The Challenge

While Preply was already recognised within the edtech space, the company wanted to broaden its narrative beyond language learning alone and connect it more directly to employee productivity, leadership, and workplace wellbeing.

Key challenges included:

• Executive-Level Credibility — Reaching business leaders, founders, and HR decision-makers rather than only education-focused audiences

   

• Message Expansion — Demonstrating how language training impacts leadership, inclusion, and employee performance

   

• Expert Positioning — Establishing a consistent spokesperson who could speak authoritatively about employee challenges in global workplaces

   

The goal was to position Preply not just as a learning platform, but as a strategic partner for companies managing international teams.

Objectives

• Secure earned media coverage in business, leadership, and workplace-focused publications

   

• Position Kirill Bigai, co-founder of Preply, as an expert on employee challenges in global organisations

   

• Highlight how language learning supports leadership, inclusion, and cross-border collaboration

   

• Increase awareness of Preply’s corporate English training programmes

   

The PR Strategy

The Sprout PR executed a targeted earned media and expert positioning strategy centred on thought leadership and interview-driven storytelling.

Key initiatives included:

• Identifying journalists and editors covering the future of work, leadership, employee wellbeing, and corporate learning

   

• Positioning Kirill Bigai as a knowledgeable source on how language skills impact employee confidence, performance, and leadership effectiveness

   

• Securing in-depth interviews and expert commentary tied to real workplace challenges faced by international teams

   

• Placing Preply’s insights within broader conversations around multicultural workforces, inclusion, and professional development

   

• Facilitating expert interviews in high-credibility platforms, including Thrive Global, to reinforce trust and authority

   

This approach ensured Preply appeared in editorial contexts that business leaders already trust when thinking about people, culture, and performance.

Highlighted Media Coverage

Across these placements, Kirill Bigai was consistently positioned as a voice connecting language learning to real employee and leadership outcomes.

Results & Impact

Through strategic earned media and expert-led storytelling, Preply achieved:

• Increased visibility among founders, executives, and HR leaders

   

• Stronger association with conversations around employee performance and global teamwork

   

• Elevated credibility for Preply’s corporate English training programmes

   

• Ongoing referral traffic from evergreen leadership and workplace content

   

• Clear positioning of Kirill Bigai as a trusted expert on language and employee development

   

Rather than focusing on product features alone, the campaign reframed language learning as a business advantage.

Why It Worked

The campaign succeeded by tying language learning to issues business leaders already care about — leadership effectiveness, inclusion, employee wellbeing, and global collaboration. By leading with insight rather than promotion, Preply earned visibility in high-trust editorial environments.

Conclusion

This case study demonstrates how earned media and expert positioning can elevate an edtech platform into a broader business conversation. By establishing Kirill Bigai as a thought leader and aligning Preply’s expertise with workplace challenges, The Sprout PR helped Preply strengthen its authority as a corporate partner for global teams.