When a Brand Finds Its Voice in the Most Unexpected Place
Papa Johns has always been built on a simple promise: better ingredients, better pizza.
But a brand can only repeat a line for so long before it needs a new way to make people believe it. That’s where voice, values and personality come in.
GCC: Is Brand Rivalry alive?
In the West, brand rivalry is part of pop culture.
McDonald's’s and Burger King trade billboard jabs.
PepsiCo spoofs The Coca-Cola Company every few years. It’s almost a sport. A ritual of competition that keeps both sides alive in the public eye.
Mamdani’s Win: A Communications Blueprint
Zohran Mamdani’s win is more than a political moment. It’s a communication blueprint for any brand that wants to move people rather than just reach them.
He didn’t win an election. He built a language of belonging and that’s a rare, teachable thing for anyone who cares about brand, narrative, and real influence.
The Grand Egyptian Museum
Egypt unveiled the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM), a project reportedly exceeding US$1.2 billion and positioned not merely as another landmark, but as a statement: of heritage, purpose and economic ambition.
Charlie Chaplin Lookalike Contest
The day Charlie Chaplin came in third in a Charlie Chaplin lookalike contest.
That story never gets old. It says so much about perception and identity.
Advisory VS. Consultancy
People often ask why I called LEVEL11 an advisory.
I’ve spent years consulting on marketing and business transformation projects across industries. I’ve helped brands grow, reposition, and reconnect. But the biggest shifts never happened in the deliverables, they happened after. When teams started thinking differently, asking better questions, and seeing their work in context.
Is AI starting to act with its own awareness?
Lately I’ve been reading and listening to a lot of content about AI “going rogue”, from rogue chatbots to autonomous agents acting in unexpected ways.
The Tale of Which City
Which story would you rather tell?
A country with funds, infrastructure, and investors ready to move?
Or a place weighed down by limitations but filled with hidden potential?
Strategy only works if people understand it
Here’s the hard truth: 70% of strategies fail to deliver results. Not because the idea was bad, but because teams don’t understand them well enough to act.
What does that actually mean?
Are You Afraid of Money?
Let’s be honest. Most people are terrified of money. Not because they’re bad with it, but because the system around it was built to intimidate, exclude, or exploit.
The Pet Economy
Today, there’s a powerful shift happening in the pet economy. In the GCC and MENA, it is shifting from niche to mainstream. Pet ownership is rising, spending per household is growing, and an entire ecosystem is forming; veterinary care, pet food manufacturing, insurance, grooming, boarding, tech-enabled services, ethical products and fashion, even pet-friendly tourism.
Visibility Versus Virality
Virality is a one-night stand.
Visibility is a marriage.
If you’re building a business, choose your partner deliberately.
What Women What?
People hear “women’s industry” and think cosmetics, perfume, or fashion.
But that’s barely the surface of a trillion-dollar economy.
Is your messaging all over the place?
If you’ve ever said:
“We’re growing fast, but the brand feels unclear.”
“Our team’s using five different taglines.”
“I don’t know how to talk about what we do anymore.”
You’re not alone.
Cultural Resonance isn’t optional. It’s the strategy!
The Kingdom's market is one of the most emotionally complex and culturally layered in the region.
And yet, many brands still fall into the trap of importing global ideas, stripping them of their context, and pasting them onto a market that reads between every line.
When Brand Safety & Community Collide
Spinneys, one of Lebanon’s leading supermarket chains, operated by Gray Mackenzie Retail Lebanon has faced three separate hits in the last 2 weeks.
The lie of “More Visibility”
The Lie of “More Visibility”
If your brand isn’t clear, no one cares how visible you are.
I’ve watched founders burn through budgets on ads, influencers, events, SEO, sponsorships chasing reach while their positioning is still a blur.