Talking to potential customers for my small business?

Extensive research for businessplan needed (educational software business)

• Dear Researcher, I am a young entrepreneur from Germany / Switzerland. I am planing to set up a business in the USA and for that I need to write a businessplan. The bplan is aimed to investors as well as for internal use. The business is about licensing and distributing an patented educational software which is already successfully distributed in europe and which I have invented. I do NOT need a model as I have acquired a very good software wizard for creating a bplan with lots of samples. My question is divided to an Introduction about my product and 6 chapters. I need the answer until Saturday February 11. I need a very detailed answer as the bplan will be read by critical investors. In other answers I have seen often that the answer consits largely of links, but I would apreciate it very much if you could actually write down / copy the relevant numbers from the sources to your answer directly. Please name the sources of all numbers / facts you have included. I?m looking forward to this cooperation and I?m curious as this is my first time! :-) INTRODUCTION TO ?MY PROGRAMM? =========================== I will not name my programm for reasons of safety and annonymity. If there is a way how I could send a link for download to your private Email-Address I would do so so that you?d be able to take a look at it. My programm is an low-cost educational tool that helps the user to commit ANY CONTENT to long-term memory and which is very very easy to use. The usability follows the principle ?KISS? (Keep it simple stupid) and the method on which it is based is that of the scientist ?Hermann Ebbinghaus? who more than 100 years ago layed the foundation of long-term memorization with his experiments and the resulting ?Vergessenskurve? (german for ?forgetting curve?). See the picture in these links: http://www-users.rwth-aachen.de/hendrik.langner/scient_background.gif http://www.recallplus.com/images/BasicForgettingCurve.gif If you google for ?forgetting curve? you should find some more reference on the scientific theory I?m talking about. The material the user wants to learn has to be typed in by himselve or imported by him from any source. The programm itself is delivered ?empty?. The material to be learned has to be divided into items (you could also say ?virtual index cards?) that consist of one Question and one Answer. In case the user learns voabulary, for example, the question would be the native-language word (the known) and the answer would be the foreign word (the unknown). The basic idea is that each item is inquired by the computer ( = studied) repetetly in a certain pattern of repetition: The time intervals between the repetition grow exponentially with every phase until the last interval is sufficiently long to ensure that this item has reached the users long-term memory. However, in case the user has forgotten the answer, it goes back to the first phase where the time-intervals are small and the ?journey to the long-term memory? for this item begins anew. The computer handels all the organization of the learning-process, eg. It tells the user automatically which item is due for study on what date. The user is ONLY concerned with regularly feeding the programm with new input (typing in new items) and regularly starting the study-session. EVERYTHING ELSE is automatic. In fact, I believe that?s the single most important success-factor of my programm: That the user has no hassle at all and still everything he learns reaches his long-term memory eventually ? so that he will never forget it again. The new version 2 of my programm will be browser based and platform independent. As such it can be marketed not only to schools and students but also to companies whose employees need to learn any facts, definitions, terminology, vocabulary etc etc by heart. Version 2 will also support pictures, audio and video in place of text as the Questionn or Answer. The price for one license will lie in the range between 15 and 29 $ (it?a a multi-user-system so for private use one license means everybody in the family can log on and use the programm, in BtoB one license means permisson to use the programm for one employee). If you have any other questions about the programm please let me know. 1. COMPETITION TO MY PROGRAMM ================================== Please find out about competing products, specifically in the areas of: - learning vocabulary / terminology - long-term memorization - Internet based learning tools that are independent of content The products don?t necessarily have to be computer-based. In Germany for example our main competitor is the producer of index-card-learning-systems made out of cardbox. The competitors should include companies and individuals from the areas: - big publishers / big software companies - small software/ educational firms - small hobby programmers (often offer popular shareware/freeware) Please make a basic comparison/description of features / prices among all competing products in the form of a table. Later I will relate those to my own product myself. 2. SCHOOLS- / PEOPLE NUMBERS and the DYNAMICS: ==================================== # of = number of. Please find out only nation-wide numbers. - # of middle schools / students - # of high schools / students - # of private schools / students - # of universities/colleges / students - # of adults in education (continous ed) - In each area: # of new students every year / expected development, tendencies etc. for the next years. Please find out how the population is distributed percentage-wise among the 50 States. Ideally would be to have a percentage number for each State. 