The first-cohort challenge

No social proof. Only your offer
and your reputation.

The first cohort is always the hardest. You have no reviews, no testimonials, no track record as a school — only your personal reputation as a teacher and the quality of your offer. The first cohort is not found through the marketplace search algorithm, SEO, or paid advertising. It is found through personal relationships, warm networks, and direct outreach. The goal of the first cohort is not primarily revenue — it is social proof. Price accordingly: offer a founding student rate, deliver at a level that produces genuine endorsement, and treat the review as the product.

Three channels that work without reviews

Personal, warm, professional.
In that order.

1️⃣Personal network outreach — message individually, not a broadcast
Write personal messages to individuals in your network who either fit your target student profile or know people who do. Not a group email or a social post — individual messages that name the person and explain specifically why you thought of them.
2️⃣Teacher networks in your subject area — teachers refer students
Other teachers in your subject area are your highest-quality referral network. They have direct relationships with students who need exactly what you offer. A message to 10 subject colleagues saying ‘I'm launching a Year 12 Chemistry revision school — if any of your students need additional support outside school hours, I'd be grateful for a referral’ is free, personal, and trusted.
3️⃣Parent communities — the buyers, not the students
For GCSE and A-Level subjects, the buyer is often the parent, not the student. Parent communities — local Facebook groups, school parent associations, year group WhatsApp groups — are where purchase decisions are made.
What to do with your first cohort

Over-deliver. Collect data.
Ask for specific reviews.

⭐Ask for specific reviews — explicitly, by name, with a direct link
Tell students directly in the final session: ‘The most valuable thing you can do for this school is to leave an honest review on the platform. It takes 3 minutes and makes an enormous difference for a new school.’ The specific review that names an outcome (‘her Chemistry mock improved from a D to a B’) is worth more than any marketing activity you can do.
You've finished C2

School running. C3 covers building
a marketplace catalogue alongside it.

Continue to C3: Curriculum business →← Back to A2