The Growing Muslim-American Market

When it comes to wooing Muslim Americans, U.S. marketers are pretty oblivious, leaving potential customers to scramble for product information on their own. Are Halal meals at Kentucky Fried Chicken Halal enough? How about Oreos? What's new at Forever 21 that is hot and modest? Is that mutual fund compliant with Shariah investment principles?
But while the universe of advertisers reaching out to these estimated 6 to 8 million Americans has remained pretty small, there are signs of new awareness of this growing demographic. National marketers like Ann Taylor, ESPN, Verizon and U.S. Healthcare are popping up on Web sites like hijabtrendz.com or chillyoislamyou.com, as well as in niche publications. And Hallmark sells Eid cards, to help celebrate the holiday marking the end of Ramadan.
"Best Buy even included the phrase 'Happy Eid' in a holiday flyer that also mentioned Christmas and Hanukkah last year," S. Saad Ahmed, director of sales and strategy for the Los Angeles-based Muslim Ad Network, tells Marketing Daily, "which was definitely a kind of olive branch to Muslim Americans."
"Companies like Staples and HSBC are also reaching out to this market, which is worth about $200 billion and any effort to connect with them -- not even with overt Islamic messaging, but just little touches like including people who look like they might be Muslim -- is appreciated.
"When companies target the Muslim community in their marketing communications, we see them flock to engage with that brand -- not only to purchase its products, but to become loyal brand advocates."
But marketing to such a diverse group can be tricky. While many are recent immigrants and of Middle Eastern descent, others are natives of cities like Washington, D.C.; Dearborn, Mich.; Houston; Los Angeles; Columbus, Ohio; and Boston; many are African-Americans. Some are religious and traditional, others are secular.
And a Muslim's decision-making process is often different. Research shows that Muslims are less influenced by price and value when compared to other American consumer groups, and are also keener on brand names. Their shopping behavior is more gender-specific; over one-third of Muslim men say their wives buy their clothes, compared with just 18% of the general population."
Details are important. For a communications company, for example, someone offering calling plans that are specific to Egypt would want to use Egyptian Arabic, but in a more general sense, it might mention Eid -- that holiday means it's time to call back home to Muslims of any nationality…
By Sarah mahoney of Media Post

Muslims American Demographic Facts

8 Million Muslims in North America

• 7 million in the U.S.; 1 million in Canada.
• Larger than Norway, Finland, Denmark, Switzerland & Sweden.
• Annual growth rate of 6% versus 0.9% for total U.S.²
• Interaction between Indigenous and Immigrant Muslims is limited.
• Same size community as Hispanics 25 years ago.

American Muslims are Younger

• 67% of adult American Muslims are under 40 years old
• 67% of the adult American population is over 40 years old³
• American Muslims are younger and future of America:

¹Cornell University   ²Zogby International, August 2000           ³ U.S. Census Data 2000

American Muslims are Well-Educated

• 67% of American Muslims have a Bachelor's degree or higher
• 44% of Americans have a Bachelor’s degree or higher³
• The Variance for Advanced Degrees is even greater.
• One in ten American Muslim HH has a physician / medical doctor

¹Cornell University   ²Zogby International, August 2001     ³ Statistical Abstract of the U.S. 2001

American Muslims are Affluent

• U.S. Average income is $42,158 per year (U.S. Census 2000)
• 66% of American Muslim HH's earn over $50,000 / year
• 26% of American Muslim HH's earn over $100,000 / year
• Annual Household Income range for American Muslims:

Source: Cornell University April 2002

Top 10 Occupations of American Muslims

Source: Cornell University April 2002

Under-Represented Occupations for Muslims

• American Muslims are under-represented in occupations that  make public policy and influence public opinion
• Few American Muslims pursue Print/TV/Film media
• American Muslims are unlikely to be in state legislatures and courts where laws are made and practiced.

Market Analysis of American Muslims

• A sizable market with 8 million people
• 2.3 million households in North America
• Growing at 6% annual growth rate.
• Will double to 16 million by 2014.
• Bigger than Norway, Finland, Denmark or Sweden.
• Growth Factors: birth rates, conversions & immigration.
• A younger, well-educated and affluent target market.
• 25% larger family size than U.S. average.

• Survey design and analysis by Cornell University
• Research sponsored by BridgesTV
• Survey sent to 5,000 random recipients
• Industry average: 3% to 5% response rate
• Cornell University study: 15% response rate
• Is high response rate proxy for high demand for TV
• The study has heavier Immigrant Muslim bias.
• Survey conducted in April 2002

Top Five Cars Owned by American Muslims

• Top U.S. brands: GM, Ford and Daimler-Chrysler
• Top 5 cars owned by American Muslims are:

American Muslims are considering American Cars

• 67% of AM's plan to buy a new car every 3.3 years.
• American Muslims are leaning towards American-made cars

Source: Cornell University April 2002

Subway is the preferred Fast Food Restaurant

• Several write-in's: "we avoid fast food"
• Meat needs to be Halal (Kosher)
• American fast-food owners may be missing out on a key market
• Chains offering non-meat options such as Pizza Hut, Domino's may have done better
• Need for Halal products is high

American Muslims prefer Palmolive for Dishes

• Palmolive and Dawn gained share versus six months ago
• Current share of dish liquid in American Muslim homes:

Source: Cornell University April 2002
Data Provided by Bridges TV- American Muslim Lifestyle Network

Number of Mosques in the United States by State

Demographic Facts

• Mosques in the United States: 1,209
• American Muslims associated with a mosque: 2 million
• Increase in number of mosques since 1994: 25 percent
• Proportion of mosques founded since 1980: 62 percent
• Average number of Muslims associated with each mosque in the United States: 1,625
• U.S. mosque participants who are converts: 30 percent
• American Muslims who "strongly agree" that they should participate in American institutions and the political process: 70 percent
• U.S. mosques attended by a single ethnic group: 7 percent
• U.S. mosques that have some Asian, African-American, and Arab members: nearly 90 percent
• Ethnic origins of regular participants in U.S. mosques:
  South Asian (Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi, Afghani) = 33 percent
  African-America = 30 percent
  Arab = 25 percent
  Sub-Saharan African = 3.4 percent
  European (Bosnian, Tartar, Kosovar, etc.) = 2.1 percent
  White American = 1.6 percent
  Southeast Asian ( Malaysian, Indonesian, Filipino) = 1.3 percent
  Caribbean = 1.2 percent
  Turkish = 1.1 percent
  Iranian = 0.7 percent
  Hispanic/Latino = 0.6 percent
  
• U.S. mosques that feel they strictly follow the Koran and Sunnah: more than 90 percent
• U.S. mosques that feel the Koran should be interpreted with consideration of its purposes and modern circumstances: 71 percent
• U.S. mosques that provide some assistance to the needy: nearly 70 percent
• U.S. mosques with a full-time school: more than 20 percent

(Chart based on information from the Hartford Institute for Religious Research)

U.S. Mosques population by background

(Data from U.S. Department of State, April 2001)  22.4 percent of American Muslims were born in the United States (American Muslim Council, August 2000). · 61.8 percent of all American Muslims are college graduates (American Muslim Council, August 2000). · 58.1 percent of American Muslims are men and 41.9 percent are women (American Muslim Council, August 2000). Data Provided by Bridges TV- American Muslim Lifestyle Network Muslim American Ethnicity

Source: CAIR