3. SEGMENTATION OF CUSTOMERS: ======================================= FYI (For Your Information): Our customers can roughly be divided into the following segments: - young students ( up to high school) - college / university level - adults in education - immigrants (learning english) - organizations (BtoB) Please do research for immigrants and organizations as customers: Immigrants: - How many non-english-speaking immigrants are there every-year? - Are their groups of immigrants which would be reachable easily as a target-group for selling them my programm? I?m thinking of multiplicators like providers of english-courses specially for immigrants. - What % of immigrants actually try hard to integrate themselves and woudl be willing / able to spend money on learning english? Organizations: - Which organizations / types of business / branches usually have educational programms/departments for their employees and use eLearning where employees have to learn things / facts / terminology definitions by heart or learn foreign languages? Such organizations could be an interesting target-group for my programm. - How many people work in such branches in the US (per branch)? - What would be good sources to access addresses of companies of certain branches for the purpose of acquisition / telephone marketing? 4. MARKET - $ NUMBERS / DYNAMICS: =============================== Please give $ amounts per year and development of these numbers over the last years and prediction for following years / of tendency. - spent on eLearning in private sector by companies - ? divided by branches - ?. Divided by kind of eLearning expense / products - average $ spent by parents on study material and/or/including educational software - # or % of families using educational tools / software - average family income (with / without kids / white / hispanic / black) Please think of any other $-amounts yourself which might be relevant for my businessplan. 5. MARKET REQUISITS / ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS =================================== Computerization in the USA --------------------------------------- - % and number of population access to computers / Internet - % and number of family with kids with access to computers / Internet - Access to computers by middle/high/college school students - Access to Internet by middle/high/college school students Demographics ---------------------------------- Please brainstorm which demographic factors might be relevant for a businessplan dealing with nation-wide distribution of an online/offline low-priced educational tool such as ours. Suggest sources with information for these factors. Below I inserted a link to the ?demographics? article from Wikipedia (not because I assumed you don?t know the term) but maybe it helps you to generate some ideas. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics Economy ---------------------------------------- In a short paragraph describe, in what way the US-economy and its expected development is supportive of starting the distribution of an universally applicable, low-priced educational tool. Please put some basic facts and figures in here (with source) to make this paragraph a little specific and credible. Technology ------------------------------------- FYI: Our new version 2 of my programm will be completley browser-based, programmed with Java and platform-independent ? it will have interface to allow it to be integrated into any computer-system (even mobile phones) / network / intranet / extranet etc etc it runs online as a server-based version as well as offline. As you see maximum flexibility and adaptability based on the most modern standards. I see myself best suited to describe why general technological development is a factor which speaks for us and which we see as a chance, not a threat. Add to that, that the principle on which our software is based is valid since more than 100 years and keeps getting confirmed scientifically. Still I feel it would make the whole businessplan more credible if in some places we describe possible threats. In reality, I think the only threat to us is competition and saturation. However I want you to think about how technology in the next 5-10 years might become a possible threat to our business model and constitute it. Government ---------------------------- Please list governmental initiatives that are meant to support / advance / Encourage our kind of business or the general idea of eLearning / computerization of Learning Maybe even the subsidy of such products or the subsidy of projects in the public (school) sector that might include the implementation of such product as mine. In a short statement constitute why governmant is probably no threat to our kind of business. Culture -------------------------- A general factor that has to be considered in any businessplan. Please constitute in a short paragraphe how American cultiure is supportive for the use of computers for learning, innovation in general etc etc. Maybe give an example that relates to our story. 6. SOFT (NON FACTUAL / NUMERIC). ======================================== Here I?m looking for texts / small articles from well-known / respected sources (quality more important than quantity here!!) that describe? a) ?general tendencies in the area of eLearning / educational tools for students / the role of computers/internet in Learning etc etc b) ?in a more or less scientific tone the tendency of the last years / decade to again recognize / accept the old ?truth? that learning certain things by heart - like important facts, terminology and foreign-language vocabulary - is also an important part of education. c) like in b) but about the value and importance of ?self-evaluation? especially for children / young students. d) specific scientific documents / sources about the way the brain works that prove our statement that multiple repetition in a certain pattern is the key to long-term memorization ? if possible with graphical illustration, especially of the neurological connections getting hardened through repetition until they are so hard that they cant get deleted anymore (long-term memory) THAT?S IT. Thaks a lot in advance!!!!! Your dgor.

