Ramadan is the kindest moment on Meta technologies, Opportunities for Businesses to Connect with Consumers

Meta has revealed its “Meta Ramadan Moment Study” results, conducted in partnership with YouGov, to help businesses create connections that matter most to them and explore opportunities to connect with consumers during Ramadan.

The study provided guidance and suggested some recommended steps for businesses to reach out to their customers on various Meta platforms. 

“Ramadan is one of the key cultural moments in Malaysia, and it is the kindest moment on Meta technologies. We saw Malaysians connecting with each other and sharing kindness on our platform, with 7.8M interactions on the term kindness.

We believe that this presents various opportunities, especially for businesses to find new ways to reach out to consumers and engage with them, which will ultimately have an impact on the communities,” said Nicole Tan, country director Meta in Malaysia. 

The survey found that on Instagram, there were 13.4 million interactions mentioning togetherness, connection, and community during the holy month. In fact, 92% of Ramadan observers in Malaysia like to see content that promotes community and kindness.

People use Meta technologies during Ramadan to connect with brands and with each other, and 66% shoppers in Malaysia said they watched online videos on Meta technologies to garner information and form connections during Ramadan last year. 

The “Meta Ramadan Moment Study” highlighted four key insights to help brands foster connections online, to reach out and resonate with audiences, especially during one of the most important months of the year for the Muslim community as they prepare for Eid.

Moment of Togetherness 

The study found that 92% of Ramadan observers in Malaysia like to see content that promotes community and togetherness on Facebook and Instagram.

Creator content resonates well during Ramadan, especially inspirational content with a community focus.

A total of 83% respondents said they follow online creators and on average, consumers follow at least four different types of creators who inspire real action such as trying new recipes or making healthier nutritional food being the most popular actions. 

Interestingly, the survey found that the influence of Creators in discovery on social media has grown over the past three Ramadan seasons.

Creators are at the forefront of a movement that allows more individuals to make an impact with their content and they come to Instagram and Facebook to tell their stories and connect with communities. 

Moment for Brand-Storytelling 

The second key trend revealed in the survey is a moment of media consumption change which provides an opportunity for brands to connect through brand storytelling.

The survey found that 70% of shoppers in Malaysia spent more time watching videos online during Ramadan and Eid, with 45% spend more time on long videos (more than 3 min), 48% spend more time on Short Videos (less than 3min), and 20% spend more time on videos created by influencer versus non-Ramadan period. 

Personalised Connection to Drive Commerce 

The third key trend revealed in the survey is a moment for personalized connection to drive commerce. The survey found that during Ramadan, 2 in 3 shoppers enjoyed personalised shopping experiences through Meta platforms.

This means Malaysian shoppers are increasingly exploring different product categories, but a personalized and frictionless consumer journey will help to drive sales. 

Discovery is hugely important as Ramadan is a key commerce moment.

Given the economic climate in 2023, more than 4 in 5 respondents believe that planning ahead financially this Ramadan and Eid season will be more important than ever; and this is hugely important in the current context. 

56% of those surveyed said they started planning at least 10 days before Ramadan in 2022 and continue on to shop after. It is therefore crucial for businesses to leverage this behaviour in rethinking their campaign period.

For example, by starting earlier and ending later. Food (70%) and Apparel (65%) remain the most popular shopping categories during Ramadan, travel purchases were the only category that increased year on year (11% in 2022 vs 4% in 2021). 

Strengthen connection through Business Messaging and Cross Border

Finally, the fourth key trend found in the survey is the importance of strengthening connection through business messaging. Some 59% respondents said they felt more connected to a business or brand through instant messaging.

Three out of 4 surveyed said they used any instant messaging services and 7 in 10 have used Meta instant messaging services. 

“Business messaging continues to be one of the primary ways people and businesses communicate.

Instead of waiting to call a business during store hours, or scanning the website for answers to their questions, people are increasingly messaging businesses while browsing and shopping.

This means more opportunities for businesses to connect, build trust and confidence among potential customers,” said Nicole. 

The “Meta Ramadan Moment Study” by YouGov was commissioned by Meta to conduct an online study of 13,232 people aged 18+ across nine countries including Malaysia. The analysis was based on respondents who shop and observe Ramadan.