How to Make Money on Teachers Pay Teachers: $2k a Month on the Side

Would you believe there’s a marketplace of millions of buyers eager for digital products for teachers — and it’s not Etsy?

Rob is a high school math and personal finance teacher at fieducator.com. He’s built an impressive side hustle selling lesson plans and resources online at fieducator.store.

Through the popular platform Teachers Pay Teachers, Rob has turned his passion for financial education into a growing business that regularly brings in $2,000 a month — and it’s been growing 40% a year.

Tune in to Episode 644 of The Side Hustle Show to learn:

How to find your niche on Teachers Pay Teachers
Rob’s $2k/month digital product business
Rob’s process for launching new products on FB groups

Table of Contents show

Round 1: Building a $2k/Month Digital Product Business

Rob didn’t try to be all things to all teachers — he instead doubled down on what he knew best: personal finance education.

Personal finance as a standalone subject is booming in schools, but many teachers are thrown into teaching it without the training or tools to make it engaging. So Rob spotted that gap and went all in.

“Teachers don’t want shallow [resources],” Rob says. “They want deep. They want something that’s going to be this amazing exchange of value.”

Rob built tools that enhance existing curriculums — think games, interactive projects, and lesson plans that get students up and talking. Not general math lessons or generic templates.

Building and Scaling the Business

Rob started small, throwing a few resources up on Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT) and making just $0.52 in his first sale.

He kept refining, learning, and uploading new products — so the magic of compounding effect kicks in.

Today, his store has over 120 resources, with bestsellers consistently driving traffic and sales, like his Space Quest, which gets students debating how to allocate limited resources on a spaceship.

And it’s not just about creating — it’s about iterating. Rob’s mantra is the “three E’s”:

Exciting
Engaging
Educational

If a resource doesn’t meet those standards, it doesn’t make the cut.

Rob uses feedback loops to improve. Social media and email newsletters help him connect directly with customers and adjust his products to fit their needs.

Platform Economics

Teachers Pay Teachers offers two-tier options for sellers. The free tier provides a 50/50 revenue split, while the premium tier costs $60 per year but improves the split to 80/20 in the seller’s favor.

Most of Rob’s products are priced between $5 and $30, though some sellers on the platform offer complete curriculums for $500 or more.

He aims to price his products affordably since many teachers purchase materials with their own money.

Marketing Strategy

One of Rob’s most effective tactics is offering new products for free during their first week to generate reviews and feedback.

He includes bonus materials that encourage email signups, allowing him to build a direct relationship with customers. Being active in teacher Facebook groups has also helped drive organic traffic to his store.

He emphasizes the importance of creating high-quality thumbnails and preview content, noting that products with good previews consistently outsell those without them.

He also bundles related products at a discount to increase average order value while providing more value to customers.

Round 2: Donate a Business Idea

Rob shared that he’s been itching to try soccer-inspired fitness for classes for adults. It’s simple, fun, and fills a gap for ex-soccer players who miss the team environment but don’t want to commit to a competitive league.

“You’re not playing in leagues…but you are getting that team feeling that seems to be missing now as an adult,” he shared.

You can rent a local park, bring some soccer balls and cones, and charge $10 per person. That’s $100 per hour as a side hustle.

It’s fitness meets nostalgia, with a side of camaraderie.

You could apply this to tennis, baseball, or any other sport — with kids, adults, or your chosen demographics.

I wouldn’t be surprised if someone runs with it — and scores big.

Round 3: Triple Threat

Marketing Tactic

Get early adopters involved. He hops into niche Facebook groups (like FinLit Fanatics!) and posts something like, “I’m looking for 10 people to try this out for me and give me feedback.”

They can send him a message or comment on the post, but he prefers that they comment in their emails so that the post receives more engagement and is pinned to the top.

He cares less about the feedback and more about getting engagement.

For teachers, this approach resonates. “You can get a lot of pushback when you start trying to market products to teachers, and it’s not free,” Rob said.

It feels more collaborative rather than sales-y.

Favorite Tool

Rob raved about a tool called VideoTap, which he discovered from AppSumo.

It’s an AI-powered tool he uses to chop long videos into bite-sized social media-friendly clips — complete with captions and transcriptions.

It saves him hours, and he uses it to repurpose guest speaker recordings from his classroom.

Book Recommendation

Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss and Tahl Raz — While primarily about negotiation, Rob finds the principles apply broadly to teaching, parenting, and business relationships.

“Every day is a negotiation,” Rob shared.

Your Turn

Have you considered creating digital products? What expertise could you package into digital resources? If you want to take a page from Rob’s playbook, visit fieducator.store and see how he’s making personal finance education more engaging for teachers and students alike.

Episode Links

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