Marketing Plan for Kaplan University - Case Study Example

Managing People, Finance and Marketing - A Study on Kaplan - Table of Contents I. Executive Summary ………………………………………………… 4 II. Introduction …………………………………………………………. 5 III. Business Objective …………………………………………………. 5 IV. Market Analysis …………………………………………………….. 5 a. History of Higher education in the Indian market ………. 5 b. Higher education in Modern India ………………………. 6 c. Recommended Target Market Segment in India …..……. 6 IV. SWOT Analysis: Kaplan University ……………………………… 8 a. Strength of Kaplan ……………………………………….. 8 b. Weaknesses of Kaplan ……………………………………. 9 c. Opportunities of Kaplan ………………………………….. 9 d. Threats of Kaplan ……………………………………….… 10 V. PESTLE Analysis on Kaplan University …………………………... 10 a. Political Aspects …………………………………………… 11 b. Economic Aspects ……………….………………………… 12 c. Social Aspects ……………….…………………………….. 12 d. Technological Aspects ………………….…………………. 13 e. Legal Aspects …………………..………………………….. 13 f. Environmental Aspects ……………………………………. 13 VI. Industry Analysis of Kaplan University ……………………………. 14 VII. The Marketing Mix of Kaplan University ……………………….…. 14 VIII. Recommended 12-month Marketing Strategy for Kaplan ………….. 16 IX. Conclusion …………………………………………………….……. 17 Appendix I – List of Online Education …………………………………….. 18 Appendix II - SWOT Analysis: Kaplan University ........................................ 19 Appendix III - PESTLE Analysis: Kaplan University ................................… 20 Figure IV - Porter’s Competitive Forces Model ............................................. 21 Figure V – The Marketing Mix of Kaplan University ……………………… 22 References ………………………………………………………………….. 23 - 24 Executive Summary Kaplan University based in the United States is considering the possibility of offering an online education to India. In the process, a marketing study will be conducted using the SWOT analysis, PESTLE analysis, industry analysis, and the marketing mix or the 4 P’s. Among the Indian target markets for online education includes the young individuals who have the discipline for self-studies, students with part-time jobs, individuals who are aiming to get a foreign degree, the housewives and young parents who are searching for an alternative education, professional academicians who needs to improve their teaching skills, and those working professionals who are seeking for higher education just after their graduation or diploma. Based on the over-all market study that was conducted for Kaplan University, the researcher recommends Kaplan marketing personnel to scout for the proper procedure on how to get the courses offered by the university to be recognized by the Indian education system. By doing so, Kaplan University will increase its credibility and convince more Indians to enroll with Kaplan. The university should also provide a more attractive financial planning in order to prevent sudden increase and decrease in the exchange rate. With regards to promotion, Kaplan should consider an alternative way of promoting the course offered online in order to inform those individuals who are not into using the Internet. Among the possible and recommended promotional materials include the Indian business papers, business related and other specialized magazines, etc. Introduction Kaplan University, an accredited online university, was established back in 1937. The university aims to provide a higher level of education among its professional students by offering them a high standard education with the use of the currently available information technology system. Among the educational programs offered at Kaplan University includes courses related to Arts and Sciences, Business, Criminal Justice, Education, Health Sciences, Information Systems and Technology, Legal Studies, Nursing, Travel and Tourism, and other Professional related studies. Kaplan University is basically a part of the Kaplan Higher Education – an educational system that is composed of more than 70 campus-based schools all over 22 states in the United States. The said university uses numerous onsite classroom trainings and online software as part of rendering a high-quality real time services such as private tutoring, extending some academic-based advises and consultancy services to its customers. As part of rendering a high quality educational service to its students, the online university makes huge online library resources available to the Kaplan students. In order to lessen the financial burden to the interested students, Kaplan is offering scholarship programs and financial aid to prospective students who are willing to pursue their further studies with the university. As part of its global expansion particularly in India, Kaplan University needs to conduct a good market analysis in order to promote their online education programs. Even though that online education and distance learning programs offered by the Government and private institutes exists, both are not very popular in India. This study on behalf of Kaplan University, will determine the Indian target market segment as well as the recommended marketing strategy in order for Kaplan to penetrate the Indian market successfully. As part of the study, the researcher will analyze the internal and external capabilities of the Kaplan using SWOT, PESTLE, industry analysis, and the marketing mix using the 4 P’s. In the process, the researcher will identify a new market segment to improve its market share in India. At the end of the study, the researcher will propose a 12-month tactical plan based on Kaplan’s marketing mix (4 P’s) as a way to promote Kaplan’s online education programs in India. Business Objective The objective of the business is to determine the best target market and develop a marketing analysis for Kaplan Online University using SWOT, PESTLE, industry analysis, and the marketing mix using the 4 P’s. Based