An empirical study on the impact of digital marketing strategy to consumer decision making and customer communication in Islamic banking sector  a case study of the UK

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the effects of digital marketing strategy implementation on customer communication and consumer decision making within the Islamic banking industry in the United Kingdom. Earlier theories states that the banking industry's marketing and advertising department requires an effective method to attract a substantial number of customers which is the research problem identified. Hence, it is critical to assess the potential efficacy of marketing strategies that banks can adopt to enhance profitability in this domain. The researcher was motivated to investigate the viability of digital marketing strategies in Islamic institutions operating in the United Kingdom due to the aforementioned factors. However, marketers operating in Islamic institutions have been constrained in their ability to implement digital marketing strategies due to the dearth of research in this particular sector. To ensure an exhaustive dataset for the study, the researcher employed a mixed methodology approach, which facilitated the collection of both qualitative and quantitative data from Islamic institutions in the United Kingdom in particular. The researcher employed a combination of quantitative and qualitative data collection methodological approaches. NVIVO software was employed to analyze a qualitative dataset collected via semi-structured interviews using thematic analysis. In contrast, the researcher employed questionnaires to administer surveys and analyze quantitative data using the IBM SPSS statistical software, adhering to the T-test correlation matrix. The researcher intends to collect the data from respondents affiliated with Islamic banking institutions. Ten marketing executives from financial institutions were invited to participate in the interviews, and an additional 150 clients utilising the services of the Islamic banking sector were surveyed. The findings indicated that the responses exhibited internal consistency, as assessed by Cronbach's alpha. This provides further support for the reliability of the questionnaire utilised in the study. Furthermore, to ascertain the validity of the content, a content validity score and index were formulated based on the input of ten subject matter experts (SMEs). In contrast to the normal distribution of the data, the Mann-Whitney U test was employed to facilitate comparisons. The Mann-Whitney U test exposes deficiencies in the digital marketing strategy's ability to effectively engage with consumers; this is further supported by the Chi-Square results. The findings concluded that digital marketing strategies promoted communication among customers, and improved communication resulted in enhanced engagement, better awareness regarding Islamic laws, and better understanding of the purchasing behaviour of consumers