Palfish OKC Vs SayABC

It's been 5 months since I entered the online teaching world - 

I work for TWO companies (Here's why I think everyone should!)

Now it's time to give you the low down on what it's like to work for each of them, you're going to want to read this!

Requirements

Before we begin you are going to want to know straight up what you need to have in order to get a job with Palfish and SayABC.

Palfish: 120hour TESOL or TEFL. Ability to work 3.5hours a week during peak Beijing teaching times (6pm-9pmBJT weekdays or 9am-9pm weekends).

SayABC: 120hour TESOL or TEFL or any other teaching certificate, BA degree (or in the final year of one), One year teaching experience. 

Both companies require that you speak English at a native level. 

The kids

Seriously the BEST part of this business is the students! Both platforms give you the opportunity to teach the cutest Chinese kids ever!

There are also a few...hmmm... less focused students on both platforms - but this is usually due to age (some can be VERY young) or boredom, (If the content is too easy or repetitive). 

Both of these issues are easily addressed by mixing it up and getting creative with your teaching - but compared to bricks and mortar with Aussie kids, on a scale of adorable to tear your hair out these kids don't even register.

On the whole they are VERY focussed - and have a parent right there helping too!

Basically when comparing companies, with Palfish you only teach one student for 25min - SayABC is 4 for 40min (and it's moving towards 6). 

Personally I can see pros and cons to both.

It's easier to fill the time and do more serious teaching with more students. They can talk to each other, encourage each other and learn from each other. So the focus is not so much on me as a teacher which means, to be frank, I find it less exhausting even though the classes are longer. If someone isn't engaging I have three other students to teach, so there are usually no awkward silences and I can focus on the others and bring the distracted one in when I can. 

Palfish being 1 on 1 means it's all on you. You alone have to keep those kids engaged and it requires a lot of energy! Thankfully it's only for 25min, which is VERY manageable. 

The platform

Both SayABC and Palfish have newer and older courseware. 

The newer courseware for both companies is, of course, HEAPS better! The slides are more interactive, the games are better and the teacher guides are clearer so there is less planning required. 

The SayABC platform requires a LOT of tech. Which is its biggest downfall. You need to be running the latest generation with large RAM etc. etc. I have a MAC which i've always loved because despite the original outlay they seem to keep up with tech specs a lot longer than other brands. 

My mid 2012 Macbook pro is fine for teaching 1v4 classes (which is all I do), but as SayABC continue to move towards 1v6 which requires higher tech specs to run, i'd need to update my computer. 

In case you missed it - you need a computer or a laptop, with super stable cable internet (It MUST be plugged in via ethernet) good headphones, and a very good quality camera (The built in camera on my mac with extra lighting has been fine). Which means it's much harder to travel with SayABC but i'll cover that soon in the travel section!

Palfish is an app. on your phone. The end.

When it' comes to platform I find Palfish wins hands down! The new courseware is varied and interesting and way more interactive. The AR filters are fun and give you another tool to keep the student engaged. And it's SO portable! 

One downside is it's only available in portrait mode which makes it harder to see. I'd prefer to teach on a bigger tablet like an ipad (many do). But i'm using my iphone 8 at the moment, just fine!

oh and also the old courseware on Palfish is TERRIBLE! NO interaction and VERY dry content. If i'd been teaching this courseware all the time then SayABC would come out on top in that regard. But they are phasing it out so it's becoming rare to have to teach it. 

That doesn't mean Palfish coming out on top will always be the case though. SayABC's newer courseware with 'split screen' function which means each child can interact with the slide independently but at the SAME TIME as all the others in the class is a game changer. It makes the lessons WAY more interesting! They are definitely improving their games and activities too. Which means perhaps soon SayABC will come out on top again!

Taking Leave

This is a big deal!

In Australia we like to have holidays, we like to go to weddings, travel and spend time with our families.

So a company that has a good leave policy is important.

Straight up...

You can not take ANY leave with SayABC without penalty! Seriously! If you do what they recommend and don't open slots on the days you want to take off, they will reassign your homeroom to someone else. 

It's better to open your slots until your homeroom is renewed and then take emergency leave, you'll lose HALF your completion bonus, but it's better than losing the homeroom longterm right?

If you take TWO emergency leaves in one unit you will lose ALL of the completion bonus. 

IF you take three you'll lose the homeroom. 

SayABC has the WORST leave policy ever. TBH

Palfish makes it SO easy to take time off. 

You only have to plan three weeks in advance. You will see the next three weeks of your schedule, the kids will only see two. So if you know you want to take some time off, close the slots as you see them before the parents book. 

If they are fixed slots send your admin a message explaining why, and a courtesy message to your students.

Done. SO, so easy.

You can even take leave outside 24hours without penalty (you'll lose 1 point - click here to read about them). 

They've just changed the cancellation policy to say you won't receive your attendance bonus (200y) if you cancel outside 24 hours - which is a bummer but not the end of the world. Just close slots when you can plan ahead and that won't happen. 

Travel

You can watch youtube videos all day about how easy it is to travel with SayABC. 

