Expanded Reach and Streamlined Lessons: A Case Study with Spanish55

  • Language tutoring
  • Sales

Abraham Arechiga

Spanish55 specializes in coaching English-speaking professionals in the Spanish language through guided online classes. We jumped on a call with Abraham Arechiga, Spanish55’s partner and co-founder, to learn how using Gruveo allowed Spanish55 to expand its reach and deliver its services in an easier and more streamlined way.

Can you tell us about your business?

Spanish55 helps professionals in the US become fluent in the Spanish language. We do this by providing regular interactions with a professional Spanish coach in a controlled and relaxed environment. Our Spanish lessons are tailored around the students' needs and goals with the language.

Our students are mostly looking to learn Spanish to advance their professional opportunities. We also have many customers who are looking to travel abroad or work abroad.

What kind of interactions do you use video conferencing for?

We use video conferencing for one-on-one Spanish lessons. Distance learning makes for a very relaxed learning environment while also providing for very private and very human face-to-face interactions.

We also do initial free consultations via video, and use video conferencing for interviews with prospective team members.

"Students learning Spanish have other things to worry about than fixing issues with their video call."

There are mainstream video conferencing services like Hangouts, Skype, FaceTime. What prompted you to look for an alternative?

We realized that in order to cater to an older target market, we needed a video calling solution that just works with as few steps to go through as possible. Also, for the initial free consultations, we needed a very easy way to connect with the potential customers without them having to give us their personal information. That’s how we found Gruveo.

Spanish55 helps US professionals become fluent in Spanish. Pictured: Abe and Al, Spanish55 founders.

Were there any other options you have considered?

We did look at a few alternatives but I can’t name them off the top of my head because they didn't work!

How did you come across Gruveo? Were you skeptical at first?

I did a Google search looking for alternatives to Skype that required no installation for both macOS and Windows.

I was definitely skeptical because I was not familiar with the service. That said, having the ability to try Gruveo for free before committing to a paid subscription definitely made adopting it easier.

How easy was it to implement and get going?

As easy as it can be. There was no learning curve for us, really, especially using the direct Gruveo links. If the student has just one or two steps they need to take before starting the call, it is all very intuitive. On our end, we’re getting notifications of incoming calls through the browser, so even a professor on a shared computer is very comfortable using the tool.

"There was no learning curve for us, really, especially using the direct Gruveo links."

How long have you been using Gruveo? How is it working out for you?

We’ve been using it for about 14 months now. I think that students learning Spanish have other things to worry about than fixing issues with their video call. So finding a technology that just works was a must for us, and Gruveo has done that. I really have no complaints, I'm happy with the service.

What do the students say?

They like Gruveo because it works. At first, some of them may think it's going to be difficult because they have no idea what we're talking about, but they ultimately find it very easy. They just click a link, and they are immediately taken to the call. We have the big privilege of working with students who trust us 100%, so if the tool makes their life easier, they're all for it.

Is there a feature that you find particularly useful?

It’s nice to know where the caller is calling from, especially for the initial free consultations. It helps us screen real potential clients.

"The students like Gruveo because it works... They just click a link, and they are immediately taken to the call."

Are you planning to start using Gruveo for other kinds of interactions?

Yes. We are starting to suggest Gruveo to our sales reps as an alternative to our regular cold calls. We're going to be opening more Gruveo accounts for the team members doing direct sales. It's much better to have a face-to-face interaction than just a cold call.

Any advice for other businesses in your industry that are choosing a video calling solution?

Just take advantage of the free trial and give Gruveo a try. There's really not much that can go wrong. We haven't had any problems. Not to sound salesy but I do highly recommend the service, and we've been paying for it for a bit.

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