Helping older adults get set up
GetSetUp and the EdTech industry. www.getsetup.io
What is GetSetUp?
GetSetUp is a Peer-to-Peer online education platform focused on teaching and enriching older adults. Through its website, www.getsetup.io, GetSetUp offers live group or one-on-one classes in a range of categories including, but not limited to, Aging in Place, Financial Planning, and Technology. Led by VC firm Rethink Education, GetSetUp raised $10M in funding over 3 rounds of investment (as of Oct. 13th, 2020). Powered by co-founders Neil Dsouza and Lawrence Kosick, GetSetUp is a website service in the Education Technology market: worth $89.1B globally.
How does it Work?
Users sign up on the GetSetUp platform and register for an available class that fits their schedule and budget. Alternatively, users can search for a class by category. There is also a number on the website that assists users in booking a class.
Once a class is selected, users can export the event to their calendars. When it's session time, users can join the event through a button prompt that opens a video conference call. After the session has ended, GetSetUp will send class notes to the attendees, recapping the takeaways via email.
As of now, all classes on the platform are free. However, the platform offers 3 different pricing plans: Starter, Explorer, and Unlimited.
What are the industry trends?
The global Education Technology market size is estimated to be $89.1B. Yuanfudo, the largest EdTech Unicorn, raised $200M in December 2020, taking its valuation to $15.5B and topping the list of global EdTech Unicorns. The market has been dominated primarily by Chinese firms. An estimated 63% of global EdTech venture capital came from China, growing vastly with only 26% a decade ago in 2010. In contrast, only 78 EdTech firms have come out of the YCombinator startup accelerator since its Summer 2005 program.
GetSetUp, based in the US, has 88% of its traffic from the US itself. And 9% from India. The majority of the US EdTech market is focused on K-12 learning. GetSetUp has positioned itself in the small minority of companies focusing on Lifelong Learning. Companies like Lessons Paths and GetSetUp are competing to dominate the EdTech market for older adults.
Depending on what you consider GetSetUp's market to be, it either has a long road ahead, competing with EdTech giants like BYJU's and Coursera or, it has positioned itself exactly where it wants to be: an EdTech monopoly amongst older adults.
Our 2 cents...
According to Peter Thiel, competition is intrinsically damaging. Consider GetSetUp's market: if the aim is to become the one-stop-shop for all customers seeking a cheaper alternative to classrooms, then the mountain to climb might seem like Everest. However, if GetSetUp is focusing on a minority demographic such as older adults who need assistance with subjects like technology, it might seem like a recipe for success. Questions arise when considering the target market of such a company like, 'Can the users take a class on how to use the website itself?' Considering all classes on GetSetUp are currently free, I'm curious to see the pricing model of the company when it decides to scale. How much is too much for retired adults with no income seeking to better themselves? Or how little is too little for a company aiming to be self-sufficient?
Sources:
holoniq.com, ycombinator.com, grandviewresearch.com, ycdb.co