AN INVESTIGATION OF CUSTOMER’S AWARENESS LEVEL AND CUSTOMER’S SERVICE UTILIZATION DECISION IN ISLAMIC BANKING

Islamic Banking is growing rapidly in various parts of the globe. This study examines the customer’s awareness level (CAL) about products offered by Islamic Banks to assess customers’ service utilization decision (CSUD) in Pakistan, a country with almost 98% Muslim population. It aims to explore the Think-Feel-Do model of marketing regarding Islamic Banking in the selected cities of Pakistan. Case study, focus group and unstructured interviews were used to explore the different aspects of selected variables in this study to develop a structured questionnaire. Data were collected from 200 respondents by personal contact approach based upon simple random sampling that was analyzed through SPSS version 18.0 and statistical techniques, e.g. Descriptive Statistics, Correlation and Regression were used for data analysis. Findings reveal that there is less awareness among the masses regarding Islamic Banking Terminology, Products and Services. Moreover, there is strong positive association between customer’s awareness level and Customer’s Service Utilization Decision. However, the study indicates significant impact of CAL on CSUD. The study has a number of theoretical and practical implications for researchers, academicians, practitioners, professionals, bankers and policy makers.