Prosper Startup: Interview Coaching

• Prosper was founded by Krystyn Harrison.
• Krystyn Harrison had helped over 2,000 interview candidates.
• Harrison and co-founder Beckie Thain-Blonk were seeking a CA$1 million seed round investment.
• Success depended on crafting a compelling narrative and a realistic marketing plan.

History

• Harrison holds degrees from Ivey Business School in London, Canada.
• She recognized a need for quick interview assistance that regular career office sessions couldn't provide.
• Thain-Blonk’s experience was in business and career counseling.
• Thain-Blonk observed a lack of interviewing skills in student candidates.
• Thain-Blonk had an entrepreneurial background.
• She charged $5 for craft classes at home.
• She started a dance studio at 16.
• Harrison created Prosper to offer a mobile, personalized interview coaching service.
• Thain-Blonk, an Ivey MBA candidate, later joined Prosper as chief customer officer and co-founder.

Product

• Prosper facilitates iterative continuous improvement sessions.
• Prosper’s system uses a mobile app for job applicants to refine their presentation.
• It enables users to upload video answers to interview questions.
• Trained Prosper coaches review and provide feedback.
• The app allows users to replay and refine their videos.
• Prosper calls itself "the interview coach in your pocket".
• Thain-Blonk's classmate was a tester who improved significantly through iterations.
• The program had minimum viable product tried by over 200 testers.
• Thain-Blonk and Harrison continually improved the offering.
• Prosper launched first as an iOS app in 2017, later on Android in 2018.
• Harrison considered both apps "fully mature”.
• The team shifted focus towards business development.
• Prosper used a "freemium" model in its initial version
• Users got one free video review
• Subsequent reviews were $10 each.
• Unlimited coach access was $50/month.
• Training without a coach was $12/month.
• It included one-minute "pep talk" podcasts via a chatbot.
• The company shifted focus to user engagement and lasting relationships.
• Users valued coaches over podcasts/chatbots
• Prosper recognized the value of personal interaction in user experience.
• The company saw the potential of AI to reduce costs and manage requests.
• User bonds with coaches led to accountability.
• Human, not AI reviews, remained more realistic.
• Prosper achieved product-market fit
• Rapid iteration, experimentation, and failure helped this.
• Finding product-market fit was key before running out of cash.
• Prosper was keenly aware of competition, so product-market fit was a moving target.

Context

• Canadian youth (15-24) unemployment was 11.7%, almost double the general population.
• Youth unemployment was a federal and provincial policy concern.
• Ontario had a lower minimum wage for students.
• Young Canadians delayed workforce entry for education.
• Full-time employment age shifted from 25 in 1976 to 31 in 2012.
• Increased housing costs and delayed entry led more young adults to live with parents.
• This trend was higher in Ontario (42%) and Toronto (47%).
• Post-secondary education in Canada was subsidized.
• The average cost was $19,500, mainly tuition and housing.
• Students used public and private loans.
• Repayment typically took 9-15 years.
• Repayment wasn't required below an income threshold.
• Collectively, students owed $28 billion to the government.
• The average student debt was nearly $27,000.
• Canada was a mature mobile economy.
• Apple's iOS had 55% of the mobile operating systems market.
• Android held almost all of the rest.
• In 2018, Canada had the 6th highest smartphone penetration worldwide.
• Canada had the most/second-most expensive mobile data plans.

Competitors

• Prosper’s product had no direct substitutes on the market.
• Thain-Blonk identified similar services.
• InterviewStream was the most prominent competitor.
• InterviewStream allowed candidates record answers by video to questions from a library of questions.
• Shortlisted candidates could be interviewed using video conferencing software.
• It allowed for massive panel interviews and calendar integration.
• Employers liked InterviewStream.
• InterviewStream lowered student engagement.
• It felt mechanical/impersonal for candidates.
• It did not improve interviewing skills.
• Evisors complemented InterviewStream and resembled Prosper.
• Evisors offered personal career counseling.
• They offered paid, proprietary content like webinars.
• Counselors were professionals from various industries.
• They offered resume reviews, mock interviews, and mentorship.
• Candidates paid $75-$400 per hour.
• VideoBIO showed potential of AI in recruiting.
• They offered video-based interviews like InterviewStream.
• Software used natural language processing, keyword recognition, and tone analysis.
• The analysis created a candidate scorecard measuring "friendliness" and "openness”.
• It did not improve candidate skills; it streamlined/accelerated recruiting for employers

Price

• Prosper had initial pricing struggles.
• One year's data indicated $650 customer lifetime value.
• The original flat $50/month subscription was replaced.
• The new version used subscriptions for $300 per month.
• It also sold à la carte services usable for a few days.
• Company shifted strategy to focus on superior quality only.
• It questioned if steeper fees would be tolerated.
• Users' expectations had already been elevated due to the price and personalized service.

