In today’s competitive digital learning technology landscape, where innovation is the currency of progress, Southern Africa finds itself at an intriguing crossroads. While the global digital learning product market continues to reach levels of increasing maturity, the local buying market in South Africa and Southern Africa lags behind.
A recent trip to the United Kingdom and Europe reinforced this view. In this blog post, I delve into the reasons behind this gap and explore the potential avenues for bridging it.
What you will learn in this post:
- What to look out for – tips and tricks that are in your best interest, not the vendors’.
- How to make better and more informed purchasing decisions.
- The true costs of buying new technology – it goes far beyond what the sales guy tells you.
- How to move forward when you’re feeling overwhelmed.
Reasons for the gap in Southern Africa’s digital learning technology market
1. Maturity of the Global Digital Learning Product Market
The global digital learning product market has witnessed exponential growth for a number of years now. Fuelled, largely, by advancements in technology and a paradigm shift towards remote learning. From interactive and personalised learning experiences to AI-driven and persona-led learning platforms, the options are vast and varied.
However, while these innovations have proliferated on a global scale, the local Southern Africa market has been slower to adapt, creating a disparity in access and adoption.
2. Less-Mature Local Market in South Africa and Southern Africa
Despite the undeniable potential and need for digital learning solutions in South Africa and Southern Africa, the market remains relatively reactive compared to its counterparts in more developed regions. Factors such as limited infrastructure, weak currencies, socio-economic disparities, and uneven access to technology contribute to this disparity.
As a result, local organisations face challenges in navigating the complex landscape of digital learning products and services. Often putting up with the ‘same-old’ outdated and sub-standard digital technologies.
3. Overwhelmed Local Buyers
The abundance of options in the digital learning technology market can be overwhelming for local buyers. With a myriad of vendors and solutions all vying for attention, decision-makers often find themselves inundated with information (sometimes misinformation), making it difficult to discern the best-fit solutions for their specific needs and context.
When facing this information overload local buyers struggle to make informed decisions, leading to potential misallocations of resources and missed opportunities. Often resulting in buying decisions being put on hold, rather choosing to forge ahead with dated legacy technologies that are not serving their end-users and organisations.
4. Lack of Local Market Knowledge Among Leading Providers
Many market-leading digital learning technology providers lack sufficient knowledge of the local market dynamics in South Africa and Southern Africa. This deficiency hampers their ability to provide tailored support and guidance to local organisations, thereby impeding the adoption and effective utilisation of their products.
Translating to suboptimal support and guidance for local organisations who are left feeling like they have to forge ahead in the dark.
5. High Cost of Digital Learning Products
The high cost associated with digital learning products presents a significant barrier to entry for many organisations in Southern Africa. Budget constraints, coupled with the perception of digital learning as a luxury rather than a necessity, hinder widespread adoption and investment in these technologies.
Exploring alternative pricing structures and terms is needed to unlock new opportunities for organisations seeking to leverage digital learning for talent development and growth. This is fundamental when creating a viable business case.
Wondering what you can do? Consider these…
- Ensure you do your own independent research, free from any vendors.
- Consider ALL costs (indirect and direct) associated with buying and rolling out a new digital learning technology. The license fees and implementation costs make up only part of the picture.
- Learn from similar local organisations. They will certainly be wearing some scars.
- Build your business case first and seek a technology that is right for you in the immediate and short term. Otherwise, overcapitalisation and poor ROI will keep you up at night.
- Study the contract terms. Multi-year contract terms may be common, but they are not necessarily in your best interest.
- Partner with a provider that has local market knowledge – context is key!
By addressing the underlying reasons behind the lag in local Southern African market maturity and recognising the merits of making smart and informed buying decisions, organisations will view their digital technology procurement process in a renewed light.
