Promoting English Education Through Word-of-mouth: Case of Wall Street
Bandung, Indonesia
DENISSA AULIA PUTRI, MARHENI EKA SAPUTRI, MAHIR PRADANA
Department of Business Administration, Telkom University, INDONESIA
Abstract: There are many requests for English education as a result of the significance of raising the standard
of English communication education in each location. Because it is believed that learning the English language
can help one communicate better, it is necessary to have these skills in the workplace. This study examined the
impact of word-of-mouth at an Indonesian English-language university. All of the Wall Street English Bandung
students were employed as the population in this quantitative analysis. A questionnaire was used to gather
information for this type of casual research from 100 students attending the "Wall Street English" institution.
Word of mouth and brand image serve as the study's independent variables. The acquired results indicate that
word-of-mouth has a large impact on decisions to use the study service when making purchases, and the
outcomes of following regressions indicate that brand image also has a significant impact. In this study,
recommendations and final suggestions are also covered.
Keywords: Word of mouth, Brand Image, Education, English Education.
Received: April 29, 2022. Revised: May 3, 2023. Accepted: May 17, 2023. Published: June 1, 2023.
1. Introduction
The number of companies trying to open new
branches outside their home areas is increasing
every year (Ullah et al., 2022). Multinational
companies also do the same thing, they try to open
business branches as well, especially in Indonesia,
this also happens due to the large number of
collaborations carried out by Indonesian companies
to outside parties and vice versa (Zaman et al.,
2021). This market it very important to improve the
quality of education and human resources with the
aim of surviving in adapting a facing any new
changes and problems that occur in this era of
changing global and technological developments,
especially in terms of communication (Salsabila et
al., 2021).
According to Sabilla et al. (2022), English is the
most widely spoken language in the world. In the
last 5 years, Asia itself has had a stable average
score on English Proficiency. Although English has
now become one of the most important languages
and one of the global languages, the level of English
Proficiency in Indonesia is still quite low. This data
was shown in the English Proficiency Index (EPI)
research report released by Education First (EF) in
the year of 2021.
Figure 1 English Proficiency Level in Southeast Asia in the Year 2021
Source: https://databoks.katadata.co.id
Financial Engineering
DOI: 10.37394/232032.2023.1.17
Denissa Aulia Putri, Marheni Eka Saputri, Mahir Pradana
E-ISSN: 2945-1140
177
Volume 1, 2023
The data in figure 1 shows Indonesia is ranked 5th,
and Singapore has been chosen as the country with
the highest qualification in Southeast Asia. The
index score achieved by Singapore was 635,
followed by Philippines with 592, and Malaysia
with 562, while Indonesian English proficiency was
only 466 (Ullah et al., 2021). This proves that the
level of fluency in English in Indonesia is still
relatively low. While the reason of English not
being the official language is obvious, there is also
a factor that the numbers of institutions focusing on
teaching English are not that many (Pradana et al.,
2022).
Currently, there are quite a several English courses
spread across Indonesia offering various program
with varying price ranges and target markets,
especially in big cities which are the centre of
economy and government (Pradana et al., 2019). At
this time, English language courses only focuses on
learning that is theoretical and based on writing,
while Wall Street English has a different target
market from competitors in the same field. It
focuses on young professionals and several
programs target school students (Fakhri et al.,
2021).
This institution aims to contribute on a significant
difference when compared to competitors, and there
is an interest in buying among adults against the
offer provided (Gusfei & Pradana, 2022). Currently,
there are several competitors for Wall Street
English, especially in Bandung area, one of which
is English First (EF), this are the comparison of
classes and the prices Wall Street English and
English First offer to costumer.
Class type
English First (EF)
General English Class
TOEFL
Wall Street English (WSE)
15 months membership
IELTS
Table 1 EF and WSE Price and class offered
From the table above shows the differences in the
offers given by English First (EF) and Wall Street
English (WSE), English First offers intensive
classes 2 times a week, classes given are determined
at the start of registration according to their
respective abilities, and free classes are given once
a week on weekends, English First also offers
special TOEFL classes that last for 4 months. While
Wall Street offers classes every day and held big
events 4 times a month to their members with free
of charge, and they also offer IELTS classes that
last for 6 months, and from the table above it can
also be seen that the prices range are given.
