Relocating to Dubai · 45 days' notice

Manikutty
V S

Account Manager · Client Servicing · Integrated Campaigns

I've spent 8 years on the agency side, keeping clients, creative teams and media partners moving in the same direction. Two of those years were at a Dubai agency running retail, F&B and consumer accounts. Today I lead client servicing on Kerala Tourism's global social media mandate.

Get in touch See the work

AED 5M+agency revenue generated at Equity Plus, Dubai

95%client retention across 8+ key accounts

50+multi-channel campaigns for Kerala Tourism

40+influencer collaborations, 15M+ impressions per campaign

GoldPATA Awards 2024, Digital Marketing Excellence

Selected work

Campaigns and accounts that show how I run a brief from client conversation to delivered results.

PATA Gold 2024WhatsAppGamification

Holiday Heist

Kerala Tourism · Jun – Jul 2023 · All India

The brief

Change how tour packages are promoted, grow the contact base of Maya, Kerala Tourism's WhatsApp chatbot, and reach a wider audience across India.

The idea

A lowest-unique-bid game played on WhatsApp. A new Kerala holiday package went up every day for 30 days, and the winner was announced 24 hours later. Explainer videos taught people how to play.

My role

Led client servicing end to end: client communication, creative briefing, approvals and delivery across the agency's creative, content and production teams.

Results

80,000+ bids, 520,000 conversations and 41,000 new chatbot contacts
51.6M impressions and 13.5M video views on approx. AED 47K media spend
Some winners took home packages worth INR 30,000+ for INR 5
The first campaign of its kind by an Indian tourism department
PATA Gold 2024 · Big Bang Awards 2023 Silver · Maddy's 2024 Bronze

E4M 2023WhatsAppCRM

Maya, the WhatsApp travel assistant

Kerala Tourism · Launched Mar 2022 · Global

Maya greeting a traveller on WhatsApp: Welcome to Kerala Tourism, I'm Maya, your WhatsApp travel guide

The brief

Launch the first WhatsApp chatbot in Indian tourism: 24x7 help on destinations, experiences, stays and weather, with a human agent replying to complex queries in under 5 minutes.

The idea

A menu-driven bot with live chat, broadcasts and feedback ratings. Maya then became the engine for campaigns like Holiday Heist, Script a Holiday, Kerala in Color and festival broadcasts.

Results

330,000+ contacts, 1.59M+ conversations and 7M+ messages sent by Mar 2025
300,000+ consented contacts for personalised communication
Broadcast open rates of 28.5% to 47.8%
Script a Holiday contest: 6,300+ entries and 14,003 new contacts
E4M Indian Marketing Award 2023, Innovative Use of Technology

InfluencerGlobalContent

Kerala Blog Express 7

Kerala Tourism · 13 – 27 Jul 2023 · Global

The brief

Run the first international Blog Express after the pandemic. Bring in travellers through top bloggers, spotlight lesser-known destinations and put Kerala on the global travel map. Theme: Travel For Good.

The idea

A 15-day road trip on a branded bus. Bloggers were picked through microsite entries, online voting, follower numbers and content quality. A documentation team travelled with them, posting in real time on Kerala Tourism's handles, with paid amplification of creator content and hotels joining as trade partners.

Results

25 creators from 21 countries
31M impressions and 10M video views
Budget approx. AED 375K

WeddingsMusic videoYouTube

Shubhamangalyam with Vidya Vox

Kerala Tourism · 2023 · Couples, NRIs, wedding planners

Still from the Shubhamangalyam music video: a smiling bride, with the title Made in the Stars

Watch on YouTube ↗

The brief

Promote Kerala as a wedding destination and build awareness of its landscapes and wedding appeal among couples planning weddings.

The challenge

Reach a multilingual audience and stand out in a crowded wedding-destination market.

The idea

A fusion song with YouTuber Vidya Vox in English, Hindi and Malayalam. The music video follows a non-Malayali couple's wedding across Kerala's landscapes, and was pushed beyond YouTube to Facebook and Instagram.

Results

10M video views across Facebook, Instagram and YouTube
Google Search and Display: 223M impressions and 8.4M link clicks

TourismSocialInfluencer

Kerala Tourism global social mandate

Stark Communications · Oct 2020 – present

Combined followers · Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn

The account

Kerala Tourism's social media marketing across Facebook, Instagram, X and LinkedIn, reaching domestic and international travellers through 8.6M+ combined followers.

