Ernie’s Elevator Pitch for Moodle to School Districts

by E.P.

19 comments

1 Iris Chan { 11.29.09 at 2:06 am }

A successful pitch! I like the way you began with questions that most educators could relate to. The marking part really made my ears perk up. I enjoyed the way you put it together.

2 Annette Smith { 11.29.09 at 11:15 am }

I liked the elevator pitch, and would certainly want to learn more. I think the picture of the student who had not known what the homework assignment was was especially good! I bet that has happened to all of us as teachers…heheh

3 jennie wong { 11.29.09 at 3:38 pm }

Ernie,

The elevator pitch is excellent. Excellent work.

4 Ernest Pao { 11.30.09 at 10:09 pm }

Thanks for the support everyone! It was a great learning experience in making these videos. Took a lot of time just for a few minutes of film!

5 Ashley Jones { 12.01.09 at 5:00 pm }

Great pitches! I really liked that you did two seperate pitches, one tailored for teachers and the other for the school board. The student testimonals was a great addition.

6 Jeff Laird { 12.01.09 at 8:57 pm }

Definitely piqued my interest as an EVA – you have raised a number of issues and common concerns that teachers need solved AND put forth the magic word – “free”. I’m skeptical – but you have me wanting to know more about this free magic tool (okay, I’m already an avid Moodle user – but I was in character).

7 Greg Lewis { 12.01.09 at 9:57 pm }

Thought the pitch reflected very local, authentic material that leant itself to the product. I have used this product and like it – is it “free” to the district? If so, I am interested. Length of pitch meant you got to cover a lot more than most but I left with a feeling that I knew a lot about the program.
Cheers, Greg

8 Ernest Pao { 12.01.09 at 10:34 pm }

Ashley, Jeff, Greg,

Thanks for the constructive feedback. Indeed, the software itself is free to anyone. My school is currently using it and the students represented in my full pitch are really my students! The software didn’t cost us a dime and I actually got one of my students to set it up on our school server for us. The screen captures are authentic ones from my personal Moodle websites I use with my classes.

Cheers!

Ernie

9 Cindy Leach { 12.02.09 at 2:02 am }

Great job Ernie, I think your elevator pitch is very succussful, it has left myself as well as many other wanting to learn more. I really liked the visuals you used to emphasize your problem statements. These were all statements that any educator can relate to, in addition you did a great job of ‘solving’ those problem statements with you overview of Moodle. My questions for the longer pitch though would have to do with related costs to bringing in Moodle. Yes the software itself is free but what about supporting hardware and training costs?

Thanks again Ernie, great presentation

10 Ernest Pao { 12.02.09 at 7:34 am }

Thanks for the feedback, Cindy! Glad you enjoyed my pitch. Regarding hardware and training costs, I’ve actually mentioned those in my pitch to the school board video. There is actually a budget page in there. This is merely a ‘wild’ estimate, as advised by David V., since this is not directed at a particular school board and is meant to be generic. Models for training are also suggested there as well.

Thanks again!

Ernie

11 Byron Kask { 12.03.09 at 3:41 pm }

Ernie,

The elevator pitch covered the major points, and I was intrigued to take a closer look. I think that the by putting the pitch video on a website, you were able to convey much more information than you could using either only text or video. Nice job.

12 Cathy Jung { 12.03.09 at 7:00 pm }

Ernie,

I liked your pitch. It was easy to listen to, the narrative was good quality and the images added to the impact. Your closing line of “Best of all Moodle is easy to use and free” left me wondering what is the catch? The word “free” seems too good to be true, making me wonder as an EVA what the hidden costs are.

Cathy

13 Bev { 12.03.09 at 9:30 pm }

Hi Ernie: Great job on your pitch. You’ve used a variety of different approaches- which makes it interesting. I like how you’ve created 2 pitches 1 for teachers and one the purchasers. You’ve demonstrated how very flexible this program is for teachers. You’ve given a very comprehensive list of all the other LMS providers which is good. I know Moodle has a great global market. Much of my research focus has been on Africa and many places there are using it because of the costs. You did mention the IT costs in your pitch. Just an aside- my friend works for a college in Southern Alberta and they just went through the process of picking a LMS. They ended up picking one called Angel- They felt the technical support costs of Moodle where too high. – me I don’t make those decisions- Our school board uses Moodle and is very happy with it.
And just another side note Ernie- Nice smart board in the back-ground of your video. How’s it going? Did you get a chance to use your CSED 400 pres.?
Bev

14 Liz Hood { 12.05.09 at 1:25 pm }

Intriguing elevator pitch. I particularly like the photos which complement so nicely your narration! Definite appeal to teachers hoping to integrate technology, student motivation and management. Nice work.

