From the Influencers

Hashtag Turns to IZEAx To Drive MENA Influence


April 14, 2016


Shaping influence isn't an easy thing; it depends not only on numbers of viewers, but also how engaged the viewers are with a  particular media. For the Hashtag Social Media Agency, getting influence in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) arena is a little simpler now thanks to a new arrangement with IZEA, operators of the IZEAx online marketplace.


Hashtag is, as a result, one of more than 30 different partners—ranging from major media companies to talent agencies—that turn to the IZEAx system to get access to the content creation market in the region. It actually represents the first such time that a network of content creators in the region has been assembled and put to interface with creators worldwide.

With IZEA in its corner, Hashtag will use the system to build a complete creator network, giving said creators access to new monetization possibilities. This is possible in large part thanks to growing use of social media in the MENA region, allowing advertisers access to a wide and potentially lucrative field of followers.

IZEA's chairman and chief executive officer Ted Murphy offered comment: “As the leading platform for influencer and content marketing, we seek to identify new ways to leverage our unmatched marketing technologies in various geographies around the world. Through this partnership with Hashtag, our two organizations will work together to enable their high-caliber clients to produce and distribute compelling content, leveraging the power of today's global online influencers.” Hashtag's CEO, Amer Massimi, offered similar content, noting that brands and agencies were increasingly looking toward influencer marketing, and with a wide array of influencers in one place, it made for a potentially very valuable solution.

Publishing these days has become increasingly competitive, and for companies not named “Facebook” or “Google,” it's more difficult than ever to bring in advertisers and keep users on hand for the best in relevant content. Arrangements like these allow the participants to focus on particular areas of skill; here Hashtag can build a social influencer network, which it can offer up to advertisers, and IZEA can help bring in more interested social influencers to be part of the network in question. That's an arrangement that should work well, particularly as younger viewers abandon the network television environment for online sources instead.

Hashtag and IZEA should make for a winning combination in the end, as more online media develops and more ad dollars start to follow. It will take time to reach its fullest fruition, but what's started already is a development worth watching.




Edited by Stefania Viscusi

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