This guide aims to outline the key marketing foundations to succeed with your online language teaching business.
Marketing is essential to filling your business with quality leads that can eventually become your customers. It's worth remembering that very often prospects will only buy from you after the third, fifh and tenth time they hear from you so getting your marketing funnel clear and consistent is really important.
In this guide you will develop the right strategy and action plan to turbo-charge your language tutoring business:
1. Develop a winning marketing strategy
2. Create a high-converting website
3. Build trust on social media
4. Crack content marketing
5. Leverage effective advertising
6. Sell like a pro.
Note, many of these ideas are explored in further detail on the Get More Students podcast.
1. Developing a Winning Marketing strategy
We have two great resources to help you develop your strategy.
The first resource is this video with marketing guru, Ben Dubuc, which gives a high-level outline to build your marketing strategy. It gets you to dig into your customer, buyer personas, the buying process, and work out where to spend your marketing efforts.
The second resource here is this podcast with Herbert Gerzer on 'How To Create An Effective Marketing Strategy For Your Language or Tutoring Business'.
Your first challenge is to get clear on:
- Your Ideal Customer (Note this episode on how to Choose Your Niche)
- Your Marketing Goals
- Your Metrics To Achieve Those Goals
- Your Priorities to Improve Metrics
To learn more about developing your marketing strategy, check out this presentation to take you from developing goals to choosing your channels.
2. Create a High-Converting Website
Your website is the "shop front window" of your online business.
What does your current website (or lack of website) say about your business?
If you do not have a website yet, you can start with this video on how to create one with one of the free tools available.
If you do have a website, then next you will want to ensure it has the 4 ‘Must-haves for a High-Converting Tutoring Website.
check (and improve) your website for:
- Clear, simple, language
- Easy-to-navigate
- Meaningful "real" visuals
- Compelling Social Proof
3. Build Trust on Social Media
Social media provides a platform for businesses to connect and build relationships with customers, prospects, and influencers.
To know which platform you should spend your energy on, you need to think of your ideal target customers ('buying personas') you would have learned about above in point 1.
Where is the "watering hole" for your ideal prospects?
Learn about the different social media platforms and how you can leverage them to boost your business using the resources listed below:
4. Crack Content Marketing
Content marketing is "the process of publishing written and visual material online with the purpose of attracting more leads to your business. These can include blog posts, pages, ebooks, infographics, videos, and more."
Having a content marketing strategy is critical to fuelling your feeds on social media (discussed last week) with "on-brand", effective content.
Learn about content marketing from one of the masters, Korinne Algie. In this video she will help you answer these questions:
- What is the difference between content and content marketing?
- How often should I post?
- How much do I need to invest?
- What kind of content works for education providers?
- How to build a content marketing strategy?
- What free tools can you use to measure results?
- When should I post?
- How often should I post?
- How do I create a consistent company brand online through social media and content marketing? Any practical tips?
Note: All of your marketing should at a minimum be exchanging value in order to get a prospects email.
Your email list is your ticket to building relationships with prospects over time and is incredibly effective when employed correctly.
5. Leverage Effective Advertising
I know I've been nervous about advertising LearnCube and have been worried about wasting money.
However, not investing in effective advertising, will limit your growth at one point.
Finally, if you'd like to set up Facebook Ads yourself, watch this deep dive with Herbert, who will take you through each step.
6. Sell Like a Pro
Selling is sometimes seen as a dirty word for educators but selling doesn't mean 'screwing over' and is critical if you want to help more people.
Learn about selling from one of the best in the business, Nicola Lutz. In this video (skip to her section at minute 22):
- How to start the conversation
- The power of the "follow up
- See where you are
- See where you lose customers (and improve).
Here are three good questions to ask yourself:
- What is working (based on the numbers)?
- What is not working (based on the numbers)?
- What is 1 practical step you can implement this week and this month to improve your sales process (and results)?
Final Words
To create a winning marketing strategy for your online teaching business, you need to use a range of tactics and channels.
Check that you're strong in these six areas:
1. Be crystal clear on your target market and nail your marketing strategy
2. Craft a high-converting website with the 4 ‘must-haves'
3. Explore social media and use it to build trust with your potential customers.
4. Deliver engaging, value-packed content and harness the persuasive power of email marketing to maintain a strong presence in the minds of your audience.
5. Pick the most relevant platform(s) for your target audience and grow your business with effective advertising strategies.
6. Sharpen your sales skills to transform curious prospects into loyal, paying customers.
By following these steps, and being consistent, you'll certainly tip the odds in your favour of success.
We wish you every success with your online teaching business!
CEO of LearnCube
