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Side hustles have become increasingly popular in recent years. Besides helping you to supplement your primary income, it can provide an opportunity to pursue a passion or a hubby potentially opening up new career opportunities in the future. There are thousands of ideas and entrepreneurs sharing their experiences in social media. Here are 3 proven side hustles to make extra money that have worked for me to help you out narrowing down your search.
Pet Sitting
If you love animals this side hustle can be rewarding, enjoyable and even therapeutic. Just like with kids, people need help with their pets and if time away is involved then boarding is another add up.
A good way to start is by signing up to a platform like Rover from where you can look at the demand in your area, compare prices, you can also look at other experienced sitters profiles to learn how they work.
If you feel unsure or scare to take the responsibility because you have no experience, try volunteering at an animal shelter or offer to pet sit for friends and family. This will help you develop your skills and be prepared when taking an actual job.
There are several types of services you can offer. This could be dog walking, pet sitting in the owner’s home, hosting pets in your own home, pet transportation, just to name a few.
You can also choose what type of pets you want to work with: cats, dogs, small or large pets, just dogs or just cats, exotic pets. For this to be a good experience choose a niche you genuinely love.
Consider your experience level when setting up your prices. You want to price your services competitively while ensuring you are making a profit. A good idea is to start with a low rate and as you build up your profile and gain credibility you can raise them slowly.
Be clear with your clients regarding expectations and keep an open communication at all times. Make sure to deliver exceptional care and go the extra mile being reliable and professional, this will help you to build a positive reputation and generate repeat business.
Other benefits to work with a platform like Rover are the secure payment, pet insurance, emergency support 24/7. If you consider establishing the business on your own, all these are important aspects to consider to protect yourself and the pets in your care.
Once your side hustle takes off have fun with it creating a brand and marketing materials like a name, logo, social media profile, business cards. Establishing a network and growing your referrals by word-of-mouth can be a great opportunity for growth.
Building a successful pet sitting side hustle can lead to a great business with time and effort. Your genuine love for animals combine with consistency and reliability will help you establish a strong foundation for your venture.
Babysitting
Babysitting can be a great way to make extra money, especially if you enjoy spending time with children. In some point in our lives we’ve had to watch for a little person at least for a few minutes, in most cases for a sibling or cousin. Babysitting is not far from that, you just will need to establish clear expectations with the parents regarding payment, working hours and any additional responsibilities.
To get started the easiest way is through word-of-mouth, let your family and friends know you are willing to help with their kids for a couples of bucks. It is also a good idea to join an online platform like care.com to connect with families in need and compare rates with other caregivers in your area.
Having a relevant certification such as CPR or first aid training can help you to stand out from the crowd and command higher rates. These certifications are not expensive and you can get them after a couple of hours of attendance in your local Hospital, Red Cross, Community College and even online.
Age is an important factor because is not the same to take care of a newborn than young children or teenagers. Start working with an age range you feel comfortable and over time you can learn skills to broaden to other ages.
The amount of children is another factor to take into consideration. Remember each child has his or her own personality and when interacting with other children can change for good or a challenge. If you don’t have experience start with one or two children.
Best case scenario you will be interacting with a well behaved kid but not always will be the same. As challenging a situation can be, never discipline a child in a physical or emotional way that could cause harm or distress to the child. This can lead to serious legal consequences. Take a few deep breaths and have a conversation with the parents later.
It is important for babysitters to prioritize the safety, well-being and best interest of the child at all times. Communication with the parents, following instructions and maintaining a responsible approach are crucial for a good experience.
E-Commerce
Thanks to today’s technology, the common activities of buying and selling goods and/or services has been taken to the internet world. E-commerce is basically conducting business transactions electronically through online platforms or websites. It has gained significant popularity and transformed the way people shop.
There are so many advantages to love e-commerce such as convenience, accessibility, a wide range of product options, competitive prices, the ability to buy and sell from anywhere at any time and connecting with buyers and sellers around the world.
A way to get into e-commerce is by selling used goods. Take some time to go through your closet and/or garage and pull out everything you haven’t used recently. Reconsider if you really need it; if not, bless it and let it go.
Clean the item if necessary, wash and steam if selling clothes. Use your phone to take a picture of the front and back and then post into the platform of your choice with a few details to describe it.
Here are a few platforms to sell stuff online:
- Poshmark: the social platform to sell fashion. The minute you sign up you will have people welcoming you, giving you tips, sharing your posts. It’s all about community. The interface is user friendly and it works with a flat rate shipping rate for up to 5lbs, these make it easy to post items and sell. Fees are 20% for all sales under $15 (2.95 flat for these). To join Poshmark use code CRISTALCLOSET for a $10 credit.
- Ebay: it’s like the grandpa of e-commerce, it has been around since forever. This is translated into a solid platform with a good foundation. You can find everything on Ebay and it seems to be a good place to sell collectibles. It is also great for auctions. Fees are a little more complex than other platforms but it’s because of all the options that it offers; compared to other platforms, fees are reasonable. It has also several shipping options which work great for small items, you just will need a scale to weight the items.
- Mercari: you can find all kind of random stuff in Mercari, from clothing to household items. The good thing about Mercari is the option to offer local delivery if you are willing to pay extra to receive your stuff same day. It’s like the garage sale of e-commerce. Selling fees are about 10% and shipping is between 7 to 10 dollars depending on the weight so you will also need a scale.
As a side hustle is pretty simple to sell online stuff sitting around your house. E-commerce platforms have made it even easier by collecting sales taxes and remitting them to the IRS for you so it is something you do not need to worry about.
It’s important to note that while side hustles can be financially rewarding and personally fulfilling, they often require additional time and effort outside of regular working hours. A good organization and time management can be helpful to balance your personal time, work and projects to keep it fun and potentially making that side hustle a full time job.
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