What businesses search for in Egypt, the Gulf and the Benelux: marketing, SEO, CRM and AI in 2026

Before writing a page for a market, we look at what people there actually type. These are the findings from Google Trends for Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, the Netherlands and Belgium, for the twelve months to 22 October 2026. We publish them because founders and marketers in these markets ask us the same questions, and the answers are useful whether or not you work with us.

How to read the numbers

• Scores compare searches within one country and one set: 100 is the most searched term in that set. They show which words people use, not absolute volumes.
• A percentage is growth against the previous twelve months. “Breakout” means growth above 5,000%.
• Google Trends leaves out terms with too few searches, so small Gulf markets such as Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman are below its threshold for most of these English terms.

Five findings

1. Buyers search for the outcome, not the model

Across all five markets people search for “digital marketing agency”, “marketing company”, “SEO”, “lead generation” and “CRM”. Labels for business models, such as “fractional CMO” or “outsourced sales”, barely register. A page that answers the outcome search and explains the model once the reader arrives does better than one named after the model.

2. In Arabic, people say “الكتروني”, not “رقمي”

In Saudi Arabia the top Arabic search in this area is “شركة تسويق الكتروني” (e-marketing company). “شركة تسويق رقمي” (digital marketing company) scores 27 against it. Rising fastest: “وكالة تسويق الكتروني” (+140%) and “شركات تسويق الكتروني في السعودية” (+90%). Egypt shows the same pattern, and “شركة تسويق عقاري” (real-estate marketing company) is the second most searched variant there. Arabic pages need their own keyword research; translating the English terms misses how people search.

3. AI is now attached to SEO in every market

“seo ai” is the second most searched SEO term in Saudi Arabia (85 against 100 for “google seo”) and in the Netherlands (82), and scores 56 in Belgium. In the UAE, “ai seo” scores 33 next to “seo dubai”. Worldwide, among searches about AI SEO, “aeo” (answer engine optimisation) grew 190% and “geo” 150%. Buyers expect an SEO partner to cover AI answers as well as Google.

4. Zoho leads CRM searches in Egypt and the Gulf; HubSpot is rising

“zoho crm” is the top CRM search in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and “zoho” in the UAE. HubSpot is growing: “hubspot” +50% in Egypt and “hubspot free crm” +300% in the UAE. In Saudi Arabia and the UAE “best crm software for small business” is a breakout search, and “crm integration” grew 300% in Saudi Arabia. In the Netherlands “crm software” leads, with HubSpot (89), Zoho (80) and Salesforce (63) close behind.

5. In the UAE, the city and the sector are part of the search

The top UAE searches name the city: “seo dubai”, “dubai digital marketing agency”, “lead generation dubai”. The fastest-rising add a sector or a need: “healthcare digital marketing agency” and “digital marketing agency for doctors” (both breakout), “real estate seo agency” (+450%), “lead generation agency in dubai” (+190%) and “seo services pricing” (+500%). “ai marketing agency” and “ai automation agency” lead AI-agency searches.

Market by market

• Egypt: “digital marketing egypt” leads digital marketing searches; “marketing agency egypt” grew 110%. In Arabic, “شركة تسويق الكتروني” leads. Among AI searches, “ai mode” grew 900%.
• Saudi Arabia: “digital marketing agency saudi arabia” grew 800% and “digital marketing automation” 250%. “خدمات سيو” (SEO services) grew 250%.
• UAE: city searches lead (Dubai, Abu Dhabi); healthcare, real estate and lead generation are the rising niches; AI agencies are searched as “ai marketing agency” and “ai automation agency”.
• Netherlands: “online marketing bureau” is the top online marketing search, ahead of “online marketing agency”; “seo ai” is the second SEO search; “best ai agent” leads AI agent searches.
• Belgium: French and English mix: “digital marketing agency” (100) and “agence digital marketing” (88); “agence seo” (90) almost matches “seo agency” (100).

What this means for a growing company

1. 01Name your pages after the outcome buyers search for, in each language you sell in, and research each language separately.
2. 02Put the city or country in the pages that serve it, where buyers search that way.
3. 03Treat AI answers as part of SEO: clear facts about your company, answer-first pages and profiles on the directories assistants read.
4. 04Choose a CRM your team will use; in Egypt and the Gulf most buyers are comparing Zoho and HubSpot.

About this research

Data: Google Trends, related and rising queries, twelve months to 22 October 2026, queried by the GrowAxis team on 22 October 2026. GrowAxis is a Commercial Growth Partner with a team in Cairo; it installs digital marketing, SEO and GEO, business development, CRM and AI for startups and SMEs in these markets. You are welcome to quote these findings with a link to this page.