Ramadan Shopping Behaviors in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia, 16th March 2022: Ramadan, the holiest season of the Islamic world, is just around the corner. Sharing joy, happiness, and spiritual enthusiasm with our loved ones are the most important qualities during Ramadan.

On the other hand, expectations of users of the digital platforms started to increase in order to receive the most beautiful gifts and to make the most delicious meals accordingly. While everyone is preparing to share the joy of Ramadan with their family and experience this spiritual pleasure, a few questions arise in the minds of advertisers and brands: What will be the preferences of consumers in terms of shopping in Ramadan this year? Which devices or digital platforms will be preferred?

To bring light to these questions AdColony conducted research together with the independent research company GlobalWebIndex to analyze the mobile device usage of users, their shopping preferences on digital platforms, time spent on mobile devices, and the impact of the mobile ads on users in KSA.

58% of the respondents were male while 42% of the participants were female according to the Ramadan Survey which is conducted specifically in KSA. Most of the respondents aged between 16 to 34 with 66% reveal the level reached in the age of mobilization in the region.

While the time spent on smartphones is increasing day by day, 50% of respondents spend
1-3 hours online on their smartphones. 77% of people in KSA state that they are playing mobile games, while 46% of the respondents state that they will use their smartphones to play mobile games specifically during Ramadan. Time spent on mobile games is also increasing with 48% of the respondents spending 30 minutes to 2 hours playing mobile games during Ramadan. The most preferred time to play mobile games and to shop online is during fasting through the day between 12 PM to 6 PM with 30% and 33% respectively.

No one can deny that smartphones are a source of revenue for brands, but how willing are consumers to be part of this source? It turns out most of them are. 80% of the participants state that they will use their smartphones while shopping for Ramadan, while 77% of them say that they will shop within the application. 75% of respondents state that they will do shopping after iftar time.

While planning their media spend during this holy month; brands and agencies are willing to get to know more about their target audience’s preferences. 56% of the respondents state that the ads that they encounter on their smartphones have a huge impact on their purchasing decision compared to TV with only 21%.

While we are all seeing different ads from different industries; 78% of users in KSA would like to encounter Apparel ads, followed by Food with 67%, and Telecommunication with 51% rounding up the top three.

When we analyze the industry-specific data; 52% of users in KSA will visit stores for their Ramadan grocery shopping, while 47% of them will shop online and use home delivery. 75% of users in KSA state that they will mostly cook at home during Ramadan, while 14% of them will mostly get takeout food.

Telecommunication is also very important during Ramadan. 59% of the users in KSA are expecting high-speed internet connection.

51% of the users in KSA state that they are waiting for Ramadan promotions to purchase a car is proof that car buying is also increasing during Ramadan.

Women’s cosmetic expenses are increasing during Ramadan, while the cosmetics they bought the most were skincare products with 50%, perfumes, and fragrances with 49% followed by haircare with 47%.

64% of the respondents state that they will travel abroad during Ramadan while 59% of mobile gamers in KSA who love to travel prefer to buy transportation tickets online.

The undeniable access to mobile advertising continues to stand out as the most important factor in consumers’ buying tendencies. 79% of the respondents stated that they had previously made Ramadan shopping with their smartphones directly via mobile ads, and 76% stated that they would consider purchasing a product or service if the product served with the advertisement appeals to them.