Chinese International Students
New Zealand had a boom in international students early this millennium, going from fifteen thousand at the turn of the millennium, to almost fifty thousand a mere two years later. This was followed by a twenty thousand drop over the next two years. Since then New Zealand has achieved a far more sustainable growth in international students, currently sitting back at fifty thousand. Chinese students account for over half these numbers and accounted for the massive boom in the early 2000’s, they also favour tertiary qualifications which have much high fees than many of the language or trade schools, which are often used as gateways to permanent visas.
This sharp rise shows the value of targeted marketing, with many New Zealand educational institutes pushing for international students. With a 300% increase in under two years this was perhaps one of the most profound examples of targeted marketing for non-English speaking consumers. International students not only contribute millions to the education system, they and their support networks pump millions into real estate, retail and tourism.
The sharp decline soon after should also be a warning about sustainable growth and the correct approach to marketing. Looking back at much of the marketing from that period, several institutes went for direct translation of their materials to present to the Chinese market. This is by in large the most common mistake undertaken by New Zealand, and most Western companies. This can, and did create unrealistic expectation in the Chinese consumers, who expected a different level of care and service to that common in New Zealand. With vague and misleading marketing materials, the communication and expectation set was not of the quality needed for sustainable growth. Chinese customers and culture have a much different base expectation, what works for Western markets, or what it considers to be part of the cultural zeitgeist, is not so for the Chinese and Asian markets.
Not only did this mismanagement of the marketing cause the numbers of students to be cut in half in the following semesters, it did damage to the reputation of those institutes, several of which went bankrupt in the coming years, and took the industry almost two decades to recover from.
With the education fees for international students often sitting in the five-figure range, in addition to the additional living and travel expenses, they make for an extremely lucrative market, one which can be targeted towards them and their families.
The rise and fall of the international student market this millennium is perhaps the single best example of how import targeted, clear, and professional marketing services are. Not only to grow that portion of your business, but to keep it sustainable.
KTMs goal is to not only create tailored marketing materials and consults for New Zealand businesses, but to achieve increased relations between the western and eastern markets.