15 Bev { 12.05.09 at 5:22 pm }

Hi Ernie: I’m back for a more indepth review-
– You’ve targeted K-12 teachers- a group of people who are always looking for a way of simplifying content management. You’ve identified common concerns that teachers share which is appealing and offered a tool for dealing with teacher concerns.
-the offering is Moodle an open-source LMS.
-the buyers would be school boards at least in Alberta. Some schools may have the power to purchase/ use this program without board support, but if the board has a common server and governs technical support they would be the target market.
-the market for this product is huge and is growing. As more schools move to blended programs with some on-line content, more collaboration, as well as regular class-room delivery there is going to be a greater need for LMS- especially because they offer a secure site.
-This program is already being used through-out the world- so indeed it has a global market.
– There are many other LMS on the market and the number is growing. The fact that Moodle is free is makes it more appealing. My major concern with this product is the potential high cost of technical support. I think easily accessible tech support that doesn’t cost a great deal will make this product very appealing. If that was available I would invest.
good job.

16 Barbara { 12.05.09 at 6:36 pm }

Ernie, I am also doing an in depth report.
I see your market as the K12 teachers in your school district. The product is Moodle as an LMS. The people who have to make the expense and that you need to convince are the district board.
I believe that you have outlined the benefits to doing this for both the teachers and the district although i do believe that you need to quantify the return on the investment in some more tangible way.
You have also outlined the steps that have to be taken to make this happen.
Here the biggest issue as i see it is that the teachers must change the way they teach. And like all teachers and human beings for that matter we are averse to change. I believe that you need to invest in a change management process. You did mention ads and promotions to teachers to convince them yet i do not see this in the expenses. I also believe that more money needs to be assigned to training and support over a period of time of more than one year. I am assuming, although you do not say it that these expenses are in a one school year period.
To be able to make the decision of investing i would like to understand how big the district’s educational budget is and what this effort is competing with for funds. I would recommend piloting it with a few schools first to have more success stories to present when you assign the funds to go to all schools.

Congratulations on the clear and very visual presentation of this project.

17 Ernest Pao { 12.05.09 at 10:48 pm }

Hi Cathy,

Thanks for the feedback. You’re right, the word “free” is always a tricky one because it can make people skeptical. I used it to try and ‘hook’ viewers to look at my full pitch. In hindsight, perhaps this may have been 50/50 success? I don’t know. Maybe a different approach or word may have conveyed the same message without the skepticism factor.

Cheers!

Ernie

18 Ernest Pao { 12.05.09 at 11:11 pm }

Hi Bev and Barb,

Thanks for the in-depth reviews! Bev, you’re right. In order to do implement Moodle properly across any school district, tech-support needs to be in place. This could potentially be very expensive depending on the size of the district, how many teachers or schools are on board with Moodle, and the school board’s budget.

Barbara, you’ve also outlined many important points as well. ROI is a very difficult one since my pitch is not meant to make money. In hindsight, perhaps something tangible like grade or assessment indicators following implementation of Moodle as a support mechanism would provide useful information as to whether Moodle is working or not. Piloting this project at a few schools first would also be a good strategy depending on the size of the school district. This would particularity be beneficial with large districts to ensure budgets aren’t being spent on something that isn’t working. Thanks for the advice.

Cheers!

Ernie

19 Ernest Pao { 12.05.09 at 11:13 pm }

Bev,

PS – Smartboard’s been good so far…just had it for a few weeks now. Just haven’t had the time to develop lessons like I want to yet but the kids seem to be enjoying it so far. Can’t wait to use to the lesson from CSED with my students.

Cheers!

Ernie

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