Dive Brief:
- Noodle, a searchable database of educational resources, expects to improve its technology and expand its database with the acquisition of AllClasses.
- AllClasses offers its own search engine for online and local education opportunities and will add more than 100,000 classes to the Noodle database.
- The acquisition will also give Noodle access to the AllClasses tech team, which has given users cause for hope that the larger company’s interface will improve.
Dive Insight:
The demand for free and low-cost educational resources is real. The business models of both AllClasses and Noodle posit that consumers need help finding the courses they’re interested in and eligible to take. As databases like these become more consistently used tools of prospective students, higher education providers must keep their reach in mind, making sure their own programs show up in the search results. Search engine optimization is an art that becomes even more critical as competition for students grows.