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Proto Marketing

Overview​

Proto is a marketing consulting firm that has been working with Alpha Schools on messaging and strategy. Based on conversations with Mackenzie Price and others, their performance has been widely criticized, with Mackenzie explicitly stating they've "been terrible." They appear to have significant influence within Alpha's marketing structure, including having hired Jason Applebaum.

Key Points​

  • Described by Mackenzie Price as "terrible" for marketing messaging
  • Hired Jason Applebaum, who became Alpha's Head of Marketing around December 2024
  • Appears to have been part of a larger agency approach to marketing that has failed to deliver results
  • May be based in Miami (based on Ben Gordon-Sniffen's comment about Jason outsourcing "Austin marketing to a Miami-based agency")

Relationship with Alpha​

  • Contracted as a consultant firm for marketing messaging
  • Appears to have been given significant authority, including hiring key personnel
  • Part of Joe Liemandt's strategy to use external agencies for marketing functions
  • As of May 2025, their effectiveness is being seriously questioned by key Alpha leadership

Notable Activities​

  • Failed to deliver promised enrollment results according to Mackenzie Price
  • Originally consisted of four team members, but split up with "the best two" leaving
  • Remaining with only two team members as of May 2025

Key Quotes​

Mackenzie: "Proto was a consultant firm that was doing marketing messaging, and they've just been terrible. And they hired Jason."

Mackenzie: "Joe has always liked the idea of an agency for everything that is not education, and experts, and like fixing it. He said, we know how to do social media, and we know how to get, basically, we will fill a high school, and we will fill a national college."

Gary: "But this year, they got zero."

Mackenzie: "They got zero. And the funniest thing was, they I like the guys. There were four of them. Now there's two of them. They split up. The best two left."

Leadership Dynamics​

  • Hired and appears to have authority over Jason Applebaum, Alpha's current Head of Marketing
  • Appears to be supported by Joe Liemandt's vision for agency-based marketing
  • In conflict with Mackenzie Price's assessment of effective marketing approaches
  • Has lost half its team, with "the best two" members having departed

Interaction History​

  • 2025-05-20: Discussed by Mackenzie Price during conversation with Gary Sheng. Mackenzie described them as "terrible" and noted that despite promises to fill schools, they delivered zero results.

Connection Points​

  • Jason Applebaum (hired by Proto, current Head of Marketing at Alpha)
  • Joe Liemandt (appears to support their agency-based approach)
  • Mackenzie Price (highly critical of their performance)

Notes​

  • Appears to be part of a larger strategic disagreement within Alpha about marketing approaches
  • May represent an example of the gap between Joe Liemandt's vision for marketing and actual on-the-ground execution
  • Their continued involvement may be in question given Mackenzie's comments about trying to remove Jason Applebaum