How to Make Money on Teachers Pay Teachers

As online entrepreneurs one stream of income is by selling to a niche market and today, we’re sharing exactly how to make money on Teachers Pay Teachers. If you’ve ever thought about selling digital products on a platform like TPT (Teachers Pay Teachers), your next thought might be…how to make a profit! In this blog post, we are sharing a few tricks and tips that we personally use to make money as a digital creator, how to stand out in a huge crowd, and how to market what your future buyers are asking for so you can actually make a profit.

These tips for selling on Teachers Pay Teachers are perfect for both the new product creator and seasoned sellers. No matter where you are in the process of digital product creation, you’ll find tips and ideas here to support your TPT shop!

We had a conversation on how making money on Teachers Pay Teachers is just one stream of income in our bucket of online sales. Watch our video below to get in on the conversation:

One thing that we promote in the Digital Products for Professionals program is the concept of selling what you know. As a professional, you are used to helping others, and selling online is no different.

When Margaret and I started out selling digital products, we had only a few options for marketplaces, and similarly, product promotion. Now, there are so many different audiences in various places online that you can cast your net to a further reach by simply promoting your digital products in several different places like Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc.

And, there are options to sell in different marketplaces, too. As an online digital product creator, you have your choice in options! Once you have a digital resource, it’s as simple as setting up accounts to sell on places like TPT (Teachers Pay Teachers), Etsy, a personal website, or on a marketplace like on The OT Toolbox and Your Therapy Source.

Each of these online shopping sites have different nuances. There are things to be aware of when it comes to each site and online location. In this blog post, we’re covering specifics on not only selling, but how to make money on TPT!

As a side note, selling on TPT is a great side job for teachers, as well as a source of online income students, too. We talked in a previous blog post about how to earn money online for students.

Tips on How to Make Money on TPT

Let’s break this down into the product creation process, because if you are just getting started selling on TPT, then this is where you’ll begin. If you’ve already made a product or two and have them listed online, you’ll find some tips and strategies, too. I personally, am always creating new products and I really feel that there is always room for growth. As professionals, we are life-long learners, right? Let’s explore making money on TPT!

Start with the end user- On TPT, it’s so important to focus on the end user. What I mean by this is concentrate on the person who will be buying your product. Notice I mentioned a person? When we think about the person purchasing your product as an individual, or a real person, we can connect with them better.

We really cover this in our Digital Product Creation Program; focusing on who is buying your product and branching out from there in the marketing and promotion.

If you use that thought process when you are creating your product and when you are adding features to your product, you are targeting a specific buyer from the start. This is important to actually convert sales in order to make money on Teachers Pay Teachers because the audience of this platform is very vast.

Buyers on TPT include:

Teachers (broken down into grade level)
Special area educators (music teachers, physical education teachers, art teachers, etc.)
Special education teachers
Administrators and team leaders
Therapy providers (OT, PT, ST)
Counselors (guidance, social workers, mental health therapists)
Homeschool educators (for all grade levels and areas)
Others: Think Sunday school teachers, paraprofessionals, parents, students, etc.

Looking at this list of TPT audience, you can see how each one has a different perspective. They are all buying for different reasons. Zoning in on what’s important for your specific audience is key!

So thinking about that target audience, what is the language they use? What are the specific words they use when they talk about a resource or a lesson plan? Use that wording in your marketing.

When you consider the end-user you can get crystal clear on who is buying your product, what exactly they need, and WHY they are buying. These considerations are huge when it comes to converting sales on TPT.

You can then target your buying audience in your Teacher Pay Teachers product listing. Use the verbiage that your buyer will use. Hit on target areas, goals, and features that your product addresses. These are simple, yet very effective ways to make a sale on Teacher Pay Teachers!

Refine your sales page- For a new seller on TPT, it can be very hard to be found. A person just getting started selling digital resources, listing a product only to get crickets in return is very demoralizing! But, you can set yourself up for success from the start by priming your product sales page for sales so that buying the product is a no brainer.

How to set up a sales page on TPT

To make money on Teachers Pay Teachers, a sales page is the vehicle! Setting up a sales page on TPT is a great way to reach more customers and increase your sales.

To get started, follow these steps:

Create an account on TPT.
Create a shop name- Come up with a name that describes your knowledge as a professional, hitting on your perspective as an educator, therapist, etc. that also describes your audience or what you sell. This step of earning money on Teachers Pay Teachers is the research stage that will set you up for success. Take time to really think about a name that is deemed professional yet relatable. Search for duplications in your shop name. You’ll want something unique that also markets to your buying audience.
Create a clear logo. Use your shop name in the logo. Make sure the fonts are easy to read. Choose a quality graphic that captures the tone and theme of your store. We include resources in the Digital Product Creation for Professionals program about how to make a logo that stands out, and we include templates and fonts that are easy to read.
Consider adding a tagline or slogan to your cover image to help draw attention to your store. You can also create a shop cover image that describes your store and what you sell on your TPT shop.
Add your products you want to sell to your store. Once you have your products uploaded, you can create a sales page for each product. You’ll want to include a description of the product, any images or videos that help to show what it is, and any additional information that potential customers might find helpful.
Descriptive Product Name- You’ll want to include a name for the product that really describes the product. Adding terms that uses the language and pain points of your audience is a benefit. For example, a maze worksheet can be called “Visual Processing Maze Activities to Support Handwriting Skills”. Adding descriptive terminology and targeting the area the product supports is just one easy way to make a sale on Teachers Pay Teachers.
Take photos of your product in use. Any images or videos help to show what your TPT product is adds another depth of proof the product is a benefit to the buyer. For the therapists reading this, we are adding a layer of multi-sensory experience to the buying process. See, therapists are natural sellers based on what we know about humans!
Add pain points to the product description- Add descriptive details about the features of your product. And add any additional information that potential customers might find helpful. Once you have your page set up, you can start promoting it on social media and other channels to help get the word out, so you can use those same terms and verbiage in the social media posts too.
Publish your product and start promoting. Once your Teachers Pay Teachers shop is up and running, the next step is to promote your resources on social media and other websites. You can also run targeted ads to reach your target audience.
Customer service- Once you’ve made a sale, your job is not over. Making money on Teachers Pay Teachers includes the customer service aspect. There may be questions about use of the product, comments regarding the products effectiveness, and updates you need to make. Be sure to stay on top of reviewing feedback and ratings from your customers, and make any necessary changes to improve your resources and shop page.

With these steps, you should be able to make successful sales on TPT!

How to become an authority selling on TPT

Making a few sales on your TPT shop is great! But how do you move to a sustainable stream of income selling on TPT?

Becoming an authority on Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT) is a great way to build a successful business and help other educators.

When I say “authority”, I mean a seller who is known for a specific niche, market, or audience. An authority seller on Teachers Pay Teachers is one who is making the sales because their buyers keep returning. They are known for quality products at a great price, in a specific niched topic.

Putting it mildly, the seller who is viewed as an authority will be the one making money on Teachers Pay Teachers!

One final tip to make money on Teachers Pay Teachers

It’s easy to set up your shop, promote it a few times on social media, and then let the shop go to rest among the millions of other TPT product listings. However, if you want to make money on Teachers Pay Teachers, engagement is the key to lasting success.

Be sure to remain active and engaged. Engage with other users on the platform, respond to comments and questions, and stay active on the platform to build a strong presence.

Once you’ve got your TPT shop up and running, the last step would be ongoing marketing. That’s where content creation in digital marketing comes into play. This process will continue with more content being created to market your products.

By following these tips, you can become an authority on TPT and build a successful business helping other professionals and educators.