• Answer:

  <Educational software facts for inclusion in a business plan. 1. Competition. There are a number of memory training aids on the market including: Test And Improve Your Memory (DVD Box). Tri Synergy. $29.99. 3 modes of play, coaching tools, scientifically based, monitor and track progress, mind profile. BrainX Digital Learning System. Brain X. $49.95. Quickly capture information from any source. Automatically converts information into questions and answers. Organize into review and study session. Quizzes you on the material and re-quizzes on material missed. Stores the material. Brain Builder 3.0. CD-Rom. Advanced Brain Technonlogies. $39.99. Increases working memory capacity. Improves auditory and visual sequential processing. Raises cognitive processing speed. Develops thinking skills. Improves attention and concentration. Train Your Memory. Scientific Brain Training. CD. $59.95. Develop a strong foundation for working methods and memorization strategies. Fun, stimulating, and challenging games developed by a team of specialists in cognitive psychology and educational sciences. Over 30 hours of games on all types of memory: visual and spatial, auditory, memory of words, of numbers, and of texts. 12 interactive games with levels of increasing difficulty and corresponding databases. Max & Claire are characters that help guide players, give feedback on progress, and keep players motivated. Brain Fitness. Scientific Brain Training. CD. $64.95. Developed by a team of leading doctors Over 50 hours of diverse exercises Works on all 5 cognitive functions. Improve concentration and language abilities. Enhance mental efficiency. Clifford Musical Memory Games. Scholastic. CD-rom $19.99. Make music with Clifford and friends. 19 entertaining music and memory activities. Make instruments, sing songs, dance with the dogs, and more. Automatic help tool and parent's guide. For ages 4 to 6. Memory Lifter. CD. $14.95. Vocabulary flashcard software. English-Spanish. Includes free dictionaries. Happy Neuron. Online subscription based. $12.99 per month. $99.99 per year. Mental exercises and coaching tools. RecallPlus. Essentials Edition - $34.95. Professional Edition - $49.95. Expert Edition - $69.95. Makes study fun and faster. Animates study notes. Predicts exam time needs. Memory Works. CD-rom. $79.95. For learning of facts and figures. Uses chunking method and sound/number method. Number cruncher tool. ------------------------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------- 2. Number of schools. Number of public schools 2002-03. Total ? 95,615 Middle schools ? 12,174 Secondary ? 22, 599 Private schools ? 2,585 Number of enrolments each year broken down by type of school. Thousands Total Public Private K-12 K-8 9-12 K-12 K-8 9-12 K-12 K-8 9-12 2006 ? 53,435 37,422 15,992 47,452 32,915 14,537 5,983 4,527 1,422 2008 ? 53,174 37,340 15,834 47,218 32,825 14,530 5,971 4,517 1,455 2010 - 53,016 37,538 15,478 47,068 32,999 14,069 5,948 4,539 1,409 Higher education. There are 4,236 institutions of higher education in the US. 2,516 are private colleges or universities 1,720 of the schools are public institutions 2,530 are four-year colleges or universities 1,706 are two-year schools Source: NACS Projected enrolments for 2005 is 16.7 million students. Top 10 universities and numbers enrolled. Miami-Dade College 54,926 University of Texas at Austin 52,261 Ohio State University 49,676 University of Minnesota?Twin Cities 48,677 University of Phoenix Online Campus 48,085 University of Florida 47,373 Arizona State University at Tempe 47,359 Texas A&M University 45,083 Michigan State University 44,937 City College of San Francisco 42,975 Student demographics. 86% were undergraduates 61% of students attended four-year institutions 43% were between the ages of 15 and 21 32.9% were between the ages of 22 and 30 56.6% percent were women 59.9% of the total attended college or university full-time In 2003-2004 students spent an average of $704 in the college store. 