Planning is the art of distributing efforts, actions, and resources over time
Education is a service operating in a sector defined by seasonality for most institutions, where planning, media, and resources are fundamental to the development of strategies aimed at achieving institutional goals.
Time will always be the guiding thread that facilitates the execution of strategic plans. Understanding the market, its timing, and its dynamics is critical when it comes to allocating efforts, actions, and resources. A well-intentioned effort at the wrong time can lead to higher investment with poor results—what may appear to be a failed strategy might in fact be a timing issue, not a conceptual flaw.
On the other hand, and based on our experience, efforts made at the right time can yield significant progress and results at a lower cost. Finding the right combination is vital to achieving outcomes. That’s why ensuring everything happens at the right moment, with the right resources and focus, is key.
At CISD, we’ve experienced firsthand the importance of having a solid planning foundation and a monitoring framework that enables full control over execution. Depending on the institution and the scope of the project, this may require multiple stakeholders—both internal and external—to ensure tighter control and more coordinated implementation.
Digital, of course, but always aligned with other actions (Growth Marketing)
At CISD, we are digital natives, yet we also recognize the importance of traditional marketing—not just as a tool, but as a natural component of a market undergoing transformation. It is essential to maintain an appropriate media mix based on the target audience. It’s widely understood that the decision to pursue an educational service often involves more than one person, which is why strategies must include a variety of touchpoints aligned with the objective.
Every action and effort must be tied to an investment that generates measurable return, in order to clearly define the contribution made to the overall operation. Attribution can be a fascinating topic in this regard—but that’s a conversation for another time.
SCOPE
At CISD, we understand how important it is to tailor our work to the needs of each institution. That’s why we start with a diagnosis that gives us a starting point to align strategy and actions in order to:
- IDefine projects, actions, and their prioritization
- IOutline a timeline-based action plan, considering the market and the institution's internal processes
- IDetermine Scenario A and B (depending on resources and objectives)
- IEstablish investment allocations by project, according to goals
- IDefine the monitoring and results evaluation model (ROI)
- ISet up the control tools
