Hey there! Are you a yoga instructor interested in taking your classes online? Teaching yoga virtually is an incredible opportunity to share your practice with more students while building a thriving business.
In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll walk you through how to create an online yoga business from scratch and attract paying students from across the globe.
Contents
Why Teaching Yoga Online is Booming
Let‘s start with why online yoga is exploding in popularity for both teachers and students:
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Convenience and flexibility: In a 2022 survey, 58% of people said they prefer on-demand online workouts because they can fit them easily into busy schedules. No commute required!
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Global reach: Teaching online allows you to reach students worldwide, instead of just in your local area. The possibilities are limitless!
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Low overhead: With online classes, you don‘t need the overhead of a physical studio space. You can teach from the comfort of home.
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High revenue potential: Top online yoga instructors make over $40,000 per month teaching virtual classes, according to Yoga International.
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Community building: Fostering an engaged online community boosts student retention and can drive word-of-mouth referrals.
Clearly, teaching yoga online opens up tremendous potential! Now let‘s see how you can get started…
Step-by-Step: Creating Your Online Yoga Business
Building a thriving online yoga business is straightforward with the right tools. Follow these steps:
Choose a Platform
The best platforms for online yoga businesses are:
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WordPress (self-hosted): This open-source software allows unlimited customization and monetization options. You have full control over your brand and data.
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Yoga Business in a Box: This platform by Brett Larkin offers yoga business templates. It‘s beginner-friendly but less customizable.
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Thinkific and Teachable: These dedicated online course platforms work but lack the flexibility of WordPress.
I recommend WordPress for complete creative control and monetization potential. Let‘s dive into the setup…
Get Domain and Web Hosting
Every website needs:
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Domain name: Your custom web address, like youryogabiz.com. These usually cost ~$15/year.
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Web hosting: The server space that hosts your site files. Quality hosting typically starts at $5-10/month.
Popular picks like Bluehost offer domains and hosting bundled together.
Install WordPress and Themes
Most web hosts today provide 1-click WordPress installation. This instantly sets up WordPress for you.
Next, choose a yoga-specific theme like Yoga Studio or Fitness Zone to give your site a professional look.
Set Up Your Pages
Every website needs core pages like:
- Home
- About
- Classes
- Contact
- Blog
Use your theme‘s page builder or editor to add and customize these quickly.
Accept Payments Securely
To sell classes, packages, and courses, you‘ll need an ecommerce solution.
Popular options like Stripe and PayPal for WooCommerce integrate seamlessly with WordPress.
Stripe is my recommendation. It‘s free, easy to use, and trusted by millions of businesses.
Live Stream Classes
For live streaming yoga, Zoom is my top choice. The free plan works for classes under 40 minutes.
Embed Zoom directly into a private page for students who registered and paid.
Build a Membership Site
A membership plugin like MemberPress lets you create premium content areas locked to paying members.
You can sell multi-week courses, programs, and recordings in your membership site. This creates predictable, recurring revenue.
Email Marketing
Building an email list is crucial for nourishing leads, promoting new classes, and sharing health and wellness tips.
Easy-to-use tools like MailerLite and ConvertKit have free plans to get started.
Integrate them with WordPress to easily grow your list.
Attracting Students and Growing Your Business
With the foundations set up, it‘s time to focus on attracting paying students. Here are powerful strategies to grow your online yoga biz:
Optimizing Your Website
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Perform keyword research to optimize pages for terms like "online yoga classes for beginners." This helps potential students find you in search engines.
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Create lead magnets – Free classes, challenges, and guides – in exchange for emails to build your list.
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Focus on speed – Optimizing page speed increases conversions by up to 15%, studies show.
Leveraging Social Media
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Share short clips and photos on Instagram and TikTok to highlight your teaching style.
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Go live on Instagram and Facebook to engage with potential students.
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Collaborate with relevant influencers and accounts to expand your reach.
Building Community
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Send regular emails with yoga sequences, wellness tips, and inspiration to nurture your list. Segment based on student level.
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Create a private Facebook group for students to connect and support each other.
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Host monthly challenges and events to boost engagement.
Driving Referrals
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Offer affiliate commissions to yoga bloggers and brands for promoting your classes.
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Reward existing students for referrals with discounts or free months of membership.
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Partner with relevant brands and companies to offer custom corporate yoga classes for their employees.
The opportunities to grow your online yoga business are endless. With the right digital marketing strategies, you can leave your competition in crow pose!
Let me know if you have any other questions. I‘m always happy to help fellow yoga teachers succeed online. Now go out there and namaste!
