If you have excellent knowledge of subjects such as biology, physics, algebra, geometry, language arts or chemistry, you could earn a fair amount of extra money tutoring students. I’ve seen ads in our city for math tutors at $40 an hour. Could you tutor students on the SAT or ACT? There is always high demand for this kind of tutoring and you should be able to charge at least $25 an hour.
Advertise in school newspapers
One good place to advertise your tutoring is in school newspapers. The old bank robber, Willie Sutton, was once asked why he robbed banks. His answer was, “because that’s where the money is”. Well, school newspapers are like banks – that’s where the students are. Of course, this assumes that your area schools have newspapers that accept advertising and that the students will take the newspapers home to their parents.
Use neighborhood newspapers
Is there a neighborhood newspaper in your area? You probably wouldn’t want to pay for an ad in your city’s newspaper but advertising in neighborhood or regional newspapers can be reasonably priced. For example, you wouldn’t want to advertise in the Chicago-Times but you might want to advertise in The Shorewood Sentinel.
Put an ad on Craigslist
Nothing beats free and advertising in Craigslist is just that. Our local Craigslist has a section called “Gigs” where you could post an ad for your tutoring. However, don’t hold your breath waiting for results as even “gigs” doesn’t have a section that would be perfect for you.
Post flyers
Another good way to promote your tutoring is by putting up flyers. A good place to do this is your local supermarket if it allows them. You might also be able to post your flyers at your local library, community center or churches. These could help you build more business than advertising in school newspapers because more parents with kids would likely see them.
Do you have other marketable skills?
If you don’t have the knowledge necessary to tutor students, there are some other marketable skills that could help you earn extra money. For example, the state of today’s housing market seems to have dramatically increased people’s interest in renovating their homes. Can you do basic carpentry, build cabinets, install plumbing or electrical fixture, or install flooring? Then put an ad on Craigslist or flyers on local bulletin boards and you may be overwhelmed by the response. We have a guy we really like for these kinds of odd jobs who charges $25 an hour. This means he earns $200 a day. If you could work just two days a week, that would be an extra $400. And if you’re like me, I’m sure you could use an extra $1,600 a month to pay off your debts, treat the family to a nice vacation or stick into a savings account to build an emergency fund.
