Abstract
Purpose – This study aims to explain how SDIT Tawakkal Pacitan builds and maintains brand image as an elementary school that integrates modern science and Islamic values, as well as how middle-class Muslim perceptions shape their preferences toward the school.
Methods/Design/Approach – The research uses a case study with a qualitative approach strengthened by embedded descriptive quantitative data. Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews with the principal, vice principal, homeroom teachers, and parents/guardians; observation of school activities; and document analysis. Quantitative data were obtained through a parent questionnaire to map the socioeconomic profile and the weight of decision factors. Qualitative analysis followed an interactive model of reduction, display, and verification, with source and method triangulation.
Findings – Parents interpret the brand image of SDIT Tawakkal as a religious, smart, and noble-character elementary school, as reflected in the consistency of services, an integrated curriculum, habituation of worship, teacher role modeling, and school-home partnerships. Questionnaire results show that the dominant factor of preference is the unique value of the integration of aqliyah and ruhiyah education (65,5%), followed by the school environment (16,8%), teacher quality (11,5%), and aqidah alignment (6,3%). The principles of Islamic branding operate as a normative foundation through the integration of aqidah, sharia, and akhlak in service design and school culture.
Originality/Value – This study affirms that the brand image of SDIT in local nonmetropolitan contexts is primarily shaped by internal branding and the coherence of the service experience, not promotion alone.
Practical Implications – SDIT managers need to position branding as a quality strategy by standardizing services based on unique values, aligning teacher recruitment and development with the school’s identity, and maintaining school-home partnerships in an accountable manner and sensitive to privacy.
Keywords brand image, internal branding, integrated Islamic school, middle-class Muslims, Islamic branding.
Paper type Research paper
Keywords
References
Aaker, D. A. (1991). Managing brand equity: Capitalizing on the value of a brand name. Free Press.
Asiah, N., & Isnaeni, A. (2018). Inklinasi masyarakat Muslim kelas menengah terhadap Sekolah Dasar Islam Terpadu di Bandar Lampung. Al-Tadzkiyyah: Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.24042/atjpi.v9i2.3452
Azra, A., & Jamhari. (2006). Pendidikan Islam Indonesia dan tantangan globalisasi: Perspektif sosio-historis. Rajawali Press.
Bogdan, R. C., & Biklen, S. K. (1982). Qualitative research: An introduction to theory and methods. Allyn & Bacon.
Bowen, G. A. (2009). Document analysis as a qualitative research method. Qualitative Research Journal, 9(2), 27–40. https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ0902027
Cretu, A. E., & Brodie, R. J. (2007). The influence of brand image and company reputation where manufacturers market to small firms: A customer value perspective [Unpublished manuscript]. Department of Marketing, University of Auckland.
Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln, Y. S. (Eds.). (1994). Handbook of qualitative research. SAGE Publications.
Djazilan, M. S. (2018). Pendidikan Islam informal pada kelas menengah Muslim di Surabaya (Studi tentang sosialisasi dan internalisasi nilai keislaman melalui forum dakwah keagamaan di Surabaya) [Unpublished doctoral dissertation].
Faircloth, J. B., Capella, L. M., & Alford, B. L. (2001). The effect of brand attitude and brand image on brand equity. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 61–75. https://doi.org/10.1080/10696679.2001.11501897
Guest, G., Bunce, A., & Johnson, L. (2006). How many interviews are enough? An experiment with data saturation and variability. Field Methods, 18(1), 59–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822X05279903
Huddleston, T., Jr. (1976). Marketing the applicant questionnaire. College and University, 214–220.
Islam, M. S. B. I., & Nursiha, B. A. (2016). Islamic brand: A conceptual definition of brand from Islamic perspective. Journal of Islamic Studies and Culture, 4(2), 59–71. https://doi.org/10.15640/jisc.v4n2a6
Israel, M., & Hay, I. (2006). Research ethics for social scientists. SAGE Publications.
Janonis, V., & Virvilaitė, R. (2007). Brand image formation. Engineering Economics, 2(52), 78–90.
