A Critical Analysis of Halal Marketing in Malaysia’s Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) Industry

Authors

  • Shamsiah Yaakob INHART, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)
  • Betania Kartika INHART, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)
  • Mohammad Aizat Jamaludin INHART, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)
  • Mohamad Afiq Razali INHART, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)
  • Firdaus Fanny Putera Perdana INHART, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.36877/jhis.a0000119

Abstract

The concept of Halalan Toyyiban is very important in Muslims’ lives in their servitude to Allah. The business itself is broken down into many different kinds, one of those which has become nowadays the trend is Multi-Level Marketing (MLM). MLM business is a business model that involves selling and recruitment of new distributors inside the company. Multi-Level Marketing is seen to be good as it helps many people to achieve their dreams, but ,on the contrary, it is observed as a medium of cheating. With its players reaching 2 million in Malaysia since its establishment in the early 1990s, MLM’s presence in the business industry should not be taken lightly. This research attempts to analyse the current MLM system and its factors that can be categorized as Halalan Toyyiban, as well as the factors which lead to the destruction. This factor includes the system itself, manufacturing, the distribution channels, the after-sales service, and the long-run vision of the company. By doing this, it is aimed that the doubtful (Syubhah) or even the impermissible (Haram) practice of MLM can be eliminated and abstained by the Muslim players, and it is expected that better MLM companies can be established, using proper S.O.P and guidelines. The purposes of the research are gained through a qualitative approach from the library and interviews.

 

Keywords: Multi-Level Marketing, Halalan Toyyiban, Halal Industry, Syubhah, Haram practice, Opportunity, Ethic

References

Abdul Cader, A. (2015). Islamic challenges to advertising: a Saudi Arabian perspective. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 6(2), 166-187.

Abdullah, K., & Ahmad, M. I. (2010). Compliance to Islamic marketing practices among businesses in Malaysia. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 1(3), 286-297.

Abuznaid, S. A. (2020). Islamic Marketing and Muslim Consumers’ Behavior, Asian Journal of Social Science Studies, Vol. 5(1), 10-19.

Ahmed, M. U., Kristal, M. M., & Pagell, M. (2014). Impact of operational and marketing capabilities on firm performance: Evidence from economic growth and downturns. International Journal of Production Economics, 154, 59-71.

Albaum, G., & Peterson, R. A. (2011). Multilevel (network) marketing: An objective view. The Marketing Review, 11(4), 347-361.

Alserhan, B. A. (2015). The Principles of Islamic Marketing. Gower Publishing Limited, England.

Antara, P. M., Musa, R., & Hassan, F. (2016). Bridging Islamic financial literacy and halal literacy: the way forward in halal ecosystem. Procedia Economics and Finance, 37, 196-202.

Arham, M. (2010). Islamic perspectives on marketing. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 1(2), 149-164.

Aziz, Y. A., & Chok, N. V. (2013). The role of Halal awareness, Halal certification, and marketing components in determining Halal purchase intention among non-Muslims in Malaysia: A structural equation modeling approach. Journal of International Food & Agribusiness Marketing, 25(1), 1-23.

Bloch, B. (1996). Multilevel marketing: What’s the catch. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 13(4), 18-26.

Bohari, A. M., Hin, C. W., & Fuad, N. (2017). The competitiveness of halal food industry in Malaysia: A SWOT-ICT analysis. Geografia-Malaysian Journal of Society and Space, 9(1).

Constantin, C. (2009). Multi-level marketing-a tool of relationship marketing. Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Brasov. Economic Sciences. Series V, 2, 31.

Constantinides, E. (2002). The 4S web-marketing mix model. Electronic commerce research and applications, 1(1), 57-76.

Daduya, M. A., Domingo, J. L., Redondo, P. V., & Supnet, R. K (2016). Binary Compensation Plan of Existing Multilevel Network Marketing Organizations. Retrieved on 10 May 2020. https://www.academia.edu/26248205/Binary_Compensation_Plan_of_Existing_Multilevel_Network_Marketing_Organizations

Day, G. S., & Wensley, R. (1983). Marketing theory with a strategic orientation. Journal of marketing, 47(4), 79-89.

Ella, V. G. (1973). Multi-level or Pyramid Sales Systems: Fraud or Free Enterprise. SDL Rev., 18, 358.

Gaski, J. F. (1986). Interrelations among a channel entity's power sources: Impact of the exercise of reward and coercion on expert, referent, and legitimate power sources. Journal of marketing Research, 23(1), 62-77.

