Importance of Marketing in Scaling EdTech Business in 2022

Authored by Mahadev Srivatsa, Vice President - Marketing & Brand Strategy, Practically

EdTech has caused a paradigm shift in the Indian academic space. It has made education accessible and affordable, especially for a vast nation like ours where we have learners living in rural and urban cities. Before the world was struck by Covid, Edtech was emerging as a popular option but there were notable barriers like adoption & relevance of the course/degree in the outside world. The pandemic broke both these barriers and today Edtech is seen not just complementing learning but in some cases even serving as the primary source of learning.  

For our generation, we had an option to juggle between online and offline worlds. In fact, online learning only came into the picture during post-graduation. For students of this era, the blended learning scenario has become a norm, thereby establishing ed-tech as an essential part of their lives which has also resulted in Edtech becoming a habit for this generation.

In the past two years, several Edtech platforms have mushroomed and have tried to be as comprehensive as possible offering everything from e-learning tools to high school management and many more niche solutions. According to the KPMG report 2021, the Edtech space is very cluttered and there are more than 4000+ ed tech startups in India alone.  

Consequently, the competition has tightened, and companies are now steering towards driving differentiation. While product and tech will determine the utility and a great idea carries seeds of success, marketing is now more crucial than ever for scaling EdTech business by driving differentiation as a brand. Lead generation, customer acquisition, engagement and customer success all need to be woven to drive a consistent and positive brand imagery and ultimately this will determine the future of these companies. Consumers today also look for these traits that inspire loyalty and want differentiated and quality offerings & services given numerous players in the market. 

Charting a well-rounded strategy that is aligned with your offering is extremely important.  Sharing a few reads here: -

1. Understand your target audience and create a strategy that is robust

The good ol’ cliche of knowing your audience will always stand true for Edtech. The segment of learners you cater to and the decision-makers will vary here especially for K-12. For young learners, their parents will play a crucial role in deciding which product or service they want to opt for whereas a working exec will have the autonomy to make his own decision.  To get started, identify your market, launch a campaign and study the response. If you are willing to go by data analysis and not by gut alone, then you have won half the battle. The learnings will make it easier for you to hit the right marketing channels and design a campaign that hits the target. You can also effectively try to dodge competition by allocating & experimenting with your budgets to areas where others are not investing in that way you are more likely to generate revenue from the path that others have overlooked.

2. Time your announcements - Drive Intrigue

Gone are the days when a marketing strategy was put into execution only when a product was ready. Now teasing your audience ahead of the launch helps strengthen brand recall.  You can create a teaser or let the audience know that they are up for a pleasant surprise. The iconic pug that became our fondest memory of Hutch (now Vodafone Idea) is one such example. We all remember the happy looking dog popping out of the newspaper ad before the larger brand announcement came through. The element of surprise raised curiosity. Building an intrigue will help drive people to approach your product faster. 

3. Leverage social media marketing and content marketing 

Students, young and old alike are social media savvy. From a marketer’s lens, social media opens the door to interactive campaigns that are filled with promotional videos, infographics, and even interactive chatbots. Innovation and personalization are the key. From blogs to your social media and Youtube channels, the world of internet for your brand has to be upbeat.

4. Don’t spray and pray with cash, invest in good creative content & optimize campaigns.

Edtech today in terms of spending has started dominating the landscape similar to ecommerce and telecom of old.

Edtech is a very sensitive space and overburdening your customers with constant messages might not achieve the purpose. While investments in branding are an encouraging sign, deployment of the same for better creative output seems to be taking a backseat to aggressive execution. Your marketing strategy will naturally need various touchpoints. A product launch will need more communication and a new feature or dedicated service launch will be more targeted; and for both your involvement in various marketing mediums should differ. Choose your mediums meticulously and don’t bombard the same set of users across mediums. Can result in fatigue and brand boredom.

Any new idea that makes the consumer aware and, in a way, engage with your product or feature directly will always cut the cake especially when you want to drive differentiation. For instance, the recent ‘Scan Anything’ feature launched by Practically introduced consumers to the option of experiencing the feature right within the print ads in regional and national dailies making them understand its revolutionary prowess. Result ~3X scans came in on the day when print was released demonstrating the power of the idea

When it comes to the Edtech space, for any marketer, the axis is now pivoting towards sustenance. Building deeper customer relations, showcasing success metrics, being authentic to their brand identity and keeping an eye out for differentiation is the definite way forward. Today, an EdTech company cannot afford to not invest in Brand Building. The race has in fact moved to the next level towards Brand Equity. Apart from driving acquisition & engagement, efforts need to be put to steer loyalty towards the brand. In a cluttered market, brand loyalty alone can make you secure & profitable in the long run while scaling up and this is exactly what every marketer needs to ultimately gun for.