Earn More Work Less, Teach ESL Online

Sneak Preview/Excerpts

How To:
Earn More Work Less
Teach ESL Online
Working For Yourself

Tutor Anyone From Anywhere
Hassle-Free On Your Terms At Premium Fees
With No Hassle and No Boss

Louisa Chan
www.SynergyMarketingPro.com

Contents

Background To ESL Online Tutoring 3

Why Online ESL Tutoring? 5

Online ESL Tutoring Via A Middleman 8

Why Build Your Own Online Tutoring Business? 12

What Do I Need To Get Started?

Where Should I Start?

What Don't I Need To Get Started?

Summary

About Louisa Chan

(C) Copy right www.LouisaChan.com Page 2

Chapter 1 //
Background To ESL
Online Tutoring?

This is a preview report Teachers of the English Language who
specialize in TEFL, TESOL, English for Academic and Specific
Purpose (EAP and ESP) and those who teach for Language
Examinations Preparations (TOEFL and IELTS).

The full report can be downloaded here.

English Language Learners (ELL) are the fastest growing
segment of the student population according to a research
produced by the National Council of Teachers of English1.

Supplemental education is a $5 billion U.S industry 2 involving
franchised learning centers, boutique tutoring agencies and
private tutoring businesses. In the UK “e-tutoring” is a £8 billion
recession proof industry that has grown in just a few years!3

As many as a quarter of parents in the US have hired a
traditional tutor for their children at some point in their studies.
And in Hong Kong, at least one-third of the students are

1
Policy Research Brief On English Language Learners.
2
Behind America's Tutor Boom
3
Facebook generation fuels boom in online tutors


seeking tutoring service. Private tuition has become structurally
integral to the education system.

In the last few years, personal tutoring has tapped into
technology and is taking place online over the internet.

It is not surprising that Teaching English as a Second Language
over the internet is said to be the fastest growing segment in
"distance" education4.

Not only are teens and youths spending more time on
computers and tablets, even the Gen X and baby boomers are
increasingly using digital devices to communicate, learn and
read (Kindle, iPad, Nook etc).

Learning has gone digital. and There is a huge demand for
personalized online Language Tutoring.

In this report I want to show you how to launch and build your
own business with Online Tutoring without relying on tutoring
agency (the middleman) and not attaching yourself to
franchised or corporate tutoring centers.

4
TutorABC Teacher Portal


Chapter 2 //
Why Online
ESL Tutoring?

Why are teachers turning to online tutoring or digital education?

Benefits of Online ESL Tutoring To The Tutor
 Flexibility To Work From Home or Anywhere
So long as you have your computer and broadband connection,
you can be at your desk or away on a short break and still be
able to conduct your lessons.

 Flexible Tutoring Hours
Especially helpful if you don't have a full teaching schedule and
if you want to work from home so you can take care of the
little ones or the seniors.

 No Need For Commuting
There is also less time wasted on commuting since you don't
have to travel. Plus you can also save on gas!

 Earn Additional Income From Anywhere
Whether you hold a full time job (or studies) you can embark
on online tutoring work. It is not only fulfilling to help others
improve their subject matter knowledge and confidence, you
get to keep in touch with subject matters you are an expert in.


This works especially well for those who are spouses of newly
relocated expatriates. And if you have retired from full time
work, this is certainly a good option to consider.

 Keep Updated With Technology and New Learning Styles
Students today grew up with laptops and technology. They are
so used to technology that it will probably be easier to get
them online tutoring help than have them site face-to-face
with a tutor.

 Make The Most of Your Expertise
If you have been teaching ESL in the classrooms or at tuition
centers you would already have the knowledge, the
certification, the experience and the material to start this new
venture online.

It helps you stay connected to your profession, your learners
and it is a low risk and recession proof business that is
fulfilling and does not get in the way of your daily life.

I will cover "what you need to do to get started" later in this
report. You'll see that this is a viable and satisfying business.

Benefits of Online ESL Tutoring To The Learner
 Students Get Personalized Time
This is learner-centered and students one-to-on customized
attention that helps them with their learning.

 Meaningful Individualized Feedback


In these one-to-one session, students get full attention from
the tutor to help with their specific challenges. This is
especially helpful to those who are shy or introverted and do
not ask questions in a group or class. On individualized calls,
they getto grow their confidence as well as subject knowledge.

