Global TGI

Dispatches06
The Middle East and Turkey: time, place and people
Understanding how different segments of the population spend their time across a day is fundamental to understanding how to target consumers effectively. Consumer behavior patterns vary widely between countries and even within a region. A detailed comparison of the Global TGI time diary in the Middle East and Turkey highlights some interesting and unexpected results. Using the time diary from Global TGI, analysis in key markets in the Arab world, namely Saudi Arabia (KSA), United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Egypt, not only reveals how the countries differ in general patterns of behavior across the day, but also digs deep into unravelling distinct time patterns
continued > > > Heading home in Istanbul... the average adult in urban Turkey spends three hours in the car per week (page 2). M Shaharyar Umar Marketing Director, PARC (Pan-Arab Research Centre) Funda Kadio glu Manager, TGI Turkey Each issue of Dispatches from Global TGI seeks to highlight some of the most noteworthy findings among our vast data resources. Covering more than 60 countries across six continents, Global TGI is a network of singlesource market research surveys which provide comprehensive consumer insight and data across multiple product sectors. Visit www.globaltgi.com or email enquiries@globaltgi.com to find out more.

The Middle East: time, place and people

>>> observed for various segments of the society. Turkey has close socio-economic relations with most of the Middle East countries and comparative analysis shows there are also strong behavioral links with these countries. Most countries in the Arab region have a rich social and cultural fabric where people who are from the Arab region or from a non-Arab region (ex-pats) may assimilate to a certain extent and to a varying degree. Time diary analysis allows brand owners to understand when these different segments are available to receive advertising messages, and how daily life patterns can influence key attitudes within their broader lives.

Commuting and working

Sayyara, the Arabic word for car, resonates well with some of the Arab population as cars are considered an important status symbol in some markets. In KSA 36% agree with the lifestyle statement that you can judge a person by the car he drives. However, in Turkey, only 27% of adults agree the car he drives gives an idea of the person, and 21% agree the most important thing in a car is its look whereas 49% agree car is only a means of transport. Maybe these attitudinal differences (alongside factors such as efficiency of public transport) could help to explain different levels of car ownership which vary widely across the Middle East with 87% ownership in KSA, 70% in UAE, 25% in Turkey and only 10% in Egypt. Time spent in cars is an important factor to consider when planning marketing opportunities, as availability to view posters, listen to the radio and digest information will vary accordingly. Detailed analysis of the TGI time diary enables brand owners to target campaigns more efficiently. An average UAE adult resident spends around 92 minutes in the car as compared to 86 minutes in Egypt and only 79 minutes in KSA per day. An average Turkish adult in the urban population spends 3 hours in the car in an average week. In UAE all ethnicities, i.e. locals and expats spend around the same time in a car but there exists a significant gap between the genders, with males spending around 14% more time in cars than females. The gap widens significantly in Egypt with males spending around 29% more time in cars. The car is mainly used by males in Turkey and 79% of people owning a driving licence are male. However, interestingly in KSA where women are not allowed to drive, they spend only 6% less time than males. One reason might be that KSA scores highly on spending time with their families. However, in KSA, the time spent with the family shows a phenomenal difference between Arabs and non-Arabs. Arabs spend around as much as 15 hours with their family a day while an average non- Arab expat male spends only four hours and 35 minutes. Of course this may be partially explained as some of the expats will have their families in their home country. Even in UAE where adults spend around 1.5 hours in the car per day, Arabs' road use has different time peaks compared to non-Arab expats. An early morning peak is observed at around 7.00am that is dominated by Arabs. It may be noted that government offices open early and close early as compared to private offices. Another peak is during the afternoon and that is again dominated by Arabs and incidentally this is the time again when most of the government offices close. During the evening and night Arabs again dominate the peak when most of the non-Arab expats are off road and back to home. Non-Arab expats follow private office timings and their participation in the private sector is very high compared to locals.
continued > > >

For more information, contact Global TGI at enquiries@globaltgi.com or visit www.globaltgi.com

Dispatches06

Global TGI

The Middle East: time, place and people

>>> UAE: travelling in a car

Base: Adults 15+ excluding unskilled workers Source: TGI UAE

Understanding time spent in the car helps us understand availability to listen to the radio. About a third of the population in UAE is in cars from 7.00am till 9.00am, when approximately 17% of the population listens to the radio. The time diary curve of radio listening and car driving has a strong direct correlation in UAE. However the co-relationship is not that strong in Egypt as around 47% own a separate radio set in Egypt. Focusing on Turkey the time diary shows us that there are two main time peaks for travelling by car: one is between 7.00am and 9.00am and the second is between 5.00pm and 7.00pm. These peaks are again parallel to private sector office hours and school hours. Most people in the public sector start work earlier and use a shuttle to go to work. In some metropoli such as Istanbul and Ankara where the traffic is heavy and the distance between home and work is long, people prefer using shuttles which are paid by their companies.

