Maximise Your Earnings: Ways to Increase Income as an Online Tutor

Are you into the online tutoring business? If yes, how much do you earn monthly or annually? It isn’t easy to answer this question, right? We know that the income in online tutoring can be inconsistent and influenced by various factors. So, you might always be wondering how you can improve your income.

Don’t worry; this blog post will help you out. Here, we will discuss how to increase your tutor income and ensure a stable income flow. So, let’s start:

Factors affecting tutor income

Whether you have just decided to become a tutor or are already an experienced tutor, you must know that your income can be influenced by various factors such as experience, subject, demand, etc.

Here are the top factors to consider:

Subject expertise

How much you can make will depend on how well-versed you are in that specific subject. If you are a specialist in a niche or tutoring a highly demandable subject, be it advanced mathematics, coding, or even foreign languages, then you may charge higher compared to those less specialised subjects.

Experience

This is another factor. Obviously, the more years you have been tutoring, the more you will know the dos and don’ts of online teaching, which may make you an expert. Tutors with more experience know how to adapt themselves in a better way according to the needs of each student. This can make you attractive to potential students/parents, helping you charge more. Moreover, after some years, you are more likely to have a network of happy clients who can recommend you to other people.

Education level and credentials

Your educational background and your credentials matter when deciding on remuneration. If you have advanced degrees or specialised certifications in the field, you may charge higher rates. For example, having a master’s or PhD in the subject that you teach makes you a subject matter expert who can charge higher rates for the services. Credentials from reputed institutions or professional bodies would further help as they increase your credibility.

Demand for the subject

Lastly, the demand for the subject you are going to teach matters in determining how much you can make. In-demand subjects, such as STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) or languages like English, Spanish, and Mandarin, are usually attended by large pools of students. If the demand is higher than the supply, you can charge a premium for your services. In other cases, you may have to be more competitive on the pricing or differentiate yourself from others in less popular subjects.

How to maximise income as an online tutor

Online tutoring is an excellent career move. But you might be in doubt about this choice as the income stream is not steady. Yes, it might be challenging to attract a higher income, but it’s not impossible.

Let’s look at some of the best and proven ways to increase the tutoring income:

Sign up for an online tutoring platform

Whether it is your first time tutoring online or you are a seasoned tutor, the ability to connect with your students online will lay the foundation of your tutoring business. You can increase your reach with virtual tutoring beyond the traditional classroom and capture a huge market. Consider online tutoring with a platform like Teach Bunny, where you can define your schedule and your price rate.

Rather than teaching independently, creating a teaching profile on a dedicated site will help you reach a wider market, attracting students who are actively looking for your expertise. It’s the first step to building a strong online presence as a tutor.

Make a pricing strategy

A strong pricing strategy is an integral part of the online tutoring revenue model. Consider the below pricing strategies:

1. Set price

Before you begin an online tutoring job, you must set a price that works for you and your students. You should consider the demographics here. You can keep your expectations fair and realistic by just researching some basic facts about your student market, such as the average wage, minimum wage, or even the current exchange rates from their country’s currency to yours.

Keep in mind that price settings may take a little trial and error. Flexibility and patience are important in building a solid tutoring business. For example, you might realise that your price isn’t drawing many students and should be reduced. It’s also possible that you’ll get too many requests for tutoring, in which case you may charge more and make more money.

2. Create lesson packages

Once a new student has finished and confirmed his/her first lesson, you can offer a package of hours to continue lessons with you. Students can pre-buy 5 hours, 10 hours, or any other number of tutoring hours they may want. You can offer these options to your potential student immediately after the first session.

The more hours a student purchases in the package, the larger their discount should be. They will more likely buy more hours when their current package has reached its conclusion.

Find a niche

Students often come to tutoring lessons with specific goals like professional development, travel, or some other objective. Rather than presenting yourself as a know-it-all person, identify your strengths and then transparently advertise them among your potential students. Deciding on a niche will lead to stronger matches between students and tutors, so both parties will feel that they are engaged in a productive teaching and learning experience.

Are you unsure about your niche? Consider the level of students you’ve tutored in the past (like beginner, intermediate, or advanced). If you have a special area of expertise (like an engineer or a businessman), you should focus on attracting students who want to grow in these industries.

Be on time

Once your lesson is confirmed, make sure to have your materials ready on the agreed date and time. If there is an unavoidable issue, alert your student as soon as possible.

Allow your students to reschedule the session at your earliest convenience. Clarify your expectations with the students. Not showing up for sessions or being late leads to poor results and can impact your tutoring relationship negatively.

Shoot a self-intro video

As your online tutoring business expands, you need to find students to ensure a strong revenue stream. Many online sites allow tutors to include a short bio. Remember, it should be unique, sharing a bit of your experience and talents.

When recording an introduction, make sure you speak slowly and clearly (especially when teaching beginners). Furthermore, subtitles can also attract students, giving them a chance to understand your point. Once a student books a demo session, make a great impression to increase your chances of converting the prospective learners.

Customise your approach

A good online tutor needs to listen carefully to a student’s previous interactions with the target language to offer helpful and productive support in the language. You should be equipped with at least some basic lesson plans that you can customise to suit your student’s learning style.

In the tutoring sessions , take the time to get any essential background information about your students. For example, how long they have learned the language and what they want to achieve. You should ask them about learning styles or preferred materials (like textbooks, YouTube videos, etc).

Tailoring the teaching plan to your students’ profiles will increase your retention rate and make the overall experience more enjoyable.

FAQs on ways to increase online tutoring income

Endnotes

Online tutoring is a promising market that offers numerous attractive opportunities. To stand out in this market and maximise your earnings, you must first understand the tutoring landscape and set competitive rates.

Once you have established a business and started tutoring students, try exploring new student markets and keep yourself updated on the latest trends.
Signing up with Teach Bunny will help you find a plethora of student profiles in one place. Reach out to our team today and start multiplying your income!

Henrik Nilsson

Henrik Nilsson is an experienced finance tutor with a passion for education. He enjoys helping students reach personal and professional success through active mentoring. In his insightful blog posts, he shares his expertise and innovative tutoring approach, aiming to make learning accessible to everyone.