Grace Sahyoun

General Manager - Equation Media THE STRUGGLE OF THE INDUSTRY

The instability and economic woes that the country has been witnessing in the past few years weighed down the advertising industry, one of the most versatile and expanding sectors in the economy. Hence, Lebanon’s advertising industry is struggling to come to terms with the new market dynamic and as with elsewhere advertising investments are increasingly moving towards digital, although not as quickly as some would like. In parallel to the booming of digitalization, the global media is implementing new means to attract people’s attention and with technology being the main driver of change, several advertising platforms are suffering to persist on the back of the digital platform acceleration.

Accordingly, agencies need to be more and more equipped with digital knowledge, tools and talents to go along with this evolution, to eventually offer more integrated and digitally led services. If we don’t look at digital as a mainstream channel, we risk becoming irrelevant. Demand for digital advertising has been increasing and the shift from traditional to digital media is gaining a foothold even though marketing dollars may not increase. Given the sector’s potential, specifically in digital advertising, several opportunities are yet to be unleashed by Lebanon’s media industry. Nonetheless, this booming media suffers from regulatory and infrastructure obstacles, such as the speed of the internet, as well as the lack of research tools available in the country’s market.

Despite all of the above, Beirut remains one of the most vibrant and creative cities in the region, and very soon it will reclaim its crown as the hub of the Middle East advertising with many international yet regional agencies aiming at relocating their creative hubs to Lebanon.

Beirut remains one of the most vibrant and creative cities in the region.