Back in the old days, before our country was completely built around every exit on every highway, we used to have signs posted at exits with information like, “Last Chance to Get Gas for 246 miles.” If you were headed past this exit to anywhere not close by, you knew you had darn well better fill up your tank, grab a Pepsi and a pack of Nabs, because it would be several hours before you saw civilization again.
For those of us in the EdTech world, we need to put up signs of our own right now. “Last chance to get in on the most well-funded, biggest tech buying spree of all time.”
“But Charles,” you ask, “Is that true?”
Every word is true, every syllable. With the remainder of the CARES Act and the two new stimulus packages passed by Congress, there has never been this much money available for schools, districts and states to purchase technology. And there isn’t a school, district or state in America that won’t be buying. But Last Chance? Yep. And if you blink, you have already missed it.
As an EdTech company, you need to be out there now. Setting appointments. Preparing your presales and sales teams. Making sure your own tech and virtual presentation apparatus is up to speed.
And marketing. Right now, you need to be doing every type of marketing you can get your hands on. Especially:
Content Marketing: Now is the time to share your expertise. You and the other C-level executives should be writing expert articles to run in the education press. These should not be promotional; they aren’t about your company, they are your team offering guidance to schools and districts. You can include a bio at the end with a link back to your site. Most education websites are looking for expert analysis to offer their readers, including the Learning Counsel.
Podcasts: Podcasts are a great way to make yourself and your company known. You can normally bring one of your customers to the podcast with you. Podcasts are at the peak of their popularity, and many podcasts offer you leads that you can follow up on.
Custom Webinars: Custom webinars allow you to offer your expertise to potential customers. Many organizations will host these for you and bring you potential customers as the attendees.
Whitepapers: Whitepapers are another great way to demonstrate your expertise. When people download these whitepapers, you know they have an interest in what you offer. Look for organizations that can host your whitepapers and deliver the folks who download them back to you as leads.
Virtual Events: Look for organizations whose audience/membership closely matches your prospect list. When you sponsor these events, you have the added benefit of enjoying the trust the organization has with its members. This can be a very powerful endorsement for you and your company.
I said last month that this was the calm before the storm. Now the storm is starting. It is going to be a mad dash through the end of 2021, and the majority of purchases will probably happen by June 30, 2021.
So, stand up. Rally the troops. This is the time that companies are made. Fortunes are realized. Market share is established. In short, it is go-time. There has never been an opportunity like this to help so many people. Most likely, you got into the business to help children. We all did. And this is our shining moment to make it happen.
About the author
Charles Sosnik is an education journalist and editor and serves as Editor in Chief at the Learning Counsel. An EP3 Education Fellow, he uses his deep roots in the education community to add context to the education narrative. Charles is a frequent writer and columnist for some of the most influential media in education, including the Learning Counsel, EdNews Daily, EdTech Digest and edCircuit. Unabashedly Southern, Charles likes to say he is an editor by trade and Southern by the Grace of God.