Users

• Students were Prosper's earliest customers.
• Thain-Blonk asked classmates to test the product.
• Two user groups then evolved.
• University students made up 60% by count.
• They were ambitious, dedicated, and well-informed.
• They were anxious/status-conscious about careers.
• Users were mainly students specializing in professional disciplines.
• Accounting, engineering, law, and management students were competitive and eager to improve.
• Those students were further divided by planning.
• One group was systematic/well-planned.
• Another group was reactive/procrastinatory.
• Distinct pricing opportunities existed in psychographic segments.
• "Switchers" comprised other major group—professionals seeking transitions.
• Switchers were sure of their competencies, with clear visions, but they hadn't interviewed in years.
• They felt a spike in fear before interviews.
• Switchers used their own money while students used parents' money
• Thain-Blonk wondered if this could inform pricing.

Distribution

• Establishing rapid user base and dominance was important for Prosper.
• The company initially sought to be a self-sustaining consumer brand.
• Harrison recognized the value of institutional partnerships early on.
• Partnerships provided user volume, credibility, and stabilized revenue.
• Prosper was also able to pursue the more volatile consumer market.
• The institutional side operated on a software-as-a-service model.
• Career coaches at post-secondary institutions were trained to use the platform.
• They had access to a rich analytics back end.
• Institutions were charged per user.
• Prosper partnered with over 10 educational institutions.
• One of its earliest partners was Ivey, offering effective career services.
• Institutional partnerships yielded a fair revenue share.
• They accounted for 80% of Prosper's revenue.
• The founder envisioned this to be 40% as the business expanded.
• They aimed for a B2C model over a B2B one.
• 30% of users stayed even after leaving institutions.
• Harrison considered whether Prosper would be better off remaining enterprise-heavy.

Promotions

• Prosper had few promotional initiatives other than referral programs.
• Referrals had accounted for 70% of recent sign ups by existing users, coaches, campus clubs, and student unions.
• Users had a limited interest in Prosper-produced content.
• Harrison decided to forgo a social media presence entirely.
• She then wondered if the company had matured such that the investment in social media was now worthwhile

Strategic Alternatives

• There were three distinct possible marketing paths available to prosper.

Option 1: Institutional Focus

• Deepen B2B relationships.
• Share of institutional clients to 40%, at the expense of individual students.
• Share of "switchers" would drop to 35%.
• Institutions could add hundreds of users.
• Lost business would cause a similar revenue drop.
• Sale negotiation was more complex and time-consuming because institutions had more bargaining power.
• Institutions were sophisticated buyers.
• Institutions focused on improving student employment rates post-graduation.

Option 2: Family Focus

• Focus on students’ families, not just students.
• A shift that Harrison previously thought would be a "shoo-in".
• Parents influenced students/paid for Prosper.
• It would increase students to 70%.
• The institutional business would be abandoned.
• Would require selling the product twice.
• Students were active on social.
• Families influenced by television, print media ads.

Option 3: Switcher Focus

• Increase the share of "switchers" to 70%.
• Requires reallocating resources from universities.
• Institutional users reduced to 25%.
• Switchers' ability to pay was most attractive.
• Acquisition was more costly from dispersed population.
• Harrison sought to improve willingness to pay.
• She was confident in Prosper's delivery of career transitions.
• Switchers were self-motivated, with targetability via career-focused websites.

Conclusion

• Securing funding was needed in order to safeguard Prosper's success.
• Data was organized to ponder the course of action and ensure company longevity

Aqualisa Quartz: Better shower

• In May 2001, Aqualisa launched the Quartz shower, the 1st major product innovation in the U.K. market since forever.
• However, in September 2001, the euphoria had long since faded.
• Managing Director Harry Rawlinson knew the Quartz was better technologically but wasn't selling.

