Introduction
Byju’s is the ed-tech decacorn valued at $ 11.1 billion. It is educating millions of students on its online portal. Ed-tech or education technology is the industry that incorporates hardware and software technology in education for a better experience for students and teachers both. India has several ed-tech organizations in action. The marketing strategy of Byju’s includes its business model, general information, marketing model, and many more.
Byju’s is a platform for students to study and for teachers to educate. Moreover, it is making the students’ time on phones and computers worthwhile by educating them. Byju’s surely managed to make learning personalized and engaging for every student in the world. The edu tech company uses artificial intelligence and data science to create customized learning plans for each student. The company also offers one-on-one mentorship from experienced teachers.
Target Audience of Byju’s
Before delving into their marketing plan, let’s first clarify who Byju’s target market is.
The target audience of this growing EdTech company is millennials and gen z from grade 1 to the ones who are studying for competitive exams like CAT, IAS, JEE, NEET, GMAT, UPSC and banking exams.
But, apart from the students, the parents are also the target audience of the company since they are the decision-makers and the ones who pay money for the classes. With that understood, let’s analyse our marketing strategy of Byju’s.
Byju’s Marketing Strategy During COVID-19 Pandemic
During the COVID-19 outbreak, while many of the brands were facing losses, Byju’s on the other hand substantially increased its user base and revenue.
The Indian edtech company became a decacorn and crossed a $10.5 billion valuation during the pandemic after getting funding of $100 million from Silicon Valley investor and analyst Mary Meeker’s Bond Capital.
In March 2020, when all the schools and colleges were shut the company provided free access to its complete app till the end of March.
Now, why did they give free access to the classes?
The principle of reciprocity is also associated with this strategy. According to this principle, when someone helps us we get obligated to return the favor. So, if students use the app for 2 months and enjoy the learning process the chances of those students returning back and buying the subscription are much higher.
This strategy was very successful and the company registered 6 million new students in the month of March and 7.5 million users in April. The EdTech company said that they witnessed a 150 per cent increase in student enrollment due to this free strategy.
In August 2020, the company acquired WhiteHat Jr, an online coding school for $300 million.
Byju’s wants to create its own ecosystem and that’s why it is continuously acquiring a lot of companies. The edtech giant knows that if they want to stay in the market for a long time they need to either defeat their competitors or destroy the competition by acquiring them.
Partnered with ICC to Become its Global Partner
Byju’s wasn’t just satisfied with sponsoring the Indian cricket Jersey. In February 2021, International Cricket Council (ICC) announced Byju’s as its global partner from 2021 to 2023. The three-year contract allows Byju’s to partner with all ICC events including the upcoming T20 World Cup in India and the women’s World Cup in New Zealand.
Byju’s will get extensive in-venue, broadcast, and digital rights across all ICC events. Since the ‘Keep Learning’ campaign was very successful it made sense for the company to invest more money in cricket.
In India, people are in love with cricket and acting. That is why they made Shahrukh Khan their brand ambassador and sponsored Indian cricket Jersey and became ICC’S Global Partner. This made Byju’s a household name and people started trusting the brand.
Byju’s Marketing Mix
Since India’s education system is largely based on an offline learning model, the same via the 4P analysis of its marketing strategy:
Product Mix
To offer the best possible education to Indian students using the latest technology. The company’s flagship product is Byju’s learning app, which helps students learn math and science. Byju’s official app in the Google Play Store has more than 100 million downloads.
The learning app promotes a unique and interactive way for students to learn, with personalized lessons and a focus on helping students grasp concepts quickly. Students in classes 1-3 could learn math and English concepts whereas students in classes 4-12 could learn the subject principle altogether.
With its innovative approach to education, Byju’s is quickly becoming the go-to choice for most parents and students looking for a better way to learn.
Pricing Mix
Cost Base Pricing
The pricing strategy of Byju’s is simple – they charge what it costs them to produce their product. This includes the cost of materials, labor, overhead, shipping, and any other associated costs. Byju’s knows their audience is price sensitive, so they keep its prices low while still making a profit.
Value Base Pricing
Value pricing is when a company charges what the customer perceives the app to be worth. In Byju’s case, they offer a lot of value for their price point. Their content is high quality and engaging, which is why customers are willing to pay per sale.
Competition-Based Pricing
Byju’s also takes into account what their competitors are charging for similar products. They make sure their prices are in line with the competition – offline classes, but usually a bit lower. This helps them attract more customers who are looking for a good deal.
Place Mix
Byju’s distribution channel is through its website and mobile app. It has a freemium business model, where the company offered free access to the basic version of the product and charges for premium features. Byju’s has also tie-ups with schools and coaching institutes, where it provides its content to students.
Direct Distribution
Byju’s App uses its own direct distribution channel and reaches directly to consumers. Byju’s App includes indirect distribution channels such as wholesalers, retailers, logistics companies, and distribution agents as well as opening its own stores.
Indirect Distribution
Byju’s App includes channel partners such as wholesalers, retailers, logistics companies, and distribution agents.
Hybrid Distribution
In a hybrid distribution system, the critical aspects of distribution are managed by Byju’s App. Secondary functions such as logistics, warehousing, and store management are delegated to various channel partners.
Promotion Mix
Byju’s target audience includes students from grade one to grown-up students trying to clear different competitive or entrance exams like CAT, IAS, JEE, etc. However, not every marketing strategy works perfectly for a brand, and that’s precisely what Byju’s realized. Byju’s marketing strategy did not perform very well online.
On social media platforms, only a few leads were converting, so they switched to a Digital marketing strategy. They realized their audience was not the students but their parents, so they revised their digital marketing strategy and targeted audience accordingly.
Conclusion
The major takeaway from Byju’s marketing strategy is that you should focus on your target audience and brand presence. The company also understood that even though students are their end consumers, parents are the ones who will spend money on their packages.
