It seems like the cost of everything is skyrocketing this year. From rising energy bills to increasing fuel costs, it’s not easy to stay on top of your finances. That’s why in this article, we’ll look at how you could boost your income with a side hustle and save money.
So, stay tuned as we discuss a few tips and tricks to help you make money whilst protecting your wealth this year…
What is a side hustle?
‘Side Hustle’ is a term that’s thrown around a lot these days, but at its core, it’s an additional job that you do alongside your main source of income. It could be freelance writing in the evening and weekends or creating and selling keychains after finishing your 9-5. The options are endless, as is the possibility of making some extra cash.
Good things to know about side hustles
The key to a good side hustle, as with all businesses, is the return on investment (ROI). In this case, it’s the return you’ll get for your time, effort and materials. Here are a few things to consider:
- How much time do you want to invest?
- How much seed money do you have?
- Do you want to produce physical items yourself?
- Do you have transferable digital skills?
Whatever you do is going to eat up a fair part of your free time, so you either need to love everything about this additional job, or it needs to bring in enough money to make it worth it. Start by working out your hourly rate, how much each item should cost, what your profit per piece is, and more to get a better idea of whether it will be a worthwhile enterprise or not.
Quick side hustle ideas
For side hustles where you don’t need to invest a lot of time, your profit margin is not likely to be that high. This is because your fulfilment partner will likely take most of the profit. On the plus side, it’s an almost passive income stream, which is ideal.
Here are a few side hustle ideas with minimal time investment:
- Print-On-Demand businesses (POD)
This is where you upload designs for mugs, posters, t-shirts, socks, and hats – basically, any merchandise. Then, another manufacturing company prints and ships them. With this option, all you need to do is upload the artwork and leave it. While you could potentially save money printing and shipping them yourself, using a third-party manufacturer ensures consistency, reduces wastage and storage costs and saves you a lot of time.
- Dropshipping
This is like POD businesses in that you don’t have to bulk buy stock. In this case, you set up a store, price and sell the products, and a third-party wholesaler ships it. You’re essentially the middleman, and there are fewer upfront costs to consider.
- Write and see eBooks
If you’re a specialist in something, why not write an eBook and upload it somewhere like Amazon to sell? Similar to the above, there is some time required to prepare your product, but after that, you can leave it to sell itself with minimal marketing. The margins won’t be huge unless you sell it on your website, but it’s still something.
Other Side Hustle Ideas
Some people prefer the do it and leave it style of side hustles as they prefer a more equal life-work balance. However, if you enjoy your side hustle work and like doing it, why not do it more often? Here are some ideas for Side Hustles from home which take more time but can be rewarding:
- Start freelancing – from writing to graphic design, there are ample opportunities for you to earn some money on the side. Check out sites like Quill, 99Designs, and Upwork for gigs, or contact local agencies and companies to see if they need help.
- Sell your handmade goods – if print on demand isn’t your thing and you prefer to get stuck in crafting, making items to sell is an ideal option. The profits are larger, but you need more space at home to set up your enterprise. And you’ll need to consider the packaging and what things you can do to personalise it and make it appealing. Some create custom stamps, wax seals, or stickers, others use branded boxes and put in sweets.
- Start a blog – an oldie, but a goodie. The key is finding your niche and being consistent and valuable with your content. You could also start affiliate marketing with your blog.
- Become a virtual assistant – this is where you are a personal assistant for those who need some support but don’t have the funds for a whole employee. You’ll do things like calendar keeping, booking trips, sourcing quotes, and anything a PA would.
- Become a part-time photographer – some nightclubs like to have in-house photographers to increase engagement online, and events sometimes need ad-hoc photography support. Then there’s the lucrative wedding and celebration market to consider. If you’re a dab hand with an SLR, why not give it a try?
What to do with your Side Hustle Money
The point of a side hustle is to have some extra cash, either to save or spend – that’s why it’s important to be as cost-effective as possible. So, don’t be afraid to shop around to find the quality supplies you want for the least money, explore all your drop shipping options, find a valuable niche, always charge people a good rate for your time, be fair to yourself and consider a yearly rate rise.
Once you’re happy with your income, you have a few options:
1. Spent it and have a great time (just save some for the tax man)
2. Pop your earnings in a general ISA where you can save up to £20k per year tax-free
3. Place your earnings in long-term investment via a Stocks & Shares ISA where it won’t be impacted by capital gains tax
4. Reinvest it into your side hustles
Top Tip: Remember to save some money to pay for your tax when you file and keep track of any purchases you can write off.
The cost of living is rising, and wages are stagnating, so don’t be afraid to dip your toe in the side hustle market. If you’re careful and plan the right way, you can make a little which could add up to a lot.