My role

Own client communication, briefs, approvals and delivery. Lead a team of five across creative, digital, content, influencer and production, and turn client objectives into creative briefs.

What we did

Planned and delivered 50+ multi-channel campaigns on tourism, culture and hospitality
Ran 40+ influencer collaborations, each generating 15M+ impressions per campaign
Brought generative AI tools into content workflows to cut turnaround times

Results

Campaign budgets of approx. AED 40K to AED 2M, delivered under budget while exceeding KPIs
Combined followers grew from 5.9M to 8.66M between 2021 and 2026, a gain of 2.76M (+47%)
Facebook: 3.66M to 5.83M (+59%)
Instagram: 302K to 896K, nearly 3x
LinkedIn: 3K to 35K, nearly 12x

More Kerala Tourism campaigns

Dec 2020 – Feb 2021 · All India

Change of Air

Post-lockdown push for short trips from nearby metros: escape the crowded city for green, open Kerala.

186M video views · budget approx. AED 985K

Nov 2021 – Jan 2022 · All India

Travel For Good: reassurance

Ten short videos and Facebook Lives telling hesitant travellers Kerala was one of the safest places to go.

85M video views · budget approx. AED 415K

Mar 2022 – Feb 2023 · US, UK, Europe, Australia, Middle East

Travel For Good: international reopening

Landscape-led video series in several languages, later built on Kerala's Time Magazine World's Greatest Places listing.

58M views · Time Magazine ads 205M impressions

2023 – 2025 · Families, All India

India's Summer Camp

Three editions of reels and films framing Kerala as one big summer camp for families.

878M impressions · 275M video views

Radio-ledRetailF&BUAE

Multi-brand retail & F&B portfolio

Equity Plus Advertising LLC · Dubai · 2018 – 2020

The accounts

8+ key accounts across retail, F&B, lifestyle and consumer brands in the UAE, with most campaigns running on radio.

My role

Account lead coordinating creative, digital, media buying and production teams, and working with radio, print, digital and OOH partners.

What we did

Delivered 50+ cross-platform campaigns
Secured approvals in line with UAE advertising regulations and cultural guidelines

Results

AED 5M+ in agency revenue through account growth and retention
95% client retention rate

EventsSponsorshipRadioUAE

Events & brand activations

Equity Plus Advertising LLC · Dubai & Abu Dhabi · 2018 – 2020

I managed event operations and partner brands for the agency's own event properties, bringing title sponsors, associate sponsors and media partners onto each one.

Geepas Big Carnival Season 3 grand finale poster — Season 3 · Eid 2018
**Geepas Big Carnival**
A free-entry Eid show with live music and dance at Al Mujama Camp, Jebel Ali. Powered by Four Mobile, with Sapil, Fair and Handsome and SK ZIC.

Joyalukkas Angel Awards 2019 winner on stage with her family and the hosts — 2019 · Awards night
**Joyalukkas Angel Awards**
Excellence awards for nurses in the UAE. Brought to you by Wall Street Exchange, powered by Nikai, in association with Sapil, with Khaleej Times and Hit 96.7 among the media partners.

Geepas YouFest Season 4 grand finale poster with the trophy — Season 4 · Nov – Dec 2019
**Geepas YouFest**
The UAE school youth festival, opened at Shining Star International School, Abu Dhabi. Brought to you by Byju's, with Pan Emirates, Sapil, Igloo and Eliz as partners.

Let's Go Singapore roadshow poster for 89.1 Radio 4 at Safeer Mall, Sharjah — Radio contest & roadshows
**Let's Go**
A Radio 4 89.1 FM travel contest. The Singapore edition ran with Singapore Tourism Board and Joyalukkas, with mall roadshows in Sharjah. The Ho Chi Minh City edition was brought to you by Royal Furniture.

Brands I've worked on

Government, tourism, retail and F&B clients across Kerala and the UAE.

