Earth Hour 2009

As of this minute 1,508 cities and towns in 80 countries have already committed to VOTE EARTH for Earth Hour 2009,which is a fight against Global Warming.

In simple words on 28th March 2009 from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. you need to switch off your lights.

Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi are also amongst those 1,508 cities, which will be part of the of the worlds first global election between Earth and global warming. This year, Earth Hour 2009 has been transformed into the world’s first global election, between Earth and global warming. WWF are urging the world to VOTE EARTH and reach the target of 1 billion votes, which will be presented to world leaders at the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen 2009.

Go ahead…and turn off your lights ;)

Brands in the Digital World

Digital technology is another medium to help a company reach its products and services to a different target segment. It helps to lure an online customer towards your brand. A customer can virtually engage with the brand and know more about its features. There are various methods by which a marketer can reach his customer on the Internet. Some of them are: -

· A dedicated Website for your company/brand/ service etc
· A dedicated blog informing about daily happenings at your company
· Banner ads at various websites
· Viral Marketing via many websites who allow uploading of videos e.g. Youtube
The changes done on an online brand can be very dynamic in nature e.g. the look and feel of the website can be changed overnight. By offering products online we can help a customer engage with the brand.
Web sites need to be branded so that a customer has the confidence while making a purchase. An authentic look of the website will boost customer confidence. Amazon and E bay are classic examples that have strengthened their transaction systems with high security functions, which ensure customers safety while they shop on these sites.
An excellent example of strong online brand building is Amazon.com, where by a customer’s mind recalls Amazon whenever they need to buy books online. The brand awareness and familiarity of Amazon is very high in the minds of a consumer which leads to a strong formation of Brand Equity.

RTA Fines at Midnight

Parking tickets at midnnight night 2:30.... It seems like RTA inspectors have started working a lot harder now, by charging fines to the public at midnight. I had parked my car in a huge parking lot in Bur Dubai, but adjacent to the footpath. I agree that this is not a parking, but I was not obstructing the allotted parking spaces. At midnight after taking several rounds in the area, I was not able to find a parking therefore I had to leave my car in the parking lot just for 30 minutes. If this is a rule I agree my car was not parked in the allotted area, but charging fines at midnight doesn't make sense. Many of my friends have expressed their concerns on this issue as lack of parking spaces forces many of them leave their cars in unallocated parking spaces. If this adds to the monthly commission of the inspector, then I guess any one will do this. But is that what RTA inspectors are deployed for across the emirate?

Social Media Disorder

Many companies have lost their face in an urge to promote their products on the web. Many employees have been involved in so called unethical practices using various techniques to aggressively promote their company product on the web. Some of these practices are described below: -


Flogging. The creation of a blog which appears to be an organic site, but in fact is sponsored by the organization that may be looking to communicate a message or launch of a new product to the web users. These kinds of techniques can be a PR disaster if uncovered. The company is hoodwinking the users into believing something that is not factual.
When Sony tried to boost sales of its PSP portable gaming unit, it started a blog supposedly by two boys who wanted PSPs for Christmas. When it was revealed as a fake, Sony apologised and took it down.

Astroturfing: Using the web to practice generating fake grassroots enthusiasm. The company may pay for good press to bloggers or other website to write about their products that these people may have never used.

Comment spamming. Flooding online article/blogs with positive comments and making the product/message look more popular than it actually is. Web users may fill in the comments field of a blog with enthusiastic notes about a company.


I am not classifying the above form of social media promotion as unethical. They are all deceptive means to get a user’s attention and deliver the message. It remains debatable if the above techniques are wrong doing of a company or just another way of trying to reach customers.

Emirates ID Schedule

Update 12 Jan 2012: -

The application of late fee for expatriates (above 15 years) will be implemented in four phases:

Phase 1: From December 1, 2011

Includes all expatriates in the Northern Emirates: Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah, Umm Al Quwain and Ajman, in addition to all employees in the federal and local public sectors and semi-government organisations and their families

Phase 2: Ffrom february 1, 2012

Includes all expatriates in the Emirate of Sharjah

Phase 3: From April 1, 2012

Includes all expatriates in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi

Penalties

•The Ministerial Decision No. 25 of 2011 stipulates a penalty of Dh20 per day up to a maximum of Dh1,000 for the following offences:

•Delay in registration or issuance of identity cards, for all categories and age groups

•Delay in renewing ID cards, for all categories and ages (effective 30 days from expiry of the card)

•Delay in reporting any change or modification in the cardholder's personal data or incidents, for all categories and age groups (after 30 days from the date of the change)

•October 31, 2011 will be the deadline for renewing all identity cards expiring up to that date. Any cardholder across the UAE, with the exception of children under 15 years, has 30 days to renew the card from the date of expiry.

Phase 4: From June 1, 2012

Includes all expatriates in the Emirate of Dubai

The board also directed to collect the late fee from anyone across the UAE over the age of 15, applying for a residence.

The following is the schedule issued by Emirates ID Authority for the UAE citizens to register for the ID by end of 2008.

Emirates ID for Group 1

Registration Period - 1 January 2009 – 28 February 2009

Categories - Residents working for Government Sector (Federal and Local Government) and their family members.

Professional residents working for the Private Sector and their family members, including, Holders of Diploma Degree and Higher

Workers in the following fields: - Consultancy, Medical, pharmaceutical, Nursing, Engineering, Media, Marketing, journalism, PRO, IT and Computers, Teaching and Training, Accounting and Auditing, Investments, Law, Sales, and trade license owners.

Emirates ID for Group 2Registration Period - 1 March 2009 – 18 June 2009 –
Categories - Administrative and Craft working residents in the Private Sector and their families, including workers in the following field:

All Crafts according to Ministry of Labour categorizations, Oil, Gas, Industrial, Banks, Insurance, Tourism, Hotel and restaurant industries, shipping, typing, translation and secretaries, storekeepers, receptionists, athletes and students.

Emirates ID for Group 3
Registration Period - 20 June 2009 – 30 September 2009
Categories - Unskilled working Residents, in the Private Sector and their families, including:
Housemaid/Servants, cleaners, Farmers, Fishermen, Private and Public transport drivers, security guards, watchmen, and all other unannounced working fields

Emirates ID for Group 4
Registration Period - 1 October 2009 – 30 December 2010
Categories - Construction Workers in Private Field.

Ensure you book your online appointment now for Emirates ID

Only 11 Cars Abandoned

As per the Lieutenant-General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Chief of Dubai Police, a total of only 11 cars have been abandoned at the Dubai International Airport. He has denied that many people are abandoning their cars at the Airport amid the economic crises and fleeing the country. The news became popular post an article published in The Times Online, stating that, there were 3000 cars abandoned at the Dubai International Airport.
The article in The Times only has the confirmation of the abandoning of cars from an unofficial source. As per article published in The Times, the following has been quoted, “Every day we find more and more cars,” said one senior airport security official, who did not want to be named.”

The UK based newspaper article has been criticized by the General, saying that, “reporter contributed to spreading a rumour that many people are greedy, envious and resentful about the economic growth of Dubai”.