When the Internet first started to take off, senior business people anguished over how best to leverage this new media. There are many parallels with the present day, which can be seen as the 'pioneering days' of social networking. How are these institutions reacting to the growing influence of social networking?
Early signs are that IFIs are taking to social networking very slowly. There is no mention of social networking on Dubai Islamic Bank's website, for instance, while Sharjah Islamic Bank has both a Facebook and a Twitter link buried away on the 'Contact Us' section of the website. Noor Islamic Bank is feisty enough to have both a Facebook and Twitter link on its homepage but the same is not true of Noor Takaful. KFH on the other hand is more 'with it' than many other banks with Facebook, Twitter and YouTube links on its home page - rivaled only by Meezan Bank with Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.
In terms of 'industry bodies' who would have thought that the Islamic Development Bank would have been so far ahead of the curve with hotlinks to Facebook, Vimeo, YouTube and Flickr on its homepage? The picture that emerges is one of an industry trying to grapple with a new digital communications mechanism and not quite sure what to do about it.
Many IFIs use social networking but the majority seems sufficiently unsure of Facebook's place to include a link on their corporate homepage. This may not be a sign of the stuffiness of the banks since this uncertainty is often reflected in the behavior of the customers who don't know what a company's Facebook page is for as the following post from a customer on a bank's Facebook page shows: "'I am now in the main branch and the staff here is telling me that the toilet is for Staff use Only!!!!! And not for customers use!!!!!!! What the Helllll..."
So what do Islamic banks use their Facebook pages for? Some common uses include posting press releases in conjunction with YouTube TV commercials in what is just an extension of their homepage. ADIB recognizes that the user base of its Facebook page is likely to be younger and uses the site to promote the Darhoom prepaid card for kids as well as an Al Ain Soccer Club credit card.
In contrast Islamic investment banks like Arcapita, GFH, Investment Dar, UIB, and EIIB have left their Facebook pages dormant. Mai al-Jishi, head of corporate communications for Unicorn Investment Bank confirmed to The Islamic Globe: "We're not currently using social networking as part of our marketing efforts although it is something we've looked at and will consider for the future."
Omar Kalair, CEO of UM Financial told The Islamic Globe: "UM Financial Canada has been using Facebook and Twitter to advertise its new products. With the Muslim community having a low median age more youngsters are easy to reach through these social networks. Social networks allow you to quantify your market and allow you to easy dismantle branding and marketing efforts."
Al Hilal Bank imaginatively uses its Facebook page to extend the message of its Ramadan campaign but more worrying is the tendency for third parties to use such websites to spruik their own services, which have nothing to do with the bank.
Are IFIs lagging behind the banking market? Not really although perhaps the Islamic finance industry could learn a thing or two from Citi. Apart from having over 14,000 friends on Facebook the bank's pages link off to pages by their CEO Vikram Pandit. Overall the bank uses its social networking pages to do things that would be an uncomfortable fit on its own site, like showing videos of its CEO's TV appearances. Citi reserves its own bank pages for purely banking related services and functions. In the same league as Citi comes HSBC with a similar number of Facebook friends.
But the big league of financial services social networking belongs to banks like JPMorgan Chase with almost 3m friends for their Chase Community Giving Facebook page. Here the bank is extending the brand well beyond banking and into something else: philanthropy and brand enhancement.
This may be what Moinuddin Malim, CEO of Mashreq Al Islami, suggested he was looking for when he told The Islamic Globe: "We are investigating the business case for a Facebook page and how we can create an effective fan club. While our marketing unit is keen to have a Mashreq Al Islami Facebook page, I am not quite sure if we are ready for this now.
"The key to readiness is in fact knowing what is different that we can offer which no other Islamic entity is offering as part of social services whether it is as simple as a Zakat Calculator, Prayer timings, Shari'ah Q&A, etc. I challenge the premises and the value that we can offer as we don't want to be run of the mill copycat with no distinct proposition."
Social networking amongst IFIs is still in its infancy but is developing fast. The most imaginative marketers are set to score a major victory for their firms.
© The Islamic Globe 2011
