The Influence of Halal Marketing Strategies on Intention to Purchase Halal Product: A Comparative Study between Malaysia and Thailand (original) (raw)

2020, Universiti Utara Malaysia

Halal industry is a huge business. Its significantly contribute to social and economic development of one country. Halal is no longer perceived as important to fulfill Muslims' need but globally accepted due to halal conception itself-'clean' and 'wholesomeness'. According to Islam practices, halal comes with 'toyyiban' concept which mean 'good'. Hence, halal products relevant for all of the humankind consumption; Muslim and non-Muslim consumers. In order to effectively formulate their marketing strategies in highly competitive market, marketers need to understand why consumer prefer halal products. Thus, this study attempts to understand on how predetermined factors (marketing strategies, personal and interpersonal factors) influence consumer's purchase intention of halal packaged food products. The population of this study comprised of consumers from states in northern Malaysia and southern part of Thailand. The study among 760 consumers revealed that predictors for intention to purchase is country-specific. For Muslim-dominant country such as Malaysia, halal ingredients, halal accessibility, halal awareness and religiosity commitment found significantly affect purchase intention of halal packaged food products. While, for non-Muslim-dominant (minority) such as Thailand, halal logo, halal ingredients, halal perceived value, halal accessibility, halal availability, WOM influence and halal awareness were significant. Based on the findings, for Malaysian market, personal factors was identified as more influential in stimulating halal purchase intention, whereby both marketing strategies and personal factors were relevant for Thailand consumers. Theoretical and managerial implication as well as future direction of the study is discussed at the end of the article.