Tutoring kids is an exciting and profitable business to start. By getting organized and having everything in place before you open for business, you will come across as professional and ready for success. The best way to do this is to consult professionals regarding legal, accounting, or insurance issues.
Once you are prepared to move ahead with starting a tutoring business, the first things you must do are to decide on your business name and type of business set up. (Sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, limited liability company, etc.)
Many people start as a sole proprietor when starting a tutoring business to test the waters first and then move on to a limited liability company or corporation. It is best to consult an attorney when deciding the form of business best for you. Your local Small Business Administration can give you additional information on starting a tutoring business. They, along with your local Chamber of Commerce, can usually refer you to an attorney who helps small businesses start up.
When choosing your business name, select something creative that is immediately recognizable with the topic you teach. After deciding on your name and form of business set up, contact your local city or county business office (whichever applies to you) and apply for a business license. You will usually have to run a fictitious name check to make sure there are no businesses with the same name you have chosen. In some instances, you may have to file a Fictitious Name Statement and place an announcement in your local legal paper. Do not worry if it all sounds confusing. Your city or county business office will guide you through this and everything else you need to do when starting a tutoring business.
After receiving your business license, head to your bank and open a business checking account. Then, you need to think about insurance. It is crucial to carry adequate insurance for your business. Speak with a business insurance agent and/or attorney about how uch and what types of insurance you need when starting a tutoring business.
It is always important to have an attorney review any contracts or forms you have anyone sign, particularly when it involves children. An attorney will also be able to help you with any federal, state, and local legal, business, and insurance requirements.
As a self-employed businessperson, you will have to take care of any tax payments and bookkeeping when starting a tutoring business. It is best to consultant an accountant to learn the best way to pay yourself from your business account and to help you with your business taxes.
Teaching can be a business of irregular paychecks, so make sure you budget accordingly. If you hire other teachers to help you in your business, you need to check with your State Department of Labor for the laws on hiring and inquire about any special regulations for the type of classes you teach. If you plan to sell merchandise as part of starting a tutoring business (like a dance teacher who also sells ballet shoes or a piano teacher who sells music), you will need to set up a sales tax account with your local Department of Revenue.
Many computer programs are available to assist you in your day-to-day bookkeeping and billing. Many teaching topics may even have specialized software, specifically developed for this purpose. For example, there are several bookkeeping program specifically designed to track tuition and billing for karate studios and academic tutoring centers. There may be one designed for the topic you teach. The Internet or specialty magazines are great place to look for software in your area of expertise.
Once you have to take care of the basics of starting a tutoring business, you are on your way!
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