Are you looking to be your own boss? Hoping to make a little extra money on the side? Whether you're only starting out or have been tutoring on the side for years, we will teach you some awesome tips for taking on tutoring as a part-time side hustle and who knows? You may even be able to turn it into a full-time career.

Tutoring is a great side hustle because you get to help people with topics they're interested in whilst having the freedom to set your own schedule. You can work sitting at home or anywhere that has an internet connection. It's a very flexible way to earn extra money.

So how does one go about turning a side hustle into a successful business you may ask? Well, it all begins with how you market yourself.

1. Find Your Niche

Do your research! This is the most important step in getting your tutoring side hustle off the ground. You want to focus on something that you will be able to teach well, for example, what qualifications do you have? What did you excel in at school?

These are the areas you should be aiming to teach. Niches don't have to be academic either, maybe you're an excellent musician or an accomplished sports star, teach what you know and what you do best. 

But be careful, you need to ensure that your niche is in demand. If your target market is already saturated with Spanish tutors, then how are you going to make your tutoring service stand out?

You also don't want your niche to be so unique that nobody is in need of your services. Be smart about what you're doing and specific with your target audience. This will make advertising your tutoring services so much easier.

2. Decide Your Business Structure

There are several types of tutoring that you could choose to get started with. What you choose will be dependent on your goals. For instance, you may want to have a flexible schedule or earn a certain amount of money. You may want to work privately or set up a network of tutors to cover a broader range of topics.

For small businesses, setting up an LLC may be your best option as these are the most adaptable. Registering an LLC entity will give your tutoring business credibility and provide greater peace of mind for your customers that they are receiving a legitimate service.

If you are tutoring as a side hustle, then you need to focus on optimising the efficiency of your services. Your time is valuable and you want to be spending it wisely. Consider the following: 

  • Set policies early to manage student expectations effectively and optimize your time.
  • Decide the number of students you can manage simultaneously.
  • Establish a cancellation policy to ensure consistent income.
  • Define basic rules, such as preferred communication methods and lesson structure, to avoid misunderstandings and maintain professionalism.

3. Prepare Your Marketing Documents

When preparing key documentation for your own tutoring business, it’s important to highlight your abilities and credentials. Alongside this, you can also work on these several details: 

  • Have a Unique Selling Point (USP): This could be that you’re a certified tutor or that you lived abroad and learnt a desirable foreign language. 
  • Make sure your contact details are easily accessible: When advertising your online tutor services, add your phone number and email address. 
  • Maintain transparent and honest communication with prospective clients: This will put you ahead of your competition and help you increase your word-of-mouth referrals and rates.
  • Consider joining a professional association for tutors: A certification from the American Tutoring Association or the National Tutoring Association, or the The Tutor's Association if you're UK based, will make your services more trustworthy.

4. Create an Online Presence

Once you've nailed all of the admin, it's time to advertise your offerings. Whilst it is possible to promote your tutoring side hustle via existing websites, such as Craigslist, it is far more beneficial for you to make your own.

  • Post content: Add relevant details of what services you offer and create appropriate ads to promote yourself.
  • Use social media: This can be a great tool to reach your target audience and drive traffic to your website.
  • Add a blog: Here, you can add content that has keyword-rich terms and highlights your offerings.
  • Write relevant posts: If it’s around the time that students write their SATs or take college entrance exams, you can offer them tips for test prep and promote how you can help them.

If they find your content useful, they will be more likely to share it with other individuals in your target market and potentially become clients. Electronic word of mouth is a fantastic way to increase referrals and positive reviews.

5. Stay Organised

Running any business can be a stressful experience but in order to get started and make your life a little easier, it is important to have good time management and organisational skills. Track your hours and student progress to make sure that you are not overworking yourself.

It’s important to do the following things when tutoring online: 

  • Have a designated workspace: If you work from home, this can help you reduce distractions for you and your clients. 
  • Hold onto any financial documents: Having receipts, invoices and payment confirmation can help you stay above board financially and legally. 
  • Test run before you tutor students online: Have a trial tutoring session with a friend or family member to find out any online tools you need or areas you need to focus on.
  • Have the right tools: It’s important to have a microphone, speakers, webcam, good Wi-Fi connection, and updated video calling software.