Kerala TourismTourism · Government

Pan EmiratesHome furnishing retail · UAE

Sapil PerfumesFragrance · UAE

ChickingQuick-service F&B · UAE

Al Rostamani ExchangeFinancial services · UAE

Fathima HypermarketRetail · UAE

IglooConsumer brand · UAE

GeepasConsumer electronics · UAE

NikaiConsumer electronics · UAE

Para JohnConsumer brand · UAE

IndomieFMCG · UAE

EventsAngel Awards · YouFest · Let's Go · Big Carnival

Social media samples

Films, creator content and always-on posts from Kerala Tourism's social channels. Tap a card to open the original.

Films & creator content

Still from Yellow Paper Daisy: a couple in white with a yellow daisy in a Kerala field

Oct – Nov 2021 · YouTube, Facebook, InstagramYellow Paper Daisy with When Chai Met ToastAn indie music video shot across Kerala for the Honeymoon Holidays campaign. 10.1M video views · 18M+ reached on Facebook

#LandOfHarmony post: travellers shaking hands with boatmen on the Kerala backwaters

Onam · YouTube · All IndiaLand of HarmonyA film showing Kerala's Onam traditions and festivities to culture-loving travellers across India.

Creator Ivana Perkovic's Instagram post from a Kerala waterfall

2022 · International Influencers TripIvana Perkovic's Kerala vlogOne of eight international creators, with Vidya Vox, Ibn Hattuta and Allison Anderson, who filmed Kerala after borders reopened. 12M+ views across creator content.

Meme-led makeover

2024 · Instagram, Facebook, X, LinkedIn · 1.2M reach · 89.7K engagements

Squid Game pink soldier in Munnar's tea hills

A Squid Game soldier in Munnar

Even heroes need a houseboat holiday

Simhapara rock styled as the Black Panther statue

April Fools: Wakanda's statue came from Kollam

Duct-taped banana art meme with Kerala bananas

Kerala's take on the duct-taped banana

State of Harmony, the Onam pop-culture series

Being happy vs fitting into society

A nutmeg for Deadpool & Wolverine

Elephants by a river: how do you know elephants love to travel? They always pack their trunk

Father's Day dad jokes

Experience

8 years in agency client servicing, India and the UAE.

Oct 2020 – Present

Senior Account Executive, Client Servicing & Brand Strategy

Stark Communications · Trivandrum, India

Lead client servicing on Kerala Tourism's global social media mandate
Lead and mentor a team of five specialists
Manage budgets of approx. AED 40K to AED 2M

May 2018 – Mar 2020

Client Account Executive

Equity Plus Advertising LLC · Dubai, UAE

AED 5M+ agency revenue, 95% client retention across 8+ accounts
Integrated campaigns across radio, print, digital and OOH
Event operations for Angel Awards, YouFest, Let's Go and Big Carnival

Jan 2018 – Mar 2018

News Intern

Channel D · Dubai, UAE

Research, scripting, voiceovers and video editing for a Malayalam TV newsroom

What I bring

Client relationship & account management Account growth & retention Creative briefing Integrated campaigns Influencer marketing Budgets & commercials Government & large-brand stakeholders Media partners: radio, print, digital, OOH Events & activations Performance reporting UAE ad regulations Generative AI workflows

Tools

Meta Business Suite, Canva, ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, NotebookLM, Midjourney

Languages

English (full professional) · Hindi (professional working) · Malayalam (native)

Recognition & education

Gold Winner, PATA Awards 2024Digital Marketing Excellence · "Holiday Heist", Kerala Tourism
Big Bang Awards 2023 Silver · Maddy's 2024 Bronze"Holiday Heist", Kerala Tourism
E4M Indian Marketing Award 2023Innovative Use of Technology · Maya WhatsApp chatbot, Kerala Tourism
Internal recognition for client servicing & campaign leadershipStark Communications · 2023
PG Diploma in Electronic JournalismPress Club, Thiruvananthapuram · 2016–2017 · First Rank & Gold Medalist
MA, English Language & LiteratureAll Saints' College, Thiruvananthapuram · 2013–2015
BA, English & Communicative EnglishAll Saints' College, Thiruvananthapuram · 2010–2013
Generative AI FoundationsupGrad with Microsoft
Advanced Prompt Engineering with ChatGPTupGrad

Hiring an Account Manager in Dubai?

I'm relocating to the UAE and can join on 45 days' notice. I already know the market from two years at a Dubai agency.

Emailmanikuttysukesh000@gmail.com

Phone / WhatsApp+91 97469 19051

LinkedInlinkedin.com/in/manikutty-sukesh-advertising