The most common challenge for private tutors and teachers is universal: how to find students. After running a freelance tutoring business, here are my 5 insider tips to find students online and earn up to A$100/hr from the comfort of home.
How To Find Students for Online Teaching and Tuition
1: Identify your potential students.
If you are looking for private students, the first question that you should ask is this: “Who do I want to teach?”
When I first began offering private tuition to supplement my in-person teaching salary, I would have answered with: “Anyone who will pay me!” – but this approach can make life more difficult. By having a clear idea of who your students will be, the easier it is to plan where and how you will connect with them. While you can broaden your search as you go, it helps to start with a targeted group.
Write this down and begin to brainstorm.
My potential students are… ‘primary school-age students who need help with improving reading scores’ (example).
Who are the parent/s of your students? Recently arrived immigrant professionals, etc?
Where are they? List the potential suburbs, city/regional, religious or specialist schools, etc?
What are their needs and goals? Selective high school entrance scores, etc?
2. Start with your existing networks.
If you’ve taught or tutored in the past, can you reconnect with these students or parents and let them know that you are tutoring online? Do you have friends and/or family with children in the age group that you’re looking for? Do you have friends and/or family who work, volunteer, or socialise with people who may be a potential student? Let them know you are tutoring online.
Write a list of everyone and anyone who may be able to connect you to a potential student, then reach out. The easiest way to find students is with people who already know, like and trust you.
3. Build upon your existing networks.
If you’ve already got a few students, offer them (or their parents) a discount on tuition or incentive to refer new students to you. Parents know other parents with similar aged children, and adult students move in networks that often contain many other English learners – particular if you specialise in test preparation or with learners from a particular profession or background.
4. Join online groups.
Once you move beyond your personal networks, you will want to look for places where groups of your potential students or their parents meet: Facebook groups, online forums etc.
The thing is, while tempting, don’t simply join the group and start advertising your tuition. It is a great way to get yourself blocked. Instead, introduce yourself to the admin/s of the group and let them know that you tutor students of this age group and ask if it is OK to give any advice around challenges their children might have.
Or, just keep an eye on the conversations that parents are having, and if you think that you can help their children with any learning-related challenges, make contact via DM to let them know that you tutor. Don’t be pushy and be genuine.
It’s not an overnight strategy, but by building relationships and trust, you can build an ongoing network of parents who can engage your services or refer you to other parents who are looking.
With adult learners, the same strategy can be employed by building these relationships directly.
5. Join post-a-profile/set-your-own-rates sites.
You can also find students online on sites where you post your profile and students contact you. The problem is overcrowding, with 17,000+ English tutors on Preply alone. But, don’t worry! I’ve compiled a regularly updated list with 15+ smaller post-a-profile sites in Asia and Europe among over 50 international online teaching companies. Check it out below.
5 tips to stand out on post-a-profile sites:
- Have a professional photo taken;
- Keep language simple and sentences short; consider translation to multiple languages;
- Keep your potential student in mind and write your profile as if speaking to them;
- Describe how you can help your students, rather than just a personal biography;
- Use keywords and phrases that students might be searching for, such as “IELTS for university” rather than industry terms (ELICOS, EAP).
How To Get Students for Online Classes: In Summary
So, there you have it – 5 of my best tips for finding private students. With your potential student in mind, start with close networks and move outwards in your online student search. Build relationships and trust, incentivise your students to refer more students to you, and above all, be patient. While there are more complex ways to find students to teach or tutor online, these 5 should get you started.
Want to find out more about how to find students online? Considering your own private/freelance tutoring business and earning charging A$100/hr or more? Get in touch for 1:1 coaching.
Kate (GradCertEd TESOL) studied a TESOL certificate in 2010 and has been teaching English ever since. Tutoring ‘freelance’ for many years before starting an independent teaching business, she began Teach English Online to support Australians and New Zealanders to do the same. Just starting out, want to apply to one of the 300+ global companies or build your own small independent teaching business? She can help.