Fluent in Four Languages

Mastering Stakeholder Communication in EdTech

Author

Carl Morris
May 29, 2025

Building a successful education business is about much more than innovative products or platforms. It’s about mastering four distinct “languages” at once - not literal languages but the unique communication styles that resonate with each stakeholder group: students, parents, educators, and investors. At Educave, we’ve learned this firsthand across ventures like The Online School, EDAI, and various multinational tuition and consulting businesses. We’ve learned that even the most brilliant service or innovation will fall flat if you can’t clearly communicate its value to everyone who matters.

Let’s break down what it takes to speak each stakeholder’s language, and why fluency in all four is your greatest competitive advantage.

The Parent Language: Trust and Reassurance

For parents, trust is everything. They want to know their child is safe, supported, and set up for success. That’s why our messaging to parents always highlights outcomes and safety; think student success stories, clear explanations of our approach, and tangible benefits for their child. Research shows that parents respond best to communication that’s transparent, regular, and avoids educational jargon [1, 2] .

For example, at The Online School, we implemented parent-focused newsletters and interactive webinars to keep families in the loop. Other tools like ClassDojo have revolutionised parent-teacher communication by offering real-time updates and two-way dialogue, making parents feel like genuine partners in their child’s education rather than bystanders. Collaborating with schools and parent communities further amplifies trust, as parents see your product endorsed by institutions they already respect.

Pro tip: When communicating with parents, focus on outcomes, credibility, and safety. Avoid educational jargon that might alienate them, use concrete examples that help them visualise their child's experience instead. Remember that parents are the financial decision-makers; they need to understand the value proposition in terms that resonate with them.

The Student Language: Authenticity and Agency

Students, especially digital natives, are quick to spot inauthenticity. They want to see how your offering connects to their interests and goals. We’ve found that visual content like short-form videos, interactive elements, and peer testimonials outperforms text-heavy communication with younger audiences. But engagement alone isn’t enough; substance matters. Flashy features may grab attention, but meaningful learning experiences create lasting loyalty.

We involve students in feedback loops and even product development, treating them as partners rather than passive consumers. This approach not only boosts engagement but also turns students into powerful advocates for your brand. Platforms like Kahoot! and Duolingo have succeeded by gamifying learning and giving students agency, resulting in massive adoption and passionate user communities [3].

Pro tip: Students respond to authenticity and relevance. Treat your student community as partners rather than consumers, but be careful, they can spot pandering from miles away.

The Educator Language: Impact and Practicality

Educators are motivated by solutions that enhance their effectiveness-without piling on more work. When we communicate with teachers and tutors, we acknowledge the real challenges they face: high workloads, accountability pressures, and the need for proven impact [4, 5].

We make it a priority to clearly demonstrate how our solutions address real classroom needs, always providing solid evidence of impact and straightforward implementation guidance. Take EdTech tools that automate marking or streamline lesson planning: we don’t just promise reduced workloads, we show exactly how these tools give teachers back valuable time for teaching, supported by real data and case studies. Today’s educators are increasingly data-driven and expect to see proof that new approaches actually deliver results.

Too often, EdTech is rolled out without meaningful input from the teachers who will use it daily. That’s why we work closely with school leaders to develop rollout plans that actively involve classroom educators from the start. When teachers feel empowered and supported, not sidelined, technology becomes a tool for genuine improvement, not just another burden.

Pro tip: Many businesses lose sight of communicating how their technology/services solve actual problems. Be specific about how your solution addresses real classroom needs. Ongoing professional development and support are non-negotiable.

The Investor Language: Scale, Metrics, and Vision

Investors speak the language of growth, scale, and return—and in EdTech, that language is evolving rapidly. While the sector attracted over $20 billion in venture capital in 2021[6] , with mega-rounds for companies like Duolingo, Udemy, and Coursera, recent trends tell a more cautious story. According to HolonIQ’s Q1 2025 report, EdTech funding has dropped sharply, down 35% year-over-year, and venture capital investment has fallen to its lowest level since 2014, representing an 89% decline from the 2021 peak [7].

What’s changed? Investors are now placing bigger bets on fewer companies, focusing on scalable, tech-driven solutions with clear paths to impact and revenue. AI-powered platforms, international student mobility, and workforce training models are attracting the lion’s share of attention and capital. For example, Leap Scholar and MagicSchool AI accounted for nearly half of all capital raised in early 2025.

In this tighter market, when pitching to investors, we emphasise the metrics that truly matter: user acquisition costs, retention rates, monetisation pathways, and defensibility. We clearly articulate how our approach balances mission with margin, demonstrating a sustainable business model alongside measurable educational impact. Investors want to see that education is not just a worthy cause but a smart, scalable investment, especially as many pandemic-era bets are still proving their long-term viability.

Pro tip: Lead with your numbers, show your path to scale, and prove your impact. Investors want vision backed by evidence.

Keeping Your Stories Straight

The real challenge isn’t just speaking each language’s maintaining a coherent identity while doing so. We start with a core message that’s adaptable, not reinvented, for each audience. Our messaging framework maps how key concepts translate across stakeholder groups, ensuring everyone in our organisation communicates consistently.

Clear messaging and branding guidelines are essential. We make sure these are shared with all staff, and we provide training so everyone understands not just what to say, but how to say it, whether they’re talking to parents, students, educators, or investors.

Timing matters, too. Coordinated announcements and regular feedback loops with each group prevent confusion and allow us to refine our approach as needs evolve.

Communication Toolkit

  • Audit your messaging: Identify which stakeholder groups you’re fluent with, and where you’re silent.

  • Develop personas: Capture the unique needs and communication preferences of each group.

  • Create dedicated channels: What works for parents may not work for students or educators.

  • Test and iterate: Small adjustments in language or platform can dramatically improve resonance.

  • Invest in relationships: The strongest connections come from authentic, ongoing engagement, not just formal updates.

Stand Out, Stay Ahead

Education businesses that master these four languages attract more students, retain them longer, recruit better talent, and secure investment on favourable terms. We’ve seen this play out repeatedly across our ventures. Communication fluency isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s the foundation of sustainable growth.

As the education marketplace becomes more crowded, your ability to speak directly to what matters for each stakeholder group may be your most valuable differentiator. Start by identifying which stakeholder language needs the most improvement in your organisation. Even small gains in communication effectiveness can yield outsized returns.

The future belongs to education businesses that can tell their story in ways that resonate with everyone who needs to hear it.

Ready to level up your stakeholder communication? Discover how Educave can help your education business become multilingual.

Visit www.educave.ai to get started.

Or book a call with us here 🤙

References

Reply

or to participate.