How To Start An Online Tutoring Business- A Comprehensive Guide?

Ready to get started on the most lucrative niche- The online education industry? You are going to learn everything about starting an online tutoring business in the simplest and effective way.

In a world driven by technology and excellent connectivity, online tutoring, a dynamic and innovative approach to learning, emerged as a powerful tool.

Online tutoring business is a side hustle for teachers or students to earn extra income every month. But for others, starting an online tutoring business is a full-time career choice, allowing them to enjoy a 5 figure income.

If you are an entrepreneur, or an educator, or even a freelance tutor, this blog will walk you through how to start an online tutoring business.

Check out how Pinlearn can be an ideal tutoring software for startups!

How to Start an Online Tutoring Business?

As with any new business venture, getting things off the ground is one of the biggest hurdles that new online tutoring business owners face. Naturally, you will want to proceed quickly, but as the saying goes, 'if something is worth doing, it's worth doing correctly.

So here we have compiled the steps on how to start an online tutoring business to get your business up and running, and continue to grow in the future.

1. Identify your tutoring niche

One of the important steps of how to start an online tutoring business is to define your target niche.

Decide what subjects you want to teach and what your expertise is. You must consider your educational background, certification, and prior teaching experience, if any.

Ask these questions when learning how to start an online tutoring business to find your niche:

What subject do you want to teach, and does it align with your passion?
What subjects have you had experience teaching offline or online previously?
What age group do you want to cater to?
How much time do you want to devote to online tutoring?
Are you willing to cater to students with special needs?
Do you plan to offer classes in different time zones?

2. Develop a business blueprint, a.k.a business plan

The biggest advantage of starting an online tutoring business is that you can begin with little to no investment and scale as you grow. But if you want to grow your online tutoring business successfully, you cannot do that without a proper business plan.

So, what exactly is a tutoring business plan?

The business plan is a roadmap that highlights everything about how to start a successful tutoring business. It is the foundation of your tutoring business that defines how to structure, run and grow your new tutoring business.

Having a blueprint of your tutoring business can help you navigate through the key elements of your business, and it also helps to get funding or bring on new investors.

An online tutoring business must be of long format and include all details, which are as follows:

Executive summary: The summary is the last section you must prepare, but this is the first section that your investors and stakeholders will read.

Business description- Your business name, operational years, key offers and more.

Competitive analysis- Tutoring businesses have many key players, meaning you will have a lot of competitors to challenge you. List out your competitors, their strengths and weaknesses, opportunities, etc.

Target market- Define your core customers and why. List out their demographic, behavioral patterns, and geographical location.

Operation and management plan: Define how you are planning to offer your services. Do you want to work as an independent tutor or work along with other tutors in an online tutoring marketplace service?

Marketing plans: Cover how you will promote your USPs to your target clients.

3. Decide on the business structure

If you are brainstorming how to start a tutoring business, it is really important to work on a business structure before you launch. The business structure you choose will determine your taxes and liability. You can register your tutoring business as a sole proprietor or a limited liability company (LLC).

Speak with your tax accountant and business lawyer to find out about the local ordinances, liability challenges, and other aspects of business ownership.

Let's look into detail what each one means:

Start as a Sole proprietor

If you are looking for how to set up an online tutoring business and you are a single-owner company, you can start as a sole proprietor. In this business structure, the country's taxation law doesn't separate you from your business; you can pay both personal and business tax using one tax return. But yes, again, the law is different in different countries.

Start as a LLC

An LLC is preferred if you want to be taxed as a corporation. Depending on your state, you will have to register your business name with the secretary of state or a business bureau.

4. Plan your business model

So now that you are looking for how to start your own online tutoring business, how do you want your tutoring business to look? Do you want to offer one-to-one live sessions? Or do you prefer group classes or both?

Decide on how you want your tutoring sessions to look like. Yes, your online tuition business model can evolve over time.

And depending on the type of classes you offer, your tutoring rates also change. For example, you can charge more for one-to-one live sessions than group classes as it requires more attention and effort from your side as an online tutor.

