I Want to Teach Online and Earn Money

How many times have you said to yourself, “I want to teach online and earn money?” Maybe you’ve got teaching experience already or have a skill or talent you’d love to share. Perhaps you’ve just completed a course with the specific goal of sharing your knowledge. You can teach online to earn money: you just need the right info and a great platform for launching video courses that draw students in.

If an online teaching career is calling to you, follow the below steps and you could teach to earn money for a living.

Steps to Take if “I Want to Teach Online and Earn Money” Is Your Top Goal

If you already have teaching experience, you could probably skip some of these steps. However, read through the whole pathway to give yourself the confidence that you’re ready to teach online to make money.

Decide What You Want to Teach Online to Make Money

The first step is, unsurprisingly, figuring out what you can offer as a teacher. If you’re going to teach online to make money, you must be able to offer a talent, skill, or experience that benefits your audience. Start with these steps:

• List the topics you could teach
• Research the existing online tutors in that niche
• If it’s a crowded niche, consider how you could tailor your teaching in a way that sets you apart

For example, if you are an accounting expert, you’ll probably find that there are plenty of accounting courses available to do online. So, think about what you could do to make yours unique. You might create bookkeeping for absolute beginners or, conversely, an advanced course. Perhaps you’ll create the best online accounting class for single parents or small business owners.

Standing out from the crowd in some way gives you a great chance of finding engaged and enthusiastic students.

Check Your Skill Set Is Ready to Teach to Earn Money

Now you know what you want to teach, it’s time to check your own skills and knowledge. If you’ve just completed a course in your chosen topic, you’re probably up to speed with most details of that subject. However, if you’ve not used the skill/experience/subject for a while, a refresher could be in order.

Consider taking a short course on your chosen topic or even sourcing quizzes or mock exam papers to test yourself. If you don’t have a qualification in the subject you want to teach, check out how much it costs to obtain one. Online teachers with recognized qualifications are more likely to attract students than those without.

Find a Great Platform to Launch Your Class

No matter how advanced your skills and knowledge are, you can’t reach students without an online platform. There are plenty of different options out there, from simple Q&A-style quizzes to fully-fledged online video course offerings. Studies show that students learn more from videos than they do from text-based or audio courses. You can leverage that science to create courses that you can sell over and over — and you only have to record them once.

You might accompany your video teaching course with one-to-one sessions or group video conferencing sessions to answer any student questions. It’s often also possible to offer free taster videos to let students know what to expect on the full course. They can see if they like your style of teaching and then purchase the full course once they realize they do.

I Want to Teach Online and Earn Money: Five Topics to Help You Achieve Your Goal

If you know exactly what you want to teach, great! However, if you still need a little inspiration, check out these popular online teaching ideas.

#1 – Accounting and Bookkeeping

We already mentioned bookkeeping as a potential online teaching topic. That’s because there are so many people going into business these days who don’t really understand the ins and outs of accounting. In fact, 60% of small business owners don’t feel like they have the necessary knowledge when it comes to managing money.

By teaching an online course about accounting, bookkeeping, budgeting, taxes, or other financial topics, you could leverage a large and highly invested student base.

#2 – Music

Music is one of those skills that so many adults wish they had to but never had the time or opportunity to learn. With over 3 million students unable to access music education in the United States, sharing your skills could fill a gap in the market.

If you play guitar, piano, or another instrument, you could start an online course offering tuition at any level you feel comfortable with. You could also offer singing lessons, composition classes, or even music history.

Combining video and audio with your class is essential to fully engage students with music. They need to be able to listen to phrases or watch how you’re using your instrument. That’s why platforms that help you build a unique, online video course are perfect for music teachers.

#3 – Audio or Video Editing

Most businesses know that they need to be active on social media to attract new customers. Instagram Reels, TikTok, and Facebook Video are all prime advertising opportunities for people who can create and edit cool videos.

If you have those skills, you could very easily create an online video course teaching others how to film, edit, and publish videos. You could focus on courses for influencers, talking about lighting, effects, and how to cut and paste video segments together. Or, you could build your course around an audience of solo entrepreneurs or business owners dipping their toe into video content for the first time.

#4 – Academic Subjects

Many people look for online courses in academic subjects because they want to catch up on their school or college days. They may not have done as well as they wanted at school and hope to rekindle an interest in topics they used to enjoy. Alternatively, you may get students who simply need a booster in math or English for a job they’re applying for.

Bear in mind that in order to offer a course on an academic topic, you must have a relevant qualification to impress your potential student cohort. You could offer courses that prepare students for applying for further education, such as a Master’s degree. Check you have the relevant skills to offer that level of teaching and maybe test your videos out on someone qualified before launching them.

#5 – Wellness Topics

There are so many wellness topics that people want to get educated in today. People are invested in their health and holistic well-being and will use apps, wearable devices, and online courses to learn more. If you’ve spent time nurturing a health-based skill or an aspect of your spirituality associated with healing, why not share your talents?

Popular wellness subjects include:

• Nutrition, including specific diets
• Mindfulness
• Meditation
• Yoga
• Pilates
• General fitness
• Weightlifting
• Bodybuilding
• Zumba
• Reflexology
• Complementary therapies like herbalism and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)
• Spiritual wellness topics such as Reiki and energy healing

One of the benefits of teaching wellness is that you can continuously learn as you create your videos. You’ll find related techniques that you can upskill yourself in for the benefit of your students — and you, of course. As you become skilled in more topics, you could launch additional courses to supplement your income and offer a wider diversity of education.

Bonus Topics if “I Want to Teach Online and Earn Money” Is Your Ambition

Other topics you might consider teaching include:

• Beauty skills: Makeup, hair, and nail treatments are always popular so there’s always a market for people wanting to learn these skills.
• Technology: Data management, cybersecurity, and web design are very popular online course topics.
• Photography: Many people would rather pay to learn how to take fantastic shots themselves than constantly have to hire a photographer.
• Art or graphic design: Skilled artists can always find students who want to learn creative skills.
• Entrepreneurial skills: Teach how to start a business or how to attract investors.
• Languages: Teaching English as a foreign language is very popular but if you’re proficient in more than one language, you could teach anything you like.
• Cooking: Videos are essential for this final topic — create “cook along” courses or skills based on particular cuisines.

You may find yourself teaching topics that you don’t have any qualifications in, and that’s okay. As long as you have the skill and passion to prove your proficiency, you can become a great online teacher.

Teach to Earn Money: It’s Possible With the Right Skills and Platform

Hopefully, you’ve gone from thinking, “I want to teach online and earn money,” to “I can teach online to earn money.” All you need is the right skills and a platform to launch your new career. Find platforms that allow you to launch accessible video courses that you price according to your research and your audience. You can create a whole new source of passive income while sharing your skills and knowledge with the world.