Mango Languages
November 2nd, 2007 | by Daniel |A couple of my friends told me about this new language learning site called Mango a few weeks ago. I finally got around to checking it out last week. My girlfriend wanted to learn to speak Spanish and after suggesting that she take a look at the site I decided to pop on and start taking some German lessons.
So far it seems pretty awesome. The lessons are quite comprehensive and the whole thing is free, which is always nice.
I’ve mentioned this to my dad, who teaches Spanish for a living and is thinking of taking his business online. With a site like Mango (and the clones which are sure to pop up), it seems like he will be facing some very strong competition. The key difference, and what I think he will need to focus on, is not just on content but on the personal connection as well. Mango’s lessons seem very professional and complete, however there is no human interaction (aside from the community of users) and I haven’t seen any way in which the site provides feedback as you learn. To compete against excellent design, content and a $0 price, my dad will really have to market the interaction and feedback that his business can provide.