 Recorded Lessons Can Be Viewed By Reviewed
It is fairly easy to do a video or audio record of the session so
students can go back to the recording if they do not
understand it the first time.

They can play back the discussion or facilitation session as
many times as they like, pause to make notes if necessary.

And if you have a very complex concept that you want to
explain you could prepare text or videos ahead of the online
lesson time so students get a chance to learn the concept and
can use the online tutoring time to ask more specific questions.

This is sometimes referred to as "Flipped Learning" and it is
creating a buzz in the educational scene.


Chapter 3 //
Online ESL Tutoring
Via A Middleman (Agency)

Great, now that you see the many benefits of tutoring online,
you may want to register yourself with an online tutoring
agency and get started.

Wait. Not so fast. Let's take a look at what that would look like.

Online ESL Tutoring With A Middleman
 Register With An Online Tutoring Agency
This will allow you to have a profile on tutoring center sites so
that parents and prospective students who visit the online
tutoring portal may find your profile.

"May" is the keyword here. There are tens of thousands of
tutors registered with popular agencies. You will need to
stand out from the crowd and appear on the first page of the
searches or your profile will not be discovered by anyone.

 Pay For Promotion
Because there are so many thousands of online tutors at
these tutor centers some agencies allow you to buy credits to
promote your service so you get additional coverage and
exposure.


So Yes, you do need to pay for marketing and advertising
even at the centers. And it is not building your own business!

 Fulfill Minimum Hours Work Per Week
Tutoring agencies hire on a part-time, full-time or contractual
basis. To maintain a level of quality and to manage
operations they typically have terms you will need to adhere
to.

These can be a minimum number of hours that you need to
tutor per week or time slots and schedules that you will need
to adhere to.

 Pay For Monthly Subscriptions or Commission
Besides providing tutors with a profile page, some centers
allow you the use of their teaching platform, tools, templates
and materials for a monthly fee. You will be able to keep your
coursework, files and material at the site to showcase your
expertise.

To make use of these facilities, you would likely need to pay
recurring monthly subscriptions ranging from $19 per month.
Some sites allow you to register without payment but in these
cases you get very limited functionality (e.g. you cannot
communicate directly with prospective students) and you
may not show up on searches. And you certainly won't get to
use their tools or platforms without paying a fee.

 Pay For The Centers To Rank Their Sites
Reputable and popular tutor center have Search Engine


Optimization teams that work to optimize their sites so they
show up on searches. It is understandable that they would
need to charge a commission or monthly subscription to offer
this services to their tutors.

That commission can range from 20% upwards of your hourly
rate. That is a significant chunk of your pay every month.
Some centers give a base "pay" and some incentives for
performance bonuses, in which case tutors are like contract
workers.

Your online visibility and business is dependent on how hard
the centers promote their site.

 You Build The Agency's Business / Reputation, Not Yours
You are investing time and effort in tutoring but will only be
recognized as a member of a particular Tutor Center. So
instead of being known as the Premiere ESL Tutor in Denver,
you are one of many ESL tutors at TutorAgencyA.com.

 Use Their Approach, Methodologies and Platforms
Sometimes material is given and you are trained to deliver the
lesson using a certain method. Some of these methods have
been proven to work and are great but you do not have the
flexibility to experiment with new methodologies or tailor
your teaching to individual student's need.

 Your Security And Association With The Center
As a contract worker or a free lancer, your business is closely
dependant on the agency you choose to work with. Their


reputation and survival in this business will determine how
you are perceived.

If they are not bringing in enough business or if there are
reputational issues, you can be quite sure you will be directly
impacted.

And there is always the chance that the company may change
direction, be bought over or fold. And you could lose your
"job" or be let go of.


Chapter 4 //
Why Build Your Own
Online Tutoring Business?

If you are an online tutor there are a lot of opportunities for
you to earn more money for less work with much more
freedom. You do that by working for yourself, building your
own online one-to-one tutoring practice.

Online Tutoring Without The Middleman
This is where you can offer Online Tutoring service on your
terms, earning higher rates with the best clients.

How? Let me explain to you.

 Branding You And Not The Tutoring Center
By branding yourself (and not your tutor center) as the go-to
ESL tutor in your local area, people see you as the premiere
tutor and will be coming to you for your expert service
instead of looking for someone at a reputable tutor center.

Instead of bargain-hunters, you get prospects who come to
seek you out and are willing to pay you premium fees.
Because you show up in their online search for an online ESL
tutor you are perceived to be the person that best fit their


requirements.

