In the ever-changing world of PK-12 educational technology (EdTech), strategic partnerships can be a useful tool in your business plan to rapidly scale your business both domestically and internationally. Collaborating with the right partners, whether they be content providers, learning management systems (LMS), or universities, can drive growth and innovation within your EdTech business.
Types of Partnerships
- Content Providers
Partnering with content providers allows EdTech companies to enhance their offerings with high-quality educational content. Curating relevant content within your EdTech solutions enhances your value proposition to educators and students.
- Education Solutions Providers
These partners can make great partners to sell your EdTech services. This is especially true when growing your business internationally. When partnering with a leading PK-12 company in a new market, you not only can gain relevant curriculum programs for your platform like a Content Provider, but they can sell your EdTech solution, enabling you to go to market with a trusted company that is already selling to your key audience.
It is worth noting that Content Providers and Education Solutions Providers can be the same, but some companies only act as Content Providers and do not have a sales team, and one’s partnership with an educational solution provider might be just getting content from them, so it is worth thinking about how you can benefit from each partnership and going into negotiations with a clear goal in mind.
- Learning Management Systems (LMS)
Integrating with LMS platforms helps EdTech companies reach a broader audience of schools and educators while streamlining the adoption process and delivering a seamless user experience.
- Universities and Academic Institutions
Collaborating with universities and academic institutions brings credibility and validation to your EdTech solutions. Through research partnerships, joint programs, or professional development, EdTech companies can tap into academic expertise and glean valuable insights into evolving educational market needs.
As the purpose of this blog is business development, I will focus on partnerships with Education Solutions Providers in depth throughout this blog series but do not discount the value of other forms of partnership.
What Partnerships Can Offer
Partnerships with content providers, educational solutions providers, LMS companies, and academic institutions offer differing benefits:
- Access to Relevant Curricular Resources
Content providers and educational solutions providers can offer access to textbooks, workbooks, teacher support materials, assessments, and more. Their resources typically align with the state- or country-supported curriculum. By partnering with a company that has already developed these resources you save time and money not having to develop them yourself.
- Distribution Channels
LMS partners offer broader distribution and adoption of EdTech solutions among schools and users. Educational solutions providers currently offering print materials can distribute your digitized versions of their offerings to their customers who are looking for a complementary or standalone EdTech solution.
Internationally, education solutions providers are already trading in the market and know what the market needs are as well as any local curricular standards that need to be aligned to. They have relationships with schools and can offer your EdTech solutions to public and private schools.
- Research and Validation
University collaborations provide opportunities for research, validation, and evidence-based improvements to EdTech products. Depending on your offerings, the credibility that comes with a university partnership can be crucial for widespread acceptance and adoption.
- Market Insight
Partners of all forms can provide valuable market insights that can be used to customize and update your EdTech solutions to changing and varied market needs. Internationally, partner market insight is invaluable to ensure your solutions meet local needs and your messaging is relevant.
Leveraging Partnerships for Growth
- Cost savings
The cost of entering a new market or segment can be greatly lowered by leveraging the knowledge, IP, and expertise of strategic partners. Instead of creating new content and aligning it to a new market or segment, a partner can save you the cost by providing relevant content and guidance on curriculum alignments.
- Time savings
By partnering with an educational solutions provider already selling to your target audience, you tap into their sales network and expertise. This saves a great deal of time over the alternative, which would likely include hiring and training sales representatives and cold calling. Cold calling and cold marketing can work but can take a long time to gain traction in a new market.
- Collaborative product development and joint offerings
Strategic partners enable you to leverage two companies’ strengths with a common goal. If you have an English product and want to enter the Colombian market, working with a partner, you could create a new version of your product, whether it be translating the user interface (UI) and content into Spanish or with the local partner’s content that is already aligned to local national standards.
When to Look for a Strategic Partner vs. a Reseller
- Strategic Partner
Consider Strategic Partners when you want to enhance your product capabilities with partner content, reach new markets, or access specialized expertise or credibility. This requires more planning and both parties should be invested in the successful outcome of the partnership.
- Reseller
A reseller can be considered when you are confident your product is ready to go to market. Resellers allow you to reach their audience in a much more streamlined manner than strategic partners. The onboarding is fairly quick and you gain immediate access to their customer base.
To Finish…
Strategic partnerships can drive growth in your EdTech company by helping you source relevant content, gain market insight and credibility, and put you in front of a broader audience. Partnerships can take various forms and serve different purposes.
Form partnerships aligned with company needs and goals. Ensure similar vision, contribution to success, and resource efficiency for effective collaboration. Strategic partnerships can allow you to focus on innovation and increase your educational impact.
***Stay tuned for my next blog about how to find and structure partnerships with educational solutions providers internationally. Check here our previous blog about the impact of AI on Education.
