Client Case Study: MYTEK Lab
I recently had the opportunity to work on a communication strategy for MYTEK Lab, an online educational platform offering technology classes to K-12 students. Stephen and Jacky Souders, a computer science/K-12 educator husband/wife team, founded the company 7 years ago, sparked by a passion to help kids learn technology skills they’ll need in the future.
Stephen and I worked together a long time ago, and he reached out to ask if I might be interested in working together again. During our first virtual meeting, Stephen explained that their business was going great, but had plateaued. He and Jacky felt like they had the opportunity to reach more students and grow the business, but needed some help figuring out how to do both. In particular, they wanted help with how to talk about their business to others.
I was so, so excited about this opportunity, not only because I always liked working with Stephen, but because this case merged some of my speciality areas: communication strategy, business strategy, technology, and education. We agreed on a plan, and made it happen!
As I told Stephen and Jacky, they had the important stuff all taken care of. Their product is amazing. They offer professional, detailed, useful courses that run the length of a school year, taught primarily by Stephen, who used to teach college-level courses, and co-designed by Jacky, who used to teach K-12 courses. They are both incredibly hard-working and have impressively built something from the ground up. They set themselves apart from their competitors because they actually offer live instruction, and real-time tutorial help - which means their students really do learn a ton! What impressed me the most about their courses was the hands-on nature of what they do. I learned that their students have created 3D models, a Discord-type chat application, an online forum to help others with MYTEK Lab FAQs, a drawing/paint application, and their very own video games. They also have an intensely loyal group of followers. As I suspected and Stephen confirmed, if someone completes one of their introductory courses, they usually take at least one more advanced one - sometimes going through the entire curriculum.
All they needed was a little help figuring out how to market themselves in the highly competitive arena of online K-12 courses. We discussed several strategies for broadening their target market and developing a sustainable growth trajectory.
For me, the most rewarding part of this work was meeting in real time to learn about their specific challenges, and coming up with cost-effective strategies to solve them. We set short- and long-term goals, and charted a path on how to achieve them. I was able to provide talking points for them to use at conferences and conventions, sample social media posts to help generate more interest and clarify what they offer, and suggestions on how to best pitch their ideas and their product to bloggers, podcasters, and even schools and districts who might want to offer their courses to students. We also talked about big-picture business strategy, including pricing, marketing opportunities, outsourcing help, and different models for sustainable growth.
Stephen also offered this very generous quote about what it was like working with me: “Laura Beth has given us a refreshed and renewed outlook of our business by providing us with so much strategy and advice to take our business to the next level. And even beyond that, she's just a genuine voice of reason we really needed!”
We achieved a lot in just a few weeks’ time. They are gearing up for a really busy school year, with more students than they expected to have at this point in the year! Not only am I proud of the work they’ve started doing for themselves and their business, but I’m really excited to watch them grow in the coming months and years.
I would love more clients like MyTEKLab! I have availability this fall for more projects like this, which require someone to help assess your current business and/or communication plans, and offer concrete steps for growth or change. Contact me if you or your organization wants to talk about the possibility of working together!
