Forever a student
Maharashtra PSC Category
Expansion
The major challenge I faced while I was aggressively expanding Maharashtra PSC Exams in Unacademy was too much competition rising up. Surely, due to our amazing value offering, we still remained the leading player, but the speed of growth used to face seasonal slowdowns. It was time to expand through markets that were still untapped and add more revenue layers.
Project Title: Maharashtra PSC Category Expansion
1. Project Overview
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Background: The Maharashtra PSC (MPSC) category was initially scaled from an 8 lakh to a 70 lakh monthly run-rate over two years. However, growth began to plateau, signaling the need for expansion into related domains and commissions.
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Goal: Increase monthly revenue by 20 lakhs.
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Timeline: 1 year
2. Role and Responsibilities
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Position: Category Manager, responsible for strategic planning, execution, and end-to-end project management.
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​Core Responsibilities: Conducted market research, managed on-ground intelligence, developed partnerships, handled budgets and financial projections, and led cross-functional execution to achieve business objectives.
3. Key Challenges
1. High Educator Expectations: Securing top educators proved challenging due to their expectations for compensation and value alignment, both essential for competitive offerings.
2. Student Apathy Due to Exam Delays: Exam postponements led to decreased student motivation, impacting sales cycles and engagement during low seasons.
Significance: These challenges directly impacted the topline, as educator-led promotions are critical to sales. Delays in exams extended lean periods, adversely affecting revenue.
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4. Solutions and Strategies Implemented
[ Challenge 1: Educator Onboarding and Alignment ]
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1. In-Depth Educator Research and Engagement: Conducted strategic conversations with educators across experience levels to understand their motivations and non-negotiables beyond monetary incentives, focusing on factors like brand alignment and career growth.
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2. Value-Driven Partnerships: Proposed personalized value propositions that included:
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Personal Brand Building: Showcased the platform’s role in amplifying educator reach and establishing thought leadership.
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Career Growth and Recognition: Emphasized career development opportunities and provided pathways for recognition.
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Future-Ready Benefits: Highlighted Unacademy’s commitment to evolving with industry trends, offering resources that could future-proof their careers.
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3. Long-Term Engagement: Positioned Unacademy as a strategic partner in shaping the educational landscape, creating alignment with educators’ visions of accessible, quality education.
Result: This approach led to successful educator onboarding, a strong buy-in for course promotion, and reinforced Unacademy’s brand in the market.
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[ Challenge 2: Generating Student Intent ]
1. Positioning as ‘Future-Proof’ Preparation: Framed courses as a long-term investment rather than immediate exam prep, with messaging like, “Prepare now to stay ready for any announcement.”
2. “Stay Ready” Campaign: Created content emphasizing the benefits of consistent preparation, leveraging insights from past MPSC successes to highlight early preparation benefits.
3. Community Engagement Initiatives: Fostered a supportive community of aspirants through study groups, quizzes, and mentorship sessions, maintaining engagement during exam delays.
4. Highlighting Life Skills Beyond Exams: Promoted foundational courses as avenues for personality development and critical thinking, which are beneficial in various career paths.
5. Flexible Enrollment Options: Introduced modular courses and tiered enrollment, allowing students to start small with a gradual commitment, encouraging steady engagement.
6. Social Proof via Success Stories: Shared stories of early-prep students to inspire and reinforce the benefits of readiness.
Result: These strategies improved student engagement, increased course enrollments, and minimized revenue dips during lean periods.
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5. Technologies/Tools Used
• Leveraged in-house product development tools to enhance the platform’s community features, fostering engagement for free users and funneling them toward paid subscriptions.
6. Key Achievements
• Quantitative Outcomes:
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Successfully onboarded 5 educators within the first month, attracting 5000+ students on the app, generating 5+ lakhs in revenue in the 1st month.
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YouTube channel saw 70,000 views and 5,000 new subscribers in the first month.
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Achieved a 20-lakh monthly revenue milestone within 8 months.
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• Quantitative Outcomes:
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The expanded offerings were positively received by students, who viewed the platform as a comprehensive solution for state MH exams, strengthening client relationships and brand perception.
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7. Skills Demonstrated
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Strategic Planning, Market Analysis, Budgeting, and Business Projection: Executed effective planning and financial management to optimize project ROI.