Remember, you don't have to be the best tutor in the world. That said, if you are comfortable and confident with what you are doing, then it is likely that your clients will feel more relaxed and enjoy using your services. People tend to learn more quickly and easily, when they like their learning environment and the areas they are being tutored in.

6. Keep the Following Qualities in Mind

Aside from having the right equipment, experience and background, there are also a bunch of characteristics that can help you be a better tutor. With this in mind, keep the following in mind when tutoring.

Be Adaptable

There is no one way in which individuals learn. Therefore, it is important as a tutor to familiarise yourself with the needs of your clients. This will allow for you to better tailor your lesson plans and materials to fit each one.

For visual learners, you may want to incorporate practical demonstrations (using whiteboards) into your lessons or for reading/writing learners, you may want to ask them to read information ahead of your session, so that you achieve maximum productivity during your time together.

Adaptability is key to gathering a wide customer base and if you are able to execute this successfully, there is greater chance of retaining customers as this creates value for them.

Be Open to Feedback

Whilst you may be highly experienced or qualified in your chosen subject area, this does not necessarily make you a good tutor. The most effective tutor is one that is empathetic to their clients' needs and strives to help in any way that they can.

By providing individualised feedback to your clients on how their learning progresses, you are able to build their confidence and encourage them to do their best work. This works in return too! In order to provide the best tutoring service possible, ask your clients for feedback on what they're learning and how they're learning.

Tutoring is a way to supplement learning outside of schools and workplaces, so it is important that clients feel they are receiving this additional value that they do not receive in their other learning environments. Identifying best practices will also be beneficial for you as a tutor as you can advertise your merit and promote what makes your services so unique and effective.

Be Professional

Whilst you are working online, it is important to remain professional at all times. There are many benefits to providing online tutoring services including convenience and cost, but there is more to it than that. If you do not provide a reliable service, then clients will quickly lose confidence in your ability as a tutor very quickly.

It is imperative that you communicate effectively and are always accessible during work hours. There should be no complaints from your clients, but if there are, it is important that you address these concerns as quickly as possible.

Be Confident

An important part of a successful online tutoring business is being confident in your own capabilities. Your clients will only learn from you, if you know what you're talking about. It is always best to aim for over delivering than under delivering, as it generates greater customer satisfaction and loyalty which will result in client lifetime value.

Make sure you appropriately communicate and engage with your clients during tutoring sessions. When conducting sessions online, non-verbal cues such as direct eye-contact may not have the same impact as it would face-to-face. Therefore, try using voice chat or screen sharing where possible to demonstrate that you are with your student every step of the way. You will learn their learning styles and preferences the longer they are your client.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Much Money do you Make as a Tutor?

There's no straightforward answer to how much you can earn as a tutor. This ambiguity isn't necessarily negative, as it offers flexibility in setting your rates. Your earnings will vary based on the demand for your expertise, the hours you're willing to work, and the specific needs of your clients.

Average tutoring rates can range significantly, from $10 to $100 per hour, influenced by the quality of your service and your reputation in the tutoring field. Essentially, what students are willing to pay depends on your skills and experience.

Can Using Online Tutoring Platforms Help Part-Time Tutors?

Yes, online tutors can highly benefit from utilizing an online tutoring platform or tutoring business management software, such as TutorCruncher. Our software can help tutors with administrative tasks and financial analysis, so they can focus on teaching and getting new clients

What Kind of Tutors Make the Most Money?

For tutors looking to make the most of their time, specialized skills, such as foreign languages like French, Russian, and Latin or Math and Science can make the most money. 

These tutoring jobs can earn up to $40 per lesson, depending on the tutor’s experience and availability.

Wrap Up & Conclusion

There are clearly no set criteria for being the best tutor on the market, requirements and demands are different for every subject and learning style.

However, by following the guidance laid out above and being dedicated to providing a strong service, you could be earning money from your tutoring side hustle in no time. Set a solid foundation and watch your success grow. Tutoring isn't easy but it is extremely rewarding and above all else, a great side hustle.

If you have any questions or need some more advice, don’t hesitate to contact us at info@tutorcruncher.com or 020 3966 1863.