$10M EdTech Bet: Lessons SMEs Can Copy Fast

CarDekho Group just put US$10 million more into CollegeDekho, taking its stake to about 40%. On the surface, it’s an India edtech funding story. Under the hood, it’s a loud signal about how digital platforms win: distribution, data, and repeatable demand generation.

If you run a Singapore SME, this matters for a simple reason: CollegeDekho’s biggest challenge isn’t product-market fit—it’s efficient growth. In FY24, it grew revenue 32% to Rs 216 crore, but its net loss stayed flat at Rs 129 crore, while advertising spend climbed 35% to Rs 97 crore (about 45% of operating revenue). That’s the kind of growth curve every SME should learn from—because you can avoid the expensive parts.

This post sits in our “AI dalam Pendidikan dan EdTech” series, where we track how education platforms scale using data, automation, and AI-driven personalisation. The point isn’t that you should build an edtech platform. The point is: the playbook they use to acquire, convert, and retain users is the same playbook SMEs need to master in 2026.

Why CarDekho’s investment is really a platform marketing story

Answer first: CarDekho isn’t just funding “education.” It’s buying deeper exposure to a high-intent audience and a data-rich marketplace.

CollegeDekho runs a platform for college discovery, course selection, test prep, and admissions support, and it partners with 2,000+ universities and colleges in India and overseas. That’s not a content site—it’s a multi-sided marketplace with strong repeat behavior (students research across months) and high-value conversions (admissions decisions).

What’s interesting is who is investing. CarDekho is known for automotive marketplaces (CarDekho, BikeDekho). When a marketplace operator backs another marketplace in a different sector, it usually means:

• They believe the platform mechanics are transferable (SEO → lead capture → matching → monetisation).
• They see an opportunity to build or benefit from shared capabilities: performance marketing, lifecycle messaging, analytics, and automation.
• They want defensible demand through brand + data, not one-off campaigns.

For SMEs, the takeaway is blunt: you’re competing against businesses that treat marketing as an engineered system, not a series of posts and ads.

The uncomfortable truth: growth can be real and still be unhealthy

Answer first: CollegeDekho’s numbers show a common failure mode—revenue grows, but marketing efficiency doesn’t, so the business stays under pressure.

Let’s use the FY24 figures provided:

• Revenue: Rs 216 crore (up 32%)
• Net loss: Rs 129 crore (flat)
• Advertising: Rs 97 crore (up 35%, ~45% of revenue)

That ratio is a red flag for any digital business: if you need to spend close to half your revenue on advertising every year just to keep growing, you’re vulnerable to:

• rising CPMs and CPCs
• platform algorithm changes
• competitor bidding wars
• sudden cash crunches

And CollegeDekho reportedly ended FY24 with only Rs 3 crore in cash and bank balances despite Rs 211 crore in current assets. That suggests the business may be operating with tight liquidity—another common reality for high-growth digital platforms.

What Singapore SMEs should learn (and copy)

Here’s what I’ve found working with SMEs: most teams jump straight to ads because it’s measurable and fast. But speed isn’t the same as stability.

A healthier growth mix looks like this:

1. Demand capture (high intent): SEO pages, Google Search ads, marketplace listings, comparison pages.
2. Demand creation (low intent): short-form content, webinars, community, partnerships.
3. Lifecycle conversion: email/WhatsApp sequences, retargeting, lead scoring, CRM follow-ups.

If your marketing is 80% “pay to play,” you’ll eventually face the same math problem CollegeDekho is wrestling with.

Tier-II and tier-III expansion: the real lesson is localisation

Answer first: CollegeDekho’s expansion plan is a localisation plan—language, trust signals, distribution channels, and on-the-ground conversion support.

CollegeDekho plans to expand into tier-II and tier-III cities. In India, that’s where growth is, but it’s also where acquisition gets messier: more languages, different decision drivers, heavier reliance on trust, and more offline-to-online behaviour.

The article context points to India’s Gross Enrollment Ratio at 28.4% (2021–22), signalling a growing base of students entering higher education. Growth isn’t just digital; it’s demographic and structural.

How that maps to Singapore SMEs

Singapore is small, but the localisation principle still applies:

• If you sell across neighbourhood clusters (heartlands vs CBD), messaging and channels differ.
• If you sell across Southeast Asia, localisation becomes non-negotiable: currency, fulfilment expectations, customer support hours, and language.
• Even within Singapore, conversion often depends on trust signals: reviews, case studies, certifications, and response time.

A practical localisation checklist SMEs can run this quarter:

• Create two versions of top landing pages: one “price-first” and one “outcome-first.”
• Add proof blocks above the fold: 3 testimonials, 3 logos, 1 before/after metric.
• Segment campaigns by intent: “near me” searches vs research queries.
• Use WhatsApp as a conversion channel (faster than email for many SMB categories).

