Digital Marketing Communication Strategy in Facing Umrah Travel Business Competition in Makassar City
JEL Classification: M31, L83, Z32, D83, L86, M37
Abstract
This study discusses the digital marketing communication strategy implemented by PT. Wisata Iman in facing the competition of Umrah travel business in Makassar City. Amid the increasing use of social media and changes in the behavior of prospective Umrah pilgrims, the company utilizes digital platforms—especially Instagram—to expand the reach of promotions, build trust, and increase interaction with prospective customers. Through a descriptive qualitative approach, data was obtained from in-depth interviews with internal parties and customers of PT. Wisata Iman. The results of the study indicate that a communication strategy based on educational, inspirational, and testimonial content through Instagram can increase the trust and interest of prospective pilgrims. However, the company also faces challenges such as limited advertising budget, tight competition, and limited resources in digital content management. Therefore, an integrated strategy with the use of SEO, email marketing, and collaboration with influencers is the key to increasing the effectiveness of digital promotions and expanding the market. This study contributes to understanding the strategic role of digital marketing communication in the religious travel industry.
References
Ahad, A. D., & Anshari, M. (2017). Digital Transformation and Its Impact on Human Resource Management: A Case of Brunei. Asian Social Science, 13(9), 124–130. https://doi.org/10.5539/ass.v13n9p124
Alalwan, A. A. (2018). Investigating the impact of social media advertising features on customer purchase intention. International Journal of Information Management, 42, 65–77. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2018.06.001
Altamira, M. B., Putri, K. D. A. P., & Samudra, R. M. R. T. (2023, February). The Role of Creative Content in Digital Marketing Strategies in Educational Institution Social Media (Case Study: Instagram of Vocational Education Program, Universitas Indonesia). In Proceedings (Vol. 83, No. 1, p. 62). MDPI. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2022083062
Ashley, C., & Tuten, T. (2015). Creative strategies in social media marketing: An exploratory study of branded social content and consumer engagement. Psychology & Marketing, 32(1), 15–27. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20761
Atikah, S., Tan, A. L., Trupp, A., Chong, D. K. L., Arni, A. G., & Malar, V. (2022). The emergence of a new religious travel segment: Umrah do it yourself travellers (DIY). GeoJournal of Tourism and Geosites, 40(1), 37-48. http://dx.doi.org/10.30892/gtg.40104-800
Azam, M. S. E., Muflih, B. K., & Al Haq, M. A. (2024). Intersection Between Modern Technologies and Halal Tourism: Exploring the Role of Digital Innovation in Enhancing Muslim Travellers’ Experience. The Journal of Muamalat and Islamic Finance Research, 16-31. http://dx.doi.org/10.33102/jmifr.546
Chaffey, D., & Ellis-Chadwick, F. (2019). Digital Marketing (7th ed.). Pearson Education.
Cheung, C. M. K., & Thadani, D. R. (2012). The impact of electronic word-of-mouth communication: A literature analysis and integrative model. Decision Support Systems, 54(1), 461–470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dss.2012.06.008
Christodoulides, G., Jevons, C., & Bonhomme, J. (2012). Memo to marketers: Quantitative evidence for change: How user-generated content really affects brands. Journal of Advertising Research, 52(1), 53–64. https://doi.org/10.2501/JAR-52-1-053-064
Collins-Kreiner, N. (2010). The geography of pilgrimage and tourism: Transformations and implications for applied geography. Applied Geography, 30(1), 153–164. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2009.02.001
De Vries, L., Gensler, S., & Leeflang, P. S. (2012). Popularity of brand posts on brand fan pages: An investigation of the effects of social media marketing. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 26(2), 83–91. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intmar.2012.01.003
Filieri, R. (2015). What makes online reviews helpful? A diagnosticity-adoption framework to explain informational and normative influences in e-WOM. Journal of Business Research, 68(6), 1261–1270. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2014.11.006
Fishkin, R., & Høgenhaven, T. (2013). Inbound Marketing and SEO: Insights from the Moz Blog. Wiley.