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Leadership and Stakeholder Management: Led cross-functional teams and developed impactful partnerships.
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8. Lessons Learned
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Emphasized the importance of adaptability in product development and the role of strategic partnerships in navigating new market segments effectively.
US Tech Magazine Expansion
I was handling a portfolio of ~26 editions for the US market during my Silicon India tenure as a Sales and Portfolio Lead. Our revenues were solid but naturally, we had to expand as the existing business became sustainable. I launched 3 new markets that were being invested in which were Drone Tech, AI & Agri Tech. These 3 editions gather great responses, especially the audience following startup-sphere. We interviews some of the best emerging companies with the best tech in the market and due to our quality VO, we were a able to achieve additional revenue of 15% to the existing ARR.
Here's the roadmap of the launch and how we successfully achieved ​15% boost on the ARR:
The 'Why'
We started with analysing the technology sectors that were witnessing rise in startups that had future potential. AI market was witnessing a 6X increase in the annual investment levels by venture capital (VC) investors into U.S.-based AI startups since 2000. Similar cases were with Drone and AgriTech.
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Project Title: US Tech Magazine Expansion
1. Project Overview
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Background: Managed a portfolio of 26 US tech magazine editions, generating approximately $13 million in annual sales. To drive growth, the project aimed to add an additional $3 million in sales by expanding into new markets.
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Goal: Increase annual sales by $3 million.
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Timeline: 12–14 months
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2. Role and Responsibilities
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Position: Sales Lead, overseeing market expansion through strategic networking and relationship building with industry leaders in emerging tech sectors.
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Core Responsibilities: Conducted market research, attended trade shows, generated leads, created sales projections, and facilitated cross-functional collaboration to support successful entry and growth in new markets.
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3. Key Challenges
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Building Trust in New Markets: Generating credibility among potential clients in new markets without extensive media coverage posed a significant challenge, as trust is essential for high conversion rates.
Significance: Without establishing credibility, lead generation efforts would result in low conversions, impeding sales growth and impacting the project’s overall revenue goal.
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4. Solutions Implemented
To bridge the trust gap in new markets, we crafted a multi-layered strategy focusing on credibility, industry relevance, and value-driven engagement.
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Establishing Credibility with Industry Experts: Onboarded respected thought leaders from AI, Drone Tech, and Agri-Tech as editorial advisors. Their influence lent authority to our publications, enhancing our credibility.
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Showcasing Expert Insights and Trends: Featured in-depth articles, interviews, and industry panels with these experts, positioning our platform as a trusted resource for actionable insights, appealing to business leaders seeking reliable information.
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Building a Content Ecosystem Across Platforms: Developed active social media channels and published research-driven content, increasing audience engagement and demonstrating our commitment to supporting business growth.
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Consistent Market Presence and Relationship Building: Regularly updated content and actively engaged with readers, building a loyal community. This sustained presence helped businesses view our platform as credible, resulting in a steady increase in conversions.
Result: This approach established a foundation of trust, increasing credibility and conversions in new markets.
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5. Technologies/Tools Used
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Utilized data visualization and presentation tools to analyze trends and present insights effectively.
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6. Key Achievements
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Quantitative Outcomes:
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Achieved $600K in sales from three editions within the first four months post-launch, with a successful strategy for increasing AOV and premium conversions.
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Reached the $3M ARR milestone within 12 months.
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Expanded our advisory panel from 8 to 50 industry experts, further strengthening our market position.
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Qualitative Outcomes:
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The enhanced content and expert insights received positive feedback from readers, positioning our platform as a one-stop resource for critical industry trends and decision-making support.
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7. Skills Demonstrated
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Strategic Planning
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Market Analysis
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Event Sponsorships
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Sales and Lead Funnel Development
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Relationship Development and Networking
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8. Lessons Learned
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Value of Expert-Driven Content: Engaging industry leaders as advisors can significantly enhance credibility in new markets.
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Building Trust through Consistent Engagement: Consistent content updates and audience engagement are essential for establishing a loyal customer base in new territories.
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Flexibility in Sales Strategy: Adapting sales strategies to increase AOV and premium conversion rates can accelerate revenue growth and help achieve ambitious targets.
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