on Kaplan’s marketing mix (4 P’s), the researcher will develop a 12-month tactical plan as part of promoting Kaplan’s online education programs in India. Market analysis History of Higher education in the Indian market For many years, the higher education system in India has been relying much on the two of the well-known Indian institutions like Nalanda and Taxila. The Indian governments have been extending extra efforts on the Indian educational system from time to time in order to make the primary education accessible and affordable to all levels of the Indian population. In fact, as part of the 86th Amendment to the Constitution of India that was approved by the Parliament back in November 2001, the Indian government is mandated to provide a free and compulsory education to all Indian citizens ages six to fourteen years old. (Yasmeen, 2004) As the result of improving the literacy rate of the Indians regardless of their socio-economic status, India became a 100% literate – means able to read and write. Although in reality, only 10 – 20% of the Indian population is educated. (Ramesh, 2007; Altbach, 2005) The improved primary education in India enables the local citizens to become aware of the importance of higher education. Even though primary education is being taught using their local languages, English is still considered as a popular language for higher education in most colleges and universities in India. Higher education in Modern India The introduction of information technology has changed the face of higher education in India. Globalization and liberalization of Indian economy has its major effects on the Indian higher education. Today, a lot of private Indian universities and educational institutions are dominating the Indian market of higher education. For more than a decade, distance education and online learning is also slowly gaining its recognition and importance similar to those of a campus-based education. In general, the mind-set of most Indians is still focused on being able to acquire campus-based studies. This makes the distance education and online learning education a second preference among the Indian youth. There is relatively a very small percentage of professional students go for higher education through distance education due to inconvenience. All students taking distance education are required to attend several classes and take the examination(s) at various testing centers. Also, there are a very small percentage of students who look for foreign degrees. Most of these individuals belonging to affluent class are the ones who are able to meet the high cost of higher education. Recommended Target Market Segment in India Based on the current student data base of Kaplan online students including the statistical data of other related online universities such as webindia123.com, the Indian target markets for online education should be the young individuals who have the discipline for self-studies, students with part-time jobs, individuals who are aiming to get a foreign degree, the housewives and young parents who are searching for an alternative education, professional academicians who needs to improve their teaching skills, and those working professionals who are seeking for higher education just after their graduation or diploma. Most of the young Indian students are looking for institutions that offer campus placements as their choice. On the other hand, those working students generally look for either campus education or distance education. The best target markets for online education are those individuals who are looking for serious employment such as a managerial or supervisory cadre position since a higher education could increase their chance for future promotion. Considering the amount of time these young individuals have to spend time on work, most of them simply enroll themselves through a distance education. Employed married women are also good target for online education since most of them would prefer to spend their time at home after their office hours for the sake of the family. SWOT Analysis: Kaplan University A SWOT Analysis is an effective marketing tool that can be used in determining the internal strength and weakness as well as the external opportunities, and threats of Kaplan University. (Net MBA, 2007a) Strength of Kaplan Since 1937, Kaplan has established a good reputation in educational industry throughout the United States in terms of being able to offer a high quality education. The length of Kaplan’s experience in terms of rendering educational services to the public adds up to the qualification of the university. It also enables the university to establish a strong domestic market networks due to its outstanding reputation in the education industry. In the most recent years, Kaplan is able to extend its educational services globally by offering an online-based education system. Financial difficulties among the students are not considered as a problem since Kaplan is offering affordable tuition in exchange for their good quality education by extending financial aid and granting scholarship to deserving students. Weakness of Kaplan It is a general knowledge that online education cannot be effective to all the Indians since there are specific personal qualities that are suitable for this type of education. A strong background with the use of information technology and the ability of the prospective students’ to have the discipline to study on their own are two of the most important qualification for the prospective students to be able to work well with online education. The weakness of Kaplan lies behind the fact that the university lacks an efficient and accurate marketing study on the prospective Indian market. This study is very important since it will provide the university a rough estimation regarding the number of qualified prospective