in an extremely competitive market, how to get 3rd-party recommendations (tutor from teachers)

by Ainna Manapat

Posted: 7 years ago 9 replies

OFFLINE MARKETING

Hi there,

That's pretty much my question. I'm a tutor with years of experience who used to get all my business from Craigslist, and that platform as we all know is rapidly getting more & more difficult to profit from.

So a lot of people tell me I need to get in contact with teachers, but once you get in contact with them, what then? Why me? There are so many other tutors where I'm from, and a lot of them come from highly-funded companies with incredible connections and who knows what else.

The only things I can think of are:
- racking up a bunch of incredible testimonials from clients and showing them to the teachers (this would not be effective with everyone),

-paying the teachers a commission (which seems desperate & bizarre)

- or offering to help grade papers (also desperate & bizarre).

Sorry I'm guessing there are not a whole lot of other tutors on this forum, but hopefully this thread will also be relevant to other businesses that thrive on recommendations from a 3rd party in a highly competitive market.

#3rdparty #competitive #extremely #market #recommendations #teachers #tutor

savidge4

7 years ago

Some quick questions... who would be paying for your services? the teacher you are contacting or the student? You say there are some highly funded companies you are competing with... are we talking they offer services for free?

The quick answer is to ask the teacher for access to the one student that would need your services the most, and to do this for free ( chances are good the one student selected would probably not be able to afford your service anyway ) Use that student as a testimonial.

Originally Posted by Ainna Manapat

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Ainna Manapat

7 years ago

Originally Posted by savidge4

Um, definitely the student. In my city tutoring costs anywhere from $80 to $700 an hour. No, I am not exaggerating. Although the $700-tutors are in the papers.

I actually charge less than all these people, so you'd think I'd have way more non-Craigslist students by now.

Do they offer services for free.... I really don't know how they do it. One of the most expensive (for the parent) companies was founded by a guy who "had connections in all the schools"; at least that's the word on the street. What that means is anybody's guess.

But that's a good idea about the one student, and tutoring him for free. Thank you!!!

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savidge4

7 years ago

[QUOTE=Ainna Manapat;10950768] Although the $700-tutors are in the papers. [QUOTE]

By "in the papers" are you referring to the want ads? if that is the case have you tried a listing.. sounds like it would be very cost effective.

Let me ask a question or 2 if I may... to get a better idea of the pausible demographic we are dealing with here.. what subject is it you tutor? and just a state or country is fine.. where are you located?

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Ainna Manapat

7 years ago

[quote=savidge4;10950787][QUOTE=Ainna Manapat;10950768] Although the $700-tutors are in the papers.

By "in the papers" are you referring to the want ads? if that is the case have you tried a listing.. sounds like it would be very cost effective.

Let me ask a question or 2 if I may... to get a better idea of the pausible demographic we are dealing with here.. what subject is it you tutor? and just a state or country is fine.. where are you located?

Hi Savidge, I live in either London, San Francisco or NYC.

Ok I live in NYC, but these three cities are all similar in terms of their demand for tutoring.

No, not the want ads. They are featured in entire articles. Am I allowed to post links? See here:
What Justifies $400/hour Private Tutoring? | The Huffington Post

here:
Big Score - The New Yorker

here:
Private tutors can earn thousands - Telegraph

Those are a very few. There are tons of these articles out there.

I'm a graduate of one of the world's top universities and I used to tutor every subject, except science. And I only taught math up to the 6th or 7th grade level, as I'd forgotten all my other math (although could relearn it if I wanted to invest that time).

I also read a couple of books on how to teach a young child how to read, and taught that as well.

After Craigslist began to get more and more difficult, I began to think it might be better if I specialized more, instead of being a jack of all trades. That was another risk, of course. So I began to tutor only French, which I happen to be fluent in.

That has not yet paid off economically, but I have learned a lot about how to teach this subject, and have garnered a few great-sounding testimonials.

Haven't tried the want ads. I have thought of it. Only holding off because I know you can't just place an ad once, it has to be seen over & over again, so waiting until I have the capital to risk.

Thank you Savidge for your time asking these questions! It's amazing!

Thanks
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savidge4

7 years ago

I read the articles well over 3 hours ago.. I have stewed on this response a bit. a bit of background here. I am a MIT grad.. I have an engineering degree. Math for me is short of second nature. English on the other hand.. oh geeze! LOL I have a 7 yr old son, that for better or for worse is a lot like his father... Math is fun, and English is a chore to say the least. I am the last person in the world that can assist him with this... His beautiful mother is probably 3rd to last hahah.

We have a tutor come in 2 hours a week during the school year, and 4 hours a week during the summer break. Education for me.. Its very important. So for me, having a tutor for my son is important. The tutor that we have... was actually one of his pre-school teachers, that he was very fond of. They get along great, and she is very good in English!! She tutors very little.. maybe one other child, and her rate is $15 an hour. I pay her double every month ( it drives her crazy! )

Education is literally priceless. The service that you can provide, the level of education you have, and the "worldliness" that you can offer sets you apart.

In marketing, there is a concept of advertising where your ideal customer will find you. To be honest I do not see Craigslist as that place. But, before you advertise you need to identify who YOUR ideal student is.

***a bit of home work.. Identify who your ideal student would be. NEXT.. Identify your self. A grad of XXX from XXX institution, Fluent in French Multi national SF, NYC, and London. Capable of many subjects excluding science.. blah blah blah

If you are into creating a vision board by all means!

From this you can start asking questions... where do the parents of these children gather? where can I in one or 2 places reach many of these parents / guardians? I would say that the answer is probably facebook, or starbucks.

The first thing I would do is create a "professional / business" facebook page. make this separate from your personal page it could be "Ainna Manapat tutoring" or the like. I would then contact those glowing reviewers you already have, and ask them to post on your new page.

Create some posts on the importance of continued education at home, find an infographic or 2 on the benefits of using a tutor.. and once you have a base.. set the post in motion that you are currently acquiring a limited number of new students.. you will want to find facebook boards to post this on.

at the same time you need to start a contest of sorts. a feel good happy story. giving back to your community type of thing... have people share their needs for a tutor and why you should take them on for free - one will be selected.

Just a rough idea.. but I think you may get the idea.

Hope that Helps!

[quote=Ainna Manapat;10951722][quote=savidge4;10950787]

Originally Posted by Ainna Manapat

Although the $700-tutors are in the papers. Hi Savidge, I live in either London, San Francisco or NYC.

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djhickory

7 years ago

try yelp, and Facebook, make accounts, send links for reviews to your previous customers, and then advertise the Facebook page in local groups on Facebook along with your 5 star reviews etc

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Ainna Manapat

7 years ago

Originally Posted by djhickory

try yelp, and Facebook, make accounts, send links for reviews to your previous customers, and then advertise the Facebook page in local groups on Facebook along with your 5 star reviews etc

Oh I see! So it's really that simple - it's all about your reputation and the testimonials then. That's it?! Ok. Got it.

Thank you so much for these helpful, generous posts.

Thanks

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NetNinja91 7 years ago

Read "How To Win Friends and Influence People", network like crazy. Put yourself out there and meet as many teachers as possible.
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heterpack 7 years ago

Try to make reviews through the social medis site.this very easy and economical process
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in an extremely competitive market, how to get 3rd-party recommendations (tutor from teachers)

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