Education publishers have taken a lot of fire in the last few years – many believe that we are too big, too powerful, and that things would be better if teachers just wrote their own materials or used free stuff. So why do we continue to exist? Are publishers a…
We’ve all heard the voices of DOOM about the looming budget cuts from the sequester. I call BS, at least as it affects K12 education. Laziness often drives how we talk about education funding. Because it is easy to track federal spending we focus our energy there. But this willfully…
I’ve been on a bit of a blogcation since June. It has been a crazy summer both personally and professionally* and something had to give. I’m back. The K12 market has been in full meltdown since last November. Schools are struggling with state finances post stimulus, the Feds are not…
eBooks, iPads, and the Kindle are changing the fundamental structure of the publishing industry. From a strategic perspective they are having the largest impact on the development and pricing of products. In other words it is affecting the “what” deeply. The “how” has not changed all that much, regardless of…
Education spending patterns have been abnormal for several years. Publishing used to follow very predictable patterns – no more. Between the Great Recession and ARRA Stimulus funds we have been living in an era of seesaw budgets for three years. Since education spending lags the general economy by up to…
Education publishers and Learning Management Systems have a long and somewhat checkered history. Open source publishing, XML, and content digitization are changing the LMS landscape rapidly. In today’s guest post Louise Dube outlines the issues facing companies creating instructional materials. By Louise Dube What to do? Educator Buying Trends, a…
How is the marketing mix for companies that sell to K12 schools evolving? At a time when we are experiencing an explosion in the number and type of marketing programs we are also seeing rebalanced budgets and a consolidation among the large support organizations. The economic downturn has only accelerated…
Education Channel Partner published a story I wrote about partnerships for companies that serve the education market. Whether you are a textbook publisher, an education technology developer, a fellow management consultant, or a reseller/dealer I hope you will find some useful ideas in the article. Think of it as Business…
By Randy Wilhelm, CEO Thinkronize – Guest Blogger Did George Washington’s dog play multiplication math games with Abraham Lincoln’s animals during the Civil War? I would guess the answer is a resounding no. However, a new Index reveals the most popular keywords that K-12 students are searching for on the…
It is easy for a sales force to fall into a comfort zone. Data-driven decision making techniques can help insure that Reps are reaching beyond their current contacts. In many companies there is a great deal of data about the market. The challenge is to drive this into your field…