How I Made $1,000 In One Month By Tutoring Online
How I made $1,000 a month tutoring online
Starting an online tutoring business revolutionized the way I look at money. Before I started tutoring, I was dealing with teacher burnout and I wasn’t even sure I wanted to continue down the path of being an elementary school teacher.
I knew as a teacher I wasn’t making the money I truly deserved. Even with two masters degrees, my monthly income was getting taken up by a car payment and student loan debt. Something needed to change and the change had to be making more money. The key was to use skills I already had as a teacher so I didn’t have to learn anything new or try and sell a product like leggings (Lula Rich anyone?!)
Tutoring allows me to make the money I deserve.
I’m confident that if this full-time first grade teacher (me!) can do it, so can you! Whether your goals are to stay in the classroom like me or to leave the classroom and pursue a full-time tutoring business, all the tips I’m going to give you will help you on your path to making $1,000 a month and more!
Begin with the end in mind
As teachers, we know how to write a lesson plan using grade level standards and we can see what the end result is supposed to be in a lesson. The backward design model works well for hacking your income goals with your tutoring business as well. I knew that I needed to make at least $1,000 extra dollars a month in order to pay off debt and justify the time I would be spending working on my tutoring business.
Making $1,000 a month extra helped me pay off my debt!
From there, I was able to calculate how many kinds I would need to tutor with the rate I was going to choose. I love using the Tutoring Income Calculator to see how quickly I can reach my income goals. There’s something so motivating about seeing dollar signs climb up like the Price is Right, isn’t there? I always recommend starting with your income goal and doing the math to see how many kids you need to tutor and for how long. This paints a clear picture of the amount of time you’ll be committing to and allows you to come up with a promotional plan to get more clients.
A killer social media promotional plan will grow your business.
Use word of mouth marketing to get more clients
If we’re friends on Instagram, you know I love word of mouth marketing! It’s hands down one of the best ways to get more tutoring clients without spending a dime on marketing. Using this marketing strategy hand in hand with a killer promotional plan, you’ll be implementing a wait list in no time and potentially starting to hire tutors to work under you. Word of mouth marketing has the potential to jump start your tutoring business.
Word of mouth marketing is the best marketing strategy to grow organically.
Former students are my favorite place to start when it comes to booking new tutoring clients. They have the like, know, and trust factor firmly established with you. In teaching, we know relationships are everything. What would it feel like to have a bond with a tutoring client before you even start your first session? The impact you make immediately with tutoring someone you already know is priceless.
Once the ball was rolling on my online tutoring business, I found myself sitting at 5 clients. This number was what I could handle as a full-time first grade teacher. (Did I mention I also teach in a Title One school?) With 5 clients, I was consistently making $1,000-$1,500 dollars a month and eventually had to start a waitlist because my clients kept telling their friends about me. The need for tutoring is at an all time high and if you’re running your tutoring business like a business, parents will talk about you and you’ll quickly find your client list completely booked.
The impact a teacher makes lasts a lifetime.
Within a year’s time I paid off my car a year early. Something I never dreamed possible. Now, I’m able to save money to go on fun trips like Scotland and Egypt while doubling down on my student loan debt. I don’t worry about money like I used to and it’s all thanks to creating an online tutoring business that allowed me to work on my own terms and create more financial freedom than I ever thought possible. If you’re a teacher too, you know that’s a big deal because our paychecks don’t reflect the hard work we do day after day, year after year.
Treat your tutoring business like a business
One of the best pieces of advice I can give you whether you’re just starting your own tutoring business or trying to grow and expand your tutoring business, is to treat tutoring like a real business if you’re looking to grow and see long lasting results. The biggest income growth I saw in my business was when I went from thinking of my business as a hobby to something I was the CEO of. I truly believe considering yourself a Tutorpreneur® takes your business to the next level and you’ll manifest the life you were meant to live while making a positive impact on the lives of children.
One of your goals might be to leave the classroom so you can run a teacher business full-time, and if it is, then friend, you need to start treating your business like a business. Once you start to achieve your own potential and have dramatic growth, you’ll be hooked on entrepreneurship.
Treat your tutoring business, like a business.
Find ways to work less and earn more
One of the best ways you can achieve this desired result of working less and earning more is by tutoring a pod. I’ve blogged about this before and you can read that blog post here.
Many tutors I’ve talked to aren’t sure how to go about tutoring a pod. I believe it’s a matter of having systems and processes in place and cultivating a plan to work with a pod. Last year I was working with three first grade students who were struggling with reading and writing. The pandemic took a hard hit on their literacy skills. All three girls went to the same school and I hatched a plan to work with them at the same time. Instead of three ½ hour sessions, I was able to do one ½ hour session but charging each client the same amount. In just one ½ hour, I was making $90.00! With the extra time I saved, I was able to write more blog posts, make YouTube videos and grow my Teachers Pay Teachers store. All three of these are revenue streams that are passive once the content is created. Something I’ll teach you all about inside of Tutorpreneur Academy®.
Create more freedom than you ever thought possible.
Be proactive in getting tutoring clients
You can’t sit and wait and hope that if you build it, they will come. Reaching out to former students’ parents via email, texting, and phone calls will help you rapidly grow your tutoring business while increasing your confidence as a business owner. The more you talk about your services, the problems you solve and the solutions you provide, the more you’ll grow your like, know, trust factor and credibility. Starting a Facebook group is a great way to get more clients by providing tons of value for free. You’ll be shocked at how this one tactic can level up your business to new heights. I talk a lot more in detail and give examples of this in this YouTube video.
I’ve spilled the tea on how I made $1,000 in one month by tutoring online all while teaching first grade full-time. You, my friend, are one smart cookie for starting your tutoring business the right way.
If you haven’t started tutoring yet and are looking for some direction, grab my free 10 step guide to start your online tutoring business. I give you the first 10 things you need to do to start your own tutoring business the right way and see immediate results.
What are your income goals for your tutoring business? Tell me in the comments!