Kit-Kat maker Nestlé has been named the best marketer for Muslim consumers.
The world’s largest food manufacturer had been faster than its rivals to identify Muslim shoppers as a key demographic, according to advertising giant Ogilvy & Mather.
Muslims represented 50% of the potential audience of the “next 11” emerging economies, said Ogilvy chief executive Miles Young, adding that other brand owners should more seriously consider how they are perceived by Muslim consumers.
“Nestlé is probably the role model for doing this properly,” Young told the World Advertising Research Centre at the Oxford Global Islamic Branding & Marketing Forum.
“It has done it out of conviction. There’s a commitment in everything the company does from product design through to communications.”
Nestlé recorded £3.3bn in global sales of halal food in 2008 and had “a strong presence in several nations where the majority of the population is Muslim,” reported Warc.
Ogilvy recently launched an index ranking of the appeal of global brands to Muslims consumers according to their compliance with Shariah law.
Unilever’s Lipton tea brand ranked first, with Nestlé and its Nescafé coffee brand in second and third place respectively.
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