Shahriar Shahabi is the founder of NewzMakerz.com, the first business communications WebTV platform in the Middle East. NewzMakerz.com has had over 1.8 million hits and more than 400,000 videos watched since it's launch in January, 2009.

Q. Kindly give us an introduction about yourself, your experience, and your company.

A. My friends call me Shar. I’m Canadian of Iranian heritage but having lived, gone to school and experienced life across many continents I consider myself a global citizen.  My background is very colorful or so I would like to think so because I have managed to blend my two passions in life and make a career out of it, International Relations and Web Technology.   

After graduating with a BA in Political Science from Simon Fraser University, I started my career as a political consultant back home in Canada, working on numerous provincial and federal campaigns but in 1997 I was drawn to this new phenomenon called the Internet. Our first company was acquired by Lucent Technologies in 1999 and since then, I have helped build and advise many start-up companies both in North America and the Middle East.  So today, I am what the industry calls a “serial entrepreneur” with a passion for innovation and a sharp eye for market opportunities.

As for what I am doing now, well I am happy to tell you that we have successfully built the first business communications WebTV in the Middle East called NewzMakerz.com and since our launch in January of 2009, NewzMakerz.com has had over 1.8 million hits and over 400,000 videos watched.  

Q. NewzMakerz.com has a mission to be an online broadcast platform that enhances business and economic ties between the Middle East and the rest of the world. How receptive has the market been to this mission?

A. That’s a great question because it goes deep to the heart of why I started NewzMakerz.com. Truth be told when I returned to the Middle East a few years ago, I quickly realized that there was an information gap in and on the market.  On one hand, there has been lot of misinformation about the Middle East by the Western media, while on the other; business information was very scarce and hard to come by.  This meant that a) The region as a whole has a transparency problem, and b) The cost of coming out in the form of marketing and advertising for many businesses and service providers (especially in the SME range) is so high that not a lot of companies could afford the grand fees of getting TV airtime or paying for advertising in newspapers or magazines that delivered very little in terms of ROI.   Well, we ran the numbers, looked at the opportunity and it all made sense to start the first business communications WebTV in the Middle East that was affordable and had FOCUS.

Now why do I say FOCUS?  Because we are not trying to be Youtube, Metacafe, ShoofTV, nor are we CNN, the BBC or Bloomberg.  Our content and content delivery strategy is very unique. We focus on business interviews and deliver information that creates a conversation and a dialogue between businesses and their target audience.  This is a very important distinction for us as opposed to other media platforms because we are one of the first in the communications and broadcasting industry to recognize and address the changing behavior and needs of the impatient and highly demanding online user who wants to know about a company, product or service in less than a minute so that he or she can make a decision to engage in the business or move on.  It is safe to say that the days of cable TV, one way communication and selling trivial information is over and even YouTube is being challenged on this front with all of its garble and irrelevant content.  So FOCUS to us is everything and you will see more and more of it on www.NewzMakerz.com as we progress.

As for market readiness and receptivity, I think the need is certainly there and with NewzMakerz.com we have a powerful solution to meet this demand for two reasons a) Companies are not ready to throw advertising, marketing, customer care and public relations, dollars, dirhams, dinars, or rials down the toilet anymore and b) CEO’s and Marketing Managers / VPs are under great pressure to find more effective ways to engage their clients, customers, suppliers and the general public, given that the old communication model is no longer influencing customer decisions and driving businesses their way.

And so I strongly believe that NewzMakerz.com will be the portal of choice for every smart small, midsize or large size company in the Middle East looking for incredible reach and long lasting visibility; locally, regionally or globally.    

Q. What are the levels of awareness, in the business sectors, regarding online broadcasting? Would you say there are certain obstacles due to a lack of awareness or the market still not maturing fast enough in this regard?

A. I agree, awareness is still lagging but the new realities of the world will force change and what I mean by that is when a business or industry is hurting as a result of increasing competition coming at them from all corners of the world, the decision makers of that enterprise will have to react and the only way they can do that is by getting creative.  And once the creative juice starts flowing in a company with tight budgets, that means they will have no choice but to look for smarter, more cost effective and efficient ways to communicate and reach out.  That’s where we come in. NewzMakerz.com is the smart, professional and effective communications platform on the market today.  

I should also add that once an interview is posted on NewzMakerz.com, it will be on the first page of GOOGLE within the first 48 hours.  Now that’s visibility and power at an affordable cost.

Q. Tell us about the traffic your site is generating, the numbers of registered users, and the interest it is generating. Do you see growth in user-generated content for business?

A. I am delighted to tell you that NewzMakerz.com has had over 1.8 million hits since its launch in January 2009 and more than 400,000 videos watched and while we have not advertised yet, our unique visitors (audience) are rapidly growing.  It is also worth noting that the average length of users that stay on NewzMakerz.com runs from 15 to 25 minutes so people are using NewzMakez.com as a business information source on the Middle East.   

As for user generated content I don’t believe in that model for a professional WebTV. I think control is still important to maintain high quality but what we are in a position to do is open up our working relationships with more and more freelance reporters with expertise in business broadcasting from across the Middle East region and beyond.  

Q. NewzMakerz has been selected as the WebTV choice for Canadian Business Council (CBC).  Tell us about this partnership and others.

A. This was a great opportunity for us to work directly with a business group which by the way is part of our business development strategy. The outcome of this relationship is win-win for both parties as NewzMakerz.com gets to generate great content for the portal and the CBC and its members receive tremendous exposure and message distribution through our IVL strategy that runs across online networks.  
So we are delighted with this partnership and we are working hard to expand our relationships with other Business Councils and Chambers of Commerce across the region as well.

Q. What are some of NewzMakerz’ future plans, and are you considering launching an Arabic Interface/service?

A. Well our short term growth plan is to either raise US $1.5 million dollars in first round financing or to partner up with a major media company in order to take NewzMakerz.com to the next level.
In terms of services, expect the launch of a new standard in video products that will work for both the internet as well as on Mobile devices. 

As for Arabic, and I’m glad you asked that question,  NewzMakerz.com WebTV skin can be translated into 20 different languages right now.  All you have to do is change the language setting in the top right corner of the site and it will be customized to your language of choice instantly.  We are however working on expanding the language range even further.

Anything else you would like to add?

I think one final thought that I would like to share with your readers is this:  In the 21st century there will two types of companies, those that are fearful of change vs. those who thrive for change.   The first type is typically one that will hold on to dear life with a strategy of hope and wishful thinking that somehow doing things the old way is going to be as successful as it once was in the past, verses those dynamic companies who are ready to explore new ways of doing things that maybe outside their comfort zone but within the comfort zone of their target audience.  And so my belief is that unless companies can learn how to create a constant and continuous conversation with their surrounding they will not survive.  Direct communication that aims to earn and retain loyalty in today’s hyper competitive world is one of the guarantee factors for survival.  

I hope these answers were helpful and I want to take this opportunity to thank mediaME for this interview.  And to your readers, if anyone requires further information on how to get their communication story on NewzMakerz.com please feel free to contact me directly at shar@newzmakerz.com.