U.K. Shower Market

• U.K. showers had antiquated plumbing and were plagued by problems.
• 60% of U.K. homes had showers while everyone had bathtubs.
• To save hot water, people used a separate hot water boiler to heat water.
• Gravity-fed plumbing meant poor pressure around 3 -4 liters per minute, compared the U.S.'s much highers rates.
• Gravity fed plumbing also created frequent fluctuations in pressure varying the water temperature.

Common Approaches

• Electric showers use cold water supply, heating elements located in the shower, visible white box.
• Mixer shower vales blend hot/cold water via manual/thermostatic controls and meant excavating bathroom to install. Booster pumps could enhance water flow rate.
• Integral power showers are compact with thermostatic mixer, booster pump, but bulky because they are mounted on walls.

Specifics to Aqualisa

• The company's core product was the Aquavalve 609 in mixer-shower-valve producing 60,000 units per year.
• The product was regarded as reliable selling for €715.
• The cost to manufacture the shower was around €155.
• The product could be supplemented with Aquaforce booster pump. Aquastream Thermostatic was primary product having about 20,000 units per year.
• It was about €175 to produce and sold for about €670.
• Consumers disliked poor pressure and varying temperature about showers
• Consumers also mentioned hard-to-turn values and leaky seals.
• Almost half the U.K. shower market consisted of sales for replacement showers.
• Shower buyers in the U.K. fell into premium, standard, and value pricing segments. Consumers typically shopped in showrooms, relied on a plumber to pick, or avoided solutions requiring independent plumbers. In addition, there was a sizable do it yourself market with general interest in inexpensive models being easy to install.
• Electric showers adapted to all water systems, installed in a day, popular within landlords. Aqualisa sold to developers a different brand only available through the showerMax brand.
• Aqualias core products were to expensive for developers due to features aimed at the retail market.
• showerMax was a cut down version intended for developers who are extremely price sensative.
• Rawlinson stated "real breakthroughs are pretty rare in the shower market" Innovations also focus on cosmetic changes every few years.

Channels of distribution

• Sold through trade shops, showrooms, and DIY outlets.
• Trade shops carried products, customer was the plumber.
• Aqualisa brand was available to 40% of trade ships.
• Rawlinson stated that workers at these trade shops do not have time to learn about 45,000 items.
• Showrooms were more high end, offering consultants.
• Displayed many options, but had no inventory.
• Electric showers were cheaper, sold through retail outlets such as B and Q.
• Aqualisa brand was not avilable through this channel but its Gainsborough brand existed in 70% of them.

Plumbers

• Plumbers had to undergo years of training, three years of master plumber work.
• There was a shorter of master plumbers, making customers wait up to six months for on job opportunity. A standard shower installation was a two-day job but plumbers charged € 40 - € 80 per hour, including excavation
• prices to customers quotes.
• lump sums making customers unaware of costs and labor.
• Plumbers preffered loyal to single brands to maintain good work and avoid problems.

The Quartz

• Historical Aqualisa's reputation was strong and the company ranked number two in mixing values by market share.
• Rawlinson believed that other companies were catching up in product quality.
• Rawlinson believed the company's products were overpriced. About 10% of shows that went wrong, Rawlinson was focused on innovation as their top concern.
• brought together a top-notch team of outsiders and insiders to understand problems with showering
• had product delivered good pressure but stable temperatures. team located mix of better remotely allowing opening up operations and excavation.
• Consumer wanted pressure about 18 liters allowing options to run at two thirds of speed about 44 10%.
• cost € 5.8 to develop result was kind different than something for them.
• By this time company had acquired nine patents and grown its engineering team.

Aqualias Qurtz

The brand came in two different versions was created.

• One involved installing the cord into the ceiling above.
• Plumbers stated that would be simple so easy that the installation guide would be use in promotional.
• When a customer touched that control button the light turn on they loved it.
• The shower became popular they like it and people loved the button function. The team anticipate more models of the show products.

Results

• Rawlinson said if managers who are proud of their product, The product may still may be a niche and the organization will be okay at the same time. In summary, business school wants to think strategically about products.