How to start a tutoring business: your first ten families

Most tutoring businesses start the same way: one family asks, then a friend of theirs, and suddenly you're running a business from your phone's notes app. Ten families is about where that stops working.

The quick answer

• Decide what you teach and to whom. "Math, grades 3 to 6, in person in Redmond" is a business. "Tutoring" isn't.
• Write one class page with what it covers, when it runs and what it costs, and share it.
• Keep the admin in one place from the first family, not the tenth.

Decide what you teach

Narrow is easier to sell than broad. Parents search for a specific thing, such as "piano for beginners" or "SAT math", and a page that says exactly that gets chosen over one that says everything. You can widen later.

Set a schedule and a price

A fixed weekly slot is easier for families to commit to than "whenever suits". Write down how often you'll be paid, and how. Families ask both questions first.

Your first class page

A good class page answers the questions a parent would otherwise message you about: what the class covers, who it's for, when and where it runs, how much it costs, and what to bring. On Befundo, the class page is also where families register, so the answers and the sign-up are in one place.

Getting the first families

• Tell the families you already teach, and ask them to pass the link on.
• Put the link where parents look: school newsletters, local groups, your own social media.
• Make registering easy: one link, not a form, an email and a bank transfer.

Keep the admin in one place

From the first family: one roster, one schedule, one place for messages, attendance and who has paid. It takes ten minutes to set up now, and a weekend to untangle at family forty.

Start on Befundo

Create your business, add your first class and share its link. It's free to start, and the setup takes you through each step.