Kapferer, J.-N. (2008). The new strategic brand management: Creating and sustaining brand equity long term (4th ed.). Kogan Page.
Keller, K. L. (2013). Strategic brand management: Building, measuring and managing brand equity (4th ed.).
Kvale, S., & Brinkmann, S. (2009). InterViews: Learning the craft of qualitative research interviewing (2nd ed.). SAGE Publications.
Lincoln, Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. SAGE Publications.
Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. M. (1992). Analisis data kualitatif (T. Rohandi, Trans.). Gramedia Pustaka Utama.
Orb, A., Eisenhauer, L., & Wynaden, D. (2001). Ethics in qualitative research. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 33(1), 93–96. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1547-5069.2001.00093.x
Panda, S., Pandey, S. C., Bennett, A., & Tian, X. (2019). University brand image as competitive advantage: A two-country study. International Journal of Educational Management, 33(2), 234–251. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEM-12-2017-0374
Patton, M. Q. (2015). Qualitative research & evaluation methods: Integrating theory and practice (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Polas, M. R. H., Asghar, A. J., & Rahman, M. L. (2018). Islamic branding as a tool for customer retention: Antecedents and consequences of Islamic brand loyalty. International Journal of Islamic Marketing and Branding, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.1504/IJIMB.2018.091648
Purwani, D. A. (2015). Brand awareness. Jurnal Social Ilmu Politik Universitas Hasanuddin Makasar, 1(1).
Raharjo, W. (2016). Politik kelas menengah Indonesia. LP3ES.
Roy, D., & Banerjee, S. (2008). CARE-ing strategy for integration of brand identity with brand image. International Journal of Commerce and Management, 17(1–2), 140–148. https://doi.org/10.1108/10569210710776512
Spradley, J. P. (1980). Participant observation. Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Stake, R. E. (1995). The art of case study research. SAGE Publications.
Suyatno. (2013). Sekolah Islam Terpadu: Filsafat, ideologi, dan tren baru pendidikan Islam di Indonesia. Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 2(2), 356–376. https://doi.org/10.14421/jpi.2013.22.355-377
Whisman, R. (2009). Internal branding: A university’s most valuable intangible asset. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 18(5), 367–370. https://doi.org/10.1108/10610420910981846
Yin, R. K. (2014). Case study research: Design and methods (5th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Ylikoski, T. (2001). Unohtuiko asiakas? KY-Palvely Oy.
Yuswohadi, & Gani, K. E. (2015). 8 wajah kelas menengah. Gramedia.
Licensing
©️ 2025 The Author(s). Published by Global Educational Research Review.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
The terms of this license allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript or Published Version in institutional or subject repositories by the author(s).
Reprints and Permissions
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and
reproduction in any
medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Permission is not required to reuse this article, in part or whole, as long as proper
attribution is given
to the original work.
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References
Aaker, D. A. (1991). Managing brand equity: Capitalizing on the value of a brand name. Free Press.
Asiah, N., & Isnaeni, A. (2018). Inklinasi masyarakat Muslim kelas menengah terhadap Sekolah Dasar Islam Terpadu di Bandar Lampung. Al-Tadzkiyyah: Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.24042/atjpi.v9i2.3452
Azra, A., & Jamhari. (2006). Pendidikan Islam Indonesia dan tantangan globalisasi: Perspektif sosio-historis. Rajawali Press.
Bogdan, R. C., & Biklen, S. K. (1982). Qualitative research: An introduction to theory and methods. Allyn & Bacon.
Bowen, G. A. (2009). Document analysis as a qualitative research method. Qualitative Research Journal, 9(2), 27–40. https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ0902027
Cretu, A. E., & Brodie, R. J. (2007). The influence of brand image and company reputation where manufacturers market to small firms: A customer value perspective [Unpublished manuscript]. Department of Marketing, University of Auckland.
Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln, Y. S. (Eds.). (1994). Handbook of qualitative research. SAGE Publications.