2. Literature Review
2.1 Word of Mouth
Word of mouth is one type of promotion mix
(Lupiyadi, 2013). Marketing through word of
mouth is one of the effective promotional strategies
because the information provided a consumer who
unwittingly and voluntarily disseminates
information because of satisfaction with the service
or product that has been purchased (Rubiyanti et al.,
2022).
Meanwhile, the Word-of-Mouth Marketing
Association (WOMMA) states that word of mouth
is an activity carried out by consumers in providing
information about a product to other costumers, it
can also have an influence that can encourage
customers to make decisions in making purchases.
2.2 Brand Image
Brand image is a representation of how
customers view a company generally and how
distinctive it is from competing companies (Pradana
et al., 2019). Brand image is also a perception that
arises in the minds of consumers when
remembering certain brand. Brand image is a
consumer’s belief about a particular brand (Kotler,
2012).
2.3 Purchase Decision
Making a purchase is problem-solving process
that entails analysing or establishing wants and
desires, seeking information, evaluating sources of
Financial Engineering
DOI: 10.37394/232032.2023.1.17
Denissa Aulia Putri, Marheni Eka Saputri, Mahir Pradana
E-ISSN: 2945-1140
178
Volume 1, 2023
selection for purchasing alternatives, and acting in
a certain way (Kotler, 2012).
Purchase decision is an integration process that
is used to customers' intention and action of
purchasing as well as to combine knowledge for
evaluating two or more alternative behaviours and
choosing one of them (Peter & Olson, 2010).
2.4 Theoretical Framework
In the world of marketing, brand image plays
an important role for the company. The company
aims to create consumers purchasing decisions for
the products or services they offer, providing a
positive brand image can provide opportunities for
companies to develop good relationship with
consumers (Savitri et al., 2021). Communication
owned by a company also plays an important role,
communication help consumers in making purchase
decisions, because without getting adequate
information consumers will be difficult to make
decisions in a purchase in the products or services
offered (Elisa et al., 2022).
Figure 2 Theoretical Framework
3. Research Methodology
3.1 Research Characteristic and Sampling
Technique
This research is using quantitative method
used is an approach that uses specific statistical
calculation methods that aim to make it easier to
calculate data, in this case regression analysis
(Augustrianto et al., 2019). This research belongs to
the type of causal research where this research is
carried out if the researcher wants to describe the
causal relationship that occurs between independent
variables and dependent variable. This research has
a type of survey, which collect data and information
with the aim to obtaining information regarding the
respondent’s purchasing decisions by using
questionnaire (Dewi et al., 2022). We analyzed the
result by using SPSS 25, a software for
analyzing the data of regression analysis.
3.2 Data Collection Process
The information was acquired through an
online survey that involved 100 respondents who
are Wall Street English students in Bandung area.
Financial Engineering
DOI: 10.37394/232032.2023.1.17
Denissa Aulia Putri, Marheni Eka Saputri, Mahir Pradana
E-ISSN: 2945-1140
179
Volume 1, 2023
4. Results and Discussion
4.1 Descriptive Analysis Table 2 Descriptive Analysis Result
Variable
Total Score
Maximum
Percentage
Category
Word of Mouth (X1)
2151
3000
71,7%
High
Brand Image (X2)
1563
2000
78,2%
High
Purchase Decision (Y)
1504
2000
75,2%
High
Based on the table 2 above, it can be
concluded the score of Word-of-Mouth (X1) is
categorized as High, the score of Brand Image (X2)
is categorized as High, and the score of Purchase
Decision (Y) is categorized as High.
4.2 Multicollinearity Test
Table 3 Multicollinearity Test Result
Source: Processed Data Results, 2022
We analyzed the data by determining the
level of multicollinearity using the value of variance
inflation factor (VIF). This step is essential to
observe how well each independent variable can be
utilized to predict or comprehend the dependent
variable in a statistical model, since
multicollinearity can result in skewed or misleading
conclusions. Based on the multicollinearity test
using SPSS 25, the VIF result of 1,203 was
obtained, where the VIF was 10 and the tolerance
result was 0.831, meaning a tolerance of 0.1. this
states that the research conducted by regression is
free from multicollinearity.
