How two happy families can build a whole practice
Why one happy Chinese family is the best marketing a private English teacher can get, why referred families stay the longest, and why retention is a skill.
Spill the tea
The TripleTea blog
Insider notes from the Chinese market. One cup, one topic.
Why RedNote blocks teachers who did nothing wrong
Blocked on RedNote without breaking a rule. What usually gets English teachers blocked: abnormal activity, trigger words and direct selling.
A client asked our non-native teacher for a discount. Here's the whole chat
A client asks a non-native English teacher online for a discount. The real WeChat chat, from the first request to the renewal, and why it worked.
"Can you make it cheaper?" What bargaining with Chinese clients taught us
A Chinese client says your lessons are too expensive. What happened when we simply said yes, and why a discount for private students should always be a trade.
35 teachers answered one client. Why did most of them lose?
A client on RedNote asked for a spoken English tutor and got 35 replies. Why most of them lost, and what it means for non-native English teachers online.
How much should you charge for online ESL classes? A serious talk about the market
How much should you charge for online ESL classes? Nine in ten Chinese families want General English, and the market sets that price, whatever your niche.
Maybe it's time to move on, but where?
Should you leave your online teaching platform? Why the best moves to private ESL students are slow, prepared and started long before you resign.
Weeks of posting and no students: why the first month feels empty
Weeks of posting on RedNote and no students? What our first account taught us about the quiet first month and what it actually takes to get seen.
You watched every tutorial and still don't know where to start
How to start teaching English online to Chinese students when tutorials skip the real questions: what the lesson is for, what to charge, what comes next.
Your RedNote account got blocked. What now?
RedNote (Xiaohongshu) account blocked? What an English teacher outside China can and can't do, and what we did when we lost ours with 300 followers.
Why Chinese clients go quiet after the price, and when they come back
Silence after your price usually means one of three things. Why Chinese clients disappear on WeChat, and when they come back months later.
Ten clients added you on WeChat and not one booked
Out of twenty people who message us on RedNote, one buys lessons. Why a silent first wave of private clients says very little about your teaching.