Does anyone know if there is a way to increase profile visibility as a language teacher? I recently applied and completed my profile, but it seems like there are a ton of people who are also looking for students to tutor. How can I stand out or get more attention to my profile? My apologies if there is somewhere else this post should go, but I couldn't find any open topics that answered my question.
Thank you in advance!
I do not have any teacher profile of my own but based on my observations my suggestions are as follows:
1) Try to make a nice video presentation and highlight your teaching skills and achievements including your qualification.
2) Participate in language discussions here and give your insightful comments. It will be good to participate in other meaningful discussions too. That will improve your visibility to users.
3)Participate in the sections "Answers" & "Notebook" and try to help people. This too shall increase your visibility.
4) Find out from italki support how they feature profiles on every page! What is the basis? Try to fulfill that. I have seen italki featuring profiles on right hand side of every page.
5) You can also write Articles in the "Articles" section.
Basically just be active here and keep trying to improve your visibility and you can also offer FREE trial sessions to students. But before choosing to give a free trial session, assess the seriuosness of the student.
Good luck!
Hi Andrea,
Just to add to the other suggestions, also take the time to look at other teachers' profiles. It's pretty easy to see which ones are doing well, and by looking at how they present themselves and what courses they offer, you may be able to get a few extra ideas.
Your profile and video look pretty good - the only issue I can see is that you spend a little too much time on your background and qualifications. This would be interesting to an employer, but not so much to a student looking for lessons. You just need to show that you're capable (say this in only one or two sentences), approachable and easy to talk to, so keep it short and sweet - unless you're presenting yourself in two languages, there's no need to go over the sixty-second mark.
It is important to keep "visible", so that means participating a little in the other parts of the website. Really, just do whatever you're comfortable with and have the time to do. Some teachers manage to get students without needing to be too active. On the other hand, I have picked up some students simply because they asked a question about lessons (eg. who teaches vocabulary for business logistics) and I put my hand up.
On top of that, remember to be patient. :) Good luck!
There have been similar discussions recently:
http://www.italki.com/discussion/77600
http://www.italki.com/discussion/77153
Essentially, you are right. There are many other teachers on italki and competition is stiff. Beyond keeping your prices low, there is no way that italki could provide much consistency as far as pay and scheduling is concerned. Personally, I use italki in order to receive public feedback about my teaching and to work and negotiate with students directly. I work for another language school but I am not able to communicate directly with the students and receive their feedback through that platform.
Also, since you are proficient in Spanish, you may find more success if you include information written in Spanish on your teacher profile. Since there are many native Spanish speakers offering lessons here, it might be better to focus your profile more towards teaching English to Spanish speakers, rather than teaching Spanish.
In terms of pricing, your current levels are much higher than average for both Spanish and English. Remember that since you are not a native speaker of Spanish, your rates in that area should probably be lower than most native Spanish speakers. Also, since you are still working on your ESL certification, your rates should be lower than certified English teachers. For instance, I have a MEd in TESOL and the maximum amount I charge per lesson is 160 ITC, whereas your only rate for English is 200 ITC.
Finally, italki provides some tips at this link:
Hi Andrea! I say yes to all the suggestions above! I've had difficulties getting students in the past, but I took Thaddeus' advice and lowered my rate. It was rather successful as I've been getting more bookings even though my schedule is limited. I'm also teaching for other language schools so I'm not as active on italki as I should be. But, even so, I was still able to build a student base for those reasons. You should also write some articles for italki. It will maximize your exposure too.
Yes to all of the above. I would just add that if you make it clearer you are teaching English and how you can help with those learning English. I know that may seem obvious, but because of what is written on your profile/s it seems to focus on your Spanish more than your English skills:) It is great you are developing your Spanish as you are also a learner, this will help, though some may wonder that you are a Spanish teacher learning Spanish:) I think this just means you are wanting to improve on it more and more which is a good thing, but just to reword it and tweek your profile will make all the difference to those looking for an Engish teacher.
I wish you all the very best.
