The Relationship Between Institutional Pedagogy and the Brand Identity Formation of Higher Education Institutions
Ozioma Ikonne
Dr. Ozioma Ikonne, Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship, University of Applied Sciences, Kanifing Municipal Council, Gambia.
Manuscript received on 29 September 2024 | Revised Manuscript received on 14 October 2024 | Manuscript Accepted on 15 October 2024 | Manuscript published on 30 October 2024 | PP: 20-27 | Volume-11 Issue-2, October 2024 | Retrieval Number: 100.1/ijmh.B176111021024 | DOI: 10.35940/ijmh.B1761.11021024
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© The Authors. Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering and Sciences Publication (BEIESP). This is an open access article under the CC-BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Abstract: This study sought to facilitate insight into the potential role of pedagogy in the brand identity formation of higher education institutions (HEIs) through a survey of selected HEIs in The Gambia. Specifically, the study sought to address the following research question: What role do pedagogical practices play in building the brand identity of selected universities in The Gambia? The intra-paradigm qualitative mixed-methods approach underpinned the research design. This research design facilitated a preliminary analysis of the contents of institutional documents and social media postings. This process was followed by telephonic and virtually mediated in-depth interviews through which this researcher explored the interactionist interpretations, recollections, experiences, and opinions of 54 participants (students and staff) on the themes of institutional brand management practices, institutional pedagogical practices, institutional brand identity, and the links between pedagogical practices and institutional brand identity. The study used the Corporate Brand Identity Matrix as a supporting analysis framework. The findings reveal a connection between pedagogical practices and the formation of institutional brand identity. The evidence suggests that the selected higher education institutions (HEIs) employ largely undifferentiated production-style portfolios of academic courses to engage students, prospective students, and other stakeholders. Further findings indicate that teaching and learning practice is dominated by academic staff’s discretionary use of transmissive pedagogy. This insight emerged against the background of additional evidence, which shows a link between pedagogy policy and practices of HEIs and stakeholder impressions. A synthesis of these findings culminated in the emergence of the pedagogy-based higher education brand identity matrix (P-HEBIM), which this study proposes as a novel framework for branding higher education institutions (HEIs). The study presents a practitioner’s guide on how higher education managers can pursue institutional brand management priorities, including branding strategy development, competitor intelligence, and brand communication, using the P-HEBIM framework.
Keywords: Branding, Higher Education, Institutional Identity, Marketing, Pedagogy.
Scope of the Article: Marketing