Freberg, K., Graham, K., McGaughey, K., & Freberg, L. A. (2011). Who are the social media influencers? A study of public perceptions of personality. Public Relations Review, 37(1), 90–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2010.11.001
Gummerus, J., von Koskull, C., & Kowalkowski, C. (2011). Guest editorial: Relationship marketing – past, present and future. Journal of Services Marketing, 26(2), 85–89. https://doi.org/10.1108/08876041211223952
Hanafiah, M. H., Hasan, M. R., & Mat Som, A. P. (2022). Managing modern Muslim travellers: Emerging trends and issues for Islamic tourism destinations. Tourism and Hospitality, 3(4), 908-918. https://doi.org/10.3390/tourhosp3040058
Hanssens, D. M., Leeflang, P. S., & Wittink, D. R. (2005). Market response models and marketing practice. Applied stochastic models in business and industry, 21(4‐5), 423-434.
Harun, A., Ahmad, N., Farradia, Y., & Hussein, Z. (2024). Analysing Umrah Attributes in Relation to Tourist Travel Behaviour: A Systematic Literature Review of Religious Destinations and Future Perspectives. Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization, 14(2), 72-105. https://doi.org/10.32350/jitc.142.06
Hendrawan, S. A., Chatra, A., Iman, N., Hidayatullah, S., & Suprayitno, D. (2024). Digital transformation in MSMEs: Challenges and opportunities in technology management. Jurnal Informasi dan Teknologi, 141-149. http://dx.doi.org/10.60083/jidt.v6i2.551
Hudson, S., & Thal, K. (2013). The impact of social media on the consumer decision process: Implications for tourism marketing. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 30(1–2), 156–160. https://doi.org/10.1080/10548408.2013.751276
Infante, A., & Mardikaningsih, R. (2022). The Potential of social media as a Means of Online Business Promotion. Journal of Social Science Studies, 2(2), 45-48. http://dx.doi.org/10.56348/jos3.v2i2.26
Järvinen, J., & Taiminen, H. (2016). Harnessing marketing automation for B2B content marketing. Industrial Marketing Management, 54, 164–175. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2015.07.002
Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of social media. Business Horizons, 53(1), 59–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2009.09.003
Khanom, M. T. (2023). Using social media marketing in the digital era: A necessity or a choice. International Journal of Research in Business and Social Science, 12(3), 88-98. http://dx.doi.org/10.20525/ijrbs.v12i3.2507
Kotler, P., & Keller, K. L. (2016). Marketing management (15th ed.). Pearson Education.
Kotler, P., & Lane Keller, K. (2016). A framework for marketing management.
Kozinets, R. V., de Valck, K., Wojnicki, A. C., & Wilner, S. J. S. (2010). Networked narratives: Understanding word-of-mouth marketing in online communities. Journal of Marketing, 74(2), 71–89. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.74.2.71
Kumar, V., Aksoy, L., Donkers, B., Venkatesan, R., Wiesel, T., & Tillmanns, S. (2016). Undervalued or overvalued customers: Capturing total customer engagement value. Journal of Service Research, 13(3), 297–310. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094670510375602
Lu, W., & Stepchenkova, S. (2015). User-generated content as a research mode in tourism and hospitality applications: Topics, methods, and software. Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, 24(2), 119–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/19368623.2014.907758
Moleong, L.J. 2018. Metodologi Penelitian Kualitatif PT.Remaja Rosdakarya
Morgan, R. M., & Hunt, S. D. (1994). The Commitment-Trust Theory of Relationship Marketing. Journal of Marketing, 58(3), 20-38. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1252308
Munikrishnan, U. T., & Mamun, A. A. (2021). Survival and competitiveness of traditional travel agencies in Malaysia: a qualitative enquiry. International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research, 15(1), 94-108. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCTHR-03-2020-0059
Öhman, W. (2017). Instagram marketing: a study about the effect of visual content on customer engagement in the airline industry (Doctoral dissertation).