4.3 Multiple Regression Analysis Table 4 Multiple Regression Analysis
Based on the table 4 above, it is known that the
value of a (constant) = 3.326, Word of Mouth (X1)
= 0.251 and Brand Image (X2) = 0.416. So, from
the results obtained the multiple linear regression
formula is used as follows:
Y* = 3.326 + 0,251X1 + 0,416X2
Financial Engineering
DOI: 10.37394/232032.2023.1.17
Denissa Aulia Putri, Marheni Eka Saputri, Mahir Pradana
E-ISSN: 2945-1140
180
Volume 1, 2023
From the multiple linear regression
equation obtained above, it can be seen that the
constants value obtained is 3.326 which means
there is no word of mouth (X1) and brand image
(X2), so the purchase decision value obtained is
3,326.
While the value of the regression
coefficient on variable X1 is 0.251 which indicates
that if there is an increase in word of mouth that
occurs on Wall Street English Bandung, purchasing
decisions will also increase.
In addition, the value of the regression
coefficient on variable X2 is 0.461 which indicates
that if there is an increase in the brand image on
Wall Street English Bandung, the purchase decision
will also increase. Thus, it can be concluded that
when there is an increase in word of mouth and
brand image on Wall Street English Bandung, it will
affect the increase in the purchase decision of Wall
Street English Bandung consumers.
With significance value of 0.0, which
means <0.5, the world of mouth and brand images
variables have a positive effect on the purchase
decision on variable y.
4.4 T Test Table 5 T Test Result
Based on the table 4 above, it can be seen that:
1. The word-of-mouth variable (X1) has a value of
 (4.545) >  (1.96) and a significant value
at 0.000 < 0.05. then is rejected. This it can be
concluded that partially there is a considerable
influence from the word-of-mouth variable (X1) on
purchase decisions (Y) with a beta value of 0.251 or
a sizeable influence of 25.1%.
2. The brand image variable (X2) has a value of 
(4.543) >  (1.96) and a significant value at
0.00 < 0.05. Then is rejected, thus it can be
concluded that partially there is a fairly large
influence from the brand image variable (X2) on
purchase decisions (Y) with a beta value of 0.416 or
a large influence of 41.6%.
3.
Financial Engineering
DOI: 10.37394/232032.2023.1.17
Denissa Aulia Putri, Marheni Eka Saputri, Mahir Pradana
E-ISSN: 2945-1140
181
Volume 1, 2023
4.5 F Test Table 6 F Test Result
From the table 6 above the result obtained
is
35.059 with a significant level of 0.000, from the
results
 >
(35.059 > 3.09) and a
significant value of 0.000 < 0.05. The data shows
that rejected and accepted, indicating that
variable X word of mouth and brand image used
have a substantial (considerable) effect on the
variable Y purchase decision used.
4.6 Coefficient of Determination (R2) Table 7 R Square Result
Based on the table 7 above it is known that the R
square value obtained is 0.420, so the coefficient of
determination obtained is 0.420 x 100% = 42.0%.
this shows that by using the regression model, the
variable X used is word-of-mouth and brand image
with coefficient intervals. While the rest (100% -
42% = 58%) is explained by other unknown
variable factors and is not included in the regression
analysis in the research conducted by the author.
5. Conclusion and Suggestion
5.1 Conclusion
Based on the results of research conducted by
the author on Wall Street English Bandung
consumers regarding the influence of word of
mouth and brand image on purchasing decisions:
research on Wall Street English Bandung is
represented as follows:
1. Word of mouth on Wall Street English Bandung is
in high category it’s because the members always
recommend institutions to their relatives among
other competitors.
2. Brand image on Wall Street English Bandung is in
high category it’s because the company has an
attractive brand image among the other competitors.
3. Purchase decision on Wall Street English Bandung
is in high category it’s because the company offers
various learning programs so the customers make a
purchased.
