CASE STUDY

Digital Marketplace for Vocational Training Institutes

Industry

Education

Work Done

Mobile App Development, MVP Development, Web Application Development,

Challenge

The idea was to create a digital marketplace where parents can search for a number of vocational training institutes across the United Arab Emirates, and that they can book and pay for classes through the same app. Parents can create their kids’ profile on the product and browse for after-school activities like – football, yoga or painting classes – with the app also allowing them see what activities their kid’s friends are opting for. One of the key features was that the payments must be offered in installments rather than one-time charge and paid through the app itself to ensure overall digital experience. One out-of-the blue idea that quickly got the clients approval was to create gift cards so that one can gift children a vocational course session as birthday gift.

The reward was to be the first to launch such a mobile app in the UAE, however, scaling it up quickly and keep adding features according to the initial feedback was a task to reckon with. Also, when one is creating payment gateway, security is of prime concern, which was to be taken care of by IT experts.

The solution

Children friendly design and flawless navigation

We got started with creating search friendly product design and navigation that’d be befitting for a digital marketplace. This includes narrowing the searches by kids’ age, interest, location, current activities of the kid’s friends, etc. This helped us in creating an attractive buying experience for first time users; we ensured smooth navigation keeping the non-so-tech-savvy parents in mind.

Building a robust tech system

Our team delivered a robust tech system for payment gateway integration in this product. It was named ‘KiddoPay’ as we pulled off a herculean task of Amazon-Payfort integration keeping security in mind and little to no-documentation of prior work in consideration.

The mobile app had to be scalable as it was expected to receive thousands of hits within its launch. We ensured that the system handles 10,000 hits at a time after the launch on the initial MVP.

Taking care of ever evolving requirements

The initial requirement created a scope to offer the training institutes with ERP solutions for their businesses. As we successfully completed Payfort integration, we can now offer ERP solutions to vocational training businesses which would cost them less than any other CRM software.

Moreover, as the project progressed, a new requirement evolved with the creation of Kiddo-Pay. Since we offered the payment gateway to vocational training services; we can also pitch it to schools. Schools can get monthly installments of Imprest money or tuition fees by using our product. This feature was added in the MVP later on. Moreover, as the project progressed, a new requirement evolved with the creation of Kiddo-Pay. Since we offered the payment gateway to vocational training services; we can also pitch it to schools. Schools can get monthly installments of Imprest money or tuition fees by using our product. This feature was added in the MVP later on.

Going beyond technology

We went ahead of the mandate and helped the client in identifying right vendors by creating scrapping scripts so that they can identify ideal vendors (vocational training institutes) to reach out to. We also created a self-explaining funnel for merchant acquisition. Additionally, we provided our inputs in digital marketing campaigns, merchant acquisition, and analyzing customer behavior.

Technologies used

Results

We ensured a quick launch of the first mobile app in the UAE listing all vocational training institutes, enabling parents to book and pay for classes digitally.

We were well aware that the initial idea had scope of adding many features and that the business will depend on them as it scales. Moreover, as the client was a first-time entrepreneur, and hence requirements were evolving quickly. The task was to keep it to the agreed plan and working simultaneously on new requirements. Our agile approach, vast experience in ecommerce web development and faster feedback from the client enabled us to complete this project within the agreed time.

Here are a few highlights of the performance-

10,000 user sign ups within the first 3 months of launch.
Generated 200% of the anticipated revenue.
2,000 merchants signed up for the product.

Testimonials

What our client says

We wanted to be the first to launch a digital marketplace of vocational training institutes in the UAE. Obviously, we were looking for nothing but perfection. Vikas and his team not only ensured timely delivery but also managed to helped in marketing activities.

Aarti Shah, Founder and CEO at Leo Technologies Ltd