With the conclusion of the third quarter of the year, now is the ideal moment to revisit ongoing trends, particularly within marketing. These trends offer valuable insights into consumers’ cutting-edge interests and behaviors, which are crucial for steering a customer-centric Muslim business.
Here are some noteworthy promotional trends halal businesses and Muslim brands can implement as we navigate the remainder of 2023.
1- Amplify Your Content
Content marketing is undergoing a significant transformation, with a new term taking center stage: “amplified marketing”.
According to Casted, a platform specializing in audio and video content marketing, amplified marketing represents an innovative shift in content marketing practices. Its primary objective is to transcend traditional text-based tools such as blogs by incorporating audio and visual elements into your marketing content.
Read: 8 out of 10 (Muslim) Consumers Prefer Live Stream Video Over Reading Your Blog
Furthermore, it involves integrating insights from subject matter experts into your content creation process. To make your content stand out, consider seeking input from experts who are directly involved in your field or closely related to it.
Watch Muslim Ad Network’s Halal Industry Expert Interviews
Once you’ve enlisted the perspectives of these experts, the next step is to amplify their voices throughout your marketing strategy. This entails incorporating their advice and knowledge into your text, audio, and video content. By doing so, you align your brand with respected individuals, thereby enhancing your standing as a thought leader, authority, and credible source in the eyes of your target audience while at the same time extending your halal brand to a broader audience.
Here are 5 steps to amplify your content so that it reaches a wider range of Muslim audiences:
- Break down content into smaller components: Extract valuable segments like clips, key takeaways, audio snippets, and video highlights.
- Explore ways to effectively combine these components: Create playlists that include multiple recordings, integrate a clip into a blog post, or incorporate a notable quote from an interview into your email communication strategy.
- Combine previous content with new material: Blend the latest fragments of your previously identified existing content with fresh content to power various communication channels. For example, incorporate excerpts from prior keynote talks and interviews into a new video tailored to your audience’s current and relevant interests.
- Broaden the reach of your content across various platforms and formats: Utilize concise sound bites on all your social media channels or in email campaigns. Make sure to tag and inform the experts you interviewed so that they can reshare to their audiences.
- Segment webinar presentations into smaller, digestible pieces for marketing materials or website content. Utilize individual perspectives as the foundation for articles, and blog posts, or as sources of inspiration for new interviews or webinars. Create a conference presentation based on the original source for the next halal industry event.
By avoiding the restriction of exclusively generating entirely new content, you’ll have the flexibility to explore innovative ways to utilize your valuable resources, including time, budget, and existing content.
2- Get to Know the Role of AI in Muslim Marketing Better
ChatGPT was introduced in late 2022, and since then, the world has been wrestling with the advantages and disadvantages of genuinely capable artificial intelligence (AI) tools.
In the realm of marketing, the momentum is only just beginning to pick up. We can easily identify several ways in which AI use applies specifically to marketing and advertising. These range from enhancing customer relationships through 24/7 customer support to automating repetitive tasks such as email correspondence and survey analysis and of course generative AI for creating content and visuals.
Make sure to keep AI on your radar and get your team more familiarized with it. The expanding array of AI tools is simplifying the integration of this cutting-edge technology into your brand’s marketing initiatives. Determine which iterations are best suited to your brand’s requirements sooner rather than later.
Here is a quick look at recent articles all in one place to help you get a better grasp of the benefits and potential pitfalls of integrating AI into your marketing and advertising specifically from a Muslim perspective:
9 Incredible AI Tools Every Halal Business Should Embrace
Are you ready to discover nine incredible AI tools that will make running your halal business so much easier, save you time, and boost your productivity with less effort? We explored cutting-edge AI solutions that can be specifically tailored for halal businesses.
Start using AI tools for your halal business.
Islam and Ethics of AI Advertising – Part 1
You may be aware that there is growing concern about the implications of the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in advertising and in our lives in general. The smarter AI gets through learning, the greater the concern.
Learn about the ethics of AI advertising from an Islamic perspective.
Islam and Ethics of AI Advertising – Part 2
In this subsequent part, we delve further into the implementation of the solutions and frameworks mentioned in Part 1. We have based the foundation of this article on the research paper, “Islamic virtue-based ethics for artificial intelligence”.
Delve deeper into Islamic virtue-based AI advertising.
What Halal Brands Must Know About the AI-Powered Advertising Race
Online search and advertising are evolving in such a way that many halal brands are unsure where they will shift power. Will Google remain the most dependable search engine once the dust settles?