11.12% is spent on computer products. [The above figures were all reported in Almanac 2005-2006, published by the Chronicle of Higher Education, Aug. 26, 2005.] Employees in education. An estimated 8 million employees were engaged in some form of education. Predictions for 2010. By 2010, 50% of all college students will be adults. By 2004, 100 million Americans will take part in adult education programs. --------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- Population distribution by state - percentage Alabama 1.58 Alaska 0.22 Arizona 1.82 Arkansas 0.95 California 12.03 Colorado 1.52 Connecticut 1.21 Delaware 0.27 District of Columbia 0.20 Florida 5.68 Georgia 2.91 Hawaii 0.43 Idaho 0.46 Illinois 4.41 Indiana 2.16 Iowa 1.03 Kansas 0.95 Kentucky 1.44 Louisiana 1.58 Maine 0.45 Maryland 1.88 Massachusetts 2.26 Michigan 3.53 Minnesota 1.75 Mississippi 1.01 Missouri 1.99 Montana 0.32 Nebraska 0.61 Nevada 0.71 New Hampshire 0.44 New Jersey 2.99 New Mexico 0.65 New York 6.74 North Carolina 2.86 North Dakota 0.23 Ohio 4.03 Oklahoma 1.23 Oregon 1.22 Pennsylvania 4.36 Rhode Island 0.37 South Carolina 1.43 South Dakota 0.27 Tennessee 2.02 Texas 7.41 Utah 0.79 Vermont 0.22 Virginia 2.51 Washington 2.09 West Virginia 0.64 Wisconsin 1.91 Wyoming 0.17 ------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------ 3. There are 14 million people in the US speak who English poorly or not at all. Every year there are 19.8 million new immigrants enter the US. Of these 37% have a good command of English when they enter which means each year 12.47 million new immigrants have English learning needs. The vast majority of immigrants see acquiring English as a necessity to get good jobs. According to research carried out by Public Agenda, 85% of immigrants say it is hard to get a job or do well in the US without learning English. Reaching immigrants. The US has 14,280 community-based organisations teaching English. The Center for Applied Linguistics has a database of 100 elementary and secondary school newcomer programs in 29 states. The Immigration Association is an organization of immigrants and for immigrants. http://www.usaia.org/ Organisations. Piper Jaffray and Training Magazine has identified an untapped market for elearning in the small business market. Most elearning providers have concentrated on the needs of larger corporations. However small to medium-sized businesses are more likely to access learning content from the web rather than build their own. These organisations can be reached through organisations like the American Business Association http://www.asbaonline.org/ and the National Small Business Association http://www.nsba.biz/ There are 25.5 million small businesses in the US. They employ over 50 percent of the U.S. work force. ------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------ 4. Market According to elearning magazine, the US elearning market is worth $8 billion. http://elearning.b2bmediaco.com/aboutus.php According to the ASTD state of the industry report, spending per employee on elearning was $826 in 2002. Employees are trained for an average of 28 hours in Benchmarking Service organisations and 62 hours in Training Investment Leaders. Employee groups receiving the largest percentage of training expenditure were customer service (17%) and production staff (17%). http://www.astd.org/NR/rdonlyres/6EBE2E82-1D29-48A7-8A3A-357649BB6DB6/0/SOIR_2003_Executive_Summary.pdf Corporate elearning revenues were $6 to 7 billion in 2002. The US elearning market will level off at $1.7 billion in 2004. Education market - Spending on consumer products and services - $13 billion. Parents spend approximately $23 in 2000 on educational toys, books, games, software and services. The tutoring market is worth approximately $2.5 billion. Language instruction is worth $1 billion. The education share of the consumer software market is $700 million. Parents purchase $2.5 billion of supplemental material to give their children an edge in school. A home schooler spends roughly $626 annually on educational products implying a market worth $1.3 billion. A report that may be of interest to you looks at the Worlwide Corporate eLearning market. It is published by IDC and costs $4,500. http://www.idc.com/research/viewtoc.jsp?containerId=CA688ELL Median household income. White non-Hispanic $44,400 Black $27,900 Asian and Pacific Islander $51,200 Hispanci $30,700 Source: US Census Bureau. http://www.census.gov/population/pop-profile/1999/chap12.pdf -------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- 5. Computerisation in the USA. 82% of children not in poverty have access to computers at home. 47% of children in poverty have access to computers at home. 93% of public school instructional rooms have internet access (2003). 