How the Little Differences Make a Big One

Whenever you go on a journey, it's always a healthy exercise to look back and reflect on the memories that you've created and how far you've travelled. Recollection is a trait that we uniquely have as humans, and it is a quality that we need. If it's a positive experience, you'll look back fondly on the exciting times, and if it's negative, you'll be able to focus on how to make things better.

Now that I've been in a Qatar for over a year now, I can safely say that my time here has been exciting, but with many unnecessary detours. When I first got here, I didn't really know what to expect, but for some reason I thought it would be very similar to Oman.

Boy was I wrong.

Qatar, for better or worse, is its own country, with its own set of attributes and nuances. Some things were expected like the scorching heat, and some I could have never imagined, like having to go to such great and costly lengths to go to the beach, considering Qatar is an island.

But what has been consistent throughout my whole excursion are the little differences that make working abroad so interesting. Sure, there is the fact that I get to meet people from different countries, or that my vacation options are much more vast. But what I assume, makes life more interesting for expats is that when you work abroad, things are basically the same, but with little differences.

Cue, John Travolta

So what are those differences in Qatar? I'm glad you asked. I would have never remembered these unless I wrote them down, but I notice at least a handful each day. They include:

• Having the ability to un-press a button on an elevator
• Having to worry about speed cameras on roads and intersections
• In a mall food court, you leave your food tray at the table
• Gas prices (Sorry, Canada)
• In the Middle East, it's, "Welcome", not "You're welcome"
• Answering machines don't exist
• There is no such thing as a street address. You should just know where to go
• Calls to prayer happen everywhere, including in IKEA or on 80% of radio stations
• For many, working in Qatar is like being a kid again - everybody is away in August
• Blogs are the most popular and dependable source of information
• You can never find motor oil in a store, only at gas stations
• Recycling is non-existent
• Sometimes, I'm not only a minority, I can walk into a mall and be the only Caucasian expat
• Getting different tiered notes from the ATM rather than just $20 bills
• When you get into an accident, they don't tow cars, they leave them on the side of the road
• Everything is closed on Friday's from 11:30am to 12:30pm
• Airport food prices are actually fair
• There's no crime. You can leave your valuables in your car without worry
• People happily reveal their credit card pins if it's more convenient for the servant to process
• The forecast is about how hot it is rather than the type of weather
• You can only left turn at intersections, otherwise you have to U-turn

Everyday, people wake up in the morning. Some take their kids to school. Some don't. People work hard. They have their lunches. They come home, turn on the television, or spend time with their kids. No matter where you, this equation is the same, no matter if you are in Toronto, Budapest, or Doha. But it's those tidbits along with the surrounding scenery and people that make life just a little different each and every day.

Stop, Collaborate, and Listen

Whenever I come back home to Toronto, I am asked many questions about the Middle East. How hot is hot? Does Penny have to wear a hijab? What is it like living without daylight savings time? Ok, maybe not the last, but I'm often happy to explain because it shows that inquisitive minds are somewhat curious to what the Middle East is all about.

But once I meet my advertising colleagues for a beer or two, I am often asked more specific questions about what the advertising world is like in the Middle East. And without a doubt, this to me is a more interesting topic. This is because although in the Middle East you advertise to a market where the players, cultures, and insights can be different, the main point of the game is still the same - to be as creative as possible.

And this something that I believe is consistent throughout the world. I often tell people that the agency refrigerator smells just as bad in Muscat, as in does in Toronto. Nobody in the Middle East loves filling in timesheets, and having to deal with client requests at the last minute can be just as challenging, if not more difficult.

But just as there are similarities, there are also major differences, which are widening the gap between the levels of advertising in the Middle East vs. the rest of the world. If you were to ask an advertising creative, what would be the biggest challenge that creative's face in the Arab World, I'm sure one of the most popular answers would be the desire to creative digital marketing.

Unfortunately, the Middle East is nowhere near the rest of the Western and Asian worlds in terms of digital communication and social media. All I have to do prove this is to look at my FaceBook or Twitter pages, to see all the links that my advertising colleagues are posting about Webby Awards, innovative social media campaigns, or the most design friendly products on designtaxi.com

All the meanwhile, I'm sitting on my computer, thinking about what I want to say in this glorious brochure that no one will ever read.

But if you look deeper, it's not just a technological gap that is dragging Middle Eastern agencies further behind, but the ideals and standards that many agencies these days are missing. You know, small, insignificant principles such as collaboration, community, and relationship marketing.

Let me give you example. There was in agency in Doha that brought me in for a freelance project to help with a pitch. No names or clients names are needed or necessary. Once they brought me on for this pitch, they put me in a room without my own computer, and told me to let them know when I had ideas ready.

And the first thought in my head was, "Oh my God, we're going to lose." By doing this, the agency was laying their principals on the table, and unfortunately playing into the stereotypes that were somewhat prominent 20 to 30 years ago. First as the copywriter, they thought that I was the idea's guy. Which I can be without a problem, but there was no art director joining me. 

Second, by keeping me in this secluded dungeon office, they felt that they had created an incubator of ideas to help win the pitch. And thirdly, when I asked if there was any chance to go over ideas with other team members such as art directors or designers, there was little desire or need to have people come together.

So I sat in the office by myself and came up with a few thought out ideas for the pitch. But what I wanted to scream at the top of lungs was this incubator exploded a long time ago. Today's brilliant ideas are not just about a copywriter sitting in a room and brainstorming. It's about the art director, creative director, account people, and every other employee of the agency working together to mold and shape the best ideas possible.

Just look at the successful agencies of today. While there are no sure things in any sector, you can always look at the most successful and find a high level of collaboration, creativity, and hard work.  I was even interviewed for a position, in which creative director told me that the teams in their agency consisted of a copywriter, art director and planner. And that every team had a chance to work on every brief (not that they actually got the time to).

So what does this all mean? It means that the root of the problem for agencies in the Middle East is not the fact that there is a technological gap. Everybody in the Middle East has an iPhone. The problem is much much deeper than that.

It's that the values that are proving successful and essential in the need digital market are being underutilized or missed. Indispensable traits such as teamwork, collaboration, and discourse are not on the radar of most agencies in the MENA region.  And the longer it takes for them to realize how integral they are, the harder it will be to come up with ideas in this new, socialized digital world.