Influencer marketing across the UAE and Saudi Arabia continues to grow rapidly, but transparency and disclosure practices remain inconsistent across platforms, industries, and creator tiers. The Creator Brand Transparency Study by Sociata for ABG analyzes 7,000 Instagram and TikTok posts published between December 2023 and December 2024 to evaluate how influencers disclose sponsored content and branded partnerships across the region.
Using a combination of AI-powered analysis, data processing, and manual validation, the study examines disclosure accuracy, transparency trends, industry performance, influencer behavior, and audience engagement patterns across the creator ecosystems of the UAE and KSA.
Key findings from the report include:
- Correct labeling practices improved slightly year over year in the UAE
- The UAE demonstrated higher rates of correct disclosure than Saudi Arabia
- Macro influencers showed stronger transparency practices than mid and micro influencers
- Beauty & Cosmetics, Fashion, and Technology represented the largest concentration of branded content activity
- Correct disclosure practices did not negatively impact audience engagement rates
- Inconsistent disclosure language and placement practices remain common across sponsored posts
The report also outlines the disclosure criteria used to evaluate compliance, including examples of correct, insufficient, and incorrect sponsorship labeling practices in both English and Arabic.
This first-edition transparency study offers a data-driven look at the evolving creator economy across the Middle East, highlighting both progress and ongoing challenges in influencer disclosure standards, brand partnerships, and platform accountability.
