We tend to think of educational institutions as the places we go to to learn how to run a startup, but education can be a product and service the same as anything else. Sure, you might not have been founded in the 1700s by a rich benefactor and have centuries of academic relevance as part of your foundation, but that doesn’t mean you have little to offer in kind.
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If you have a brilliant idea for an educational startup, you may just find your way to success. Maybe you’ve designed a revolutionary learning app to help law students, or a unique tutoring service, or even a whole new approach to teaching math (just make sure it’s not the Terence Howard way). Whatever it is, it’s hard to be excited about trying to help people raise their understanding and potential earnings future.
That said, marketing an educational startup can feel like trying to teach a cat to swim at the best of times. How exciting and appealing can you make a course to someone who hadn’t considered that route before? How do you avoid seeming as bloated as some of the major universities in your city? In this post, we’ll help with that and more:
Know Your Audience & Their Education Level Or Goals
Like any marketing effort, you need to know who you’re talking to. It’s not enough to say “students” or “parents”. Are we talking about stressed-out college students? What about apprentice bricklayers who want to learn more about the construction sites they work on? Or are you hoping to help parents of dyslexic kids searching for specialized learning tools? The more specific you can get, the better.
Then, consider creating buyer personas – these are like imaginary ideal customer profiles. Stereotyping essentially, but not to insult. Give them a name, a backstory, and think about their likes and dislikes. For example, if you’re aiming your gardening service to retired people, how comfortably will they be operating an app and turning up for remote learning sessions? This can help you dispel unhelpful approaches as it guides you to better ones.
Make Informative Content
Many marketing departments the world over are pushing out content like it’s still a gold rush to do so. But with your firm, you’re not trying to sell a wacky beverage, you’re selling knowledge, after all, so there are different goals to hit here.
Ultimately, you want to seem as though someone’s career and life path is safe in your hands. That’s a pretty intense goal to reach, but pushing that way can help you avoid sounding too general, and it also helps you avoid relying on memes or other constant humor posts for quick engagement that ultimately denigrates what it is you’re trying to offer.
You could start simple, perhaps a blog with study tips, or create fun educational videos for social media about the course and what it entails. How about a podcast where you interview education experts? A quick interview fee and remote call is all you need in 2024. Alongside the best strategic planning for universities and other educational insights, you may be surprised with what you can achieve.
Social Media Is Key
You likely know about social media by this point and don’t need a run down. But why is it so important for educational startups? Well, because many younger would-be students use it. It’s as simple as that. With that in mind, remember you don’t need to be on every platform. Choose the ones where your audience hangs out.
If you’re targeting sixth-form students, Instagram and TikTok might be your best bet. For parents and teachers or more mature learners, Facebook could be more effective, especially with its group system that can help you deliver course materials. Also don’t forget to target ads on these platforms, as they can help you reach your local crowd of the exact age range you need.
Connections & Networking Matter
Ultimately, education is about legitimacy and authenticity. You can’t shortcut your way through it. That means being friendly to other businesses and educational centres or resources, and even using cross-platformed promotions to add weight to your own brand.
For example, could you team up with a complementary educational product for a joint marketing campaign? Or maybe you could guest post on a popular education blog with a very detailed, well-researched piece, perhaps even for free?
Keep in mind the education community is often tight-knit and passionate about what they do. If you can show that you’re genuinely committed to improving education, you’ll find plenty of people willing to accept your presence in certain spaces.
With this advice, you’ll be sure to market an education with confidence and authencitiy.