students who will be able to learn effectively through self-study process. Another weakness of Kaplan is the fact that the online university, although it exists in the Indian market (See Appendix I – List of Indian-Based Online Education on page 18), is not popular among the Indians. It is most likely that this may be the result of insufficient or lack of effective marketing promotional activities in order for them to penetrate the Indian market. Opportunities of Kaplan Considering that India is the second largest populated country worldwide with a very high population of English speaking individuals and extensive knowledge on information technology, there is a very big opportunity for Kaplan to becomes successfully profitable from the said market segment. Threats of Kaplan Among the threats for Kaplan Online education is the fact that several universities offer online education and distance learning in the Indian market. For several years, distance learning and online education is very much accepted in India. (Gupta, 2005: 10) Considering that most of the Government-owned Public Universities in India offers a very poor educational level, a lot of Indians who has the financial capacity either goes to the United States or other nearby countries in Asia or simply take advantage of the virtual, online, and distance education offered by well-established universities worldwide. (See Appendix II – SWOT Analysis: Kaplan University on page 19) PESTLE Analysis on Kaplan University A framework called PESTLE will be used in illustrating the macro-environmental aspects of Kaplan’s target market in India. PESTLE stands for ‘Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental analysis.’ (TVU, 2007) Identifying the forces behind PESTLE makes the external environmental analysis much easier for Kaplan University. Political Aspects Even though the Indian Universities are highly controlled by the Indian government (Kak, 2005, the political environment of education in India is considered as weak in terms of prioritising the educational standard development (Ramesh, 2007). Also, the Indian government in general does not support the Western-based education system. (Upadhyay, 2001) According to Upadhyay (2001), most of the Indian political thinkers believe that the western education focuses more on “materialistic prosperity as a way for social advancement” and ignoring the Indian cultural heritage that is very much linked with spiritualism. Based on Tilak’s speech in 1908: “Religious education is necessary since the study of high principles could keep us away from evil pursuits.” For this reason, de-westernisation of the Indian education system with the nationalist curriculum in schools and universities has been a part of the Hindu nationalist forces for many years. Another political factor that may affect the Kaplan’s online target market is the fact that the Indian government politicians do not support a strong government funded school network that is necessary in providing a good quality education system in the country. (Yasmeen, 2004) This results to a poor quality education system that is provided to majority of the Indian population. Considering that only 10 – 20% of the Indian University graduates are educated (Ramesh, 2007; Altbach, 2005), the potential target market for Kaplan University is very much reduced in terms of the population size. Economic Aspects As part of India’s economic development, the country is facing enormous economic success in relation to high-tech industries such as information technology and biotechnology. During the past recent years, globalisation and the tight competition in the market are starting to create a significant need for a good quality higher education among the Indians. (Altbach, 2005) The increased knowledge and skills coming from a good quality higher education will eventually enable the local Indians to become competitive in grabbing higher paying jobs. Despite the large population in India, there is still a very wide gap between the education and learning opportunities between the rich and the poor. Considering that there are only limited individuals who could afford to send their children to good universities, it has been reported that Indian has only three best Indian universities known as the Indian Institute of Science, IIT Kharagpur, and University of Calcutta. (Kak, 2005) Social Aspects There is a large population of uneducated Indians due to poverty since only a few individuals could afford high tuition for higher education. Between male and female, there is a higher rate of low literacy among Indian girls than boys. (Khan, 2004) For this reason, it is expected that lesser Indian women would be qualified to be a target market for Kaplan online education. Considering those Indian students who were able to afford to go to high quality university in India, roughly 86% of these students in the field of Science and Technology go to the United States to pursue their further studies or MBA degree. (Altbach, 2005) This figure roughly indicates the potential students for Kaplan University. Technological Aspects Despite the available 240 universities in India, only 25% of the Indian universities are having a world-class education. (Ramesh, 2007) Basically, the level of education in India is not based on what is generally acceptable in the educational curriculum of other developed countries. For this reason, the use of technology in relation to the Indian education is not advanced. Legal Aspects Online education is basically legal in India. (Gupta, 2005: 10) However, private universities who wish to provide higher education in India has to follow the Indian constitutional provisions and its subsequent court judgment. Legally speaking, Private Universities Act should only “facilitate establishment of private universities with a view to create a supplementary resources