Ramadan brings up an opportunity to build cultural relevance for brands every year. Over the course of the month, cultural rituals create opportunities for brands to either participate, engage or facilitate connections across families and friends and at times the rituals such as the iftar feast. It is a period when most brands do come up with special campaigns to nudge their chances of being part of the Ramadan purchases.
This year’s Ramadan however, appears to be so different because of the ongoing corona pandemic, which has put a stop to people’s freedom of venturing outdoors. With the world taking a pause, Ramadan in 2021 is going to be a different one all over the world. This means no communal gatherings in mosques for prayers, no event at local mosques, no large “Iftar” dinners with family and friends at sunset to break the day’s fast, and sadly, restrictions on celebrating Eid, the biggest social holiday for Muslims signaling the end of Ramadan.
How Businesses Can Maximize Sales During Ramadan
Given the current restrictions in place across many countries, one thing for sure is that the online purchasing activity will be and continue to be at a life-time high.
This is because, although most people would prefer going to physical shops to buy presents and clothes for Eid, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, people are more likely to shift and find more convenient ways to make purchases like to buy online, order in instead of eating out etc. Businesses need to seize this opportunity and be ready for it otherwise they will have no one to blame but themselves for not jumping and taking the chance of shifting online.
Marketing and Advertising Tips For businesses During Ramadan 2021
- Make Your Ads Focus on the Spirit of Ramadan
Ramadan is about spirituality and family. Although shopping is at an all-year high for Muslims in Ramadan, this behavior stems from spending memorable times with the family. It is not driven by price discounts so do not just focus your campaign only on sales but on the meaning of Ramadan if you want to catch the eye of Muslims online.
You can use our bulk SMS solutions to send out SMS greetings, promotional offers, Ramadan updates and more. By using Beem for SMS campaigns, your business can send or schedule messages to be sent to customers at the right time with the right offer that will put a smile on the customer and encourage the customer to engage by either clicking on a link to get more information about the offer or buying that particular product on discount.
- Advertise to Your Customer Base
You can make your life easier by targeting your customer base. If you have run Ramadan promotions before, you can choose to target those customers in a separate campaign.
A side note on this tip is that you will get better results if you engage this audience throughout the year, before and after Ramadan. Showing up only during Ramadan is not as impactful as being top of mind throughout the year.
- Target Mobile Devices More
As we have already mentioned, during Ramadan people spend more time online on their phones. For this year with the COVID-19 pandemic, it is to be expected that mobile device usage will surge even more as people spend more time indoors. So make sure you target mobile devices and make sure your website and social media pages are responsive and active.
Customers switching to online shopping and ordering means businesses have to switch too in order to cater to their needs. For example, the consumer goods sector (FMCG) whose sales tend to shoot up during these seasons, can leverage Mobile Payment solutions to collect payments from customers with ease.
With Beem Live’s payments solutions the consumer goods sector can simplify the purchase and payment process from cash-based payments to mobile payment collections and make transactions safer and easier for distributors, retailers, buyers and dealers.
- Use Ramadan as a Springboard for Long-Lasting Customer Relationship
Ramadan is such a special time for Muslims. It is a psychological truth that relationships that are built during a positive experience flourish. So why not build campaigns that connect you with your audience on a more personal level and keep that relationship going throughout the year?
These campaigns should focus on adding value and building customer loyalty. One way for businesses to do this is through offering Mobile Airtime to its customer base. Mobile airtime are incentives that can be sent to customers in the form of top ups, rewards or micro-payments.
- If You Can’t Sell Create Brand Awareness
If you are a brand or company that has its selling capabilities limited by the COVID-19 pandemic, you can still take advantage of Ramadan’s rush and create brand awareness campaigns. This will help you create lists for re-targeting as soon as the outbreak dies down.
Reach Out To Your Customers This Ramadan Using Beem
Your business can leverage our Bee cloud communication services and maximize the effectiveness of your marketing campaign targeting Muslim consumers.
To get started marketing your business this Ramadan season through our messaging and financial services, contact our Sales team Here: beem.africa/contact
