We were lucky to catch up with Genelle Sedon recently and have shared our conversation below.
Genelle, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. So, one thing many business owners consider is donating a percentage of sales or profits to an organization or cause. We’d love to hear your thoughts and the story behind how and why you chose the cause or organization you donate to.
Private tutoring is most certainly an expense that not all have the luxury to afford. C & G Tutoring has a Pay it Forward program where they offer discounted or free sessions to families who would not otherwise have the means to afford private tutoring. We’ve created our “Educate Forward” program which allows donors to pay it forward with tutoring sessions. Some of our families donate funds to be used to offer discounted or free tutoring sessions to those who are economically disadvantaged, but in need of tutoring services. Our Educate Forward program has been very successful. We hope to continue to expand it for the upcoming school year.
Genelle, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
C & G Tutoring offers both in person and virtual tutoring in a variety of subject areas from grades pre-k to 12, college level, SAT Prep and even some adult options. We have a team of over 25 state certified and highly experienced tutors. One of our biggest successes is seeing the positive results first hand in student outcomes. It’s rewarding to set goals with clients and their families and watch them meet and exceed them. It’s not only the academic success, but watching the self confidence, growth and love of learning develop that is truly extraordinary. Another achievement I am immensely proud of is our 5 Star Parent Rating that we have maintained over the past 5 years.
I began C & G Tutoring with a Google voice phone number and a Facebook page with my husband, Chris (our Co-founder) who is also a public school teacher and another part time tutor. With absolutely no business background, a passion for teaching and over 20 years of combined experience: C & G Tutoring was born. The hope was to create a brand that educates, motivates and cares about students. After thorough research, we found there was limited individualized tutoring in our community so we took the opportunity to help students reach their full potential. As lifelong residents of Northeastern Pennsylvania, this area gave us so much—now, we wanted to give back and help the next generation succeed. We tutored 6 days a week to get this business up and running while working our full time positions. This business was over 10 years in the making. I always dreamed of having my own tutoring service or community center, but I simply never had the start up capital to do it. Now that dream has been my reality for over five years, and I’ve haven’t looked back since. As a wife, a mother and an educator, I was hesitant to begin my journey as a entrepreneur. It’s challenging to find time to balance everything as a woman. I encourage any woman who has the dream of being an entrepreneur to turn those dreams into a reality.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
After launching C & G Tutoring in May of 2018, we were gaining momentum by offering group SAT Prep tutoring bootcamp style sessions at various community locations. We were also drawing more clients from our Summer Spanish program for elementary students at public libraries and community centers. These group style classes were very popular and also cost effective for families. At the same time we were strengthening our relationships with public and private schools in the Wyoming Valley. We were fortunate enough to be selected by Wilkes-Barre Connect who had a summer intern program which helped us build our first business website. Things were progressing well in 2019. We had grown to about 5 part time employees. Then mid-March of 2020 the Covid 19 lockdown forced us to pivot. Using public libraries, community buildings and hosting group style classes were no longer an option. We immediately transitioned to offering discounted virtual sessions. Fortunately, our clients and families pivoted right with us and began learning virtually as well. Of course, moving to virtual tutoring sessions required a new set of technology requirements that came at a cost and an adjustment for both our tutors and clients. We lost a few tutors who were not comfortable with the virtual format, but thankfully we were keeping our head above water. In the fall of 2020 we launched our virtual learning pods where students from the same grade/class worked through homework and supplemental learning topics with one of our state certified tutors. This helped many clients stay social with classmates virtually, close the achievement gap from the Covid learning loss, and took some of the stress off of parents who were working with students at home while schools were either closed or hybrid due to the pandemic. Despite the pandemic ending, virtual tutoring sessions are one of our most popular formats. These sessions provide great flexibility for parents/students and also allow us to reach clients in and around the United States.
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
One of the best strategies for growing C & G Tutoring was to obtain results with our clients. We’re blessed to have the absolute best team of tutors. They are masters of their craft. They love what they do, and they love to see their clients meet and exceed their academic goals. We’ve had some clients who were truly struggling in the classroom setting and our tutors guided them to academic success. One on one tutoring is extremely effective for learning. When a student isn’t doing well in school, it can be stressful on the entire family. That’s where C & G Tutoring comes into play. C & G Tutoring is certainly a referral business. Typically clients are referred to us by a family member, friend or a member of their school community.
Another strategy that helped grow my tutoring service was to always support and be involved the community. In order to have a successful business you have to be at the forefront of the community you serve. Small businesses are the back bone of communities. We invest in and are loyal to the community we serve. We attend, sponsor or donate to local community organizations and events. I’ve also spoken at various events like Future Business Leaders of America, to women’s groups, and even on a podcast about my journey as an entrepreneur. Telling your story to the community you serve is important. I recommend any small business owner become involved with the community they serve.
The final effective strategy for growing my business was to become involved in my local chamber of commerce. The Greater Wyoming Valley Chamber was instrumental in helping me navigate my business, as was Wilkes-Barre Connect and the Wilkes University Small Business Development Center. These are all free business resources that have been extremely helpful. If I have questions or need advice, I know that I can turn to these organizations, and they genuinely want to help and see C & G Tutoring grow and succeed.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.candgtutoring.com
- Instagram: candgtutoring
- Facebook: C & G Tutoring