In Asia, we see celebrity tutors as well as tutor kings and
queens. There tutors actively promote their own brands. In
the West it seems more common to refer aspiring tutors and
learners to tutoring centers than to a particular teacher who
specializes in a subject area.

Would you rather others find you with your own website than
if they find you in a tutoring portal among thousands of other
tutors?

Which will make a bigger impact and command a higher
tuition rate? Which will be better clients and more effective
as word-of-mouth referrals?

 Better Control - Tutor On Your Terms
All tutoring portals and centers have terms that you must keep
and they can change these terms anytime. To build your entire
business on someone else's turf is a risky business.

If you build your own online tutoring business you get to
maintain control of the following:

You Get To Choose Your Own Clients -You decide who you
want to work with (those who are eager to learn and
appreciative of your expertise) and how much they will pay.

You Get To Choose Your Approach - you decide on how you
want to deliver your online tutoring. Will you focus on


conversation, communication and fluency? Or will you help
with written and grammar work? Will it be Instructional?
Facilitative? Or collaborative?

Do you give email support in between? And do you have
timelines for written assignments?

You Get To Choose Your Syllabus - related to your approach
above. Some centers have fixed methodology of tutoring that
you must use. But if you are student-centered, you want to
tailor your syllabus (and approach) according to the level,
need and cultural background of your students.

You Get To Choose Your Time Slots - you decide when you
want to make yourself available for tutoring and how much
time you will dedicate yourself to this service

No Membership Subscriptions- yet you have complete control
over the tools and interface you want to use.

No Hourly Commission - save on commissions that ranges
from 20% to 40% of your hourly pay. That is a recurring hourly
pay cut!

Do the math and see how much more you will be earning if
you cut off the middleman.

Not Associating Your Business With A Third Party - There are
quite a number of reputable and popular online tutoring
portals. But beware of associating yourself with any third party


that may have different core business values to yours. Because
you will be associated with the brand you work for. You have
no control over their branding, selling, customer support and
business direction.

Not Build Your Business On Rented Property - If you are
familiar with Posterous and Ning (free platforms for blogging
and community social sites) you will know that you cannot
build your business and put your content third party sites.

These companies can be bought out, or fold or start charging
a fee. I built an online community on Ning while it was free
and when they started charging, I had to migrate all my
content and rebuild my community from scratch.

Posterous was bought over by Twitter in March 2012. By April
2013, it will cease its services. So Posterous owners will need
to rebuild their work on some other platforms and hopefully
this time they will want to build it on their own website and
not some third part sites!

You Will Not Be Fired. You will never be fired because you are
the boss. And you will work hard to optimize your business so
it grows from strength to strength.

Get the complete report at
www.synergymarketingpro.com/esl-online-tutoring-nfb/


Appendix //
About Louisa Chan

Louisa helps grow your online business.

She is nationally certified Trainer with a Masters in
Education and TEFL Certification. She has worked as IT
Consultant in Multi-National Companies and Big-5
Consultancy firm. She consulted, coached, trained and
taught in various corporations and institutes of higher
learning in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia.

She has taught at Taylor's College (Canadian
Matriculation Syllabus), Concordia International School
(Hong Kong), Foon Yew High School (Johor) and Yu
Chun Keong Memorial College (Hong Kong). She has
also taught graduates of 3 National Malaysian
Universities (USM, UKM and UPNM) to help them in an
English Language Proficiency program.

Louisa's Digital Marketing Courses are approved and
accredited by AAMT of Australia and she has been
featured on National Press, Magazine as well as
appeared on Business Radio BFM and Radio Television
Malaysia Channel 1.

Louisa started running her own online business in 2008
and now focus on helping solo entrepreneurs and

professionals build and grow their own online business
leveraging her teaching, consulting and online
experience.

Louisa has studied, lived and worked in Kuala Lumpur,
Montreal, London, The Midlands (UK), Hong Kong,
Singapore, China, Sydney, Bangkok and is now based
in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia.

Find out more and download more of Louisa’s material
at: www.SynergyMarketingPro.Com

Here Are Some Recommendations Given At My Linkedin Account:

If your business would benefit from
expert training and personal
coaching/consulting, or you’d like
help or strategies with marketing your
tutoring business, find out more at:
www.SynergyMarketingPro.Com

Earn More Work Less, Teach ESL Online

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