Are you thinking of starting a virtual side hustle? Have you ever considered tutoring virtually?
Tutoring is an amazing side hustle, and you get to help students while doing it.
Plus, with many schools going remote due to COVID-19, virtual tutors will be in high demand.
If you have ever considered starting a virtual tutoring business, here’s everything you need to know to get started.
Decide Your Niche
To start, you’ll need to determine what subject areas you will offer your expertise in. What subject areas did you enjoy while in school? What classes did you excel at? Do you have experience taking a difficult standardized test, such as the LSAT, SAT, or GMAT?
These are all great subject niches to start. While it may be tempting to choose multiple areas to tutor in, it’s not suggested. It’s draining to try to learn everything you can about multiple subject matters. Plus, then you have to create multiple sets of curriculum. Make it easy on yourself by choosing one or two similar areas of expertise.
Create Your Curriculum
Once you have your niche, you can start creating your curriculum. While a lot of your teaching will depend on the student’s homework, you can also create a simple outline of competencies you plan to teach. Do you know enough about each competency in order to teach it to someone else? If not, it’s time to brush up your knowledge.
Also think about how you will conduct your sessions. For instance, do you want to start your sessions with going over things you covered at your previous session? If you’re tutoring younger students, how will you notify parents of how your sessions are going? What resources can you gather to help students succeed?
It’s vital to create your curriculum before you start looking for clients. That way, you are totally prepared if you find a client who wants you to start tutoring immediately.
Get the Proper Set Up
Next, set up your virtual classroom. Start by creating your own office space dedicated to your tutoring business. Even if you are limited for space, try to at least find a small desk and put it in a location with a clean background and lots of light.
You will also need to invest in some basic technology and tools. Of course you will need a computer, internet, and a high quality webcam so your students can see you. You will also need a whiteboard or paper pad so you can illustrate concepts to your students.
Build a Website
Now that you have the basic set up, you will want to build a basic website. A website is an incredible landing page where people can find you and learn about you. All of your marketing efforts will point back to your website.
You shouldn’t spend a ton of time creating a fancy website. Just keep it simple and include a little bit about you, the subjects you teach, your teaching approach, and how to contact you. And of course, make sure you have a photo of you on your website so people know what you look like!
Get the Word Out
After you’ve got your basic set up, you can start getting the word out!
Not sure where to start? The good news is there are hundreds of ways you can get the word out about your new side hustle. One easy way is to share your website in neighborhood Facebook groups. Introduce yourself, what you tutor, and be sure to share your website as well. You may be surprised who reaches out to you after seeing you putting yourself out there in your community!
Also, word of mouth is extremely powerful in order to start building your client list. Tell everyone you know that you are starting a virtual tutoring side hustle and ask for help spreading the word.
Ask for Reviews
Once you land a few of your first clients, ask for them to leave a review or testimony about your service. Testimonies go a long way in boosting your marketing efforts. Once you’ve been acknowledged by others for your services, other new clients begin to trust you before they ever hire you. Consider adding valuable testimonies to your website so others can read your good reviews!
Consider a Partnership
Not sure about starting a virtual tutoring side hustle from scratch? Have no fear – there are plenty of companies you can partner with and tutor others while acting as an independent contractor.
If you need to earn money right away or you don’t want to do your own marketing, you can sign up for websites such as Chegg, VIPKid, and Care.com to start tutoring immediately. While these websites usually take a cut of your income, they are still a solid option.
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Really helpful post for who is trying to find a good side hustle, thanks for sharing!