MARKETING SUCCESS TO THE WORLD OF SCHOOLING

I have come to perceive that purveyors of motivational camps to create student success are gradually churning out their own publications to enhance their marketing results in Singapore.

Is it a trend or just a tactical manoeuvre to capture greater market share in a hotly contested marketplace? Remember, Singapore has only slightly more than 4 million people, including one million foreign talent.

'Learning Mastery Pte Ltd.', the company behind the SuperTeen Holiday Camps, has just released its latest publication, 'The Joys & Pains of Growing Up: 17 Principles Every Youth Must Know', written by one of their SuperTeen graduates, Peter Lau.

I have already reviewed this book in my other weblog, 'The Study Smart Smorgasbord'.

To my surprise, this new book has yet to hit the stores.

I am sure that most folks are already familiar with the earlier best-selling book, 'I am Gifted, So Are You', written by Adam Khoo, an earlier SuperTeen graduate, during the late nineties.

I have already reviewed this book in an earlier post.

This particular book has in fact helped Adam Khoo to launch his own training outfit, under the trade name of 'Adam Khoo Learning Technologies Pte Ltd'. The launch actually happened during 2002 0r 2003, immediately after he broke ranks with his mentor, Dr Ernest Wong, who currently runs the SuperTeen Holiday Camps.

Drawing on his entrepreneurial flair, & riding on his earlier success, Adam Khoo has moved on to write & publish a few other books to promote his other training business interests, e.g. neuro-linguistic programming or NLP, wealth creation & Internet marketing.

For a short while, these two smart guys have been the undisputed kingpins in the marketplace, until MindChamps from Australia came into the scene during the early 21st century.

Fueled by the financial muscle of local business tycoon, Quek Leng Beng of the Hong Leong Group in 2007, plus the collaboration of two local stalwart educators, MindChamps have in recent months carved a sizeable niche in the competitive marketplace.

[Please read my earlier post.]

In fact, early this year, MindChamps have released their debut book, 'Deeper than the Ocean: How the Learning Brain is Formed', written by their two founders, David Chiem & Brian Caswell.

I understand this debut book has been designated as the forerunner, Volume I, of a series of other books to be released in due course, which includes:

- Volume II: 'The Art of Communicating with Your Child';
- Volume III: 'The Art of Learning How to Learn';
- Volume IV: 'The Art of Creative Thinking';

I have already read the first book - great stuff! - & will review it shortly in my weblog.

Meanwhile, the competition intensity among the three foregoing purveyors is getting apparently very intense, judging from the extremely high frequency of their respective testimonial ads in the daily newspapers.

Free gifts are being generously offered to attract people just to sign up for their weekend previews, which have also been turned into some sort of mini-seminars for parents.

One purveyor is even offering S$300/- cash for each referral upon signing up for the camp.

Worst still, the intense competition is gradually revealing its ugly head.

For example, MindChamps, writing in the 'Deeper than the Ocean' book (on page 64), have warned parents to "beware of programs built around the work of one guru - often these people develop a cult following among their employees & presenters, who blindly repeat the 'wisdom' of their mentor & unsubstantiated claims, without ever questioning its scientific basis."

They are obviously targeting at the two other entrenched competitors.

On the other hand, a trainer in the SuperTeen Holiday Camp, writing in his personal weblog, under the dateline of 25th April 2008, has asked readers to specifically check out a particular but unnamed competitor's "Advertisements that made Big Claims . . . Who Should You Trust?".

In my mind, a discerning reader/observer can definitely tell that such a exhortation runs smack of the pot calling the kettle black.

Quietly in their own way, 'Quantum Learning Network Pte Ltd.', has also made successful inroads into the hotly contested marketplace.

They run the internationally known SuperCamp programs from the United States, which had first entered Singapore during the early nineties, under the auspices of other marketing companies.

Bobbi dePorter, the founder of the SuperCamp programs (with Eric Jensen), has in fact written 18 great books for businesspeople, parents & teens.

Her first book was 'Quantum Learning: Unleashing the Genius in You', published in mid-1992, in which she shared many of SuperCamp's student success secrets.

Readers can go to Amazon.com website to check out all her books, a few of which has been remodeled for business &/or teaching applications.

I have also learned that two of her former master trainers, Mark Reardon & Rich Allen, have also written their own training books.

In fact, the success of the SuperCamp programs had also been featured in the best-selling book, 'Learning Revolution', by Jeannette Vos & Gordon Dryden, published a few years just after 'Quantum Learning'.

Interestingly, the author, Jeannette Vos, has earned her doctorate in education (Northern Arizona University) after a 7-year empirical research study into the world's most effective method of rapid, fun-filled learning, based on the perceptions of 6,042 SuperCamp graduates age 12-22 during the early nineties.

This is a slice of the results from her research:

- 68% showed increased motivation;

- 73% showed improved grades;

- 81% showed more confidence;

- 84% showed increase self-esteem;

- 96% retained positive attention toward SuperCamp;

- 98% continued to use the skills learned;

As a bookstore owner before, I am most aware of this development:

When come to learning books that are associated with the respective motivational camps, most parents of camp graduates are very generous in their purchase requisitions. As long as their children want to have them as mementos, money is no object.

So, self-published books are big business in their own way. Their retail sales definitely add on to the gross marketing revenue of the purveyors, on top of contributing additionally to the marketing success of their motivational camps.

My best wishes to all the purveyors out there!