Djazilan, M. S. (2018). Pendidikan Islam informal pada kelas menengah Muslim di Surabaya (Studi tentang sosialisasi dan internalisasi nilai keislaman melalui forum dakwah keagamaan di Surabaya) [Unpublished doctoral dissertation].
Faircloth, J. B., Capella, L. M., & Alford, B. L. (2001). The effect of brand attitude and brand image on brand equity. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 61–75. https://doi.org/10.1080/10696679.2001.11501897
Guest, G., Bunce, A., & Johnson, L. (2006). How many interviews are enough? An experiment with data saturation and variability. Field Methods, 18(1), 59–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822X05279903
Huddleston, T., Jr. (1976). Marketing the applicant questionnaire. College and University, 214–220.
Islam, M. S. B. I., & Nursiha, B. A. (2016). Islamic brand: A conceptual definition of brand from Islamic perspective. Journal of Islamic Studies and Culture, 4(2), 59–71. https://doi.org/10.15640/jisc.v4n2a6
Israel, M., & Hay, I. (2006). Research ethics for social scientists. SAGE Publications.
Janonis, V., & Virvilaitė, R. (2007). Brand image formation. Engineering Economics, 2(52), 78–90.
Kapferer, J.-N. (2008). The new strategic brand management: Creating and sustaining brand equity long term (4th ed.). Kogan Page.
Keller, K. L. (2013). Strategic brand management: Building, measuring and managing brand equity (4th ed.).
Kvale, S., & Brinkmann, S. (2009). InterViews: Learning the craft of qualitative research interviewing (2nd ed.). SAGE Publications.
Lincoln, Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. SAGE Publications.
Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. M. (1992). Analisis data kualitatif (T. Rohandi, Trans.). Gramedia Pustaka Utama.
Orb, A., Eisenhauer, L., & Wynaden, D. (2001). Ethics in qualitative research. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 33(1), 93–96. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1547-5069.2001.00093.x
Panda, S., Pandey, S. C., Bennett, A., & Tian, X. (2019). University brand image as competitive advantage: A two-country study. International Journal of Educational Management, 33(2), 234–251. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEM-12-2017-0374
Patton, M. Q. (2015). Qualitative research & evaluation methods: Integrating theory and practice (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Polas, M. R. H., Asghar, A. J., & Rahman, M. L. (2018). Islamic branding as a tool for customer retention: Antecedents and consequences of Islamic brand loyalty. International Journal of Islamic Marketing and Branding, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.1504/IJIMB.2018.091648
Purwani, D. A. (2015). Brand awareness. Jurnal Social Ilmu Politik Universitas Hasanuddin Makasar, 1(1).
Raharjo, W. (2016). Politik kelas menengah Indonesia. LP3ES.
Roy, D., & Banerjee, S. (2008). CARE-ing strategy for integration of brand identity with brand image. International Journal of Commerce and Management, 17(1–2), 140–148. https://doi.org/10.1108/10569210710776512
Spradley, J. P. (1980). Participant observation. Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Stake, R. E. (1995). The art of case study research. SAGE Publications.
Suyatno. (2013). Sekolah Islam Terpadu: Filsafat, ideologi, dan tren baru pendidikan Islam di Indonesia. Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 2(2), 356–376. https://doi.org/10.14421/jpi.2013.22.355-377
Whisman, R. (2009). Internal branding: A university’s most valuable intangible asset. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 18(5), 367–370. https://doi.org/10.1108/10610420910981846
Yin, R. K. (2014). Case study research: Design and methods (5th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Ylikoski, T. (2001). Unohtuiko asiakas? KY-Palvely Oy.
Yuswohadi, & Gani, K. E. (2015). 8 wajah kelas menengah. Gramedia.
Licensing
©️ 2025 The Author(s). Published by Global Educational Research Review.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
The terms of this license allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript or Published Version in institutional or subject repositories by the author(s).
Reprints and Permissions
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and
reproduction in any
medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Permission is not required to reuse this article, in part or whole, as long as proper attribution is
given
to the original work.