Consumer trends v2

Consumer trends

What are the consumers' needs and the impacts on the education industry?

A growth in online learners in the UK

From 2007 to 2019, the proportion of online learners in the UK rose from 4% to 17%, showing a major change in learning habits -- a shift from traditional face-to-face learning methods to online learning.

The growth in online learners in the UK is a result of trends in the following pages

Share of individuals participating in online courses in Great Britain from 2007 to 2020, Statista (2024)

Consumers have increasing needs for convenience-related products

Convenience is the fastest growing megatrend in developed and emerging economies

(Euromonitor, 2024)

The age group of 30-44 adults is the most likely to spend more on time-saving products

Cross Trend Comparison: Consumer Spend per Capita, 2017-2032，Euromonitor International

Consumers have increasing needs for convenience-related products

IMPACT

More learners favour online learning and use of digital tools as they can learn anytime and anywhere, giving them flexibility and convenience

More educators use digital tools that can integrate with their teaching tasks and all-in-one platforms such as Learning Management Systems to teach eg. Google Classroom, Moodle

E-learning and digital education in the US, Statista, 2024

Consumers have increased demand for personalized experience

Over 70% of customers prefer tailored products/ services and 90% of marketers believe that the future of marketing is personalization (Smart Insights, 2015)

The global personalized learning market is predicted to reach USD 21.20 billion by 2025 (Verified Market Reports, 2023)

Consumers have increased demand for personalised experience

IMPACT

• Personalised learning experience is increasingly becoming a standard for K-12 and higher educational settings

• Over 400 businesses are involved in personalized learning worldwide (Tracxn, 2024)

• Research found that the adoption of personalized learning had positive effects on students’ performance in reading and mathematics, and the students who performed the lowest compared to their peers made significant progress

Pane, J. et al, 2015, as cited in Mesecar, D. 2015

Consumers have increasing needs for collaboration

Collaboration is important in driving innovation and brainstorming

• An interview with 373 global businesses showed that increased collaboration was among the top five strategic agenda that they want to achieve through office spaces (Knight Frank, 2023)

• Increased market size for digital software that faciliate collaboration

Consumers have increasing needs for collaboration

IMPACT

Collaborative tools are increasingly appreciated by consumers

For teachers:

Higher demand for collaborative tools that enables teachers to share ideas

• Forming collaborative communities and collaborating with peers will help improve the efficacy and knowledge of teachers (Hattie, 2015)
• Professional collaborative activities may improve student achievement (Lee & Smith, 1996)

• Researchers have discovered that because online collaboration gives all students the same opportunity to voice their thoughts and ask questions about certain topics, students view it as more independent than face-to-face cooperation (Swan, Shen, & Hiltz 2006; Strijbos, 2011)

For students:

Increased need for teachers to come up with engaging lesson plans that incorporates collaboration

surveyed 7,000 students across 17 countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East

Students identified the following top 3 learning features that should remain or become virtual:

Convenient and easy access to online study materials

Class recordings that they can watch at their own time and own place

Flexibility that enables students to work and study

66%

More than

of global consumers are searching for ways to simplify their lives, with 42% of them willing to spend money to save time.

Between 2017 and 2022, per capita consumer expenditure on convenience-related goods and services increased by

24%

annually on average.