4. Word of mouth on Wall Street English Bandung
have a partially significant effect on purchase
decisions. It means, if there is an increase in
variable word of mouth it will affecting the
purchase decision in Wall Street English Bandung.
5. Brand image on Wal Street English Bandung has a
partially significant effect on purchase decisions. It
means, there is an influence given by the brand
Financial Engineering
DOI: 10.37394/232032.2023.1.17
Denissa Aulia Putri, Marheni Eka Saputri, Mahir Pradana
E-ISSN: 2945-1140
182
Volume 1, 2023
image variable on purchasing decisions on Wall
Street English Bandung.
6. Word of mouth and brand image give a
simultaneous influence of the independent variable
on the dependent variable purchase decision on
Wall Street English Bandung.
5.2 Suggestion
Based on the research that has been done, there
are several suggestions given by the authors that can
be considered for the company and further research
to be carried out.
5.2.1 Practical Suggestion
The authors make a number of suggestions for
Wall Street English Bandung in this practical
element, which are anticipated to be taken into
account when conducting business. The following
are concrete objectives that the author can set for
the company.
1. Wall Street English Bandung needs to improve
word of mouth marketing that occurs among
potential customers, it can be done by crating
campaigns that can touch the hearts of them so that
the brand can be remembered clearly, using
influencer services to disseminate information
about the company, or working with the
community.
2. Wall Street English Bandung needs to improve the
quality they have for now such as updating the
topics discussed in each class, events being held and
other things that are deemed necessary to improve,
those expected to help company in retaining
existing customers. Exist, and attract new
costumers to be able to have an English learning
experience at the institutions.
5.2.2 Theoretical Suggestions
The author offers suggestions in this theoretical
field based on the results of earlier research. It is
intended that it would help and benefit the
advancement of scientific research, particularly in
the field of marketing science. For other research
authors hoped that they can develop research by
adding other variables and indicators so as to
increase knowledge about the factors that are owned
by word of mouth and brand image and also factors
that can influence purchasing decisions, authors
also suggest they can use a different analysis so that
it will create research that produces broader
information to add research references regarding
word of mouth and brand image.
References
[1]. Augustrianto, A., Silvianita, A., Ferari, E. (2019).
Hofstede’s organization culture on deviant
workplace behavior (Case study on workers at plaza
Toyota Bandung). Journal of Advanced Research in
Dynamical and Control Systems, 11(3 Special
Issue), pp. 720–725.
[2]. Dewi, C. K., Pradana, M., Huertas-García, R.,
Rubiyanti, N., & Syarifuddin, S. (2022).
Developing halal consumer behavior and tourism
studies: Recommendations for Indonesia and Spain.
Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 863130.
[3]. Elisa, H. P., Fakhri, M., & Pradana, M. (2022). The
moderating effect of social media use in impulsive
buying of personal protective equipments during
the COVID-19 pandemic. Cogent Social Sciences,
8(1), 2062094.
https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2022.2062094
[4]. Fakhri, M., Pradana, M., Syarifuddin, S., Hafid, H.,
Mustika, N.P. (2019). Analyzing work satisfaction
of employees at production department: Case study
of indonesian state military equipment
manufacturer. International Journal of Advanced
Science and Technology, 28(8 Special Issue), pp.
163–175.
[5]. Fakhri, M., Silvianita, A., & Yulias, D. (2021).
Assessing quality of work life toward junior high
school teacher during pandemic Covid-19. Journal
of Management Information and Decision Sciences,
24(6), 1-8.
[6]. Ghozali, I., & Hengky, L. (2015). Konsep, Teknik,
Aplikasi Menggunakan Smart PLS 3.0 Untuk
Penelitian Empiris. Badan Penerbit Universitas
Diponegoro.
[7]. Gusfei, A.D., Pradana, M. (2022). The Effect of E-
Service Quality and E-Trust on Mobile Payment
Application E-Customer Loyalty Through E-
Customer Satisfaction as Intervening Variable. Res
Militaris, 12(2), pp. 166–180.
https://resmilitaris.net/menu-
script/index.php/resmilitaris/article/view/87/33
[8]. Hasbi, I., Pradana, M., Utami, D.G. (2022).
