Author: Balaraju Kondaveeti (CEO, BodhBridge) | LinkedIn
Why is Career Guidance Important?
“Mera beta doctor banega” (my son will be a doctor) is one of the most popular memes on the Internet and not without any reason. In our country, branches like engineering or medicine are viewed as the big ticket to success, while other branches are frowned upon. However, not all students aspire to a career in these streams. Choosing the apt path may seem daunting and many end up feeling clueless. This is precisely where career counselling comes into play.
What exactly is career counselling in the first place? It is a process where a professional helps a student or a working professional (in the case of switching paths) understand various career paths that exist and aids in choosing the right one using standardised tests.
This begs the question - how do you set up a successful career counselling business? What is required to start one? How to reach the consumers and benefit them? In order to answer these pressing queries, let us begin by understanding the sector and associated growth opportunities.
What is the opportunity in Career Guidance?
The student sub-segment alone has about 1.5 crore to 2 crore students per grade between grades 8 and 12. These numbers only keep increasing year after year. This means a cumulative total of 7.5 crore students across the country who could benefit from the service, which is a huge market. Many schools have made career guidance mandatory and psychometric tests as a part of the Boards, while some seek it voluntarily - the concept has generated curiosity in the minds of students, teachers and parents. It will take more time to penetrate the rural space. The appeal isn’t restricted only to the private sector.
Remarkably, the Government has also shown interest in the implementation of various career guidance projects and career guidance for students in Government schools. This indicates that the demand is high since it helps minimize dropouts. Corporates and NGOs are prepared to fund these missions, as a part of their CSR initiatives.
With a market that big, does that imply you can consider all as customers? The answer is an emphatic no. There is an adage which says that you can’t satisfy everyone and hence you must choose who you wish to cater to. Each segment comes with unique needs and pain points. For instance, segmentation can be done based on the board of education (CBSE, ICSE, etc.) or grade (be it 8/9/senior grades) or geography.
What services can you offer as part of Career Guidance?
Now that you know the who and what of the subject, you would be curious to know - how can I go about setting up a business? How can I communicate with my potential consumers?
There are multiple business models that you can offer your consumers - personal (customized) or 1:1 counselling, which is very much in demand via direct counselling (face to face) or virtual/remote counselling. For the direct method, consider using co-working spaces and not your office building until your revenue becomes sustainable. Both types use psychometric tests to assess the client thoroughly before putting forth recommendations. However, this type alone wouldn’t suffice to sustainably build a business in the long run. A recommendation here would be to go for other options such as competitive-exam-specific counselling where you can not only support them with preparation for exams like GRE, IELTS, CAT, etc; where you can not only counsel them but also share course materials and even teach them. This will also effectively communicate that you do not limit yourself only to your core competence.
Other models include college or branch-related counselling - which is meant for students who have completed grades 10 or 12. The former group is confused about which branch to pursue in grades 11 and 12, while the latter category is concerned both about which college and specialization to choose. For example, if it is engineering or medicine, parents are concerned about which domain to go with or if it is a degree like B.Com or BBA, they wish to know the best college in the zone to send their children to.
In addition to the above options, there is a growing need for mental health counsellors as a part of career guidance in schools. While you have to play the long game in convincing schools, it can prove to be a very solid partnership. As a counsellor, you can also foster a training arm, through which you can offer services to students.
The study abroad segment is a lucrative one for counsellors with the potential to generate maximum revenue. Your role would be to guide students in choosing the right universities and paying money, service and consulting fees. Currently, there are at least 3000+ successful counsellors thriving in this sub-segment, with at least 500 in Hyderabad. With respect to the local colleges, a lot of support is required for deemed universities, and private colleges, and connecting programs that eventually help with admissions. You can choose full-time or freelancing for this option.
How to create a brand for yourself?
Now that you are armed with the knowledge of the market size, scope, impact and types of counselling, let us examine how to create a career counselling brand. The procedure isn’t linear, it involves a patient approach towards gradually building a brand that speaks for itself. The first step involves creating the USP or unique selling proposition. This statement will help in demarcating and communicating what value the service will add to the lives of your consumers.
It is imperative to have a captivating brand identity to cut the clutter. It should have a good logo and visuals or creatives that should convey what it stands for. It is crucial to maintain consistency in brand voice across all platforms you use so that the consumer comprehends the values and understands the essence of your brand. Other marketing strategies you can adopt are steady content marketing and storytelling, paid advertising, evaluating the success of digital campaigns, establishing a referral network, networking within the industry and fostering connections with related professionals.
Each platform is a great opportunity to connect with your customers and a good presence can help build credibility for the brand in the long run, which will attract more consumers. It is also important to maintain a good website and consistently post useful content on the website. Post compelling content on Linkedin and other social platforms and showcase your activities, establishing a solid digital presence.
You should also pursue certifications that let you develop skills and showcase your expertise in the field. This will increase your credibility with potential clients, eventually strengthening the brand. You can obtain the Pearson Career Counselling certification, as it can give the necessary impetus to your business and establish your business. Highlight your wins clearly on your website and Linkedin.
This brings us to the next aspect of consideration a.k.a the crucial aspect - finance. While starting and setting up a brand, attempt to operate out of a shoestring budget and not an extravagant one.
You can start as a one-man show and expand to a 20 or 25-member team. A strong recommendation here would be to build a revenue model that becomes sustainable over 6 months or a year. You can offer additional training services or coaching for competitive exams to aid you in that pursuit. The best practice would be to implement budgeting financial planning and pricing services effectively, keeping in mind that the market is a price-sensitive one.
How to use technology?
The third and the main cog in the wheel is the operations block. This is the pillar that ensures that your vision translates well into reality. While we have seen the direct option, the virtual method is a more suitable option till you establish your business. A major point of contention is to leverage the technology without compromising client confidentiality. A proper appointment booking flow is essential in ensuring a seamless process for the consumers.
The above blocks bring together an entire jigsaw puzzle which is career counselling. To ensure that the client gains out of the session, you must be empathetic and actively listen to the clients, integrate the above tools whenever required in counselling sessions, measure client success by setting clear goals and objectives, and meticulously track progress and outcomes.
Last but not least, do not forget to collect feedback and testimonials from customers as nothing reflects better about a brand than the authentic voice of the customer. With these points, go ahead and become the voice of reason for the students and guide them toward their respective goals. Even the biggest monuments start as small bricks, so take that first step today, no matter how small it looks!
