Benefits of Teaching One-on-One Classes and How to Get Started 

Anyone who has received bespoke or personalized service knows the great care taken in making us, as clients, feel special. A massage, working with a personal trainer, your physiotherapist, whatever the service, we are given special attention and our treatment is singularly catered or curated by a professional. What happens when it’s the other way around? As yoga teachers, how do we transition or spread ourselves into this facet of teaching? Is it just a matter of naming your price? Gaining traction via marketing our skill sets? Or is there more to it? Yoga is by far a very personal practice in itself, as a service, what do we need to add on to make the experience even more unique? These are just some of the questions that we’ll be discussing in this article. 

I always had private students peppering my teaching career throughout the years. Each student was unique with individual needs. Some needed correcting and were advised by the doctor to take yoga classes, others wanted to progress faster in their practice, and some were just passing through at the time and wanted to have a new experience. Private classes never really last but make a lasting expression. Without further ado let’s dive in! 

This makes a private lesson more valuable whether you are in your first year as a yoga teacher or an experienced professional.

What Makes Private Classes Special

Private classes offer the undivided attention and expertise of your teacher. It allows the students to ask all the questions they have pertaining to their practice and how they can improve. Since we are yoga teachers, the buck doesn’t stop with asana alone. We are able to tackle meditative and spiritual practice as well. An area we might not be able to discuss so much in a group class unless we’re in a retreat or an intensive workshop. In one private class, we can see great improvement in asana as well as mental outlook in our students.  

Why is it Expensive? 

From an objective point of view, we charge more because a private class takes away class time. It’s not because we’re being greedy but because there are only so many hours in the day we, as teachers, can lend our time to teaching 1 person. This is why we need to put a worthy price for it. In addition, the yogi will be acquiring knowledge and assistance that they would not get in a group class. This makes a private lesson more valuable whether you are in your first year as a yoga teacher or an experienced professional.  

How do we get started? First things first, know your value. 

As we have said before, your time is precious as a teacher. What number would you put on your time to make it worth a private class while being accessible to most of the students in your radius. For example, I live in a small town in Spain and the going rate for private classes is 50€. If I calculate 3 students paying for a private class once a month, that’s 150€. So do your research and reflection to find that magic number for you and your students because it is a facet of the yoga business worth getting into and like anything in life there needs to be a balance. 

What Do You Have to Offer? 

On my website, I put all the places I have graduated from on my ‘about’ page coupled with the courses I am completing. I present my achievements as well as my objectives. This technique has worked well for me over the years because viewers will see my areas of expertise. The same goes when you are writing your ‘copy’ for private classes. Your potential clients need to know what you are knowledgeable at. Where do your specialities lie? In my case, I specialize in vinyasa and aerial yoga with a focus on hip and shoulder mobility and flexibility. This not only helps pinpoint the types of students that can benefit from my private classes, but students will also have a clearer picture of what to expect. That first consultation will be more of a possibility now.  

Who are private classes for? 

People need and want a private class for a variety of reasons. Some of the most common ones are: health, quick improvement or they are learners that need a personal guiding hand to take them through the practice. Each one will require a specific approach in their first consultation. Ask all the questions you can to get a proper feel for your students so that you may give them a totally bespoke experience.  

Setting and Selling  

Set up the same time in the week to make room for your classes. Usually, it’s during off-peak hours in your studio or the studio you’ll be renting. If a student wants you to make more arrangements to accommodate their schedule, charge more accordingly. As we have said, your time is precious and displacement from your place of work has to be valued too.The marketing of your class can be held in a variety of ways. You can hold a free consultation or a discovery class for free where students can experience a 15-minute sample of what a private class with you might be like followed by a 30-minute consultation. Another way is a pack of 3 personal training sessions at an introductory price. It will depend on the results of these 2 formats whether you’ll want to keep handling your business this way or change it up. It doesn’t mean that when you decide on a particular way to do something in your business that you have to keep at it. Businesses evolve just as you do. 

Teaching private classes is a chance for us as teachers to share our extensive experience with our yogis . It doesn’t mean that you have to be a very seasoned teacher to ‘earn the right’ to offer private classes. You could be a starting teacher and offer private classes. Just be clear with the curriculum you have on the table. Remember, there will always be yogis for your yoga. So get started. You’ll never know who will walk through your doors for private classes.