Very few activities provide the same low-risk, flexible, and profitable advantages such as starting a side hustle.
Side hustles surged in popularity in recent years as the so-called gig economy gave rise to freelancers, bloggers, virtual assistants, social media managers, Etsy sellers, and so many more.
While people remain at their 9 to 5s and enjoy all the security, benefits, and stability a steady job offers, side hustling gives them the opportunity to earn more money, express their creativity, learn new skills, earn passive income, etc.
In case you haven’t started a side hustle yourself but are looking to tap into these many benefits, here are 10 kinds of side hustles you can start from home.
01. Become a virtual assistant
The name pretty much speaks for itself—a virtual assistant assists people with tasks such as research, scheduling, organizing files, booking flights, making reservations, email filtering and/or answering, and many more.
While in the beginning virtual assistants would offer only administrative or operational tasks, they now handle a wider range of activities. You'd hear them also offering marketing services (ex. copywriting, proof reading, and posting to social media) and financial services (ex. bookkeeping, affiliate payouts, and payroll).
Similar to most of the side hustles on this list, you could become a virtual assistant using only a laptop, internet connection, and a way to gain clients.
02. Become a freelance designer
It’s no secret that design plays a key role in a business’ branding and marketing. And since all businesses nowadays want to have a strong online presence and memorable branding, freelance designers are the go-to for the job.
Freelance designers can offer customized branding materials but they can also create templates that customers can purchase and tweak themselves. From logos to website designs and social media graphics, customized canvas prints and brochures, becoming a freelance designer is the side hustle for you if you have design abilities and are familiar with tools such as Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, Canva, Wordpress, Squarespace, Showit, etc.
03. Become a freelance writer
Many businesses rely on powerful copy to spread their message and sell their products and services, and if you have pretty decent writing skills, you could be the person they turn to for help.
While there are many kinds of side hustles that fall under the umbrella category of writing, you could offer copywriting services, editing services, or ghost-writing services for a book or eBook. In some cases, you could even be hired for marketing campaigns, product launches, and writing entire sales funnels.
04. Become a coach or consultant
Many people seek help to overcome their personal or business struggles. If you're willing to guide and support others in doing this, you can start a side hustle as a coach or consultant.
As a coach, you're focused on helping the person find the answers themselves and you facilitate their growth or self-discovery. On the other hand, as a consultant, you actively offer your expert advice and opinions, and sometimes even come up with strategic plans for the client.
In both cases, you could get started with this kind of side hustle relatively easily as long as you're able to find clients willing to work with you and meet with you online (via email, Skype, Zoom, etc.) either during one-time sessions or through a weeks- or months-long programs.
05. Become a social media manager
With the advent of social media as another form of inbound marketing, companies now prioritize platforms such as Facebook, Facebook groups, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, etc. as a means to reach their target audience and share valuable content to attract and convert them.
While a virtual assistant could cover tasks such as creating posts, scheduling posts, responding to comments, etc., a social media manager has more responsibility. To become a social media manager, you need to be familiar with how different social media platforms work and what benefits each one provides. You can then align those features and benefits to create a comprehensive strategy to generate more brand awareness and profits for a business.
06. Become a blogger
If you already have a product or service to sell, blogging is a form of inbound marketing and one of the most effective ways to reach and connect with an audience on a deeper and genuine level.
But if you have no product or service to sell just yet, blogging can also be a way for you to write and share about topics you’re interested in or knowledgeable about. You can then get to know the people attracted to those topics (your audience) and later provide them with products and services that they'd be interested in.
Blogging may require a lot more time and effort compared to the other items on this list but it can prove to be a highly profitable side hustle when done strategically. In fact, a lot of bloggers have been known to grow their blogs to millions in readership and use their authority and platform to sell millions of dollars in products, services, infoproducts (ex. eBooks and eCourses), ads, sponsorships, affiliate products, and many more.
Here are some categories you can start a blog about: lifestyle, finance, DIY, food, travel, personal development, business, fashion, etc.
07. Become a Youtuber
Similar to blogging, you could start a side hustle as a Youtuber whether or not you have products and/or services to sell.
Since Youtube is the second biggest search engine (which is owned by Google, the first biggest search engine), there is tremendous potential for you to reach a wide audience using this platform, get to know them, and provide them with products and services that they'd be interested in.
From tutorials to unboxings and animations to cooking shows, there's a lot of kinds of videos you could produce and even a greater number of niches you could tap into. While you might earn money initially from ads or sponsorships, some Youtubers have significantly grown their subscribers and created their own products, clothing lines, marketing agencies, etc.
08. Become a podcaster
Podcasting has risen significantly in recent years (500,000+ as of 2018) because more and more people are seeing the advantages of being entertained or informed while commuting, doing house chores, exercising, and doing other tasks.
Again similar to blogging or podcasting, starting a podcast can be a way for you to reach an audience you can learn more about and promote or create products or services that they'd be willing to buy.
It's worth noting though that unlike blogging or sharing videos in Youtube, podcasting has an advantage of having a more focused audience; they are less prone to click away or watch another video while tuning in because of how podcasting apps are set up.
09. Sell on e-commerce websites
E-commerce websites such as Etsy, Amazon, Creative Market, Society6, or eBay already have audiences willing to buy products and/or services through their platforms.
Etsy hosts vintage items, crafts, and materials, Creative Market is geared towards design assets, and Society6 allows customers to purchase everyday items that incorporate designs you’ve created. Amazon and eBay offer more general items for sale but have vastly larger markets you can reach.
Though these platforms take a certain percentage off of your revenue, millions of people have still been able to greatly profit from this kind of business model.
10. Create and sell an online course
Unlike some of the other items on this list, creating and selling an online course (or a class or workshop) is a fantastic side hustle in terms of earning passive income. This means you can create an online course once, tweak it, and keep selling it months and years down the line.
When it comes to courses, of course it’s best if you’re good at what you’re teaching. You don’t necessarily have to be the world’s expert on the topic but it does help if you have a lot of experience doing it, if you have a proven solution or framework, or if you have a unique insight on the matter.
Here are some questions that can help narrow down a topic:
What do you already do for a living?
What’s something you’re passionate about?
What’s something you’ve found a solution or framework for?
What’s something that other people always turn to you for help with?
What seems too easy for you but is challenging for other people?
Lastly, if you’re planning to create and sell an online course, make sure that there is a market for it which means that it’s in high demand and it’s something that people are willing to actually pay for.
Is creating and selling an online course something you’re interested in?
We have strategic time-saving templates that may be able to help you!
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Conclusion
Using the internet, a laptop, and some strategy, you can easily and quickly start a side hustle nowadays even from the comfort of your own home. Of course, starting a side hustle and managing a successful side hustle are two very different concepts so it’s worth doing some research and testing to look into which kind of side hustle is best for you right now.
Dispel the notion that the only way to make money is by traditional methods (someone hires you to do a job from 9am to 5pm, Mondays to Fridays, and you get compensated every two weeks) because side hustling has the potential to offer you the flexibility and freedom that might be missing from your regular job.
Remember that in just a few short years, we’ve seen a surge in bloggers, youtubers, podcasters, online course creators, and many more who have made significant amounts of money from previously unheard of ways.
The only question left is: Why not you?
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