• Seventy-three percent improvement in website visits
• Premium positions for twelve valuable keywords
• Forty-one percent growth in leads from our digital storefront
• Fifty-two percent growth in sales percentage

The most successful Saudi brands understand that people don't think in terms of channels. My banking client saw a seventy-six percent growth in prospects after we integrated their once separate touchpoints.

A few weeks ago, I was advising a large e-commerce business that had invested over 200,000 SAR on a impressive website that was converting poorly. The issue? They had simply translated their English site without accounting for the fundamental UX differences needed for Arabic users.

I dedicate at least a substantial amount of time each Monday reviewing our competitors':

• Website organization and navigation
• Articles and publishing frequency
• Social media presence
• Customer reviews and evaluations
• Keyword tactics and positions

I visited a web design studio in Jeddah last week where they presented me the difference between their themed and custom projects. The visual impact was clearly noticeable – the bespoke sites appeared distinctly more refined and memorable.

• Shifted product visuals to the left portion, with product specifications and purchase buttons on the right-hand side
• Modified the photo slider to progress from right to left
• Incorporated a custom Arabic font that kept clarity at various dimensions

Not long ago, my family-owned business was barely surviving to attract new customers. Our online presence was nowhere to be found in Google listings. That's when I chose to explore specialized search engine optimization.

Important methods included:

• Working with Saudi regional experts to determine genuine lookup habits
• Analyzing local competitors for search term strategies
• Creating a Arabic-English keyword matrix to capture all potential searchers
• Using regional linguistic differences in place of standard Arabic

Important components included:

• Smartphone-prioritized ad formats
• Click-to-call additions for voice-preferred users
• Application advertising for relevant searches
• Platform-tailored destination sites

During my previous project for a investment company in Riyadh, we observed that users were consistently tapping the wrong navigation items. Our user testing revealed that their eyes naturally flowed from right to left, but the primary navigation items were positioned with a left-to-right importance.

As someone who has developed over 30 Arabic websites in the recent years, I can tell you that applying Western UX practices to Arabic interfaces falls short. The special features of Arabic script and Saudi user expectations require a specialized approach.

Additional timing findings included:

• Decreased competition during worship moments with consistent conversion rates
• Higher interaction on non-workdays especially after night prayers
• Seasonal variations demanding budget adjustments during cultural events
• Academic calendar influences on certain categories

For a hospitality brand, we identified that direct translation of their foreign queries produced extremely unproductive costs. After applying a culturally-appropriate keyword strategy, their CPA decreased by seventy-three percent.

I now use several tools that have dramatically improved our market intelligence:

• Keyword trackers to monitor rivals' search rankings
• Mention tracking software to follow competitors' social activity
• Website analysis platforms to monitor changes to their online presence
• Newsletter subscription to receive their marketing agency in Saudi capital communications

Last year, I watched as three competitors poured resources into expanding their business on a specific social media platform. Their efforts flopped as the medium turned out to be a mismatch for our industry.

• Redesigned the data entry sequence to match right-to-left thinking processes
• Created a Arabic-English input mechanism with intelligent language switching
• Optimized mobile interactions for thumb-based Arabic typing

When I launched my retail business three years ago, I was certain that our distinctive products would stand out naturally. I overlooked market research as superfluous – a choice that nearly ruined my entire venture.

Start by listing ALL your rivals – not just the major ones. During our analysis, we discovered that our biggest rival wasn't the famous business we were tracking, but a emerging business with an innovative approach.

• Select fonts specifically designed for Arabic on-screen viewing (like Boutros) rather than conventional print fonts
• Enlarge line leading by 150-175% for improved readability
• Use right-aligned text (never centered for body text)
• Avoid compressed Arabic text styles that compromise the characteristic letter shapes

I remember the shock on my brother-in-law's face when he received a quote UI/UX For Middle Eastern Markets seventy-five thousand SAR for his company website. "It's just a site!" he shouted. Shortly after, he ultimately with a inexpensive 3,000 SAR site that looked terrible and failed to generate a single lead.