Paid Media Case Study

TED-Ed × goodhelp

The Ask

TED-Ed Programs is staffed by a small but mighty team running two global initiatives that amplify voices worldwide: Student Talks, which gives K-12 students a platform to develop and share their ideas, and Educator Talks, which gives K-12 educators a platform to develop and share theirs.

Both programs needed a bigger reach. TED-Ed Programs brought in goodhelp to help build a paid media strategy that could grow awareness and sign-ups for both global programs — starting with a focused 12-week sprint, and ending with a sustainable, evergreen program the internal team could run on its own.

47%

reduction in cost per conversion for Student Talks

50%

increase in approved, qualified submissions for Educator Talks

84%

reduction in expected agency fees using sprint-to-advisory model

Where We Started

TED-Ed's programs team had been promoting Educator Talks and Student Talks primarily through organic TED and TED-Ed channels, with paid media as a relatively untapped opportunity. goodhelp partnered with the team to design and launch a dedicated paid strategy from the ground up.

What Made This Program Distinct

Privacy-first audience targeting

In keeping with TED-Ed's commitment to data privacy, the brand opts out of pixel tracking on social ad platforms. To reach the right educators without it, goodhelp leaned on strong creative signaling and message testing to identify and connect with the target audience.

Creative built from what already existed

Rather than starting from scratch, goodhelp mined TED-Ed's website and organic social accounts to build a full inspiration library and a detailed ad copy messaging guide — giving the internal design team a clear, efficient path to producing on-brand assets quickly.

A fast, funding-driven timeline

TED-Ed had secured new funding that needed to be substantially deployed within three weeks of the sprint's start. goodhelp structured the launch to move quickly without sacrificing strategic testing.

The Model: Sprint, Then Advisory

Non-profits often work with conservative media budgets and limited ability to pay inflated agency fees, so goodhelp's approach to the 12-week sprint was especially valuable: a concentrated period to test across channels and messages, establish clear benchmarks, and build a growth blueprint.

goodhelp also trained TED-Ed's internal team to manage day-to-day campaign efforts going forward, and used AI-powered tools to keep reporting — like daily performance tracking — running smartly and efficiently. From there, TED-Ed's team took the reins to run evergreen campaigns on the highest-performing channels, sustaining the growth achieved during the sprint — with goodhelp transitioning from full-service engagement to a lighter-touch advisory role.

Weeks 1-12

Full-service sprint

Test across channels and messages, establish benchmarks, build the growth blueprint.

Handoff

Internal team trained

Day-to-day campaign management moves in-house, with AI-powered reporting.

Ongoing

Evergreen + advisory

TED-Ed runs the top-performing channels; goodhelp advises as needed.

Key Performance

Milestones and Achievements

Student talks

Reduced cost per conversion by 47% and improved submission approval rate to 84%.

47%

LOWER CPC

84%

APPROVAL RATE

Educator talks

Established LinkedIn as a net-new channel and optimized spend across initiatives to reach the lowest average cost per conversion of the program to date.

Drove a 50% increase in approved, qualified submissions.

50%

MORE APPROVED SUBMISSIONS

Cross-Program

Refined Google Grants spend to ensure full utilization, and layered in a complementary Google AdWords strategy.

Built out a functional, reusable ad creative library for the TED-Ed team to use and iterate on throughout 2026.

Tested and validated media strategies across platforms, giving TED-Ed the confidence to launch an evergreen H2 media plan.

The Outcome

In just 12 weeks, TED-Ed identified the platforms and messages that resonate most with educators and students, and saw a significant net increase in sign-ups for both programs — with a 47% reduction in cost per conversion for Student Talks and a 50% increase in approved, qualified submissions for Educator Talks.

Since the sprint wrapped, TED-Ed has been running evergreen campaigns across those top-performing channels — sustaining the growth achieved during the sprint, with the internal team now driving day-to-day execution and goodhelp advising as needed.

"goodhelp was critical in helping us set up, execute, and develop an ongoing, sustainable paid media strategy that furthers our mission of helping more educators and students around the world have their voices heard. goodhelp's expertise and hands-on support gave us the tools and playbook to reach more educators and students than we could have on our own, as well as the confidence to eventually take the reins and run effective campaigns."

- DIRECTOR, TED-ED PROGRAMS