The advertising standardisation debate revisited

Abstract

Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to bridge the gap between previous examinations of advertising standardisation and consideration of Islamic ethics in order to develop a better understanding of how Islamic values influence global advertising strategy. Design/methodology/approach-This paper is based on a critical review of the literature. The paper presents a conceptual framework which considers both the environmental influences and Islamic ethics which need to be considered when developing advertising strategy in Middle East Islamic States. Findings-The authors assert the importance of considering Islamic ethics when planning advertising in the Islamic Middle East. In particular six dominant ethical dimensions are provided for marketing scholars and practitioners to observe: Unity (Tawheed); Iman (faith) Khilafah (trusteeship); Balance; Justice or Adl; Free will. Research limitations/implications-The conceptual model presented provides a useful starting point to generate further academic debate and empirical verification. Originality/value-The paper extends our understanding of the influence of Islamic ethics on advertising and contributes to the wider marketing standardisation literature by considering religion as a key driver in the debate.

Islamic marketing: A literature review and research agenda

“…International marketing strategies and practices from an Islamic perspective are discussed by many researchers (Fraedrich et al., 2018; Halkias, 2013; Izberk‐Bilgin & Nakata, 2016; Kabiraj et al., 2014; Kizgin, 2016; Saeed et al., 2001; Turnbull et al., 2016). Among them, Saeed et al.…”

“…Turnbull et al. (2016) also focused on Islamic ethics to develop advertising strategies in an international arena, they suggested that marketers need to consider unity, faith, trusteeship, balance, justice and free‐will to make decisions. The five lessons: ‘embrace holistic meaning of halal’, ‘know halal rules and rulers’, ‘engage in dialogue with halal policy makers’, ‘navigate consumer backlash creativity’ and ‘build an integrated halal approach’ from the research of (Izberk‐Bilgin & Nakata, 2016) can be helpful in implementing IM strategies.…”

“…The majority of IM researchers have focused on advertising (Ariffin et al., 2016; Behboudi et al., 2014; Cader, 2015; Isa et al., 2017; Mansour & Diab, 2016; Shafiq et al., 2017; Turnbull et al., 2016). Yousaf (2014) emphasized the ethical aspect of marketing communications in addition to focusing on the importance of Islamic symbols and cues used in marketing communications.…”

“…Marketers also use halal certification in marketing communications to elicit positive emotions (Rajagopal et al., 2011); however, it should be remembered that marketers should not exploit the religious emotions of people without considerable adherence to Islamic law. In addition to Yousaf (2014), other researchers discuss about ethical perspectives of marketing communications (Hamid et al., 2014; Haque et al., 2017; Kabiraj et al., 2014; Saeed et al., 2001; Saleh & Salsabila, 2018; Turnbull et al., 2016), their discussions were confined to only advertising. Islamic advertising must be ethical, credible, non‐deceptive, simple and humane (Shafiq et al., 2017) as religiosity influences the impact of Islamic advertising (Ariffin et al., 2016; Casidy & Almossawi, 2014).…”

“…(2018) identified that eight moral factors of ethical conducts were common to all of those major six religions: assurance, fairness/honesty, charity/compassion, environment, tolerance, character/integrity, sacrifice and seriousness. The discussions of IM ethics covers almost all areas of marketing; from marketing mix, marketing communications, branding, consumer behaviour, retailing to international marketing (Abbas et al., 2019; Al‐Nashmi & Almamary, 2017; Arham, 2010; Aziz, 2018; Karami et al., 2014; Saeed et al., 2001; Souiden et al., 2018; Turnbull et al., 2016; Uysal & Okumuş, 2019; Yousaf, 2014).…”