Even those who have a full-time job they love still consider working for themselves to be the ultimate dream. If they could generate enough income from their own business to pay bills, minimize debts, and save enough for retirement, most people would quit their day jobs in a heartbeat. While it’s possible to freelance or work for yourself and make enough money to succeed, everything starts as a side job. And with hard work and commitment, it could turn into something better. In this blog, we’ll teach you how to start a profitable side job to supplement your income and build the foundation for a successful business. So, let’s get started!
Helpful Tips for a Profitable Side Job
1. What Are Your Skills?
The first step towards adding some side job income to your main source of revenue is determining what skills you have that could be monetized. Are you an artist who loves painting or creating small figurines? Are you a really talented researcher and writer? Do you make jewelry for fun? Any service or product that you could possibly share with others is a good place to start looking for a talent or hobby that could turn into a profitable side job. Once you have your skill picked out, you’ll need to do some research.
2. Do Some Research
Before diving into the deep end, do some research on the hobby or talent that you have. Explore the competition you’re up against in that industry and look into the actual demand for your product or service. Make sure you look into the right price point so that you can price yourself competitively. If there is no demand for your skill, you probably won’t be able to turn it into a profitable side job. Consider other related services and products you could possibly expand towards to keep your dream alive.
3. Don’t Risk Your Full-Time Job
Even after you’ve discovered a talent that people want to pay for, don’t risk your full-time job until you’re ready for a major transition. The market is constantly fluctuating because people’s interests are always changing. You don’t want to commit to making exclusively side job income until you’re sure you can make enough to reach your long term goals.
4. Build Strong Relationships
While you might not want to tell everyone at your main job that you’re working a freelance gig or starting your own business, anyone you collaborate with in your side hustle would benefit from the information. Whether you need to inform them of a complicated schedule or you’re working with supervisors to fill a quota, telling them the amount of work you can handle as well as your money goals for the future can help you build an open, honest, and trusting relationship with them. Creating a profitable side job sometimes hinges on this type of transparency.
5. Network for a Profitable Side Job
You may already have a solid network for your full-time job. So, now it’s time to start developing the same types of relationships and connections for your profitable side job. From attending industry events to joining an online community, you want to make the effort to meet people who can help you along the way. Even though you may be competing with some of them in the long run, most people are willing to help you learn more about your passion and transform it into a career.
6. Spread the Word
Once you have a strong foundation for your side job, you can make it a lot more fruitful by spreading the word about your products or services. Create social media accounts for your side business. This will provide you with an official way to communicate with customers and keep people informed of your offerings.
7. Set a Schedule
Part of what will make your side job profitable is setting a dedicated schedule to follow. Unfortunately, many people get tired or sidetracked. This oftentimes leads to giving up on the additional side job income they could be making. When you create a schedule, you’re setting up some form of accountability for yourself and ensuring that you have enough time throughout your days to create the product, communicate with customers, and resolve pressing business matters. Maybe you spend an hour each day working on your side job or maybe you only work on the weekends. Decide how much time you have to dedicate to your secondary work and stay committed.
8. Stick With It
Most small or side businesses experience swings in sales and success. Just because you’re going through a hard time right now, doesn’t mean you should give up your side hustle. After all, this is why you kept your day job! Rely on the income from your main job to carry you through slow times with your freelance position. It could still turn into a profitable side job given enough time.
9. Utilize an Online Platform
When it comes time to really push for success, you want to take advantage of every sales outlet at your disposal. You may not have enough money yet to pay for a domain name and eCommerce account, but you can still use your side job income to post your services and products on third party sales sites. Find the ones that are best suited to your industry and create a profile where people can contact you. Good sites to start with include Etsy, Facebook Marketplace, Amazon, and eBay.*
10. Think Big
Just because you’re starting small doesn’t mean you don’t have a lot of potential. Create a business plan to take your profitable side job and transform it into a successful venture for the future. Implementing this plan may take years, but it’s the best path to improving your life.
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