Many industries experience seasonal sales cycles, even more dramatic than others. What patterns do companies that sell instructional products to K-12 schools observe? Be sure, products useful for teaching and learning are purchased each month, but you are able to expect major ups and downs throughout the year. In this article, I'll share insight from successful school sales professionals about these predictable purchasing patterns so you can adjust your school sales and marketing plans accordingly. Here's the essential take-away: you can find two primary drivers behind the seasonal purchasing cycle for pretty much any product or service that is supposed for teaching -- the calendar and the budget.
Align Your School Sales Plan to the Academic Calendar
The first and primary factor that influences timing for purchasing of curricular materials may be the start date for the academic year. It should seem obvious that the maximum need to implement new instructional resources is once the school year begins. But the method of evaluating services, budgeting for them, and planning to use them, starts many months before. And, obviously, there are always a couple weeks of variance in the start date for public schools, beginning in early August and running through early September. Marketing to schools to introduce a brand new curricular product or service in the fall, followed by an aggressive promotion that peaks early in the calendar year and is sustained through spring is a proven approach for driving sales for these academic year. 資格教材 買取
Spring Surge in Selling to Schools
Purchasing peaks and valleys in the K-12 school market will also be afflicted with the availability and timing of funds. If your product will probably be bought with a purchase order with funds from the school or school district budget, then your purchasing behavior is driven by the fiscal year. For most public schools, the fiscal year begins on July 1. Accordingly, there is a flurry of shopping for in the late spring and early summer months. If, on one other hand, your product is priced to attract individual teachers (who buy plenty of products with their very own money) then late summer - August and September - could be busy months, and there is another secondary upswing ahead of the start of the next semester.
Education Market Research Reveals Shifts in Timing
What I've described are guidelines for marketing to schools, not rules. Each product and service may have some variation, and you can find shifts in funding patterns, too, that will impact products eligible for federal program dollars. Recently, the impact of legislation and economic recession has made K-12 sales forecasting trickier. It is best to do your homework to assess what purchasing patterns your product probably will experience in the current and anticipated sales environment. Some basic school market research is an excellent starting point. I also suggest you run tests with your own marketing campaigns.
There's one final word regarding school marketing and the school sales cycle, and that word is patience. If you should be considering marketing to schools, know that it's rare for sales to take place as quickly and at the amount that product developers plan on. No matter how fantastic you think your product is, regardless of rave reviews you have had from educators who have previewed your product, be equipped for a slow uptake. The general school buying cycle could be frustratingly sluggish. The first year might seem such as a black hole and losing proposition. But, by after the guidelines in this article, and along with your ongoing awareness of best practices for education marketing, you'll certainly be in sync with the seasonal cycle, and who knows, perhaps you'll beat the odds and your education product will be a wild success with sales pouring in from schools all year long!
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