Tier 8b · Cohort · Application-Gated
The Builder Cohort
8 weeks. Up to 8 builders. The exact operator OS from theprotocolcollective.com, taught and applied in a small group with direct access to me for the duration.
$7,500 USD · paid once · 8-week cohortFirst-cohort pricing · round-one buyers only
0 of 8 seats taken this cohort
Operating cohort, not business advice. The Builder Cohort is a structured 8-week group engagement, not consulting, financial advice, or a regulated advisory service. The buyer is the operator running their own business. Outcomes depend on the buyer's niche, audience, product judgement, and time at the build bench. The cohort provides the operator OS, the group structure, and direct access to me; the catalogue, the audience, and the revenue are the buyer's.
The honest evidence
I built theprotocolcollective.com using exactly the operator OS this cohort teaches. 67 products live, 5-platform content engine running, single operator, single voice, single 90-day window.
The Cohort is the format where I teach the engine to a group, work with each builder on their own niche, and the group structure adds peer accountability and cross-pollination. Catalogue at theprotocolcollective.com is the artifact — browse it openly, no email gate.
"Builders who ship in cohorts ship faster than builders who ship alone. The constraint isn't the OS; it's the cadence of someone watching the calendar with you."
Who this is for
- The solo builder ready to ship 3 products in 8 weeks — the cohort structure makes the cadence non-optional.
- The operator who learns better in a group of peers shipping in parallel.
- The founder who wants the operator OS without the price tag of the 1-on-1 Concierge.
- The builder who already has product ideas and a niche — the cohort amplifies your direction, it doesn't invent it.
- The buyer who treats $7,500 as a one-time infrastructure cost on the path to launching their catalogue.
Who this is NOT for
- Anyone who hasn't decided what they're building yet.
- Anyone expecting outcome promises (revenue, customer count, audience size). None given, ever.
- Anyone who can't make weekly 90-minute group sessions for 8 consecutive weeks.
- Anyone wanting purely 1-on-1 time — this is group-first, with 4 hours of 1-on-1 included. The Concierge ($25,000) is the pure 1-on-1 path.
- Anyone whose niche is fundamentally illegal, harmful, or in a regulated space where they don't already hold the relevant credential.
What's included
Cohort access
- 8 weekly 90-minute group sessions (Mon or Wed evenings AEST)
- 4 hours of 1-on-1 with me, scheduled during the cohort
- Async cohort Slack or Discord (your peer support)
- Brand-voice review on key artifacts you ship during the cohort
- Recorded session library for permanent reference
The full Builder catalogue
- Operator Empire ($697) — the 16-module strategic OS
- Operator Content Mastery ($397)
- LinkedIn Post Library ($97)
- Cross-Platform 52-Week Calendar ($197)
- Pricing Mastery ($197)
- Founder Press & Authority Mastery ($197)
- All paid-once, owned forever, retained after the cohort closes
Production templates
- Pinterest pin generator (Python source + run script)
- Instagram post generator (Python source + run script)
- YouTube production pipeline templates
- Brand voice rulebook starter (adaptable to your niche)
Structural target
- 3 products shipped by week 8 (structural target, not outcome promise)
- Each product follows the same paid-once-owned-forever pattern
- Each carries the disclaimer scaffold appropriate to your niche
- Each has a working sales page + buy flow by end of cohort
3 products is the structural target the 8-week cadence is calibrated to produce when both sides hold to the rhythm. Some builders will ship 5 products. Some will ship 2. The structure is calibrated for 3.
The 8-week shape
Week 1
Niche + voice lock
Each builder locks their niche, audience, brand voice. Group reviews each other's voice rulebooks.
Week 2
Catalogue architecture
Map your first 3 products. Price band, format, fulfilment path. Group critique.
Week 3
Product 1 build
Ship product 1. Sales page, Stripe wiring, fulfilment. Group reviews drafts mid-week.
Week 4
Content engine spin-up
LinkedIn calendar customised. Pinterest generator deployed. Content cadence locked.
Week 5
Product 2 build
Ship product 2. Sales page refinement. Cross-platform cadence running.
Week 6
Outbound channel selection
Each builder picks one outbound channel and engages it. Group reviews positioning.
Week 7
Product 3 build
Ship product 3. The cohort catalogue depth becomes its own artifact.
Week 8
Launch + handover
Each builder launches their best-fit product to their outbound channel. Operating system documented. Post-cohort independence locked.
What this is not
Honest boundaries
- Not a guarantee of revenue, customer count, or audience size.
- Not an agency engagement — you ship the products, I review and structure them.
- Not a coaching practice — I'm an operator, not a coach. No mindset work, no breathwork.
- Not a course you can complete at your own pace — the 8-week rhythm is the product.
- Not the same as the Concierge — this is group-first ($7,500), Concierge is pure 1-on-1 ($25,000).
- Not transferable — the seat is yours, attached to your business.
The first-cohort frame
Honest pricing · honest unknowns
This is round one. Round-one cohorts get extra attention — 8-seat cap so I can actually see every builder.
Future cohorts may be priced differently, scoped differently, or removed entirely as evidence accumulates. The $7,500 first-cohort price reflects:
- • 12 hours of my group teaching time over 8 weeks (8 sessions × 90 min)
- • 4 hours of 1-on-1 with each cohort member
- • The full Builder dashboard catalogue (~$1,800 standalone value) included
- • Brand-voice review on key artifacts — the highest-leverage hand
- • Production templates (Pinterest, IG, YouTube) included
8 seats per cohort. 1 cohort per quarter. When the slots fill, they fill.
Apply for a cohort seat
Application-based gating. The cohort is capped at 8 seats, and I want to make sure the fit is real before either side commits. Apply with a short note covering: your niche, your build experience to date, why now, and the 3 products you'd want to ship over 8 weeks.
$7,500 USD
Paid once · 8-week cohort · first-cohort pricing · capped at 8 seats
Apply — andrew@theprotocolcollective.com →
The standing offer (cohort-tier variant)
What you keep after the cohort closes
- Every dashboard in the Builder catalogue — paid once, owned forever.
- The brand voice rulebook you build for your niche during the cohort.
- The customised content calendars you adapt to your audience.
- The 3 products you ship during the cohort — yours to keep, distribute, and continue to sell forever.
- Recorded transcripts of every group session.
- Production templates (Pinterest pin generator, IG post generator, YouTube pipeline).
- Updated catalogue dashboards for life — new versions arrive at no additional cost.
How this compares
Builder Cohort ($7,500)
- Group + 4 hrs 1-on-1
- 8 weeks
- 8 seats per cohort
- Structural target: 3 products
- Peer accountability built in
- Honest mid-tier premium
Catalogue Concierge ($25,000)
- Pure 1-on-1, weekly direct access
- 12 weeks
- 3 seats per quarter
- Structural target: 10 products
- Brand-voice review on every artifact
- Honest top-tier premium
See the Concierge tier →
