Marketing and events glossary for the UAE
33 terms used in brand activations, trade marketing, events, retail research and UAE promotion rules, defined in plain language.
- Above the line (ATL)
- Mass-audience advertising such as television, radio, press and outdoor, used mainly to build awareness.
- Activation brief
- A document that tells an agency the goal, product, audience, venues, dates, budget, approvals, staffing and measures for a campaign.
- Advertiser Permit
- A permit from the UAE Media Council that people who create advertising content on social media in the UAE must hold, with some exemptions.
- Below the line (BTL)
- Targeted marketing that reaches people directly, such as in-store promotions, sampling, events and exhibitions, used to drive action.
- Brand activation
- A campaign that lets people experience a brand in person, for example a sampling stand in a supermarket, a kiosk in a mall or a branded vehicle.
- Brand ambassador
- A person who represents a brand at events and exhibitions, often with a hosting or presenting role.
- Brand talk
- A short conversation in which a promoter explains a product's benefits to a shopper at a stand or in an aisle.
- DET
- The Department of Economy and Tourism in Dubai, the authority that approves promotions with prizes and discounts and public event permits.
- Double-deck stand
- An exhibition stand with an upper floor, which organisers treat as a complex structure and approve through engineered drawings.
- Exhibition stand
- A temporary structure that a company builds at a trade show to present its products and meet visitors.
- Experiential marketing
- Marketing that lets people try, taste, play or take part so they experience a brand first-hand instead of only seeing an advertisement.
- Field training
- In-store training of sales or service staff, on the shop floor, in product knowledge, selling skills and standards.
- Footfall
- The number of people who visit a store, mall or stand in a period.
- Merchandising
- The work of arranging products and displays in a store so they are visible, in stock and priced correctly.
- Microsite
- A small campaign website built for one promotion, such as a game or entry form.
- Modern trade
- Organised retail such as hypermarkets, supermarkets and convenience chains, as opposed to traditional trade, which covers small independent shops.
- Mystery shopping
- A research method in which a trained person acts as a customer and scores the experience against a checklist without staff knowing.
- Out-of-stock (OOS)
- A situation in which a product that should be on the shelf is not available to the shopper.
- Planogram
- A diagram showing where each product should sit on a shelf.
- POSM
- Point-of-sale material: signage and display items in a store that draw attention to a product, such as shelf strips, standees and display units.
- Price mapping
- Recording the shelf prices of a brand's products and its competitors across chains and locations, to see price gaps and changes.
- Product sampling
- Giving shoppers a free taste or trial of a product, usually at a stand near the shelf, so they can try it before buying.
- Promoter
- A trained person who runs sampling, demonstrations and in-store sales activity for a brand.
- Promotion permit
- An approval from the authority for a consumer promotion such as a prize draw, a discount campaign or a gift with purchase.
- Receipt-upload promotion
- A campaign in which a shopper uploads a photo of a receipt showing a qualifying purchase to enter a draw or claim an offer.
- Retail audit
- A programme in which trained people visit stores to record prices, stock, displays and competitor activity.
- Road show
- A campaign that takes a brand, product or message through a series of venues in a set period, repeating the same stand at each stop.
- Run sheet
- A time-by-time plan for an activation day, covering set-up, opening, breaks, closing and pack-down.
- Scan-and-win
- A prize game in which a shopper scans a QR code, usually printed on a pack or at a stand, and plays on a microsite for a chance to win.
- Sell-out
- The sales of a product from a retailer to shoppers, as opposed to sell-in, which is the sale from a supplier to the retailer.
- Sender ID (AD-)
- The registered sender name that promotional SMS messages in the UAE carry, with the prefix AD- followed by the brand name.
- Through the line (TTL)
- A campaign that combines above-the-line and below-the-line activity in one integrated plan.
- Trade marketing
- Marketing aimed at retailers and at the store environment, to make a product easy to find, buy and recommend.
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