SAHARA was also asked to make a “loud splash” for Dana Gas ahead of its IPO. Managing Director Majid Jafar approached us to handle the media aspect of the IPO. “It was 2004, and there was no internet and no social media,” explains Dr Samerai, the project head. “To make a splash, you had to be a good promoter, and I was glad I could make such a buzz about the IPO with technique and tenacity. I positioned photographers in airports and streets and innovatively transformed the photos into a marketing campaign. Photos of airport queues became photos of people coming from Saudi to Dubai to subscribe to Dana Gas shares. Photos of people relaxing in the park became photos of people outside the banks waiting to rush in and jump onto the shares when they opened. These were just some of the ideas I used to generate the most successful IPO in the region at the time- which was 140 times oversubscribed.” After 16 years, SAHARA is still providing media advisory services to Majid Jafar and Crescent Petroleum.