China-based video-sharing social networking service, TikTok launched the Arabic version of its TikTok for business platforms in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
The self-service advertisement network of TikTok aims to provide a “localized experience” for regional small and medium-sized businesses (SMB).
The company added that its latest move would give SMBs the tools necessary to ensure that they engage and expand their customer base with Arabic content.
Shant Oknayan, TikTok’s general manager of global business solutions in MENA said, “At TikTok, creativity has no limits and we go above and beyond to make sure that our business partners have all the right tools to unleash their spontaneity and authenticity.”
According to the video platform, which has over 50,000 registered companies in the country, there is a rising demand for Arabic content.
TikTok further added, overall, almost 80 percent of the campaigns run by TikTok in the MENA region are in Arabic. This is because of the preference of most companies in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt to operate and engage with their target audience in Arabic.
In the Middle East, the use of visual platforms such as TikTok, YouTube and Snapchat are common which is driven mainly by millennials consuming hours of video content on these platforms.
The US-based multinational technology company, Google reported last year that Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest user of YouTube. In the UAE and Saudi Arabia, approximately 68 percent of users watch more content digitally than they do on TV, it added.
Furthermore, the coronavirus pandemic sparked the development of these networks as movement restrictions prevented people from going outside of the home globally.
According to social analytics firm Talkwalker, TikTok conversations in the MENA region increased 148 percent monthly. Meanwhile this year the time spent on Snapchat’s video and voice calling features rose by more than 50 percent monthly.
