3 Education Business Mistakes to Avoid
Teachers are well-positioned to start education businesses. We know about best practices in education, the needs of kids and teachers, and how to engage people in learning. But we might not know much about running businesses. If you’re thinking about starting an education business, take some time to explore some common education business mistakes to avoid.
Often, I see well-meaning educators make key mistakes as they start businesses. It’s more than okay to make mistakes, but it’s always important to learn from them (growth mindset for the win!).
Luckily, as teachers, we are experts in learning. And we can use that expertise to learn how to run profitable and impactful businesses. If you’re thinking of starting an education business, avoiding these three education business mistakes will help you build a strong foundation for success.
3 Education Business Mistakes You Don’t Want to Make
Making mistakes when starting a business is part of the process. But just because common business mistakes happen often doesn’t mean you want to make them in your own entrepreneurial endeavors!
Read through these new business mistakes and keep them in mind when working on your education business.
1. Spam people with your offers
All the time, people post random promotional posts in the Educator Forever Facebook group (despite clear group guidelines not to). People put links to products and services without any context. Instead of including intro text to explain why people might get value out of their offerings, they just put in links and leave. I don’t know of anyone who has ever gotten business from this type of promotion. It’s one of the most common education business mistakes, but also one of the easiest to avoid.
As a business owner, I get that promoting yourself can feel uncomfortable. But the way to get over those feelings is by making meaningful connections with the people you hope to serve.
Always prioritize relationships and provide value. Instead of just dropping a link to your services and running away, focus on having authentic conversations with people without being entirely focused on making sales. Growing an education business is truly about building relationships and helping people.
2. Expect sales right away
When you start to develop products and services, it can be so exciting to get your creations in the hands of paying customers. But, just like you can’t expect to post a link and get responses, you can’t expect to get sales right away. Figuring out the right way to pitch your products and services takes time and experimentation.
Getting discouraged after not making sales right away is an important education business mistake to avoid. You might give up right before you are about to start making consistent sales!
Again, focusing on relationships will serve you well when it comes to getting sales. By truly getting to know your ideal customers, you will be able to present your offerings in a way that resonates with them. By creating valuable content and talking to your ideal customers, you focus on more than just sales. And you’ll find that by focusing on helping, you end up getting sales from the people that you help.
3. Be too rigid
When we start businesses, we rightfully feel very attached to our ideas. But sometimes we can feel too attached. Instead of beholding yourself to following through on the exact details of your original plan, be open to pivoting. Collect data and approach your business with curiosity.
Sticking too closely to your original vision can be one of the biggest education mistakes you could make if it’s keeping you from something even better.
For example, maybe you were committed to starting a coaching business where you work with new teachers in person in the afternoons. But all the new teachers you talk to would prefer to work together on Zoom in the evenings.
Instead of trying to convince teacher after teacher to meet in the afternoons in person, you could decide to revise your offerings based on the data you gather. The ability to pivot and adjust is an invaluable business skill.
Ready to Grow Your Education Business?
Now that you’ve explored some common mistakes when starting a business, it’s time to focus on some steps you should take to turn your idea into a reality.
Our Grow Your Education Business Accelerator was designed to give you the tools, skills, and support you need to build an impactful business. Through this nine-week program, you’ll learn how to build a business with a strong foundation so that you can scale your profits and impact.
The accelerator is application-only and spots are limited. We’d love to have you apply to join our community of educators/business owners!