Podcast: MMS' Elie Raad on how brands can resonate better during Ramadan

Campaign ME

12-03-2025

On the latest episode of Campaign Middle East's On The Record podcast, Elie Raad, the Content Solutions Director at MBC Media Solutions (MMS) discusses the need for marketers and agency leaders to start planning for their Ramadan content and campaigns much earlier, to focus on investment into creative as much as into performance, and to truly go the extra mile to understand their audiences and the people they partner with.
In conversation with Campaign Middle East, Raad answers some tough questions on how CTV is contributing to high-impact campaigns, while bringing marketers' dreams of cross-device targeting, broader reach and better brand and business outcomes to life. Raad shares insights on how brands can be more relevant and resonate better with audiences not only during Ramadan, but also pre-Ramadan, during Eid, as well as in specific moments during the Holy Month.
'What brands haven't been doing in recent years is looking at Ramadan in different stages. Brands always think of moments and the food during Ramadan, but they shouldn't look at the Holy Month as one period and use the same content and communication through the entirety of Ramadan,' Raad says.
He explains, 'Brands need to understand their audience behaviours and segregate their communications. In the first week of Ramadan, people are still getting accustomed to fasting, so brands need to be a companion and find ways to make the process easier for people. Mid-Ramadan we see people look forward to family time, iftars, togetherness with colleagues and friends. Towards the end of Ramadan, we see people enjoy the process of gifting, sharing, and contributing to the community.'
Raad even goes onto explain that consumer behaviour and purchase patterns change through the day during Ramadan. He says that what people normally do during the day, they start to do during the night through Ramadan.
Talking about the effectiveness of CTV in cross-device targeting, Raad says, 'I think CTV holds a unique position as it's consumed across several devices. Every time people are watching it across devices – whether it's on a TV, a tablet, on a laptop or on the phone – we need to the user is in a different mentality. When you're watching CTV on a television, it's usually with a family, friends and there's a sense of togetherness. When you're watching it on a phone or a tablet, you're usually alone and in a more comfortable, relaxed location like in bed. This offers advertisers the opportunity to disseminate that message across different devices in a more personalised and customised manner, while still continuing their storyline and messaging.'
Raad also speaks about the boom of content creators and user-generated content – especially during Ramadan – to boost real connections with hyper-local communities, and how premium content not only contributes to brand safety, but makes advertising more organic – rather than forced – by seamlessly integrating brand narratives within premium content.
For more such insights from a very intriguing conversation, watch the full video above.
CREDITS:
Guest: Elie Raad, the Content Solutions Director at MBC Media Solutions (MMS)
Host: Anup Oommen, Editor, Campaign Middle East
Videography, studio and production: Ahmed Abdelwahab, Studio Manager, Motivate Media Group
Editing: John Melencion, Content Producer, Motivate Media Group