Bridging Sharia Financial Inclusion in Isolated Islands: A Persuasive Canvassing Strategy in Masalembu, Indonesia

Geographical isolation and seasonal extreme weather present significant structural barriers to Sharia financial inclusion in archipelagic regions, where conventional brick-and-mortar and digital banking models often prove unviable. This study explores a novel persuasive marketing framework designed to advance Islamic financial literacy and inclusion in remote island territories, focusing on Masalembu Island in the Sumenep Regency of Indonesia. Adopting a qualitative case study design, this research investigates a community-anchored canvassing strategy that integrates proactive face-to-face engagement with the socio-religious capital of local Islamic boarding schools (pesantren). Through in-depth interviews and field observations with traditional fishing communities and local market traders, the study examines how personalized, values-driven interaction navigates local skepticism and logistical constraints. The empirical findings reveal that direct canvassing, when aligned with internalized Islamic economic principles, effectively transforms community perceptions and shifts economic practices from conventional informal credit systems toward Sharia-compliant profit-sharing (mudharabah and musyarakah) models. By identifying proactive human-centric outreach as a primary catalyst for financial behavior change, this paper fills a crucial gap in Islamic financial inclusion literature concerning geographically vulnerable populations. Practically, the study offers actionable insights for Islamic financial institutions, regulators, and policymakers seeking to design resilient, context-specific financial outreach strategies for marginalized island communities.