Do not choose a yoga platform based solely on its feature grid. Instead, apply two tests: Can I operate here next month? Can I leave here next year?

This scorecard requires about thirty minutes per platform and reveals financial obligations hidden by a monthly subscription price.

First identify the business model

Most options resemble one of three models:

• Marketplace: students buy access to a shared catalogue; the platform controls discovery and the house relationship.
• Generic creator tool: you assemble courses, payments, email, live video, and community from broad components.
• Teacher-led storefront: your offerings sit under a dedicated teacher identity, with platform services behind it.

Category labels are not verdicts. A marketplace might offer discovery you cannot create alone. A generic tool may provide control while requiring more setup. A storefront could simplify delivery while limiting exports. Score the contract and workflow, not the category name.

Weight seven rows before watching another demo

Give each row a weight from 1 (minor) to 5 (critical). Then rate the platform from 0 (missing) to 5 (strong). Multiply weight by rating.

Criterion	Questions to answer	Weight
Student relationship	Who does the student believe they subscribed to? Can you contact active students for service messages?	1 to 5
Data export	Which records export, in what format, and without a support ticket?	1 to 5
Payments	Who processes charges, handles refunds, controls payout timing, and carries disputes?	1 to 5
Total cost	Monthly fee, commission, processor fee, storage, email, video, and migration work	1 to 5
Delivery	Live scheduling, on-demand programmes, access controls, and embeds you actually use	1 to 5
Accessibility and support	Captions, keyboard operation, student support, teacher support, and incident response	1 to 5
Exit cost	Content download, domain changes, subscription migration, and cancellation terms	1 to 5

The maximum score is the sum of each weight multiplied by five. Record raw answers alongside the numbers. A neat total based on guesses remains a guess.

Audience ownership needs operational questions

“Own your audience” is marketing language until you define the verbs.

Ask whether you can:

• identify active subscribers and their consent status;
• export contacts in a usable format;
• communicate about the service they bought;
• use your own domain or a stable teacher URL;
• retain reviews or testimonials with their permissions;
• understand which relationship continues if you leave.

Possessing an email address does not automatically permit every future message. Export ability, privacy obligations, and marketing consent are distinct questions.

The ICO portability guidance describes structured, commonly used, machine-readable formats like CSV, XML, and JSON, while also explaining that the legal right applies only in particular circumstances. Use this as a technical benchmark, not as legal advice that every business export must contain every field.

Payments are a responsibility map

List four names: student, teacher, platform, and payment processor. Then map who handles each transaction component.

1. Appears on the statement;
2. Sets the refund policy;
3. Handles disputes;
4. Verifies the seller;
5. Controls payout timing;
6. Absorbs a negative balance;
7. Supplies tax documentation.

Stripe Connect documentation shows why “payments included” is not a complete answer: platforms can configure connected accounts, payment routing, and payouts in different ways. Ask which configuration applies to you and verify it in the platform's current agreement.

Calculate total cost using your own numbers:

Calculate total expenses, including monthly software, video and storage costs, email tools, payment fees, platform commissions, and administrative time.

Run the calculation at three revenue levels. A low flat fee can strain your budget before revenue grows, while a percentage cut can become expensive after growth.

Delivery features should match next month's calendar

List the next four items you plan to sell. For each, identify the exact workflow needed to complete the sale.

• schedule a live class;
• publish a recorded multi-session programme;
• offer a subscription;
• grant and revoke access;
• send operational reminders;
• embed a signup or offering on your own site;
• answer a student access problem.

Ignore features that do not serve a specific job on your list. You are buying an operating system for a teaching business, not collecting toggles.

Run the migration drill before importing students

Imagine leaving the platform on Friday. Ask the vendor to demonstrate, not merely promise, how you would retrieve your core business assets.

• original video files;
• programme titles, descriptions, and ordering;
• student and subscription records;
• transaction and payout reports;
• consent and suppression status;
• reviews you have permission to reuse;
• domain and link redirects;
• cancellation and final payout records.

Time the process. Note which steps require support, which formats are produced, and which relationships cannot transfer automatically. This migration drill often changes the score more than a standard feature demo.

Put current Prime Tempr terms in the same scorecard

Prime Tempr publicly states that each teacher receives their own storefront, can publish programmes and live offerings, and keeps 85 percent of subscription revenue under the current 15 percent flat commission. The current teacher terms and pricing explanation are the first-party sources for those details, including the statement that students subscribe to a teacher rather than a competing house subscription and may stack teacher subscriptions.

These are current first-party terms and do not replace your due diligence. Verify the live agreement, settlement status, export workflow, support expectations, and every scorecard row before deciding. Applying to teach is an optional next step after comparison, not a substitute for it.

A decision rule that survives sales calls

Establish three non-negotiables before contacting vendors. For example, you might require direct access to student emails, zero platform commissions, or an automated CSV export.

• contact and consent data export without a bespoke engineering project;
• a payment responsibility map you understand;
• reliable delivery for one live class and one recorded programme.

Reject any option that fails a non-negotiable, even if its weighted total is high. Among the remaining options, choose the highest score only after completing the migration drill and reading current terms.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should a new teacher prefer a monthly fee or commission?

Model your expected revenue and fixed costs. A percentage reduces fixed costs when revenue is low but scales upward with sales, while a flat fee behaves in the opposite way. Payment processing and add-on costs may apply to either model.

Does a CSV export mean I can move subscriptions automatically?

A data export and a payment-subscription migration are separate technical processes. Ask both platforms and your payment processor what elements can successfully transfer.

Is a marketplace always bad for audience ownership?

A marketplace can provide discovery and shared infrastructure. Score the value it provides against the relationship, data, fee, and exit terms you must accept.

Sources

• ICO: Right to data portability (opens in a new tab)
• Stripe Connect documentation (opens in a new tab)