Pinlearn has got everything you need right from the business models to an online tutoring business solution. Get started !

5. Find students to tutor online

If you are looking for how to start an online tutoring business, you need to build your client base. While the number of clients you have isn't the sole factor that determines the success of your business, it does play a role, and it influences your income, too.

Register with online tutor directories

Create profiles on online tutoring directories, and in this way, you can reach a larger audience and connect with potential students across the globe.

There are online tutoring marketplaces like Wyzant, TutorMe, etc. that connect online tutors with students.

Write a free eBook

Writing an eBook can help you attract students for your tutoring business online. By offering valuable information related to the subjects you teach, you can show potential clients that you are an expert in your field.

Keep your free eBook short, maybe around 3,000 to 5,000 words. Focus on offering a solution with which your ideal clients might need help.

Word-of-mouth referrals

One of the best ways to attract new clients for your online tutoring business is through word-of-mouth referrals from your previous students and parents.

Invest in online ads

Create ad campaigns on Google AdWords or Facebook ads to target potential students in your location.

Find tutoring clients through social media

Social media is a great place to begin your search for online tutoring clients. Post relevant content related to your tutoring services, and do not forget to highlight things that make your tutoring service unique.

6. Build your online tutoring website with Pinlearn

Now that all the important steps are done, we have come to the most significant aspect of starting an online tutoring business. That is building your own online tutoring website.

Now, if you ask, "Is creating a tutoring website mandatory when setting up your own tutoring business? No, it isn't. But, having one in place when you begin would make a significant change in your online tutoring business journey.

You can create your brand presence.
Have control of every aspect of your business.
Keep all the revenue by yourself. You get to decide the tutoring and commission rates (For an online tutoring marketplace business model).
The online tutoring platform is the first place where you can host your online classes, and having one helps you establish your authority as an online tutor.

There are two approaches on how to create an online tutoring website:

Building it from scratch – Extremely time-consuming and costly.
Building using readymade online tutoring software like Pinlearn.

Pinlearn is a whitelabel online tutoring software that allows educators to build online tutoring websites or learning platforms without having to build from scratch.

The ready-made solutions save months of web development, weeks of testing, and millions of dollars that could be spent if you were to build your tutoring website from scratch.

100% customizable.
Can be self-hosted on a web server.
You can own it by paying a one-time fee with no hidden or recurring price.

Experience the advanced features of Pinlearn in action by scheduling a personalized demo .

7. Marketing your online tutoring business

Another key step of how to start an online tutoring business is marketing your online tutoring business to bring it in front of your target clients.

Particularly when your online tutoring business is in its early stages, you need to refine your marketing strategies to increase the exposure of your tutoring business. It is good to try new methods and experiment with different strategies as a part of your core marketing strategy.

Here is how you can promote your online tutoring business:

Search engine optimizations.
Getting listed on Google Business.
Through social media platforms like YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook etc.
Paid advertising views Google ads and Facebook ads.
By leveraging influencer marketing.
Using public relations (PR) works.

Starting an Online Tutoring Business: How much does it cost?

Here we are, looking at the most important section of this article. How much does it cost to start an online tutoring business?

As you might already know, most of your budget will be spent building your online tutoring platform.

If you hire a development team to build your online tutoring website, it will cost you around $15,000 to $50,000 based on the complexity, which can even go higher.

But if you choose to create a tutoring website using Pinlearn, it won't cost you more than $1500.

Besides this, we suggest you set aside an additional $3,000 to $5,000 for hosting, obtaining a license and covering other business costs.

Starting your online tutoring business: Final thoughts

Starting an online tutoring business is a lucrative business idea. Yes, it is an easy industry to enter and thrive in. You need not be an expert (you can always be one as you grow); you just need to get started immediately.

When creating a tutoring website, choose Pinlearn to never go wrong in building a customized platform that allows you to host both live classes and online courses.

If you have any questions about starting an online tutoring business, ask us in the comment section below. It is always good to hear from you!