Okorie, O., Russell, J., Cherrington, R., Fisher, O., & Charnley, F. (2023). Digital transformation and the circular economy: Creating a competitive advantage from the transition towards Net Zero Manufacturing. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 189, 106756. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2022.106756
Olson, E. M., Olson, K. M., Czaplewski, A. J., & Key, T. M. (2021). Business strategy and the management of digital marketing. Business horizons, 64(2), 285-293. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2020.12.004
Othman, B., & Harun, A. B. (2021). The influence of service marketing mix and umrah service quality on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty towards umrah travel agents in Malaysia. Technium Soc. Sci. J., 22, 553. http://dx.doi.org/10.47577/tssj.v22i1.4330
Payne, A., & Frow, P. (2005). A Strategic Framework for Customer Relationship Management. Journal of Marketing, 69(4), 167–176. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.2005.69.4.167
Porter, M. E. (2008). Competitive advantage: Creating and sustaining superior performance. Simon and Schuster.
Preece, J., Shneiderman, B., & Schneiderman, B. (2009). The reader-to-leader framework: Motivating technology-mediated social participation. AIS Transactions on Human-Computer Interaction, 1(1), 13–32.
Purnomo, Y. J. (2023). Digital marketing strategy to increase sales conversion on e-commerce platforms. Journal of Contemporary Administration and Management (ADMAN), 1(2), 54-62. https://doi.org/10.61100/adman.v1i2.23
Rehman, A. (2022). Halal travel “2.0” and beyond COVID-19. In Strategic Islamic Marketing: A Roadmap for Engaging Muslim Consumers (pp. 163-181). Cham: Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98160-0_12
Rehman, S. U., Gulzar, R., & Aslam, W. (2022). Developing the integrated marketing communication (imc) through social media (sm): the modern marketing communication approach. Sage Open, 12(2), 21582440221099936. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/21582440221099936
Rettie, R., Robinson, H., & Radke, A. (2008). Mobile marketing: Retrospect and prospect. International Journal of Advertising, 27(3), 399–418. https://doi.org/10.2501/S026504870808009X
Rossitika, A. R., & Mudjahidin, M. (2024). Development Of Digital Transformation Model In Hajj And Umrah Travel Using Qualitative Methods. International Journal of Economics, Business and Accounting Research (IJEBAR), 8(4). https://doi.org/10.29040/ijebar.v8i4.15544
Ryan, D. (2016). Understanding digital marketing: Marketing strategies for engaging the digital generation. Kogan Page Publishers.
Sheldon, P., & Bryant, K. (2016). Instagram: Motives for its use and relationship to narcissism and contextual age. Computers in Human Behavior, 58, 89–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.12.059
Showail, A. J. (2022). Solving Hajj and Umrah challenges using information and communication technology: A survey. IEEE Access, 10, 75404-75427. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2022.3190853
Sieradianto, D. A., Ardiansyah, A., & Muttaqin, R. B. (2024). Instagram Content Marketing Analysis In Increasing Umrah Interest (Study On Jannah Travel Account). Multazam: Jurnal Manajemen Haji dan Umrah, 4(2), 95-108. https://doi.org/10.32332/multazam.v4i2.9290
Stojanovic, J., Radojevic, J., & Pavlovic, A. (2021). Content Marketing for Tourism: Building Trust and Engagement with Travelers. Journal of Digital Marketing, 15(2), 128-145
Stone, M. (2021). Artificial intelligence in marketing: A review and research agenda. Journal of Business Research, 129, 902–911. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.10.057
Tafesse, W., & Wien, A. (2018). A framework for categorizing social media posts. Cogent Business & Management, 5(1), 1509488. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2018.1509488
Tiago, M. T. P. M. B., & Veríssimo, J. M. C. (2014). Digital marketing and social media: Why bother? Business Horizons, 57(6), 703–708. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2014.07.002
Trusov, M., Bucklin, R. E., & Pauwels, K. (2009). Effects of word-of-mouth versus traditional marketing: Findings from an internet social networking site. Journal of Marketing, 73(5), 90–102. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.73.5.90
Tuten, T. L., & Solomon, M. R. (2017). Social media marketing (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.
Copyright (c) 2025 Journal La Bisecoman

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.