Work/life balance
Analysis of Global TGI enables us to put the time diary data into context. Work is an intrinsic part of peoples lives but its relative importance differs by country. Motivation to work helps brand owners understand what messages will resonate best within each market. UAE residents are workaholics compared to Egypt and KSA in terms of hours spent at work. In particular in UAE the average non-Arab expat male spends around 8.6 hours at work compared to a total average of 7.7 hours. As noted with the time spent in the car the time diary also clearly confirms a work pattern where locals start early at 7.00am and mostly finish their work by 4.00pm, whereas for non-Arab expats it is spread till evening (see chart on following page).

For more information, contact Global TGI at enquiries@globaltgi.com or visit www.globaltgi.com

continued > > >

Dispatches06

Global TGI

The Middle East: time, place and people

>>> Middle East: daily working patterns

Base: Adults 15+ excluding unskilled workers Source: Global TGI

Home is the center of life in Turkey. During the day, people who are out of home are mainly males, and work is the main reason for being out of home. In Turkey 53% of males and 10% of females work fulltime. Females mainly go out to meet daily needs such as daily shopping, taking children to school and visiting neighbors and relatives. The traditional family is still very strong in Turkey. 70% of the urban population lives as parents with children. Couples are 12% of the total urban population and only 5.4 % of the urban population lives alone. It is interesting that although 51% of females and 48% of males like spending time at home, 72% of females and 67% of males like spending time with their family. Family comes before the career for most people in Turkey as TGI Turkey figures show. Family is also more important than friendship with only 13% females and 16% of males agreeing with the statement My friends are more important to me than my family. This is also supported by the statement It is important that my family thinks I am doing well where 73% of females and 70% of males agree with it. In Turkey work and career are secondary issues in life with 64% in the urban population agreeing "My family comes before my career". It is interesting that both male and female workers are in equal agreement on this. While 68% of female full time workers agree with the statement "My family comes before my career", males agreement with this statement is almost the same at 66%.

Shopping patterns
For more information, contact Global TGI at enquiries@globaltgi.com or visit www.globaltgi.com

Time diary analysis not only illustrates when people are available to receive and consume marketing messages (at home, in the car, at work or on the move) it also provides an interesting comparison of the time available to shop across countries. When it comes to shopping, Saudi Arabia scores very highly on time spent on shopping followed by UAE. In Egypt the peak time for shopping is observed in the morning from 10.30am till 11.00am for both males and females and on weekdays as well as weekends. However, the peak shopping hour in KSA during weekdays and weekends is from 6.30pm till 7.30pm. Interestingly the shopping pattern in UAE

Dispatches06

Global TGI

The Middle East: time, place and people

>>>
is completely different from Egypt and KSA. In UAE the peak shopping hour is from 8pm till 9pm and on weekends a small peak is also observed from 11am till 12 noon.

Middle East: daily shopping patterns

Base: Adults 15+ excluding unskilled workers Source: Global TGI

In Turkey female shoppers are an important group to target. TGI time diary allows us to connect time to motivations and attitudes to consumption. 81% of female shoppers agree with the statement I enjoy every kind of shopping and 60% of shoppers who agree with the statement It is a bore to shop for household products are male shoppers. There is also a strong correlation between blogging and reading the national newspapers websites. Bloggers have to get their opinions from somewhere, and many choose to do so from the national newspaper titles. This gives the newspaper titles the chance to be very influential.

Media consumption patterns

As you might expect TV dominates across all the markets with Egyptians spending the most time watching at 3.5 hours a day. The Turks spend on average 3 hours, KSA 2.5 hours and finally with a significant gap UAE spend on average 1.9 hours watching TV (see chart overleaf).

For more information, contact Global TGI at enquiries@globaltgi.com or visit www.globaltgi.com

Dispatches06

Global TGI

The Middle East: time, place and people

>>> Egypt: Activity share

Base: Adults 15+ excluding unskilled workers Source: Egypt TGI

In Egypt we can see how the peaks vary across the day as newspaper and radio record higher consumption in the early morning and TV viewing peaks during evening hours. In Turkey, during the day, when working people are out of home 15% of the total urban population watches TV with two-thirds being female. In prime time, when TV viewing peaks, female and male share in total audience is equal. Internet penetration in UAE is highest at 74% followed by KSA at around 56%, Turkey at 40% and then in Egypt at around 18%. However the time spent on the internet is very high in Egypt. Furthermore, Egyptians spend more time surfing on the internet than using a computer without the internet whereas in KSA and UAE, people spend more time on a computer which is then followed by surfing on net.

TGI Surveys enable us to examine the daily life of various segments and audiences in over 60 countries. Understanding how different countries and regions operate both the similarities and differences are essential to creating a cohesive and appropriate marketing message. Analysis helps us to understand the big puzzle where the time, place and people pieces are completed and joined together.

For more information, contact Global TGI at enquiries@globaltgi.com or visit www.globaltgi.com

Dispatches06

Global TGI