This Egyptian Startup helps markerters analyze and tweak their Social Media Strategies
Social media in today’s time is becoming more and more important and influential, both in society and for marketers. Today most brands across the globe are using websites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to promote their products and services, making the space crowded and fiercely competitive. With that comes the need for social media analytics, for businesses to know whats working and what ain’t and adjust their campaigns accordingly. Afterall, knowledge is power. And we all like power, don’t we?
Nasr, Tarek Shalaby, and Muhammad El Zahlan worked together at their digital media agency – ThePlanet. Toiling on a project back in 2015, the team wanted to figure out the ROI of videos placed on the social media network for the sponsors. In the absence of any analytical tool that could give them insights on the performance of the videos, they decided to create one and built Mintrics.
Mintrics analyzes videos across all of the social platforms that the user runs in one single dashboard, and gives metrics and charts to illustrate exactly how the video is performing. It benchmarks a subscriber’s video content against historical performance and against industry averages. The product also allows users to compare between videos, or group them together in lists to get totals and averages.
As per a recent report by Markets & Markets the Social Media Analytics sector is touted to grow at a CAGR of 28%. The study also predicts how the size of this space is expected to increase from $2.23 billion in 2016 to $9.54 billion within the next five years. Technavio, a leading market research company says that currently about 32% of the global customers make purchases after obtaining product information, reviews, and suggestions on social media platforms. In developed countries of UK and the US, this number touches about 50%.
Testimony to the staggering rise in the social media analytics market, this startup has a few impressive names in the client list. It enjoys a wide range of global clients ranging from Discovery Networks in UK & Dubai to Roar Media in Sr iLanka in addition to Morocco based Buzzkito. As per Nasr, they have witnessed a 476% growth in revenue in the last one year. The company won the startup award at Dubai Lynx 2017, an annual event honoring creativity in the region’s advertising industry.
Mintrics charges clients a monthly subscription fee in addition to a basic free version. It offers three paid subscription tiers, basic package starting at $129 per month, followed by packages at $299 and $749.
Launched in 2016 in Cairo, the social media analytics startup had raised its first round of funding from Dubai based Numu Capital. Numu Capital is a seed fund that invests in tech startups in the Middle East and African region with ticket size ranging from USD 25k to 100k.
”Numu Capital actually doesn’t invest in technology, we invest in entrepreneurs. We are always looking for promising entrepreneurs, ones who have the track record and the skills and capabilities to crack a market and reach the full potential of monetizing it. We are big fans of the founding team of Mintrics and are happy with the initial penetration they have achieved in this market. Furthermore, we think the online content, and video in specific space is quite interesting” told Jamal al-Mutarreb, of Numu Capital in a conversation with WeeTracker.
The rapidly growing startup is currently in the process of raising another round of financing of about USD 500k from an undisclosed African PE firm early this year. The funds will be leveraged to help the company entrench further into MEA along with expansion plans of getting into US, UK and Europe.
According to Nasr who is presently serving as CEO, the biggest challenge that they have been facing is building the team with requisite skill sets. Currently their team is 15 strong. He adds that the local talent is more attracted to the European markets owing to higher pay packages and better standards of living. Issues with internet connectivity and bandwidth also cause hindrance for the company. He had formed the startup accelerator Juice Labs in 2013, with help from Shalaby and has been closely associated with others like Cairo based Flat6labs.
He goes on to tip his fellow entrepreneurs in Egypt saying, ” The key is to focus on revenues and growth while operations is one area you have to get right from day one. You must not restrict yourself to offering a local solution to problems, serve the entire planet, think global.”
