The Qode

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a PR and events executive for a luxury goods and jewelry company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with The Qode?

The Qode helps us with PR, press releases, and events consultation. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The Qode has helped us with sending out the press releases that we receive from our headquarters; they also help us draft releases for regional announcements. Our team does the conceptualization, and we then send it over to their team and ask them for suggestions. 

Moreover, we directly deal with the press people if we have a working relationship with them. However, if we’re working with A-list press people and we don’t deal with them regularly, then we ask The Qode to help us get in touch with them. If we want to do interviews or invite the press to events, the team also helps us. 

On top of that, The Qode helps us plan. For example, when we hold an event for the launch of a new product, we get in touch with the team and ask them who we can invite for the event. They also tell us whether or not we can do interviews and shoots. Their resources come back to us with proposals, and then we decide how we want to move forward. Ultimately, they help us with the execution of the plan. 

What is the team composition?

The team composition has changed a couple of times since we started working with The Qode. We’ve had an account manager who had left and was replaced by a new one.

How did you come to work with The Qode?

We reached out to a few agencies. The Qode wasn’t necessarily the most cost-efficient, but they were at the top of the PR world when it came to reputation. As a result, we chose them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around 40,000 UAE dirhams (approximately $11,000 USD). That’s inclusive of all the events we’ve done with them. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2018, and the engagement is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

We’ve been able to open a larger-scale boutique in 2019, and we’ve had great traction in terms of PR. We haven’t had a single event that received negative feedback. While it’s hard to quantify success, the dynamic between us and The Qode has been great. 

How did The Qode perform from a project management standpoint?

The team is great at meeting deadlines. We enforce weekly status updates to keep track of our projects and progress. Communicating with The Qode is easy — they’re on point when it comes to timelines. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I deal with The Qode and another agency, and they stand out in terms of understanding our brand. Every time we give them a briefing, they understand how to take it forward. On top of that, they have a great team dynamic. Overall, it’s lovely to work with them. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

We often feel that they haven’t registered some remarks we’ve given multiple times. For instance, when we send a press list for a project, we indicate some names that we either no longer want to work with or are unfit for our brand. However, those names are sometimes repeated and we see them on the list again. 

Moreover, The Qode has great relationships with the press within the UAE, but they don’t have strong connections with other countries around our region. We often have to pull strings through retailers or connections, and that isn’t practical. They’re a little lacking in that department. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Build a relationship with The Qode. We’ve done that, and we’ve gotten to know each other. Our teams have done launches together, and that has made it easier to work with them and understand each other. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an executive at a luxury goods and jewelry company in the Middle East.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with The Qode?

We needed help with event planning and marketing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We worked with The Qode on multiple events throughout the year; they took care of guest list management, production, and other creative aspects of those events.

What is the team composition?

We worked directly with their events director, Ayman and Dipesh (Co-Founders), and multiple other members of their events team.

How did you come to work with The Qode?

I knew one of their co-founders from previous professional projects. We went through a pitch process and ended up choosing them after the approval of our head office.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $50,000–$100,000 on each of the three events we did together.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January–November 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We had successful social media coverage on the events, as well as attendance rates and overall engagement.

How did The Qode perform from a project management standpoint?

They were outstanding; we used meetings, phone calls, email, and WhatsApp groups to communicate and manage the event dates. 

What did you find most impressive about them? 

They were always clear and on top of everything. Their flexibility and responsiveness were also key to handling the changes that we needed to make along the way.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they can improve on. 

Any advice for potential customers?

Give them as much detailed information as possible from the beginning so they can provide the outcome that you’re trying to achieve.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an executive at a franchise operator that manages large fashion, food and beverage, and entertainment brands. We operate in over seven countries in the region and have more than 200–300 stores.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with The Qode?

We needed a PR agency for our business.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The Qode is our PR agency and partner that we work with to enhance the capability, brand reputation, and brand visibility for specific labels. They also manage our events, relations with the media, and influencer deals, among other tasks. 

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with many people across different departments, from PR to paid digital. But Louise (Senior Director) is our main point of contact.

How did you come to work with The Qode?

We heard a lot of pitches, but we chose The Quote because they have experience with other fashion brands. They also had several luxury brands in their profile, and we wanted to work on that front. In addition to that, we liked their proactivity regarding media relations and handling event management.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2017, and the engagement is ongoing. Previously, our relationship was more project-based, and then we moved to something more like a partnership.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

The success of their work is demonstrated through the events that they perform and the positive feedback we get from our agencies and influencers. It's about media attendance, general media visibility, and brand recognition in the region.

How did The Qode perform from a project management standpoint?

According to our needs, they constantly adapt significantly to how the industry changed during the COVID-19 pandemic — they’re always proposing new ways of working. We communicate through phone calls, WhatsApp, and emails; if we have any pain points, we share with them, and they’re proactive in taking the necessary action.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very professional; we recently had an event with them, and they were able to finalize everything and meet our requirements. They’re also very proactive and ready to have good media relations — they’re credible in the region and well-connected. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they can improve on — they do things with very high quality. Their fees are higher than other options, but the quality is worth it. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Do a test project with them.