100% of secondary schools have internet access. Ratio of public school students to instructional computer with internet access is 4.4 to 1. 48% of schools allow children access to computers outside of school hours. Source:NCES. http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/frss/publications/2005015/6.asp Profile of demographic characteristics. Source: The US Census Bureau http://censtats.census.gov/data/US/01000.pdf Impact of demographic shifts. K-12 Education. Generation Y is working its way through our K-12 institutions. They are more diverse than ever before, and have the pressures of preparing for a new economy in old world schools. Postsecondary Demographics changes create powerful opportunity here. Generation Y is just starting into its college years, more high-school students are heading to school than ever before, and, faced with cold economic facts, many Gen Xers (and even Baby Boomers) are going to school in record numbers. Corporate Training Continual training and retraining will be essential to prolonging the workplace longevity of the Baby Boomers, and to ensure that Generations X and Y are as productive as possible to support the lengthy retirement of the Boomers as well as provide for their own retirements. Consumer Parents and, increasingly, grandparents, with money to spend will make educating children a high priority. Their desire to provide them with every edge in the new economy will benefit consumer-oriented education products. Source: Merrill Lynch. http://www.learnframe.com/aboutelearning/page10.asp ----------------------------------------- Economy Industry study http://www.e-learningcentre.co.uk/eclipse/Resources/Four%20Stages%20of%20e-Learning%20Industry%20Study.pdf Economy The US economy is evolving into to a knowledge-based economy. The last four decades has seen the economy change from production to service-based. To succeed in this environment requires people to continually educate themselves. Businesses need highly qualified employees to succeed in today?s competitive environment. Advances in technology are being exploited to train employees in a faster, more efficient and cost effective manner. The U.S. faces a number of challenges. It is lagging behind educational levels of other industrial nations. There are low literacy levels in the work force ? 40% of workers are at the two lowest levels of government literacy scales. Globalization is leading to greater competition. The demographics of students is changing. The fastest growing group attending higher education is working, part-time students aged over 25. Source: Learnframe. http://www.learnframe.com/aboutelearning/page19.asp Government initiatives Official elearning site of the federal government. The US government has provided a one stop site for high quality e-learning products, information and services. The government has appointed three service providers FasTrac, GoLearn and National Technical Information Service (NTIS). http://www.usalearning.gov/USALearning/ SCORM in a tea cup. SCORM stands for Sharable Content Object Reference Model. It is a product of the US Government's initiative in Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL). SCORM conformance aims to guarantee interoperability between online management systems (more about these later), and e-learning courseware. Source: Training Foundation. http://www.trainingfoundation.com/articles/default.asp?PageID=945#What%20is%20SCORM? Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (OUSD P&R) was tasked with leading a collaborative effort to harness the power of information technologies to modernize structured learning.  Through the sponsorship of the OUSD P&R, the creation of the Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) Initiative was formed as a developer and implementer of learning technologies across the Department of Defense.  ADL employs a structured, adaptive, collaborative effort between the public and private sectors to develop the standards, tools and learning content for the learning environment of the future.  