Entrepreneurial Education as Antecedent of
Indonesian Private University Students’
Entrepreneurial Intention. Educational
Administration: Theory and Practice, 28(3), pp. 72–
82.
[9]. Kotler, P. a. (2012). Marketing Management 14E.
New Jersey : Person Prentice Hall.
[10]. Lupiyadi. (2013). Manajemen Pemasaran
Jasa, Edisi Ketiga . Jakarta: Salemba Empat
[11]. Peter, P., & Olson, J. (2010). Consumer
Behaviour and marketing Strategy . McGraw-Hill .
[12]. Pradana, M., Wahyuddin, S., Syarifuddin,
S., Putra, A. (2019). Gap analysis of Indonesian
Financial Engineering
DOI: 10.37394/232032.2023.1.17
Denissa Aulia Putri, Marheni Eka Saputri, Mahir Pradana
E-ISSN: 2945-1140
183
Volume 1, 2023
state-owned bank internet banking website.
Proceedings of the International Conference on
Industrial Engineering and Operations
Management, pp. 1235–1244.
[13]. Pradana, M., Kosovan, M., Rintaningrum,
R., Bloshenko, T., Rogova, T., & Singer, N. (2022).
Increasing the Effectiveness of Educational
Technologies in the Foreign Languages Learning
Process by Linguistic Students (Comparative
Analysis of Russian, Indonesian and Egyptian
Experience). Frontiers for Education.
[14]. Rubiyanti, N., Mohaidin, Z., Murshid,
M.A. (2022). Purchasing Behaviour: Mediating
Roles of Brand Personality and Religiosity in the
Purchase of Halal Cosmetics. Global Journal Al-
Thaqafah (Special Issue), pp. 113–120.
[15]. Sabilla, A.M., Pradana, M., Idris, M.
(2022). Analyzing the Effectiveness of Online
Learning from Students’ Perspective. Educational
Administration: Theory and Practice, 28(4), pp. 61–
73.
[16]. Salsabila, A. A., Fakhri, M., Silvianita, A.,
Wardhana, A., & Saragih, R. (2021). The effect of
organizational culture and work motivation on
employee job satisfaction. In Proceedings of the
International Conference on Industrial Engineering
and Operations Management (Vol. 8, pp. 5724-
5731).
[17]. Savitri, C., Hurriyati, R., Wibowo, L.A.,
Hendrayati, H. (2021). The role of social media
marketing and brand image on smartphone
purchase intention. International Journal of Data
and Network Science, 6(1), pp. 185–192.
[18]. Ullah, S., Hussain, S., Rustandi
Kartawinata, B., Muhammad, Z., & Fitriana, R.
(2022). Empirical nexus between Chinese
investment under China–Pakistan Economic
Corridor and economic growth: An ARDL
approach. Cogent Business & Management, 9(1),
2032911.
[19]. Willayat, F., Saud, N., Ijaz, M., Silvianita,
A., & El-Morshedy, M. (2022). Marshall–Olkin
Extended Gumbel Type-II Distribution: Properties
and Applications. Complexity, 2022.
[20]. Zaman, U., Florez-Perez, L., Farías, P.,
Abbasi, S., Khwaja, M. G., & Wijaksana, T. I.
(2021). Shadow of your former self: exploring
project leaders’ post-failure behaviors (resilience,
self-esteem and self-efficacy) in high-tech startup
projects. Sustainability, 13(22), 12868.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su132212868
Contribution of Individual Authors to the
Creation of a Scientific Article (Ghostwriting
Policy)
The authors equally contributed in the present
research, at all stages from the formulation of the
problem to the final findings and solution.
Sources of Funding for Research Presented in a
Scientific Article or Scientific Article Itself
No funding was received for conducting this study.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare
that are relevant to the content of this article.
Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0
(Attribution 4.0 International, CC BY 4.0)
This article is published under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en
_US
Financial Engineering
DOI: 10.37394/232032.2023.1.17
Denissa Aulia Putri, Marheni Eka Saputri, Mahir Pradana
E-ISSN: 2945-1140
184
Volume 1, 2023