First channel launch checklist for a UAE business

You have chosen a first channel, perhaps with the channel planner. This is the checklist I would work through before launch. It is a practical order of work, not a guarantee of results. The reasoning behind the choice is in which marketing channel a UAE business should do first.

1. The goal

Write one sentence naming the action you want: a form submitted, a call, a booking, a purchase. In Google Ads terms, that is a conversion: an interaction that leads directly to a behaviour valuable to you^[4]. A goal such as “more awareness” is not wrong, but it cannot be checked, so write down how you would tell.

2. The budget

• Decide the total you can spend on the first test, separate from any provider’s fee.
• For paid search, remember a daily budget is an average: Google can charge up to two times it on a given day, and up to 30.4 times it in a month for most campaigns^[3]. Check that the monthly ceiling is a figure you accept.
• Count your own time as a cost for organic channels.

3. The tracking

Set up the means of seeing the result before the first click, not after. If you send people to your site from emails, social posts or ads, add campaign parameters to the links. Google Analytics says to always use utm_source, utm_medium and utm_campaign, that missing parameters appear as “(not set)” in reports, and that values are case-sensitive^[5]. Pick a naming style and keep to it: “email” and “Email” will be reported as different things.

4. Consent and messages

If the channel involves sending messages to people, check consent before you build the list. The UAE Government portal says the Personal Data Protection Law prohibits processing personal data without the consent of its owner, with stated exceptions^[7]. The TDRA policy I opened (version 1.1, 13 June 2022) applies to text messages with a UAE link, says consent can take any form as long as it can be stored and presented in tangible form when required, and requires a means of opting out in every marketing text message^[6]. Keep a record of when and how each person agreed. For email, take professional advice on which rules apply to you.

5. If you hire help

Ask each provider the same questions. Google’s advice on hiring an SEO is a good model for any provider: ask for examples of previous work, what results to expect and in what timeframe, how long they have been in business, what experience they have in your industry and your country or city, and how they measure success^[2]. Treat a guaranteed ranking, or a guaranteed result of any kind, as a reason to look elsewhere. Make sure your business holds ownership of any accounts that are created.

6. The review date

Put a date in the diary on which you will look at the numbers and decide to continue, change or stop. Choose it with the channel in mind: a paid test can be reviewed sooner than SEO, which Google says can take from hours to several months to show an effect^[1], so I would not judge it in its first weeks. The guide on measuring marketing channels and common mistakes explains what to look at. I describe my conversion tracking set-up work on my own site, and you should score me against any other provider.