for assisting the state government in providing quality higher education.” (Education in India, 15 February 2005) In order for Kaplan University to be recognized by the Indian education system, Kaplan should seek for accreditation through the Indian Department of Education in order to legalize its degrees throughout India. Environmental Aspects It is a common knowledge that in order for a local citizen in India that they could never get a good quality education within their country. For this reason, most of the Indian professionals are searching for higher educational quality outside the country. This makes it widely acceptable for most of the local Indians who could afford to pay high tuition for higher education to go abroad or take an online degree. (Gupta, 2005: 10) (See Appendix III – PESTLE Analysis: Kaplan University on page 20) Industry Analysis for Online Education There is a very high threat of new potential entrants in online education. Among the potential entrants includes the existing domestic and foreign colleges and universities. These educational institutions could easily create a website where the students and the teachers could interact according to the preferred course of each student. There is also a high threat of substitute to online education. Among the common substitute for online education includes the traditional classroom-based learning in different domestic and international based colleges and universities. Domestic and Foreign universities could also offer online learning education to Indian citizens. Since there are a lot of substitute to online education, the purchasing power of potential buyers is significantly high. Basically, potential students have a lot of options other than the Kaplan online education. Therefore, the amount of tuition could significantly have an impact over the potential annual sales of Kaplan University. On the other hand, the sellers have a very low bargaining power since there is a very long list of universities and colleges that could anytime offer online education to students globally. (See Figure IV – Porter’s Competitive Forces Model on page 21) The Marketing Mix of Kaplan University Marketing mix is simply the analysis of Kaplan University’s 4 P’s known as product, price, place and promotion. (Net MBA, 2007b) Basically, the target markets of Kaplan as the Indian professionals and competitive individuals who could afford to pay competitive tuition for a better higher education. Kaplan University is a well-known and established educational institution in the United States. The said university offers high quality education to Kaplan students. The only problem with these courses is the fact that these courses especially the medical courses are not officially recognized by the Indian educational system. The price or the tuition of Kaplan courses is competitive enough as compared to other U.S. based universities. In order to keep the tuition more affordable to the public, the university is offering a financial aid option to students. Kaplan also grants scholarship program to those who are academically deserving students. For those individuals who would choose for an early payment option, the student will be given a discounted price in return. The only constraint in the price is the fact that foreign student, the Indians in this case will have to deal with constantly fluctuating currency. With regards to the place, Kaplan online learning can be is easily accessible online. There is literally no possible constraint(s) for place since it is easily accessible online. As part of Kaplan’s promotion, the university provides adequate information about the courses / programs offered to prospective students at their official website at http://www.kaplan.edu/ku/default.aspx?loc=campus. Basically, Kaplan is using online or Internet based marketing strategy to capture prospective students globally. The only constraint with this type of promotional activity is the fact that those individuals who are not into using computers will not be informed about online education. This will serve as an added opportunity loss for Kaplan University. (See Figure V – The Marketing Mix of Kaplan University on page 22) Recommended 12-month Marketing Strategy for Kaplan During the first six month, it is necessary for Kaplan University personnel to scout for the proper procedure on how to get the courses offered by the university to be recognized by the Indian education system. By doing so, Kaplan University would be increasing their credibility and potential to penetrate the market of India easily and effectively. Considering the courses and program offered by Kaplan University, the specific courses applicable or in demand in India should be taken into consideration. It is possible for Kaplan to promote courses that most Indians are interested in. Concerning the price and the constant fluctuation in the currency, the university should also provide a more attractive financial planning in order to prevent sudden increase and decrease in the exchange rate. In line with this matter, it is highly recommended that Kaplan should apply a fix exchange rate for each course within a given period of time. With regards to promotion, Kaplan should consider an alternative way of promoting the course offered online in order to inform those individuals who are not into using the Internet. Among the possible and recommended promotional materials include the Indian business papers, business related and other specialized magazines, etc. Conclusion Among the potential Indian target markets for online education includes the young individuals who have the discipline for self-studies, students with part-time jobs, individuals who are aiming to get a foreign degree, the housewives and young parents who are searching for an alternative education, professional academicians who needs to improve their