The vision of the ADL Initiative is to provide access to the highest-quality learning and performance aiding that can be tailored to individual needs and delivered cost-effectively, anytime and anywhere. http://www.adlnet.org/aboutadl/index.cfm ----------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------- Culture A survey carried out SRI Consulting found that U.S. and Canadian respondents had the highest opinion of their elearning efforts. Two-thirds (62%) rated their program as good or excellent. Source: SRI Consulting. http://www.learningcircuits.org/2003/may2003/qualitysurvey.htm ----------------------------------------------- 6. Articles. eLearning is a catch-all term that covers a wide range of instructional material that can be delivered on a CD-ROM or DVD, over a local area network (LAN), or on the Internet. It includes Computer-Based Training (CBT), Web-Based Training (WBT), Electronic Performance Support Systems (EPSS), distance or online learning and online tutorials. The major advantage to students is its easy access. There are some typical elements and a standard approach to developing or authoring eLearning material. Source: What is eLearning? Kurt Kurtus. http://www.school-for-champions.com/elearning/whatis.htm A study carried out by Ebbinghaus showed that repetition over time enhances memory. A well known psychologist and researcher, Ebbinghaus, has reported that each additional recitation (after you really know the material) engraves the mental trace deeper and deeper, thus establishing a base for long-term retention. http://brain.web-us.com/memory/memory_and_related_learning_prin.htm Scientists believe that the strengthening of synapses between neurons in response to experience ultimately gives rise to networks of neurons that govern complex brain functions like learning and memory. Moreover, communication within these networks forms the basis of thinking and self-awareness that we call cognition. http://www.cshl.edu/public/releases/svoboda112900.html Description of how the brain and memory works. Several factors determine how quickly we forget material: 1), how well we encoded the material in the first place, 2) how deeply we processed it, and 3) how often it was rehearsed.  These findings add credence to the idea that for the optimum retention of material it needs to be elaborately rehearsed, and practiced in a distributive manner rather than in massed practice. Contains a diagram of the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve. Source: Del Mar College. http://www.delmar.edu/socsci/Faculty/Weir/chapter2_6.htm Ebbinhaus Memory: A Contribution to Experimental Psychology. Hermann Ebbinghaus (1885). http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Ebbinghaus/ A description of learning with a diagram of the brain. http://www.learnplus.com/guides/learning-sys-memo.html Learning Theories http://library.thinkquest.org/C005704/content_lt.php3 Increased retention and application to the job averages an increase of 25 percent over traditional methods, according to an independent study by J.D. Fletcher (Multimedia Review, Spring 1991, pp.33-42). http://www.e-learningguru.com/articles/art1_3.htm Advantages of elearning. http://www.dso.iastate.edu/asc/academic/elearner/advantage.html Evaluation report ? elearning pilot. http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OPPDE/peis/Reports/OPPDE/Eval_Rpt_Elearn.htm References: 1. Memory products sold on Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0002IP4LU/qid=1139393940/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8__i2_xgl65/104-2790562-1851156?v=glance&s=software&n=541966 Happy Neuron http://www.happyneuron.com/gbhappyneuron/abonnement/boutique_happyneuron.asp RecallPlus.com http://www.recallplus.com/ImproveMemory.asp Memory Works http://www.memoryzine.com/memoryworks.html 2. Enrolments to 2013. Source: NCES http://nces.ed.gov/programs/projections/tables/table_01.asp 2.2% of the entire student population are home schooled (2003). Source: NCES. http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/ Total student numbers http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/pubs/npefs03/table_5.asp?popup=1 Enrolments to 2010. Source: NCES. http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2000/2000071.pdf Secondary school enrolment will reach 16.2 million in 2009. Source: NCES