I don't agree.

To travel with SayAbc you'll need to take your laptop, your ethernet cord, you'll need to stay somewhere that has EXCELLENT internet and a place you can plug your cord in (That rules out most hotels). 

You'll need to take your headphones and lights. 

Of course it's possible, but if you are holidaying, who wants to do all that? NOT ME!

I will attempt it when I head back to Tassie this Christmas (I'll let you know how that goes). 

And there ARE hacks, like buying this plug in internet from Target, to get round the no wifi rule. 

You still have to lug your computer with you though. Charging cord etc. 

TBH I haven't travelled with Palfish.

It's so easy to take time off and if I want a holiday,  I want a holiday.

But I can tell you it would be SO easy. 

Do you have your phone?

Do you have a small Palfish logo you can stick up behind you?

Then you're good to go!

That's right, you need internet on your phone of course, easy to get in most places. 

You don't need your headphones, lights, ethernet cord etc. etc.

It's just SO portable, and that's why I LOVE it, 

You will need to find a quiet place to teach with a good background (I've heard hotel bathrooms are great). 

Pay

SayABC wins. The end.

If you have all the qualifications and do well you will get 15USD a class (40min) base pay. 

That's $22.5 USD an hour BASE pay. ($32AUD)

With homeroom completion bonus (If you don't take ANY time off for the 9 lessons in a unit) you'll get $28.5 USD an hour or $41AUD. 

The homeroom completion bonus is $4USD a class no matter what your base rate is. So after teaching 9 lessons you'll get $36 extra!

You'd have to work 10 classes a day to make $21USD ($31AUD) an hour with Palfish. 

That's because you'd need to be on Level 5 - see here why I never will. 

So you can work your butt off and still not make the basepay you'd get with SayABC. As simple as that. There is no comparison.

Full disclosure, SayABC has dropped their basepay to $13 per class for some new hires, based on their performance in their evaluation. That's still $19.5USD ($28.5AUD) an hour. It closes the gap for sure - I made about $25.5 AUD last month with Palfish on Level 2 with bonuses. So that's nothing to sneeze at.

But SayABC pays better.

Scheduling

The pay rate is one thing.

But the opportunity to work is also important. No point having a great rate if you can't work right?

Two things affect this - Scheduling and Bookings!

SayABC only allow you to work 4 slots a day during the week and 6 on the weekends. So you'd need to weigh up your capacity to earn.

You also need to have paired slots available in order to teach homerooms and make that completion bonus that is SO good. (Did I mention it's $4USD a class extra?!)

I work Mon/Thurs.

You could also work

Tues/Fri

Wed/Sat or

Sat/Sun.

If you're like me and have commitments on a few of those nights in the week. Then it limits the number of paired slots you can actually work.

Palfish on the other hand is available 24/7.

Will you get booked at weird hours? Probably not. But I teach classes from 5pm-10pmBJT most nights which is a LOT more available hours then SayABC. Saturday and Sunday would be even more. 

Some kids take classes in the morning or afternoon BJT too. (I can't teach these cause of my kids). 

I think scheduling in regards to flexibility and availability is one of Palfish's greatest assets. 

Note: A new law in China will mean that ALL ESL classes will need to be finished by 9pm BJT, both Palfish and SayABC are coming in line with this directive by the end of October. 

Bookings

You can be available 24/7 but it's pretty worthless if you have no bookings!

I've had a great run with Palfish and you can read about it here.

But it IS a slow burn. 

If you are a good teacher and put in the effort, it WILL happen...eventually!

Palfish is about marketing yourself where as SayABC books for you!

Which means way less effort, but it also means your bookings are in the hands of someone else.

Both companies send the most bookings to you when you're new. 

With Palfish it's pop-ups.

With SayABC it's trials and then homerooms.

The struggle with SayABC is keeping them. I lost a homeroom due to combination (read about that here) and it hasn't been replaced. Until I lived it I didn't want to believe the rumours but maybe it's true that you'll get homerooms assigned at the start but if you lose them bad luck. (Watch this space). 

My Nephew took a month off and came back, he had to email a few times but homerooms were reassigned to him! So it's not all bad!

Palfish is about being seen. It's only been two months but i'm at a point where the schedule I want to work is full. If I open up more slots they get booked. It has its ups and downs but bookings are good. 

Palfish Vs SayABC

So which one wins?

I say both!

I've written before why you should have two companies (Check that out here). 

I like the variety.

I like teaching 1v1 and I like teaching 1v4.

I like marketing myself, and I like having bookings assigned.

I like earning good money with SayABC but I LOVE the flexibility and greater opportunity to work with Palfish. 

Hopefully I've provided enough information that if you are deciding between the two you can make an informed decision. 

If not drop me a line, i'm happy to answer any questions!

Happy Teaching x

Useful Links: 

SayABC Click Here

Palfish Click Here

P.S. Every company offers a referral bonus - If you're interested in getting started and would like my help with the process drop me a line! 


Palfish referral code: 58910752 
SayABC referral code: EG63VF