Case Study · Client Services
CollegeThoughts: a college prep firm that stopped losing leads to slow response times.
CollegeThoughts is a college planning and test prep firm in King of Prussia, PA, founded by Keith Wilkerson and run with Kim Rouse. They specialize in SAT/ACT prep, admissions strategy, and one-on-one tutoring. We started with them in December 2024.
Outcomes
What changed
24/7
Inquiry response coverage
100%
Inquiries captured automatically
0
Missed Facebook messages
4 phases
Build delivered against original 5-phase plan
The problem
Inquiries don't wait for office hours.
Families were reaching out through the website, Instagram DMs, and Facebook messages at all hours — including the times when the team was focused on delivering tutoring sessions.
There was no central system to capture, track, or qualify those leads. Delayed responses were costing potential clients who moved on to competitors before anyone had a chance to follow up.
The goal was simple: make sure every single inquiry got an instant, well-informed response — without putting that burden on the team.
The build
Delivered in phases
Each phase ships standalone value while building toward the larger system. Keith committed to the full roadmap after Phase 1 went live.
Phase 1
Instant Response System
Stop losing leads to slow response times. Capture every inquiry coming through the website and social media — automatically, 24/7.
- •AI website chatbot (Tidio + Lyro AI) trained on CollegeThoughts FAQs
- •Facebook DM notification workflow built on n8n + Facebook Graph API, with deduplication and a permanent non-expiring Page Access Token
- •Branded Lead Tracker in Google Sheets — every inquiry, every channel
- •Defaults to suggesting a call or email when the question is too complex for the bot to answer well
Phase 2a
Notion Operations Hub & Core Integrations
Move the whole business onto a single source of truth. Sheets stays the data backbone; Notion becomes the daily workspace.
- •Notion workspace setup with admin dashboards
- •One-way Google Sheets → Notion sync via n8n
- •Weighted scheduling via Calendly webhook (matches student to the right tutor)
- •Student lifecycle tracking from inquiry → onboarding → active → wrap-up
- •Hidden staff pay view (visible to admins, hidden from tutors)
Phase 2b
Reminders & Lifecycle Automations
Once the ops hub is solid, layer in the time-based automations that keep families and tutors in the loop without anyone remembering to send them.
- •Appointment reminder workflows
- •Exam-season alerts (SAT / ACT date-driven)
- •Birthday and milestone touchpoints
- •Family progress updates
Post-launch
Live Optimization & Reporting
The system is live, in daily use, and we're iterating on the reporting layer based on how Keith and the team actually work.
- •Looker Studio dashboards for tutor utilization and revenue
- •Month-by-month coach performance reports
- •Data reconciliation fixes as the workflow evolves
- •New requests handled inside the upkeep plan, no surprise invoices
Under the hood
The stack
No custom platform, no SaaS lock-in. We connected the tools the team already trusts.
Notion
Central ops workspace
Google Sheets
Source of truth
Google Calendar
Session scheduling
n8n
Workflow automation
Tidio + Lyro AI
Website chatbot
Facebook Graph API
DM ingestion
Calendly
Weighted booking
Looker Studio
Reporting layer
“I've been pleasantly surprised by the level of ease I've experienced working with Hellion. We describe the things that are challenging for us in the business and they come up with effective solutions at a reasonable price point. Their plans are detailed. The collaboration is seamless. And the final product is pristine and well-supported. Hellion will be a partner for us in the months and years ahead because they are making our working lives simpler. You should try them too.”
Got a workflow like this?
Most engagements start the same way Keith's did — a 30-minute discovery call where we map your workflows and find the highest-leverage place to start.