Date: 6 February 2013
Marketing to Muslim tourists.
In cold, wintry London, Ahmed and his wife have recently returned
from their honeymoon in the Maldives. In their late twenties, this British
Muslim couple had dreamed about an archetypal paradise island escape, but they
were also looking for some extras: halal food, and a place that would be
accommodating of their Muslim sensibilities.
“We didn’t want the headache of worrying about what to eat
and looking for halal restaurants”, says Ahmed. He also wanted to ensure that
his wife could enjoy swimming while observing her modest dress.
“This was a place where private pools are available with the
rooms.” And, he adds, referring to the all over swimsuit that Muslim women are
rapidly adopting around the world: “Even if she did want to swim in public, she
wouldn’t have got stared at in her burqini.”
Ahmed and his wife are part of a growing global trend of
Muslim travellers seeking out destinations and services that fit with their
Islamic aspirations. It’s part of the upsurge of the Muslim consumer market,
worth an estimated $2.1tn. Over 90 per cent of Muslims say their faith affects
their consumption.
In 2011, Muslims spent an estimated $126bn on travel and
tourism, an amount predicted to rise to $192bn by 2020 – and that is without
counting the religious pilgrimages of hajj and umrah. This expenditure
accounted for more than 12 per cent of total global outbound tourism
expenditure in 2011, according to the World Tourism Organisation.
Global revenue from Muslim tourists is expected to rise 4.8
per cent a year over the next eight years, compared with a global average of
3.8 per cent.
Both Muslim majority and Muslim minority countries are
exploring what kind of brand positioning they want to establish to attract this
growing business. As yet, there are no clear leaders, so it’s a space that is
wide open for destination and service branding.
Some Muslim travellers’ aspirations are relatively
straightforward. Most commonly asked for is easy-to-access and plentiful halal
food. Mosques and other places to pray are also important. Hotels that offer
facilities segregated by gender such as spas, pools and even access to beaches
are well received.
Muslim travelers are looking for the “halal” label on
hotels, restaurants and even airlines when they travel. Fifty per cent of
Muslim travellers would use halal-friendly facilities if they existed and 30
per cent would seek strict Sharia-compliant services.
For some Muslim travellers, hotels that do not serve alcohol
are also important. Qatar’s Retaj Marketing & Project Management will
invest $500m in Turkey to build Islamic Shariah-compliant hotels. Also
important are small touches like in-room indicators of the direction of prayer,
Qurans and prayer mats, and bathroom hygiene facilities.
Some Muslim travellers are looking to connect with Muslim
populations in other countries to learn more about the ‘ummah’, the global
Muslim nation and its heritage and, for some, visiting sites from Muslim
history is important.
Tour operators in Japan are finding a seam of Muslim
visitors from nearby Malaysia willing to pay above average prices in the
knowledge that their Muslim requirements will be safeguarded. Japan is turning
to Asian Muslims from Indonesia and Malaysia to make up for a fall in Chinese
visitors.
In Australia, Queensland tourism is positioning itself as
Muslim-friendly in a bid to attract a growing number of Muslim tourists from
nearby Indonesia. The state of Victoria has launched a major tourism campaign
in the Middle East, including Arabic/English visitor guides.
Not to be outdone, New Zealand businesses are being offered
workshops on reaching out to the halal tourism industry.
Countries with minority Muslim populations are starting to
see them as assets when it comes to attracting Muslim tourists, either through
food availability or as an incentive to visit the extended ‘ummah’.
China’s Muslim Ningxia province is being positioned in this
way, vying for Muslim tourists especially from the Middle East and southeast
Asia. Taiwan’s Tourism Bureau hopes to increase its number of halal certified
eateries to attract more visitors from Muslim nations.
Thailand, too, is developing its halal eating capabilities
and reaching out to the nearby Indonesian market, and promoting the fact that
“a few thousand spas already have their unique herbal treatments in halal
form.”
With Ramadan now falling during the hotter summer months for
Muslims in the northern hemisphere, at least one Thai hotel chain is offering
Ramadan hotel packages: inclusive meals are served after dark and right through
the night rather than in the day time.
In Europe, the European Commission has called for greater
promotion of inward Muslim tourism, thinking specifically about Islamic
historical sites as a draw for travellers. Monaco is seeking to woo Saudi
tourists. A Bosnian halal authority feels that its cultural heritage as well as
its location could make it a major halal tourist destination. Albania is
intensifying its efforts to boost tourism and economic co-operation with Saudi
Arabia. And World Halal Development is training the European hospitality
industry on halal practices.
Of course, Muslim nations like Turkey, Malaysia and Egypt
are proving to be among the fastest in tapping into this segment. And they also
offer good insights into some of the tentative brand positionings being laid
out.
Turkey’s efforts are often described as halal holidays. The
phrase sharia tourism is bandied about for Indonesia. Indonesia’s ministry of
tourism has recently spoken about its strategy of reaching out to Muslim
travellers through an Islamic experience.
Egypt has been treading cautiously on using words like
halal, sharia or Islamic due to the importance of tourism to their economy from
a range of countries around the world, as well as the sensitive domestic
political situation. Authorities seem to have settled on calling their efforts
‘family tourism’, which is enough to hint to Muslim travellers about the kind
of facilities they can expect.
These nations are all offering their services as part of
Muslim-friendly tourism. But there is a specific trend drawing on the pride
among Muslims as Muslims: the growth of the Islamic travel experience.
The small nation state of Brunei has launched the Brunei
Islamic experience, in efforts to establish the country as an Islamic
destination for Muslims around the world. It’s part of a wider effort that
includes establishing the Brunei Halal brand, which again is being positioned
as a service to the wider Muslim ummah.
Malaysia is marketing a Malaysia Islamic experience. For
example, it recently promoted religious tourism packages around an international
Quran festival to attract tourists from Asean countries.
In Saudi Arabia pilgrimage visas were once extremely
restrictive in duration as well as location – being available only for Mecca
and Medina. These are being increasingly lengthened to offer pilgrims the
chance for some tourism. And Saudi Arabia’s inherent conservatism is marketed
as an asset for families in particular. Saudi Arabia wants to build its tourism
business by promoting the Kingdom as the land of Islam and a cultural hub.
The Muslim travel segment is undoubtedly extremely
attractive for countries and service providers. But they need to think
carefully about how they brand themselves to appeal to Muslim sensibilities.
And these branding claims need to be meticulously and substantively supported
by the services and experiences available once the tourists arrive. From luxury
to roughing it, historical sites to mosques to spas, the branding opportunities
are vast. And at $126bn, the rewards are vast, too.
By Shelina Janmohamed
Copyright @ 2011-2012 MuslimVillage Incorporated