teaching skills, and those working professionals who are seeking for higher education just after their graduation or diploma. Conducting a detailed marketing analysis in the case of Kaplan University will be useful in planning and designing a more effective marketing plan. The said marketing plan will be designed according to the specific needs of the university. A SWOT analysis is necessary in order to accurately determine the internal strength and weaknesses of the university including the external factors such as threat and opportunities. PESTLE analysis is also useful in examining the macro-economic factors that could affect the potential market of Kaplan. Determining the marketing mix of Kaplan University’s 4 P’s known as product, price, place and promotion enable us to develop a list of recommended 12-month marketing strategy for the said university. *** End *** Appendix I – List of Online Education 1. Baker College Online in Michigan 2. Bellevue University in Nebraska 3. Capella University in Minnesota 4. Capitol College in Maryland 5. Cadean University in Illinois 6. Colorado Technical Univesity in Colorado 7. Concord Law School in New York 8. Devry University in Illinois 9. Florida Metropolitan University in California 10. Jones International University in Colorado 11. Kaplan College in Iowa 12. Keiser College in Florida 13. Keller Graduate School in Illinois 14. Norwich University in Vermont 15. NTU – National Technological University in Minnesota Note: See the rest of the list at http://www.webindia123.com/career/online/list_all.asp Appendix II - SWOT Analysis: Kaplan University Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats Kaplan has established a good reputation in educational industry in the United States in terms of being able to offer a high quality education. Lack of efficient and accurate marketing study on the Indian market. India is the second largest populated country worldwide. Distance learning and Online Education is widely offered by worldwide universities to the Indian market. Kaplan has established a domestic and international market networks using an online-based education system. Kaplan is not popular among the Indians due to lack of effective marketing promotional activities. India has a high population of English speaking individuals. Other online-based universities could easily penetrate the Indian market through proper marketing promotional activities. Kaplan offers affordable tuition by extending financial aid and granting scholarship to deserving students. Online education cannot be effective to all the Indians. The use of information technology such as the Internet is very popular among the Indians. Appendix III - PESTLE Analysis: Kaplan University Political Economic Social Indian government is not giving priority to the development of Standard in Indian education. (Ramesh, 2007) There is a widening education and learning opportunity gap between the rich and the poor. Roughly 86% of Indian students in the field of Science and Technology go to the United States to pursue their further studies or MBA degree. (Altbach, 2005) The Indian political thinkers are very much against the westernisation of the Indian educational system. (Upadhyay, 2001) Indian has only three best Indian universities known as the Indian Institute of Science, IIT Kharagpur, and University of Calcutta. (Kak, 2005) There is a large population of uneducated Indians due to poverty since only a few individuals could afford high tuition for higher education. Indian Universities are highly controlled by the Indian government. (Kak, 2005) Globalisation and tight competition for higher paid employment requires a good quality education among the Indians. (Altbach, 2005) There is a higher rate of low literacy among Indian girls due to poverty. (Khan, 2004) Technological Legal Environmental Despite the available 240 universities in India, only 25% of the Indian universities are having a world-class education. (Ramesh, 2007) Online education is basically legal in India. (Gupta, 2005: 10) Indians are searching for higher educational quality. Therefore, most of the Indians who could afford higher education either goes abroad or take an online degree. (Gupta, 2005: 10) Figure IV - Porter’s Competitive Forces Model Figure V – The Marketing Mix of Kaplan University References: 1 Altbach, Philip (2005) ‘A World-Class Country without World-Class Higher Education: India’s 21st Century Dilemma’ International Higher Education. Summer 2005; No. 40. < http://www.bc.edu/ > 2 ‘Education in India, 15 February 2005’ in Gupta, Asha (Eds.) ‘International Trends in Higher Education and the Indian Scenario’ Paper CSHE. September 2005. pp. 1 – 25. 3 Gupta, Asha (2005) ‘International Trends in Higher Education and the Indian Scenario’ Paper CSHE. September 2005. pp. 1 – 25. 4 Kak, Subhash (2005) ‘India has no Plan to Upgrade Education!’ Rediff.com. December 21, 2005. < http://www.rediff.com/ > 5 Khan, Wahidul Hasan (2004) ‘Barriers to Girl’s Education’ India Together. June 2004. < http://www.indiatogether.org/ > 6 NetMBA (2007a) ‘Strategic Management: SWOT Analysis’ < http://www.netmba.com/ > 7 Net MBA (2007b) ‘Marketing Mix’ < http://www.netmba.com/ > 8 Ramesh, TA (2007) ‘Present System and Higher Education in India’ Boloji.com. February 3, 2007. < http://www.boloji.com/ > 9 TVU (2007) ‘P.E.S.T.L.E Analysis: A Management Technique to Help You Understand the External Environment in which the Organization Operates’ Faculty of Professional Studies – Thames Valley University. < http://www.trainingessentials.org.uk/ > 10 Upadhyay, R. (2001) ‘The Politics of Education in India: Need for a National Debate’ South Asia Analysis Group. Paper No. 299. August 21, 2001. < http://www.saag.org/ > 11 Yasmeen, Summiya (2004) ‘Swelling Support for Common Schools’ India Together. July 2004. < http://www.indiatogether.org/ > Read More