Islamabranding

"I'm Muslim... DON'T PANIC". I saw that quote on a T-Shirt of young guy walking down the street. It made me research the viewpoint on Muslims from different schools of thought and field of study. As I am a student of Marketing. I tried to narrow down my research to the world of Marketing.

Courtesy: Aurora

I sensed the arrival of a new "phenomena" . From " Go Green" things are getting deeper green "The Deeper Green color of Islam".

Most companies know little about Islamic culture, buying behavior and marketing. This topic is receiving serious public attention on different plat forms now.  

Muslim consumers are identified as market of 1.6billion people that has offer enormous potential to Western marketers in this market segment only if their values and demands are fully understood. In a research by JWT, Already in the US; they are being described as the "new Hispanics".
 

As companies currently compete for the markets of China and India, few have realized the global Muslim market represents potentially larger opportunities.  Creating A Global Islamic Business provides a complete guide to building brands in the largest consumer market in the world. The global Muslim market is now approximately 23 percent of the world's population, they are expected to be 2.2 billion Muslims in 2030 that will make up 26.4 percent of the world's total projected population of 8.3 billion. 

In Order to develop and manage brands and businesses for the fast-growing Muslim market sophisticated strategies are needed that will ensure sustainable values  such as:

 Strong Values and Beliefs:

Islam equates identity; and defines behavior in a way which makes how you do things as important as the things you do. The "ummah" is premised on a view of what is lawful (halal) and unlawful (haraam), so the gap between belief and behavior is remarkably narrow.

Muslims are obliged to adhere to five basic principles of Islam (Sahi Bukhari); (a) Believe;
(b) Prayers; (c) Fasting; (d) Alms-giving; and (e) Pilgrimage. 

"Sharia compliant" has become a synonym for "Islamic brand."  But Islamic Branding is much more deeper and complex. At the most exclusive level brand concentrated on finance and food sectors place their product/brand appeal on strictly Shariah Principles. Some of the examples are as follows: Islamic Banking, Meezan Bank, Takaful, Foods with Halal Tag on it.

Another are those brands that are Islamic by Origin.They promote themselves as a product of Islamic Country. Creating a competitive edge over competitors through Islamic Belief of brotherhood of ummah. As these product are for all people an sense of patriotism also  pluralist in their appeal. Saudi Airlines, Emirati Etisilat.There is nothing religious or theological but  full fill the basic needs of consumer including the regular products or services and no affiliation with religions but origin.

Brands came out from the non-Muslim countries, and there target market is Muslim Consumer are Islamic By Customer. More than 90% of MNCs are from Non Muslims Countries and Owners. Multinationals such as Nestle,Unilever, PnG, L Oreal, McDonalds, KFC etc  are above MNC’s owned by the non-Muslims and these MNC’s include the Halal brands to target Muslim Consumers.

Confusingly, the distinction is not often made: but what all three should have is a common purpose, which is to re-balance the importer/exporter relationships between the Islamic and non-Islamic world.

 

More than Shariah Compliance

 In order to re-balance effectively the Islamic Brand appeal should have to be more than Shariah Compliance. Because Shariah Compliment is a generic benefit of product. Brand choice needs emotional cues as well. It is, at least at entry level, the competition against "foreign brands". Meezan Bank is an Islamic Bank operating in Pakistan along-with numbers of other Islamic Banks. It enjoys approximately 50% of market share in Islamic Banks in Pakistan. One of the main reason is because it fulfills all aforementioned values.

Is Islamic Marketing and Branding a phenomena?

Islamic products and Islamic brands can be a phenomena if it bridges the cultural and economic chasm which separates the "globalized" and the Islamic worlds.

Conceptual framework for Islamic Branding can be helpful in value maximization of Islamic Products. Many of Islamic Banking and Takaful products are fast growing Islamic product even for Non-Muslim. The concept of halal in foods, for instance, seems to capture a craving for purity which goes well beyond a religious franchise. 

The Islamic Concept of Community Welfare e.g Alms-Giving(Zakat), Qurbani etc can be a synonym for Corporate Social Responsibility.  Advertising business in Islamic countries  are highly creative, highly complex and critical workplaces, certainly more than capable of ultimately redressing the one way flow of global ideas.

(This post was earlier published at www.newsteria.com as I'm Muslim Don't Panic written by myself)

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