This is how you get growth without letting paid spend become your only oxygen.

AI in EdTech shows SMEs what personalisation should look like

Answer first: The core advantage of AI dalam pendidikan isn’t fancy chatbots—it’s using data to guide a user from confusion to a decision.

Edtech platforms succeed when they reduce decision stress. CollegeDekho helps students pick colleges, courses, prep paths, and admissions steps. That’s a complex buyer journey—similar to many SME categories like enrichment centres, tuition, B2B services, renovation, clinics, and professional training.

In our AI dalam Pendidikan dan EdTech series, the consistent pattern is:

• collect structured inputs (goals, budget, constraints)
• match to options (ranked recommendations)
• guide next actions (checklists, nudges, reminders)
• support conversion (counselling, calls, messaging)

SMEs can replicate the same flow with simpler tools.

A “CollegeDekho-style” funnel SMEs can implement

You don’t need to build a platform. You need a decision engine.

1. Lead capture: a short quiz/form (5–7 questions). Example: “What’s your goal, timeline, budget range?”
2. Instant output: a recommended package, service tier, or next step.
3. Automation: email/WhatsApp sequence with FAQs, proof, and a booking link.
4. Human assist: a 10-minute consult call for high-intent leads.

If you want to add AI responsibly:

• Use AI to summarise leads into a one-paragraph brief for your sales team.
• Use AI to generate personalised follow-up messages based on the quiz answers.
• Use AI to detect drop-off points (e.g., people who abandon after pricing) and trigger a specific retargeting angle.

AI-driven personalisation is only useful when it’s tied to conversion outcomes: booked appointments, qualified leads, paid deposits.

What the funding tells us about 2026 digital marketing economics

Answer first: Capital is still flowing to platforms, but the market is punishing inefficient acquisition—so retention and owned channels matter more than ever.

This deal happened right after reports that CarTrade Tech ended acquisition talks with Girnar Software (CarDekho’s parent). That context matters: when M&A doesn’t happen, groups often double down on select bets where they see longer-term platform value.

For SMEs planning 2026 budgets (and yes, it’s already January), here are the shifts I’d bet on:

1) Paid ads won’t get cheaper

More advertisers, more automation, and more competition generally push costs up. If your margins are thin, you need better conversion rates, not just more clicks.

2) “Owned audience” is a real asset

Email lists, WhatsApp subscribers, community groups, and repeat customers reduce your dependence on CPM swings.

3) Content needs to be structured for intent

Edtech wins because it targets clear intent: “Which course?” “Which college?” “How to apply?”

For SMEs, the parallel is:

• “price of [service] in Singapore”
• “best [service] for [scenario]”
• “alternatives to [competitor/category]”

Write pages for those searches, and you’ll feel less pressure to spend aggressively on ads.

4) Partnerships are underrated (and cheaper than ads)

CollegeDekho partners with institutions. SMEs can partner too: suppliers, complementary services, trade associations, and community organisations.

A simple partnership offer that works: co-branded webinar + shared lead list (opt-in) + a timed promo.

A practical 30-day action plan for SMEs (built from this story)

Answer first: If you want the upside of platform-style growth without platform-level burn, focus on conversion infrastructure and lifecycle marketing.

Here’s a tight plan you can run in 30 days:

1. Week 1: Fix conversion basics

   • Audit top 3 landing pages for clarity, proof, and speed
   • Add one strong CTA: book, WhatsApp, or quote

2. Week 2: Build a mini “recommendation flow”

   • Launch a quiz/form that segments leads into 3–4 paths
   • Auto-route leads into your CRM with tags

3. Week 3: Add lifecycle follow-ups

   • Create a 5-message WhatsApp/email sequence
   • Include: FAQ, case study, pricing guidance, booking link, deadline incentive

4. Week 4: Rebalance acquisition

   • Keep ads, but shift budget toward high-intent keywords
   • Publish 2 SEO pages targeting bottom-of-funnel searches

A month from now, you should be able to answer one question with confidence: “Do we know exactly which channel and message produces qualified leads at a sustainable cost?”

What to watch next in AI dalam Pendidikan dan EdTech

CarDekho’s $10m follow-on into CollegeDekho is a reminder that digital ecosystems are still attracting serious capital, especially when they sit on decision-heavy journeys. The difference in 2026 is that investors and operators want to see a path to efficiency—less “buy growth,” more “earn growth.”

If you’re a Singapore SME, take the hint: build marketing systems that compound—SEO that keeps working, lifecycle messaging that converts, and AI that improves speed and relevance without sacrificing trust.

Where are you most exposed right now—traffic, conversion, or retention—and what would change if you fixed just one of those in the next 30 days?