Of course, you are right regarding this point - as an independent online tutor it may be a problem to get that many students. And it is also very clear that you cannot make a living entirely on that alone. However, instead of having that kind of hassle the OP has had, I still would recommend to work as an independent tutor for an additional income, something like a second job. You will need another job to make a living, and you can' do it on online tutoring alone.

This is not true! Our local school in Portugal (where I live) pays €7 per hour! LD pays double, I already have a computer with an internet connection, and I do about 20 hours per week for them for mostly corporate clients that I wouldn't have access to anyway. I do some private telephone work myself, sure, but it's hard to get more than 2 or 3 students together at a time, and the systems are not set up as well. Also, these students don't always stay for very long, and I have to chase them to pay, and I have to find them in the first place.

LD students work for companies like pharmaceuticals or banks, and the work is constant. Invoices are paid on time. Even student cancellations are paid! Basically I can count on the 20 hours a week to pay my salary. I do translation and a small amount of face to face teaching on the side.