Fubo Hou becomes an entrepreneur after graduating, focusing on education. We had an interview with him previously about himself and his perspective considering entrepreneurs in China. (Refer to the article by this link: https://medium.com/@zuoyidanhppy/do-you-want-to-be-entrepreneur-after-graduate-333f6f15eaf3.) This time, we interviewed with him more about the market he is facing.
How big is your market and what area of the market are you currently focusing on?
The market is really small. We mainly focus on elementary students who went to school next to our office. Also, we focus on any referrals given by our friends and our family members.
How does your current market differ from what you thought before?
To be honest, there is not really big market as I thought. In the beginning, I thought everyone who is interested in our teachings will come and learn. It is not possible. When parents choose a school, they will think about how your place is convenient for them. Also, there are not many students who want to study. They are want to play after school. Therefore, our market should focus on parents instead of students.
How do you deal with the different thoughts of parents and students?
Yes, as I have mentioned, students do not want to study, but their parents usually want them to learn something instead of playing at home. For us, we first need to make our parents trust us and our teaching. Also, we need to make children happy. We teach differently so they are having fun while learning.
What do you feel is the most important innovation happening right now for your industry?
I think technology still changes my industry. Especially for English teaching, students prefer to study by iPad or computer. They want to be different and utilized all the technology. For us, we cannot totally adapt to technologies. We need to balance the lecture and technology teaching.
What other products and services are similar to yours and how are you competitive?
There are a lot institutes providing the same education. They are more famous and also focus on students. However, since the places are different, it is more convenient for the students to come to our school instead of others. Also, we are trying to make differences comparing with others and trying to teach more effectively.