4 Easy Side Hustles That Can Turn Weekends Into Income
At a time when many Americans are struggling to make ends meet, side gigs have changed from nice little earners to necessary income streams. However, working a secondary job is exhausting, especially if you’re not earning enough to make it profitable.
In fact, Survey Monkey found that 67% of side hustlers experience burnout, and 52% think that the additional labor is only worthwhile if they make more than $500 per week.
Learn More: ChatGPT Suggested Summer Side Hustles -- and a Money Coach Reviewed Them
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With side hustles becoming increasingly normalized and seemingly endless ways to make money, it’s a good time to look at four jobs you can start on a weekend that don’t feel like “real work.”
Pet-Sitting and Dog Walking
Pet care, products and insurance have never been as popular, making this an easy-to-start hustle. Dog walking, grooming and pet-sitting are popular and lucrative side jobs for those who love animals.
If you happen to have a welcoming dog-friendly property or yard, check out Sniffspot, which is like Airbnb for dogs and provides safe, private short-term rental spots for your furry friend.
Where to start: Check out Care.com, Wag!, Rover and Sittercity for dog walking and pet-sitting opportunities.
Selling Digital Products
Starting a side hustle with little to no effort is easy; having a successful one takes at least a little work. That can be said for all gigs, but selling digital products will only make you money if you put in a little upfront sweat and active marketing. After all, no one is going to buy your products if they don’t know they exist.
Digital products — templates, guides, planners, spreadsheets, e-books, prompt libraries, mini-courses, tech backgrounds, etc. — can become big sellers if they solve a real problem or make someone's life easier.
Where to start: Etsy is the most popular site for selling digital products, but don’t ignore Reddit groups like Passive Income — “The largest passive income community on the web” is chock full of tips.
Creating a Digital Newsletter
You may know Codie Sanchez as an entrepreneur, business builder, author and educator, but the CEO and founder of Contrarian Thinking built her reputation by launching a newsletter that grew a subscriber list of 55,000 and made $50,000 in revenue in eight months, according to Side Hustle Nation.
Those numbers might seem unrealistic for a side hustle startup, but they’re great for inspiration. Before you think about making money, think about growing your subscribers, who are the lifeblood of a successful digital newsletter.
They are the ones who voluntarily choose to follow your content and they are the ones who will grow your brand. As such, you have to offer something of substance — a niche that is presented authentically and regularly. Then, you’ll need to monetize your unique creation via sponsorships, ads, services, products, licensing and paid reader subscriptions.
Where to start: Research which platform will be the best for your community-building and product-selling needs, and what fees you’ll need to pay them. Substack, beehiiv, Ghost and Kit are the most popular newsletter/email marketing platforms right now.
Renting Out Your Space or Personal Belongings
The rise of short-term and vacation rentals through Airbnb and Vrbo has proven that people are increasingly looking for non-traditional accommodations for good value. This thinking has extended to parts of property like backyards for events, parking spaces and storage, and personal items like cars, power washers, camping gear and even clothing.
Where to start: If you want to start a passive storage business, Neighbor is a storage marketplace where hosts can list garages, driveway space, parking lots, carports and sheds for free. Hygglo (formerly Fat Llama) is a peer-to-peer equipment and goods rental platform.
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.
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