Advertising is everywhere you look. Open a magazine and it’s there in front of you; get into your car and you see huge billboards as you drive along road; turn on the TV and you’re hit with a never-ending stream of commercials. Advertising is often unashamedly brash and in your face. But there’s another type of advertising away from the television, print media, and internet which is somewhat less obvious, perhaps a little more sophisticated, and certainly more targeted: Below the line advertising (BTL). Worth billions of dollars globally, BTL uses a series of methods to engage customers one-one-one, such as promotional gifts, brochures, email campaigns, and so one. One company which has taken the regional BTL market by storm is Traffik360, launched by Lebanese entrepreneur Marcel Khairallah in 2002. Focussing on promotional merchandising, point of sale material,advertising stands, print services, and - recently - brand activations and product launches, Traffik360 works with both local and multinational clients. Offering a full ‘360 degree’ model, whereby the company creates, designs, and produces the materials for their clients, Traffik360 has become the leading BTL provider not only in the UAE, but perhaps the MENA in general. Khariallah arrived in Dubai in 1998 after graduating from university and a stint working in a bank in Lebanon.
He cut his teeth in the advertising industry for a year and a half before opportunity knocked.“There was a company in Beirut which wanted to start a similar business in Dubai,” he says. “They appointed me general manager to start up the company. I’d only been her just over a year, and I had to found the company, sort out lawyers, do registration, and everything else. “It wasn’t easy “The company grew from two people to eleven when I left in 2001 to start up my own company. Traffik360 was launched in 2002, and we’re still going today. Starting out with just two people, and only selling promotional items, Khairallah strengthened contacts he had in China, and slowly but surely grew his new business.“I acquired some clients who were working with me in the previous business, and they new I could offer them the personal touch,” he says “It was much easier to develop the business from there, and we started to establish a strong presence. ‘Strong’ put it mildly. Clients including Diageo, L’Oreal and Unilever show just how big Traffik360 really is, and how highly regarded a businessman Khairallah must be His cause was undoubtedly helped in 2006 when Traffik360 became part of the International Advertising Gift Council (IGC) - a body which has 56 members in 52 countries around the world, and became a cooperative in 2011, allowing members to discuss best practices, support good suppliers over the bad, and share global clients. “It’s a global agency - a club of similar companies,” Khairallah explains. “None of us are competing geographically, so we have the freedom to help each other out, which is a huge benefit. Especially when it comes to sharing clients.
He cut his teeth in the advertising industry for a year and a half before opportunity knocked.“There was a company in Beirut which wanted to start a similar business in Dubai,” he says. “They appointed me general manager to start up the company. I’d only been her just over a year, and I had to found the company, sort out lawyers, do registration, and everything else. “It wasn’t easy “The company grew from two people to eleven when I left in 2001 to start up my own company. Traffik360 was launched in 2002, and we’re still going today. Starting out with just two people, and only selling promotional items, Khairallah strengthened contacts he had in China, and slowly but surely grew his new business.“I acquired some clients who were working with me in the previous business, and they new I could offer them the personal touch,” he says “It was much easier to develop the business from there, and we started to establish a strong presence. ‘Strong’ put it mildly. Clients including Diageo, L’Oreal and Unilever show just how big Traffik360 really is, and how highly regarded a businessman Khairallah must be His cause was undoubtedly helped in 2006 when Traffik360 became part of the International Advertising Gift Council (IGC) - a body which has 56 members in 52 countries around the world, and became a cooperative in 2011, allowing members to discuss best practices, support good suppliers over the bad, and share global clients. “It’s a global agency - a club of similar companies,” Khairallah explains. “None of us are competing geographically, so we have the freedom to help each other out, which is a huge benefit. Especially when it comes to sharing clients.
