Using comprehensive research for a retail brand, we identified that content published between evening hours dramatically surpassed those published during traditional peak hours, producing 143% better interaction.
Initiate by identifying ALL your competition – not just the obvious ones. Throughout our research, we identified that our most significant rival wasn't the established company we were monitoring, but a new company with an novel model.
- Choose fonts purposely developed for Arabic screen reading (like GE SS) rather than conventional print fonts
- Increase line height by 150-175% for improved readability
- Use right-oriented text (never center-aligned for body text)
- Avoid narrow Arabic typefaces that compromise the unique letter structures
I advise organizing competitors as:
- Main competitors (offering very similar offerings)
- Secondary competitors (with partial resemblance)
- Emerging disruptors (new entrants with game-changing potential)
Recently, a restaurant owner in Riyadh SEO Services Compared complained that his establishment wasn't appearing in Google listings despite being well-reviewed by customers. This is a frequent challenge I observe with local businesses throughout the Kingdom.
In a business networking in Riyadh, I surveyed 17 company managers about their web design experiences. The cost variation was remarkable – from 2,500 SAR for a minimalist site to over 150,000 SAR for sophisticated e-commerce platforms.
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Created a numerical presentation system that handled both Arabic and English digits
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Redesigned charts to flow from right to left
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Used color-coding that corresponded to Saudi cultural connections
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Position the most critical content in the right upper corner of the screen
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Organize content blocks to advance from right to left and top to bottom
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Implement more prominent visual emphasis on the right side of balanced layouts
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Verify that directional icons (such as arrows) point in the appropriate direction for RTL interfaces
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Moved product images to the left portion, with product details and purchase buttons on the right side
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Changed the product gallery to move from right to left
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Added a custom Arabic typeface that preserved legibility at various sizes
My family member Khalid at first picked the least expensive proposal for his business website, only to discover later that it omitted content development – causing an additional 8,000 SAR cost for professional copywriting.
Not long ago, my colleague Sara received quotes varying between 22,000 to 58,000 SAR for essentially the same business website. The disparity? The higher quotes contained unique design features rather than themed approaches.
As someone who has created over 30 Arabic websites in the past five years, I can assure you that applying Western UX standards to Arabic interfaces simply doesn't work. The distinctive elements of Arabic text and Saudi user behaviors require a completely different approach.
Half a year into operations, our revenue were underwhelming. It wasn't until I accidentally a comprehensive report about our niche that I realized how ignorant I'd been to the market realities around us.
For a premium company, we found that image and temporary channels significantly outperformed Meta for engagement and conversion, resulting in a focused reallocation of effort that enhanced complete effectiveness by over one hundred fifty percent.
As opposed to fixating exclusively on getting the lowest rate, think about the possible results that a superior website will produce for your business. A professionally created site is an asset that will persist in generating returns for years to come.
An acquaintance who runs a café in Riyadh originally was shocked at the extra 12,000 SAR for an online reservation system, but later told me it became profitable within three months by decreasing personnel resources spent on phone reservations.
I invest at least 120 minutes each week reviewing our competitors':
- Online architecture and navigation
- Blog posts and posting schedule
- Social media activity
- User feedback and assessments
- SEO approach and performance
Last month, I was consulting with a prominent e-commerce platform that had invested over 200,000 SAR on a beautiful website that was failing miserably. The reason? They had just converted their English site without accounting for the essential design distinctions needed for Arabic users.
- Shifting action buttons to the right side of forms and interfaces
- Rethinking content prioritization to flow from right to left
- Adjusting interactive elements to align with the right-to-left reading pattern
Not long ago, I observed as three similar businesses spent significantly into developing their presence on a particular social media platform. Their initiatives flopped as the platform turned out to be a mismatch for our market.
I toured a web design studio in Jeddah last week where they presented me the distinction between their template-based and custom projects. The aesthetic difference was instantly visible – the custom sites looked distinctly more professional and impactful.