MARKETING AND

OPERATIONS
Business Project Part Three

Tutor Match
Joseph Pulitano, Samantha
Reidy and Emanuela Niemiec

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Tutor Match Business Proposal Part Three

RECAP OF PROPOSED PRODUCT (CITED FROM PT. 1 OF PROPOSAL)

Tutor Match will be a downloadable app that can match you with academic tutors that cater to
your learning needs. Matching you by your grade, what subject your struggling in and by your
preferred learning style, the app will scan the area for the best tutors available. Thorough
background checks and interviews will be done for each tutor as we put legitimacy and safety
above all. Once all checks are done the profile of that tutor will be posted on our app where
students can then go about hiring that tutor for academic help. Once the tutor is hired the
payment will go through and we will take a percentage of tutor fee.

MARKETING PLAN

Product: To reiterate, our product is a tutoring service app that provides students with a
plethora of qualified tutors that meet their required needs. The app will have a free version
and premium version that students will have to pay a low monthly fee to access all the bonus
features. The premium version will give special offers for students who keep track of their
academic progress when using the app. Every time a student uses the “academic tracker”
feature (only included in the premium version), book a session or promote the app on social
media/sending a link through SMS, they will receive Tutor Points. Students will have a chance
to receive a discount on their sessions, discounts to certain stores/restaurants or can earn
some “company merchandise” i.e. a stress ball, water bottle, or t-shirt with our logo on it to
give them a tangible good.
Price: The app will be a free download. All basic features will be free to use, and non premium
users will still receive the same quality tutoring as premium users. The student will meet with
a tutor and pay 30 - 40$ per hour (depending on the qualifications of the tutor). Users will also
have an opportunity to pay a monthly fee of 4.99$ to unlock the premium version of the app
that gets rid of ads and will unlock the special feature of tracking all progress and chances to
receive rewards as students earn more Tutor Points. The monthly subscription can be
canceled any time. Customers must prepay and book at least 3 sessions but will have the
ability to receive a full refund if unsatisfied with the first tutoring session. Customers can
receive a full refund for a session or an opportunity to rebook if a session is cancelled with a
minimum of 24 hours notice. A 50% refund will be awarded anything after that, and a “no
show” will not be eligible for a refund. (Under extreme circumstances, refunds will be
reviewed case by case).
Place: As Tutor Match is an app, everything will be mostly online for customers. Although,
there will also be a designated building in the Hyde Park area for hiring the tutors and
organizing, maintaining and developing ways to improve our app. Team meetings will happen
in this building and a select few staff members will work out of this building. Eventually, the
hope is to add a resource space (textbooks, computers, study cubicles) for students to
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enhance their tutoring. Finally, this will be where consultations between tutors/staff members
and customers are held.
Promotion: There are several different ideas we have to promote our app. Our focus will be
promoting our app at local high schools. The program will be similar to how colleges go to
high schools and present their colleges. Tutor Match will be an app that stands out by our
dedication to connecting with the students who will be using the app. An incentive – exclusive
to those who attend the presentation - will be everyone who downloads the app will receive a
30% off their first two sessions. Another promotion idea is geared towards those who have
already downloaded the app. There will be several options to share the app on all social
media forums, or an invitation link through SMS. Non premium members who have their
shared links used by others to download the app will have ballots in their name entered to
draws for a chance to win select prizes. Premium members will have Tutor Points added for
every link that leads to a download of the app. We will have a lot of social media advertising
as well, and plan on leading a social media account that is relatable to students as they are
more receptive to those types of company social media accounts (i.e. the Wendy’s “Twitter
roasts”).

OPERATIONS DESIGN

Operations will primarily be over the app for connecting students to tutors that will best suit
them and their learning styles. The app will recommend places for session to be held. The
building will be just a place to meet with tutors and staff, a resource for the students and there
will be limited space for tutoring sessions. Certain staff members will work in that building as
well. Most of the work will be done through the app as that is how we will stand out and be
more student friendly, as students currently are very tech savvy. Visits to the building will not
be necessary at all for students, it is just an optional resource. The building’s main purpose
will be for the team behind the app and staff working inside the building to keep everything
running smoothly. Therefore, no special facilities will be needed for this project, as Tutor
Match is app based.

STAFFING PLAN
Position Amount Required Skills/Qualifications
Marketers 2 - Marketing diploma,
charismatic,
presentation skills,
interpersonal skills
Human 1 - HR diploma, recruiting,
Resources/Recruiter friendly, conflict
resolution, problem
solving
Office workers/Customer 2 - Customer service,
Service** phone etiquette, basic
computer skills, friendly,
problem solving
Operations Manager** 1 (temporary 6-month - OM diploma,
contract) multitasking,
conflict/problem
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resolution,
management,
overseeing/development
Tutors As needed basis - Any relevant
qualifications for
nonstudent tutors
- Excellent grade(s) for
preferred subject(s),
friendly, mentoring
skills, patience, hard
work
Accountant** 1 (hired once a month to - Accounting degree,
make the financial analytical, detail
statements) oriented, focused
** Not accounted for in original budget plan.
This table highlights the staffing plan needed to start up the app and keep it running. Not
included in the staffing plan is all the temporary staff that will be hired to start up the app. In
the beginning we will need an app developer to help us create our vision. A real estate agent
and any lawyers – if needed – will need to be hired in the beginning to buy the building. Once
the app has been created and the building has been rented, the two marketers on the team
will begin promotions. The human resources team member will begin recruiting the rest of the
staff. Everyone in the staffing plan is essential from the point after the building has been
bought and app has been developed. The accountant will start off with monthly financial
statements, and the need for the frequency of those financial statements will be reviewed
after a year.

BUDGET REVISIONS

Overall, the marketing plan fits quite well within our projected budget. The original budget
stated the approximate funds needed will be $57’500 for the first year. Realizing that the three
of us alone will not be able to run the business on our own, we have decided to hire two office
workers to handle any customer service matters and collecting/organizing certain data from
the app (combined salary total of approx. $40’000). Originally, we didn’t plan on having an
accountant prepare monthly financial statements, but have come to the conclusion that it is
critical to track our funds frequently for at least the first year. With that in mind, that will at
least double the original projected professional fees expense of $5000. Finally, a part time
operations manager will be hired for the first 6-months to come in a few days a week to
oversee the business, keep everyone focused and develop weekly goals. Assuming their full-
time salary is around $80’000 for the year, we can divide that in half for a 6-month contract
and divide that number by 2 to give us an estimated part time salary of $20’000. Therefore,
the new and final projected budget will be 122’500.