The Evolution of Marketing Strategies Around the College Entrance Exam (Gaokao)
Although the annual Gaokao has concluded, various K12 companies are still deploying diverse marketing tactics centered around the exam. From setting up water stations at exam sites in the past to collect parent data, to today's use of new media, score estimation, and volunteer counseling services, the Gaokao tests not only students' academic knowledge but also the innovation of marketing activities.
Setting up awnings, water stations, small gifts — traditional marketing methods around Gaokao exam sites in the past
For years, Gaokao exam sites, as highly concentrated locations for parents and students, have drawn significant attention from educational institutions. Despite various obstacles from authorities on exam day, institutions have always found creative ways to capture student resources at these sites.
Compared to the "simple and crude" method of handing out flyers, educational institutions realized early on that providing water stations for parents allowed them to "legitimately" set up at exam sites. Neither schools nor city management units objected to services aimed at helping parents during the exam. Through a cup of water, field promoters could naturally connect with parents and obtain their contact information.
By the end of the day, the data collected at each exam site was often substantial, sometimes several times more than typical ground-level promotions. The author once saw field promoters at a particular exam site fill three full sheets of paper with collected data in a single day.
Of course, this method also incurred higher marketing costs than standard ground promotions. Generally, larger companies adopted this approach. For smaller institutions, they had to resort to handing out fans or flyers to strike up conversations with parents, operating guerrilla-style around the exam sites.
Promotion at Gaokao exam sites was a microcosm of how institutions marketed around the exam in previous years. Typically, these marketing methods were traditional, including print ads, ground-level intercepts, and volunteer counseling.
New media, Gaokao score estimation — marketing under the influence of the internet and educational technology
Compared to traditional marketing methods from earlier years, this year saw more internet education companies participating in brand marketing around the Gaokao. Leveraging their technological capabilities, they quickly uploaded the actual exam questions and answers to their products, offering students features like answer checking and score estimation. While providing technology and content, they also repeatedly boosted their own brand exposure.
Baidu Wenku and its education product Baidu Miti organized nearly 200 teachers to solve the Gaokao questions and quickly uploaded the answers to Wenku and the Miti app. Additionally, teachers broke down subjective questions into scoring points, ultimately offering students a "lightning score estimation" feature. According to official data, within two days after the Gaokao ended, visits to Baidu Wenku and Miti exceeded 100 million. Yuantiku relied on its own teaching and research team to upload all 146 sets of Gaokao questions and answers within a day after the exam, providing students with score estimation services.
Furthermore, before the Gaokao, question bank-based educational technology companies used databases and algorithms to create prediction papers and key question sets. While these were similar in form to traditional teaching materials or educational institutions, they relied more on technological support rather than individual teacher experience.
Additionally, with the increase in various self-media and new media channels, educational institutions have widely adopted these methods for marketing. Typically, word-of-mouth spreads more easily through social media.
Take TAL Education as an example. Starting a few days before the Gaokao, TAL launched a series of marketing activities under the theme "Gaokao, No Fear." Channels included H5 pages, Weibo, WeChat, Tieba, and Toutiao. Content ranged from industry-focused news like the acquisition of Gaokao Pai and the launch of the Gaokao Bang app, to student-oriented cross-industry collaborations with singer Shao Yibei, and parent-focused articles on psychological adjustment for exam takers.
From a timing perspective, on June 2, TAL announced a cross-industry collaboration with Qunar to offer 50% discounts on exam-period hotel rooms and officially launched a 30-day student companionship plan. Over the next two days, they released industry news about Gaokao Bang and Kaoyan Bang, and further promoted through online platforms like Toutiao and offline channels like bus ads. Simultaneously, they released a cross-industry collaboration with Shao Yibei. Under the fermentation of social media channels, by June 5, the social media topic "Gaokao, No Fear" had surpassed 1 million mentions.
Although the Gaokao has ended, companies are still active in new media marketing. TAL, Yuantiku, and others have launched H5 pages for retaking Gaokao questions. Compared to pre-exam targeting, these H5 pages lean more toward brand marketing. As a "national high-stakes exam," everyone has memories and emotions tied to the Gaokao. Taking the test and sharing scores naturally boosts dissemination.
As for the future evolution of these marketing methods, with the advancement of technology, we can expect to see even more marketing tactics and approaches. Features like the rapid score estimation seen this year can genuinely serve students, and we hope to see more such innovations emerge.
Polyv provides the most powerful video technology services for online education, offering a secure, reliable, high-definition, and smooth video experience.
