About Anna Germanos, Group Director CPG, Retail, E-commerce & Luxury – MENA, Meta

Meet Anna Germanos, the Group Director for CPG, Retail, E-commerce & Luxury at Meta for the MENA region. With a passion for driving commercial growth through innovative technologies, Anna leads a talented team responsible for implementing Meta technologies (including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Workplace) across key industries.

Before joining Meta, Anna was instrumental in driving data-driven digital transformation and tech solutions adoption as the head of the Consumer Goods practice at Google for MENA. She also spent many years leading strategic assignments for leading private and public clients in the Middle East and Africa across Consumer and Retail at Booz & Company (currently known as Strategy&).

Anna is committed to community development, with a particular focus on Education and Diversity & Inclusion. She firmly believes that educating youth is crucial to building a better future for any society. As such, she serves on the advisory board of Lead Early, a company empowering teenagers with the skills and experiences to make informed choices for themselves. Anna also leads several community outreach and DE&I initiatives, working closely with NGOs and government programs to improve lives. Currently, Anna also acts as the DE&I and People lead at Meta.

Anna holds an MBA from INSEAD and a bachelor’s degree in Engineering from the American University of Beirut.

In her personal time, Anna is a dedicated mother to her two wonderful children, aged 9 and 7. She cherishes spending quality time with them, whether it’s exploring the outdoors, skiing together, or engaging in fun family activities.

About her thoughts for the industry

Today, businesses of all sizes are facing challenges from uncertain economic conditions, soaring inflation and supply chain disruptions. However, growth continues to be essential.

But how can marketing support business growth?

Great marketing has always been about strong media execution, great creative, and robust measurement, but today, what’s important is driving efficiency and effectiveness. In my view, there are 5 key trends that help businesses engage with connected consumers and grow.

Firstly, there is an evolution in how brands are being built. Today, marketers need to build Connected Brands. A connected brand is about investing to build long-term relationships with customers, through the personalization, the storytelling, and the constant feedback loop that technology now allows for. It is about evolving from imposing monologues to creating multilogues and triggering an interactive ecosystem with consumers.

Secondly, hybrid is the way of shopping. Consumers are omnichannel and increasingly using multiple channels to make their purchases, including online marketplaces, social media platforms, and physical stores. I am the same person that replenishes home candles online, but goes to the store to smell and try a new cream often from the same brand. As a result, marketers need to adopt a single view of their consumers regardless of where they’re shopping and reach consumers at every touchpoint in their shopping journey in a frictionless way.

Thirdly, personalization is the new expectation. Consumers now expect advertisements to be tailored to their individual interests and preferences, and shoppers want a personalized shopping experience that provides relevant product recommendations and promotions; Moreso among young shoppers who are 1.3x more likely to want personalized recommendations. Businesses who leverage tech to deliver personalized experiences will be more successful in capturing the attention and loyalty of consumers.

Fourthly, discovery is a social experience. Today’s most sophisticated marketers know that the shopper journey starts well before intent. While meeting demand is still critical to drive business growth, it’s never been more important to also CREATE demand. And while E-commerce helps people find products; Discovery Commerce helps products find people. These product discoveries are more likely on social media than other channels. 

Fifthly, more immersion means more connection. Immersive experiences such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are becoming increasingly popular among consumers especially in the Middle East. Advertisers who can create immersive experiences that connect with consumers on an emotional level will be more successful in building brand and drive growth.

Lastly, and this resonates a lot with me – people are at the heart of any industry’s success. The fast-paced nature of technological advancements and deep analytics in today’s industry requires highly skilled and adaptable talent. Finding the right talent in our market can be challenging, but definitely worth the effort to search, identify, nurture and retain this talent for sustained business growth.