Islamic

Islamic branding: A conceptualization of related terms

Received (in revised form): 12 th May 2010

Baker Ahmad Alserhan

(PhD, MCIM, MMII) is an active researcher in the field of marketing and strategy and contributed many articles to international journals. His research interests include Islamic Marketing (Islamic Branding, Islamic Services and Islamic Hospitality) and International Marketing. He currently serves as an assistant professor of Marketing at the United Arab Emirates University.

ABSTRACT This article investigates the promising, new subject matter of Islamic branding, which is yet to receive the academic attention it deserves. It provides a better understanding of Islamic branding, through conceptualizing the terms relevant to the brand-Islamization efforts of non-Muslim brands, by identifying the necessary ‘ branding to Muslims ’ practices. It differentiates between Islamic products and Islamic brands, identifies and explains the various types of Islamic branding and links them to the Islamization of originally non-Muslim brands, that is, international brands, and it discusses various halal-related issues that an Islamizing firm needs to adhere to in order to improve its chances of success in the Islamic market. Existing information sources at both academic and business levels reveal that knowledge remains scarce in this fi eld. Therefore, the identification and conceptualization of the various Islamic branding terms offers ample opportunities for researchers to investigate. Researchers investigating the concept and practice of Islamic branding currently are drawing the inaugural road map for future research, and thus determining its long-term direction.

Journal of Brand Management (2010) 18, 34 – 49. doi: 10.1057/bm.2010.18

Keywords: Islamic branding; Islamic products; Islamic brands; halal; brand Islamization

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