Target: the MRR ladder in WHAT-TO-DO-AND-AVOID.md. Plan path: $16–20k MRR full-time, $7–9k MRR at ~15 hrs/week, profitable, ≥80% gross margin, ≥70% month-3 retention, by Sept 2028.
Rule: nothing in a later phase starts until the current phase's gate is hit. Gates and pivot rules are in WHAT-TO-DO-AND-AVOID.md. Detail for days 1–90 is in 08-90-day-plan.md.
Automation-first rule for both plans: every recurring task (import, onboarding, reminders, reports, support answers) gets a template or a script before the next 10 schools arrive. Founder time per new school must fall below 1 hour by school #20.
Phase 1: Prove the pain in Ohio (Months 0–3, Oct–Dec 2026) → Gates G1, G2
| Track | Work |
|---|
| Customers | 40 owner calls (25 at ~15 hrs/week). Concierge service for 5 paying schools (3 at ~15 hrs/week). |
| Product | Web + PWA v1: student hour record (Ohio rules), instructor + car calendar, rule-aware parent booking, package checkout with deposits and no-show fees (Stripe Connect), instructor drive log, SMS reminders, CSV import. |
| Security | 2FA, encryption, audit log, minimal data, security page, incident plan, cyber insurance quote. |
| Distribution | Ohio DETS list exported. Free hours-tracker template. 3 SEO pages. DSAA conference decision (19–22 Oct). |
| Pricing | Solo $69, School $179, Multi $329, Off-season $29. Pilots get founding pricing locked for 12 months. |
| Exit | Full-time: 10 schools on the app. ~15 hrs/week: 5. Each books all its drives in it. |
Phase 2: Make Ohio repeatable (Months 4–6, Jan–Mar 2027) → Gate G3
| Track | Work |
|---|
| Product | Certificate-ready student summary, state inspection pack, waitlist auto-fill, import wizard for DanubeNet and Drivers Ed Solutions exports, owner dashboard (no-show fees, hours filled). |
| Distribution | Cold email the full Ohio list. 10 SEO pages. Ohio case study with a dollar figure. Referral offer: 1 month free per paying referral. |
| Ops | Recorded demo, help center, templated onboarding emails, weekly office hours. |
| Prep | Research the second state's rules (Colorado or Washington). Talk to 10 owners there. |
| Exit | Full-time: $2k MRR (~13 schools). ~15 hrs/week: $1k (~7). Monthly logo churn ≤2%, ≥30% of trials from search, lists or referral. |
Phase 3: First summer and the second state (Months 7–12, Apr–Sept 2027) → Gate G4
| Track | Work |
|---|
| Product | Second state rules pack. Instructor pay reports. Vehicle records and reminders. QuickBooks export. |
| Distribution | Launch in the second state from its public school list. Case studies from both states. |
| Ops | Survive the summer peak: support answers written in advance, status page, no releases on Saturdays. |
| Retention | Annual-plan push before winter. Off-season plan offered to every monthly school in September. |
| Exit | Full-time: $5.5k MRR (~37 schools). ~15 hrs/week: $2.5k (~17). ≥50% on annual, summer churn ≤3%. |
Phase 4: Scale what works (Months 13–24, Oct 2027–Sept 2028) → Gate G5
| Track | Work |
|---|
| Product | Disclosed payment platform fee (optional, per school). Multi-location plan. Third state only if the second pays for its rules work. |
| Distribution | Double down on the single best channel from months 1–12. State association sponsorships only where schools came from them. |
| Team | Full-time plan: a part-time onboarding and support hire from about $10k MRR. ~15 hrs/week plan: a contractor for imports only. |
| Checkpoint | Month 18 (Mar 2028): full-time $10k (~67 schools), ~15 hrs/week $4.5k (~30). A miss means concentrating on the best channel and pausing new states. |
| Decision at month 24 | Above $10k and profitable: keep running it, add states one at a time. Below $3k: stop, or sell the customer base to a vertical-software buyer. |
| Exit | Full-time: $16–20k MRR. ~15 hrs/week: $7–9k MRR. Profitable. |
Revenue path (illustrative, not a forecast)
| Month | Full-time: schools | Full-time: MRR | ~15 hrs/week: schools | ~15 hrs/week: MRR |
|---|
| 3 (Dec 2026) | 10 | ~$1k | 5 | ~$0.5k |
| 6 (Mar 2027) | 13 | ~$2k | 7 | ~$1k |
| 12 (Sept 2027) | 37 | ~$5.5k | 17 | ~$2.5k |
| 18 (Mar 2028) | 67 | ~$10k | 30 | ~$4.5k |
| 24 (Sept 2028) | 110–134 | ~$16–20k | 47–60 | ~$7–9k |
This assumes a blended ~$150 per school after annual discounts, monthly logo churn ≤1.5% after month 6, the $29 off-season plan holding winter churn down, and ≥50% of trials from search, lists or referral by month 12. Payment platform fees are not included. If churn runs above 3%, this path doesn't work. Fix retention before adding a state.
Budget guardrails (bootstrapped)
- Hosting, SMS, storage and tools below 9% of revenue. Security review and cyber insurance are budgeted separately, from month 1.
- Zero paid ads before month 6. After that, only channels that pay back within 3 months.
- No state rules pack without 10 owner calls in that state first.
- Keep 12 months of personal and business runway at all times. Below 6 months, cut to Ohio and the best channel.