Find out more about AI-powered advertising.
The ChatGPT Guide for Muslim Marketing and Advertising
ChatGPT is on everyone’s mind these days, from students to marketers to scientists. Everyone is looking to understand what implications it has for their expertise and how to leverage this powerful tool to their advantage.
Learn the basics of ChatGPT for halal advertising.
Generative AI for Muslim Marketing and Advertising
ChatGPT is arguably the most popular trending generative AI tool at the moment and marketers and advertisers just can’t get enough of it. ChatGPT stands for generative pretrained transformer. It is designed to assist with answering questions, providing information, generating text, and engaging in text-based conversations on a wide range of topics.
See how to enhance your marketing with Generative AI.
What Muslim Brands Must Know About Meta’s AI-driven Advertising
When Meta decided to shut down the ability for Facebook advertisers to serve ads based on religion and ethnicity, Muslim brands struggled to find an alternative solution. But does Meta’s new AI-driven advertising fix this issue?
Read about Meta’s AI-driven advertising.
3- Capitalize on Social Commerce
Social commerce involves conducting e-commerce activities through social media platforms, offering a unique opportunity to reach customers on the platforms they already frequent. While this simplifies certain aspects of marketing, it also introduces complexity due to the multitude of platforms and marketing approaches available.
It’s crucial to select the platform(s) where your target audience is most active. Utilize AI tools, customer reviews, and e-commerce integrations to transform your social profiles into revenue-generating channels.
The steps for a successful social commerce project are very basic.
1. Select the appropriate social media channels
The first step involves identifying the social media platforms that align with your specific products and services. For instance, visually appealing items like halal food restaurants, halal travel, or modest fashion products tend to thrive on platforms such as Instagram and Pinterest. On the other hand, Islamic finance often finds its audience on platforms like LinkedIn or Twitter. Boxed Halal, for instance, leverages Instagram to showcase high-quality, mouth-watering shots of meat products, enhancing brand awareness through creative filters and hashtags. The key is to focus your efforts on platforms where your target audience frequently engages.
2. Enhance customer service
Approximately 67% of customers now seek customer service via social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Delivering exceptional customer service on these platforms fosters loyalty among existing followers and draws in new customers. Muslim brands that actively engage with consumers on social media often see increased spending from those customers, thus bolstering sales.
3. Deliver top-quality content
Providing your audience with relevant and valuable information is essential. Sharing informative posts that resonate with your audience helps foster engagement and cultivate a loyal following. For instance, your halal brand could regularly share updates about new product content on Twitter, or share current events on Instagram, effectively keeping your customers engaged throughout their buying journey.
4. Engage with Muslim influencers
Identify influential Muslim figures within your industry and establish connections with them. Interacting with Muslim influencers on social media enhances your Muslim brand’s credibility. A mention from a respected influencer instills trust in your brand and allows you to tap into their dedicated audience, potentially leading to more conversions and increased sales.
Read: How to Find the Right Influencers for Your Halal Brand
5. Utilize Analytics
Social media analytics provide valuable insights to gauge the effectiveness of your social commerce strategy. It helps you understand which content resonates most with your customers and identifies areas for improvement. Metrics such as likes, shares, and comments on your posts offer insights into customer engagement. Additionally, analyzing customer behavior metrics is crucial for comprehending the customer journey and measuring sales performance.
6. Streamline the checkout process
Ensuring a smooth checkout experience on your social media platform is of paramount importance. Simplifying the purchasing steps encourages customers to complete transactions quickly and return to their newsfeeds. When customers encounter a product they desire, they prefer a hassle-free purchase process. Integrating features like Amazon Pay can eliminate unnecessary steps, providing your Muslim customers with a seamless and efficient checkout process, ultimately boosting sales and encouraging repeat purchases.
Conclusion
It’s imperative for halal businesses and Muslim brands to adapt and thrive in the ever-evolving landscape of marketing. The trends outlined in this blog offer valuable insights and actionable strategies that can significantly impact your halal brand’s success.
As we navigate the remainder of 2023 and enter 2024, staying attuned to these trends and implementing relevant strategies can help Muslim businesses and brands, not only connect with their audience but also thrive in a rapidly changing marketing landscape. By embracing innovation and catering to the unique needs and preferences of Muslim consumers, you can position your halal brand for sustained growth and success.
