The widespread Covid-19 pandemic and the frequent lockdowns have entirely altered the definition of the normal world as we once knew it. The past two years have reaffirmed that the ripple effects of the pandemic will continue to be felt in the coming years. Every business and industry-either small or significant-would be massively impacted by the paradigm shift engineered by the pandemic, and the education industry is not an exception.
The education domain no longer runs on a brick-and-mortar system, and online tutoring has slowly begun to provide an alternative to or even entirely replace traditional teaching methods. The online learning system currently supports about 42% of urban Indians, which is only expected to rise in the coming years. In this context, many online teaching software spaces have also sprung up to support educators.
Online teaching businesses have taken the front seat everywhere, from K12 learning to undergraduate and postgraduate institutions across India. This is a conducive scenario for tutors to establish their own online system using online teaching software and reach students even in the farthest corners of the country. A teaching business like this offers a gamut of benefits by eliminating the need to physically travel to institutions and proposing far more flexibility concerning time and study schedules. Fortunately, as internet accessibility gradually reaches rural and remote areas, online learning also seeks to bridge the gap between the haves and the have-nots and provides tailor-made customized education. If you are one such teacher and are looking to venture into this market, the timing has never been as ripe as it is now. You need a strategic and meticulous approach, and your online tutoring business can get up and running in no time!
So how can you start live class coaching and cater to students? Let’s find out through these five steps:
1) Identify Your Strengths and Develop Your Niche
Before considering translating your teaching skills into a fulfilling online teaching business, you must mull over your strong points. You might be knowledgeable about and interested in, say, both Geography and Economics, but you must narrow down your choice to one subject, at least in the beginning. It is also wise to read and fathom the market trends. Which subjects do students generally need help with? If engineering entrance exams are coming up, can you schedule live lectures to cover all the concepts before D day?
Your credentials are equally important. For instance, if you mainly plan to cater to Physics students, it would give you an edge to have advanced degrees in the subject from prestigious colleges. What would further help you reach a wider K-12 audience is your experience- it will cement the student’s and their parent’s trust and help you architect a brand name. It is essential to stay at the top of your game, and becoming a subject matter expert is the first step to climbing the success ladder in the live-class coaching domain.
2) Website and Advertising
Once you have zeroed in on the subject, the subsequent step is to develop a digital footprint. You optimize your chances of reaching a broader clientele if your website underlies your caliber. When advertised rigorously on social media, a well-constructed website will make you easily identifiable and provide you with a distinguished space on the web.
Although it may initially sound like a herculean task, making a website for your teaching business is not extremely difficult.
There are primarily two ways to go about this:
A) You can use WordPress to create a sample website and take it from there
B) You can hire a professional website designer who would be a master of designing nuances and delivering precisely what you are looking for.
Another favorable (and much simpler) idea is to create an account on WISE, an online teaching software that gives a 30-day free trial on Google Play and the App Store. The app allows you to set up classes anywhere, anytime, notwithstanding the device you are logging in from. WiFi or network issues must never impede students or teachers from accessing quality education. Keeping this in mind, WISE works well even on low-configuration phones and slow internet bandwidth. On top of that, minimalist design and easy-to-use features will remove all roadblocks even if you are not too tech-savvy.
Moreover, considering the rising market competition, merely teaching skills are not enough to sell yourself. Instead, ensure that your target audience knows your services in and out. Thanks to rising digital literacy, this is now a seamless task. There are numerous ways to go about it: Business cards, GoogleAdWords, advertising on social media such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, etc. While online would be more hassle-free, you must also explore offline mediums such as flyers and newspaper ads to leverage this avenue effectively.
3) Teaching Strategy and Plan For Live Tutoring
Once you have built the website/set up an account and are waiting for students to enroll, you can prepare a blueprint of your teaching methodology. How will you ensure that the approach is interactive yet easy to understand? How many students would you cater to in one batch? Which grade would you teach? What would be the timing? Do you plan to branch out further after two years?
You need to figure out innumerable questions before your first class. You also need to divide your time to maximize both your productivity and potential while also providing optimum results for your students.
4) Payments and Economics
Let’s say you have decided which subject you will teach, have advertised, and started receiving enrolments, and things look good. This begets the question: what next? Once everything is well in order, it is time to think about the commercials and chalk out a pricing strategy. Your hourly/monthly rate will hinge on factors such as your teaching experience, the average industry standards, the number of classes, etc.
It is a practical idea to initiate the process by offering a couple of trial/demo classes to help students understand your teaching style and make an informed decision accordingly. If the first session does the trick, there is a high possibility that they may share this information with their friends, leading to better word of mouth. During this trial class, lay out your payment guidelines and modes of payment.
It can be challenging to charge the correct amount since clients tend to negotiate, but you must never forget what you are worth! Refund and cancellation policies should be categorically explained, making it easier for students to navigate through everything. Remember, you are self-employed, and your monthly payment depends on how well you sell yourself.
5) Teaching Tools for your Teaching Business
The teaching business is serious and requires you to develop a thorough stronghold over subjects and be on your toes. Thus, teaching in an environment that facilitates learning would be best. Make sure that you conduct the live classes while sitting in a quiet, noise-free environment where your audio and video reach your students uninterruptedly. This becomes all the more important while helping them prepare for their examinations.
At last, one final piece in the puzzle is to choose reliable online teaching tools that are the backbone of your online teaching experience. This includes networking and sharing tools, web conferencing platforms, quizzes, online whiteboards, etc. Fortunately, with tan online teaching software like WISE app, you get easy access to all these facilities, allowing you to share assignments and resources with your students with a single click.
Another USP is the possibility of generating an automated attendance report after each class to save up on your valuable time. What’s more? The app also capacitates you to secure cloud storage for all your notes and documents. Not just that, there is also an option of conducting MCQ tests and typing your question paper directly on the app. No hidden costs, no third-party hassles. It is the perfect end-to-end solution that handles everything from class initiation to grading papers, thus letting you concentrate on what matters the most- teaching.
Suppose you are passionate about education, can spend hours teaching students, and love the adrenaline rush of helping them solve numerous questions one after the other. In that case, you can quickly excel in this intellectually stimulating field. However, as we saw above, before you dip your toes into the vast ocean of online tutoring business, you must prepare a concrete plan to catalyze your success. Initiate live classes today by setting up an account on the WISE app and opening doors to the rewarding opportunities up ahead. All the best!
