I recall the shock on my brother-in-law's face when he was handed a quote for seventy-five thousand SAR for his company website. "It's just a site!" he shouted. Not long after, he eventually with a bargain 3,000 SAR site that was visually disappointing and couldn't convert a single lead.
Recently, a fashion retailer consulted me after spending over 150,000 SAR on platform promotion with limited outcomes. After restructuring their approach, we produced a six hundred thirty-one percent increase in ROAS.
Critical changes included:
- Honest fulfillment projections for different regions of the Kingdom
- Various shipping choices including expedited fulfillment in urban centers
- Comprehensive monitoring with Arabic User Experience Design notifications
- Changeable arrangements for shipments
Powerful techniques included:
- Curating merchandise suitable for Saudi preferences
- Adjusting merchandise details to emphasize features important to Saudi shoppers
- Special assortments for cultural events
- Dimension modifications for Saudi norms
I invest at least two hours each Monday examining our competitors':
- Online architecture and UX
- Blog posts and publishing frequency
- Online platforms activity
- Client testimonials and evaluations
- SEO tactics and rankings
At a business networking in Riyadh, I asked 17 entrepreneurs about their website development experiences. The price range was remarkable – from 2,500 SAR for a simple site to over 150,000 SAR for advanced e-commerce platforms.
Recently, my friend's online shop was struggling in search results regardless of offering exceptional products. After applying the techniques I'm about to describe, his unpaid visitors grew by one hundred sixty-four percent in just two months.
Today's network preferences in Saudi Arabia:
- Visual platform: Leading for aspirational brands
- Snapchat: Highly effective with youth demographics
- Discussion network: Substantial for announcements and public discourse
- Short video: Rapidly growing particularly with Gen Z audiences
- Professional platform: Useful for business-to-business communication
Through comprehensive research for a shopping business, we found that posts released between evening hours significantly exceeded those published during typical optimal periods, generating one hundred forty-three percent greater response.
A friend who runs a eatery in Riyadh initially hesitated at the extra 12,000 SAR for an booking system, but afterward mentioned me it recovered its cost within 90 days by cutting personnel resources spent on phone reservations.
When I established my e-commerce business three years ago, I was convinced that our distinctive products would be enough. I overlooked market research as a waste of time – a mistake that almost destroyed my entire venture.
For a luxury brand, we identified that visual and ephemeral platforms significantly exceeded traditional networks for engagement and sales, creating a intentional reallocation of resources that increased total results by 167%.
I presently employ several applications that have dramatically improved our competitor analysis:
- SEO tools to monitor other companies' SEO strategies
- Brand monitoring platforms to monitor rivals' social activity
- Digital tracking solutions to observe updates to their digital properties
- Email capture to receive their marketing communications
I suggest categorizing competitors as:
- Direct competitors (offering very similar products/services)
- Secondary competitors (with limited similarity)
- New threats (new companies with innovative capabilities)
Important scheduling insights:
- Decreased connection during prayer times
- Increased participation on Fridays and Saturdays
- Seasonal variations during Ramadan
- Post-evening prayer peaks in engagement
Last month, my colleague Nora obtained quotes spanning 22,000 to 58,000 SAR for basically the same company website. The variation? The more expensive quotes included custom design components rather than themed solutions.
Not long ago, I observed as three rival companies spent significantly into developing their presence on a certain social media platform. Their initiatives flopped as the medium appeared to be a bad match for our industry.
I use a simple document to track our rivals' costs changes every week. This has enabled us to:
- Identify seasonal promotion cycles
- Notice package deal strategies
- Understand their pricing psychology
I visited a web design agency in Jeddah last month where they showed me the difference between their pre-designed and bespoke projects. The visual impact was instantly apparent – the unique sites felt unmistakably more refined and impactful.
Start by listing ALL your competitors – not just the major ones. During our analysis, we identified that our biggest threat wasn't the well-known company we were watching, but a new startup with an novel model.
As opposed to concentrating solely on securing the most affordable rate, evaluate the possible results that a professional website will produce for your business. A well-designed site is an asset that will continue delivering value for years to come.