Goi, C. L. (2009). A review of marketing mix: 4Ps or More. International journal of marketing studies, 1(1), 2.

Goldsmith, R. E. (2004). Current and future trends in marketing and their implications for the discipline. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 12(4), 10-17.

Leader, M. E. (2004). Momentum and serendipity: How acquired leaders create value in the integration of technology firms. Strategic Management Journal, 25(8‐9), 751-777.

Islam, T., & Chandrasekaran, U. (2013). Halal marketing: Growing the pie. International Journal of Management Research and Reviews, 3(12), 3938.

JAKIM (2013). “Garis Panduan Perniagaan Jualan Langsung Secara Pemasaran Berbilang Tingkat (Multi-Level Marketing) Mengikut Shariah”. Retrieved on 10 May 2020. http://www.islam.gov.my/images/garis-panduan/garis_panduan_mlm.pdf

Izberk-Bilgin, E., & Nakata, C. C. (2016). A new look at faith-based marketing: The global halal market. Business horizons, 59(3), 285-292.

Kiaw, C. O. S. & Run, E. C. D. (2007). Why Malaysians Join and Stay on in a Multi-Level Marketing Company. ICFAI Journal of Services Marketing, 5(4). 37-52.

Kornai, J. (2000). What the change of system from socialism to capitalism does and does not mean. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 14(1), 27-42.

Purnama, F. A., & Safira, A. (2017). Investigating Islamic advertising ethics: Perceptions of Indonesian Muslims. Journal of Emerging Economies & Islamic Research, 5(2).

R. Massey, G., S. Waller, D., Z. Wang, P., & V. Lanasier, E. (2013). Marketing to different Asian communities: The importance of culture for framing advertising messages, and for purchase intent. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 25(1), 8-33.

Rahman, S. S. A., Shamsudin, S. M., & Nadzri, S. (2016) Promoting Employee Motivation Using Self-Control Concept From Islamic Perspectives. In Proceeding of the 2nd International Conference on Economics and Banking 2016, pp. 356-361.

Saeed, M., & Baig, A. K. (2013). Islamic Shari’ah-compliant marketing. International Journal of Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation 2, 2(2), 166-178.

Saeed, M., Ahmed, Z. U., & Mukhtar, S. M. (2001). International marketing ethics from an Islamic perspective: a value-maximization approach. Journal of Business Ethics, 32(2), 127-142.

Shamsudin, S. M., & Rahman, S. S. A. (2014). The differences between Islamic marketing and conventional marketing: A review of the literature. In Proceeding of the 1st international conference on management and muamalah 2014 (1st ICoMM), 298-307.

Shaw, Michael J., Chandrasekar Subramaniam, Gek Woo Tan, and Michael E. Welge. (2001). Knowledge management and data mining for marketing. Decision support systems, 1(31): 127-137.

Shyam Sundar (2017). https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-revenue-model-of-multi-level-marketing-or-network-marketing-companies-how-are-they-making-profits-and-how-could-they-give-such-huge-returns-to-the-investors-for-such-a-long-time

Sparks, J. R., & Schenk, J. A. (2001). Explaining the effects of transformational leadership: an investigation of the effects of higher‐order motives in multilevel marketing organizations. Journal of Organizational Behavior: The International Journal of Industrial, Occupational and Organizational Psychology and Behavior, 22(8), 849-869.

Tameme, M., & Asutay, M. (2012). An empirical inquiry into marketing Islamic mortgages in the UK. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 30(3), 150-167.

Tapp, A., & Spotswood, F. (2013). From the 4Ps to COM-SM: reconfiguring the social marketing mix. Journal of Social Marketing, 3(3), 206-222.

Varey, R. J., & Lewis, B. R. (Eds.). (2000). Internal marketing: directions for management. Psychology Press.

Vassileva, B. (2017). Marketing 4.0: How technologies transform marketing organization. Obuda University e-Bulletin, 7(1), 47.

Downloads

Published

2020-09-22

How to Cite

Yaakob, S., Kartika, B., Jamaludin, M. A., Razali, M. A., & Perdana, F. F. P. (2020). A Critical Analysis of Halal Marketing in Malaysia’s Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) Industry. Journal of Halal Industry & Services, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.36877/jhis.a0000119

Issue

Section

ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLES
Abstract viewed = 1285 times
PDF downloaded = 1399 times