Marhaba Money set out to transform how expatriates in the UAE discover and access essential financial services—whether they’ve just arrived, been in the country for one to three years, or have established roots beyond that. The campaign’s objective was twofold: boost brand awareness and generate high-quality leads for various financial offerings, including Mastercard applications, mortgages, loans, and new account openings—both online and in-branch. Additionally, it aimed to drive online traffic and appointments, while conducting in-depth A/B testing between East and West markets across diverse user segments and geo-locations within the UAE.
Dark Square delivered a full-service campaign tailored for success. The project began with end-to-end website development, followed by strategic social media management, cohesive brand guidelines, and impactful concept development. Engaging content writing and precise market positioning set the tone for a resonant and trustworthy brand voice. A commercial shoot and public relations push added powerful storytelling, while performance marketing took center stage through a robust media mix—featuring programmatic ads, DV360, social media lead generation, Google ads for both leads and branding, and immersive YouTube InStream video ads. To bridge the gap between online and offline, Dark Square incorporated footfall attribution, geo-fencing, detailed call-to-action tracking, customer attribution modeling, lead funnels, and event tracking, all tied into a conversion-optimized landing page.
The campaign’s performance was nothing short of exceptional. It reached over 3.75 million people, with an interaction rate of 21%, and drove more than 2 million page views. Visitors spent an average of 1 minute and 25 seconds on the site, demonstrating high user interest. Online lead generation reached 5,000, and over 10,000 appointments were booked. The campaign helped facilitate the opening of 300+ new bank accounts and received over 7,500 credit card inquiries—a significant milestone in customer acquisition.
On social platforms, the brand reached 2.2 million users and achieved a strong engagement rate of 27%. The YouTube campaign delivered 1.5 million+ video views, with outstanding completion metrics: 97.25% watched 25% of the video, 95.68% made it to 50%, 93.03% reached 75%, and an impressive 92.21% completed the entire video.
Not only was the campaign successful in reach and conversion—it was also cost-efficient, with an average CPM 11% below the industry average. Dark Square’s data-driven strategy and creative excellence helped Marhaba Money connect deeply with the UAE’s expat community—driving results, building trust, and making financial onboarding easier than ever.
