As the edtech space gains steam during the lockdown, a number of players operating in the space have attracted investor a...
Problem
Current education tools are complicated and disjointed
The purely-online mode of learning outside the classroom cannot go on forever. Schools will eventually re-open completely, but can education be said to be complete without the use of technology and internet in a classroom?
Learning management systems (LMS), student information systems (SIS), content management systems (CMS), and other tech tools used in classrooms today such as Blackboard, Canvas, Moodle, PowerSchool, etc. are outdated, complex, and take too long to onboard.
Additionally, it's a hassle for teachers, students, and parents to use 10 different tools just to get through one school day. Wouldn't it be great if everything you needed was included in a single app?
Solution
illumnus is an easy-to-use digital platform that makes education communication seamless
illumnus makes teaching centralized, simplified, and collaborative, with a chat-based digital platform for educational institutes. We create true collaborative learning with our device-agnostic and chat-based platform. Our collaborative Learning Experience Platform (LXP) allows premier schools and universities to simplify the communication flow among students and teachers, even after school hours.
We are evolving every day and ultimately aspire to be the only tech tool a school will ever need.
Product
The best of online learning integrated with classroom education
illumnus connects students, teachers, parents, and school administrators through a simplified, chat-based platform and takes care of all the learning requirements. We offer in-class video streaming, multi-user whiteboards, in-class polling, auto-graded exams, real-time performance trackers, teacher engagement stats, and direct messaging. The platform works on the desktop, as well as Android and iOS. Our platform makes communication as easy as possible, allowing students, teachers, and parents to focus on what’s really important: learning.
Traction
6k+ users and 24 clients in the first 3 months
illumnus has seen immediate interest from the educational market. We have onboarded 24 clients and 6k+ users in the first 3 months in India, the UAE, and the UK. Our current MRR is $1800, which we hope to triple by the end of March 2021.
Customers
Our platform is built for everyone in the educational ecosystem
illumnus was created to connect everyone within any school, college, or coaching institute, including teachers, students, administrators, and parents. Our platform has been received with open arms from educational institutions across the world.
We're early in our journey, but are confident that more and more institutions will trust and adopt illumnus as we further build and develop our product.
Business model
B2B subscription-based pricing model
illumnus currently employs a B2B subscription-based pricing model. The pricing for our basic plan is $1/student/month, and our premium plan is $2/student/month. We are currently in the process of expanding our business by moving from a sales-driven onboarding model to a marketing-driven self-onboarding model. After March 2021, any school in the world will be able to easily start using our product within a day only be uploading one excel sheet.
Market
Tapping into a massive $15B+ market
Based on the digital spends on schools all over the globe, we estimate our Total Addressable Market size as at least $15B (These are very conservative estimates and pre-pandemic numbers).
Going ahead, we only expect the number to grow. We are targeting the global B2B K12 education market with a focus on North America, Europe, and the Middle East.
Competition
Catering to all learning-related requirements
illumnus caters to all learning-related requirements in a school. The market is divided and every big company is catering to certain specific requirements. This makes the teachers' and administrators' lives chaotic. Because of our intense focus on centralization and simplification, we are uniquely positioned in the EdTech sector.
Vision and strategy
Expanding to 7k+ schools in 60 months
With your help, illumnus will improve the product to a level where we can call ourselves the Salesforce/Google of B2B education. We'll be able to scale rapidly with a focus on North America, Europe, and the Middle East. We plan to have 7K+ schools using illumnus in the next 60 months which shall take our ARR to ~$1B.
Also, subscription-based revenue is only the enabler of the game. Once all the participants in thousands of schools across the world start using illumnus, there shall arise multiple opportunities for cross-selling and upselling.
Funding
Currently raising $900K to support product enhancement and scaling
Illumnus is currently raising $900K. We previously raised $140K from friends, family, and some Dubai-based Angel investors.
Funding from this round will go towards setting up a front office in Dubai, hiring top technology and marketing talent, and scaling to 600+ schools.