adapt to the changes in user habits on Twitter during Ramadan. Continue reading →

After months of hard work, we completed our first industry report. The data in the report is taken from Facebook and it highlights the differences between Facebook users in the Middle East and the US.

We believe that the report will be useful to marketers, since it will help them localize and adapt their social media strategies to be more effective and region-focused. Continue reading →

على الرغم من أن الشكل الجديد لصفحات الفيسبوك (Timelines)  هو “أفضل ما أنتجته فيسبوك للمسوّقين على الإطلاق” على حد قول مايك هوفلينغر، مدير تسويق الأعمال العالمي في فيسبوك. إلا أن التصميم والخصائص الجديدة ستؤثر كثيراً على تصرفات المعجبين وتفاعلاتهم مع الصفحات.

أعلنت فيسبوك رسمياً عن التصميم الجديد للصفحات في مؤتمرها الأول الخاص بالمسوّقين (fMC) ، حيث يستطيع مسؤلو الصفحات حالياً البدأ في إستخدام التصميم الجديد للصفحات أو معاينته فقط، ولكن إبتداءً من 30 آذار سيتم تحويل جميع الصفحات الى الشكل الجديد. كما أعلنت عن منتجات تسويقية وإعلانية أخرى تعمل على ترويج محتوى الصفحات. Continue reading →

Despite the fact that the new Facebook Timeline is “the richest, most customized marketing canvas we’ve ever built” as expressed by Hoefflinger, Director of Global Business Marketing at Facebook, the new layout and functionalities will most likely affect user behavior among other things.

The Facebook Timeline for pages was officially launched at the Facebook Marketing Conference (fMC), along with other advertising and marketing tools that focus on page content. Currently, pages’ admins can start using this innovative product or just preview it. However, starting the 30^th of March all pages will be automatically upgraded to the new Timeline. Continue reading →