http://www.ed.gov/pubs/bbecho99/part3.html Population by state. Source: US Census Bureau. http://www-atlas.usgs.gov/articles/people/a_popchange.html There are 4,236 institutions of higher education in the US. 2,516 are private colleges or universities 1,720 of the schools are public institutions 2,530 are four-year colleges or universities 1,706 are two-year schools Source: NACS Miami-Dade College 54,926 University of Texas at Austin 52,261 Ohio State University 49,676 University of Minnesota?Twin Cities 48,677 University of Phoenix Online Campus 48,085 University of Florida 47,373 Arizona State University at Tempe 47,359 Texas A&M University 45,083 Michigan State University 44,937 City College of San Francisco 42,975 Student demographics. 86% were undergraduates 61% of students attended four-year institutions 43% were between the ages of 15 and 21 32.9% were between the ages of 22 and 30 56.6% percent were women 59.9% of the total attended college or university full-time In 2003-2004 students spent an average of $704 in the college store. [The above figures were all reported in Almanac 2005-2006, published by the Chronicle of Higher Education, Aug. 26, 2005.] Number of public schools 2002-03. Total ? 95,615 Middle schools ? 12,174 Secondary ? 22, 599 Source: NACS http://www.nacs.org/public/research/higher_ed_retail.asp Private schools http://nces.ed.gov/pubs/ps/97459001.asp University enrolments In Autumn 1995 about 73 million people, out of a total population of 263 million, were engaged in some form of education either as employees (8 million) or pupils/students (65 million). http://www.leeds.ac.uk/educol/ncihe/a5_078.htm Source : NCES http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d04/tables/dt04_092.asp By 2010, 50% of all college students will be adults. By 2004, 100 million Americans will take part in adult education programs. Source: The University is Dead! Long Live the University! James L. Morrison Editor, The Technology. http://horizon.unc.edu/projects/seminars/futurizing/The%20University%20is%20Dead.asp ---------------------------------------------- 3. 14 million people in the US speak English poorly or not at all. 19.8 million immigrants enter the US each year. Source: 1990 census http://indian-river.fl.us/living/services/als/noneng.html 90% of immigrants come from non-English speaking countries. http://www.cal.org/topics/immigrnt.html 37% of immigrants have a good command of English when they come to the US. http://www.migrationinformation.org/Feature/display.cfm?ID=119 The US has 14,280 community-based organisations teaching English. Source. The US Department of Corrections estimate that 50% of its prisoners have limited English Proficiency. http://www.ellis.com/company/ir/marketinfo.php The Center for Applied Linguistics has a database of 100 elementary and secondary school newcomer programs in 29 states. http://www.cal.org/newcomerdb/index.jsp Small businesses http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/news/business/small/ ----------------------------------------- 4. Corporate elearning revenues were $6 to 7 billion in 2002. The US elearning market will level off at $1.7 billion in 2004. http://www.e-learningcentre.co.uk/eclipse/Resources/marketplace.htm Education market - Spending on consumer products and services - $13 billion. Parents spend approximately $23 in 2000 on educational toys, books, games, software and services. The tutoring market is worth approximately $2.5 billion. Language instruction is worth $1 billion. The education share of the consumer software market is $700 million. Parents purchase $2.5 billion of supplemental material to give their children an edge in school. A home schooler spends roughly $626 annually implying a market worth $1.3 billion. Online training ? small businesses. Source: Learnframe http://www.learnframe.com/aboutelearning/elearningfacts.pdf <Search strategy:> <improve memory software> <://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&rls=GGLD%2CGGLD%3A2005-17%2CGGLD%3Aen&q=improve+memory+software+> <respondents elearning> <://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=respondents+elearning> <advantages computers elearning> <://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLD,GGLD:2005-17,GGLD:en&q=advantages+computers+elearning> <Hope this helps.>