A. Shibli
Due to COVID-19, more than 3.1 million Canadians have either lost their jobs or have been otherwise negatively impacted by the pandemic to date as of this summer.
The sudden change put a lot of people’s livelihoods in jeopardy bringing up an important point – in an economy such as this, relying on just one job may not be the best option for you. Many Canadians are waking up to this fact and looking at taking up a side job or launching an online business to create a secondary source of income to help buffer the uncertainty.
Over time, if you’re able to scale your side hustle to a level where it’s become a great secondary source of income, equal to or more than your current salary, then you can turn your side hustle into a full-fledged business. This is a pretty sweet prospect considering many side-hustles are born out of personal passions.
In this article, we’ve listed five trending side jobs along with some resources to help you get started with them. However, before we dive into what those are, let’s quickly review how to secure and set your side hustle up for success as soon as you identify what you’re going to do!
Make your side project a success
A lot of people try their hand at launching a side project, but plenty don’t gain momentum despite their best efforts. So, what makes one side project more successful than the next? It’s has a great deal to do with how brand and position your service online – and great online identities begin with a domain name.
While this may seem a bit far fetched when you’re just starting out, securing a good domain name can be extremely important. Having a good domain name will set you apart and establish you as credible in what you do. Moreover, your side hustle might only require a simple 1-page website, great domain name, and select social media accounts as the full branding and marketing stack it needs to tap into a customer base online.
A good way to set your side hustle apart and make it memorable is to register your business on a new, aligned domain extension such as .TECH (if you’re providing a technology service like IT consulting or coding), .STORE (if you’re bringing a product to market), or .ONLINE (if your service is digital in nature).
An interesting and relevant domain can give you a more defined identity in an otherwise cluttered and noisy online space. And now that we’ve tackled what you need to do when you’ve decided on your side hustle, here are some ideas about what it can be!
5 side projects to start today
Mentioned below are 5 side projects that you can start building on today.
1. Use your skills to teach online
With more people looking for side jobs online, the need for new skills has surged. However, a lot of students are not going to schools/universities, and individuals who have lost their jobs are looking for new learning opportunities. Therefore, they’re all looking for alternative learning opportunities.
If you’ve got a marketable skill, such as consulting, accounting, graphic designing, coding, or website building, now is the perfect opportunity to begin teaching what you’ve learned.
You can continuously earn a side income from your online course as people sign up for it. If you’re just beginning then it’s best to start on an existing learning platform, where your subject will be easily searchable and you’ll have access to a pre-existing user base.
Once you’ve established a reputation, you can start hosting courses on your website. You can advertise on LinkedIn and other social media platforms to find people who are interested in learning from you.
Here are a couple of great learning platforms to host your courses:
- Teachable is an all-in-one platform to create a course and begin selling it online. They also handle backend tasks such as web hosting and payment processing.
- Udemy focuses on video-based courses to sell to interested students. You can also supplement course material with other interactive features, such as quizzes and assignments.
2. Resell goods for side income
One of the easiest and most low-maintenance side jobs you can do is listing items online for resale. This business model is perfect if you have a lot of sellable apparel, electronics, or other goods around the house.
If you’re willing to invest more time into this endeavor, you can also head out to thrift stores, yard sales, and antique shops to build the inventory of your shop.
The fundamental strategy for making significant side income in the resale market is learning how to spot items of high resale value and market them efficiently.
You can build up your skills by picking up items in the store, listing them in the marketplace, and analyzing sales performance. You’ll find that certain brands have higher resale values and, over time, it will become much easier to spot them.
Here are a couple of top reselling marketplaces:
- Poshmark is the most popular social marketplace for selling clothing, shoes, and makeup. They also have a household section for listing home goods and décor items.
- Mercari also allows you to sell clothing but has more of a focus on electronics, collectibles, and appliances.
3. Find contracts for side jobs online
If you’re looking to establish yourself as a freelancer, there are online platforms that can connect you with clients. This method works great if you’re a writer, designer, voice artist looking for extra side gigs.
Here are a couple of great online platforms to find more side jobs in your field:
- Fiverr allows freelancers to pick up side projects, such as product photography and web designing.
- Upwork connects you to businesses looking for specialized talents in marketing, writing, and accounting, and other services.
4. Sell handmade goods
If you like to indulge in creative hobbies in your spare time, you can earn money by selling the stuff you make. Whether it’s candle making, sewing, pottery, or anything similar, you can generate a side income from it by putting it up for sale.
With these types of side jobs, it’s a good idea to build a following on social media, such as Facebook and Instagram. That way, you’ll be able to promote your products, target prospects on multiple platforms, and direct them to your store.
Here are the most popular online platforms for selling handmade goods:
- Etsy allows you to instantly create a storefront on their craft-selling platform, allowing you to showcase your products to interested buyers.
- Amazon Handmade has stricter criteria for selling but offers tools to grow your business if you become an artisan.
5. Launch an eCommerce website
The outbreak of COVID-19 saw unprecedented shutdowns of businesses, from sit-down restaurants to large-scale retailers. To make it through the shutdowns, many of these businesses encouraged consumers to do all of their shopping online.
Even as most brick-and-mortar storefronts resume operations, the undeniable shift in consumer behavior is likely to leave a lasting mark. It means startups will have an easier time becoming successful without the expense of a physical storefront.
Now is the perfect opportunity to take advantage of the surge of online shoppers. You can launch an eCommerce website and start a small online business. If you’re an entrepreneur at heart, this side job could be truly fulfilling for you.
Here are the top platforms to help you get started with your eCommerce website:
- WordPress + WooCommerce – WordPress paired with WooCommerce gives you the world’s most popular CMS with a highly flexible eCommerce platform you can grow with.
- Canadian giant Shopify gives you all the tools to design your online store and start selling goods online.
Wrapping Up: Get started with your side projects today
The shift in the market following COVID-19 presents a real opportunity for people to earn more side income than ever. Now that you know the top strategies and tools for amplifying your side jobs, start maximizing your potential today.
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This article was written for Webnames Blog by Alisha Shibli, a Content Marketing Specialist at Radix, the registry operator behind great new domain extensions like .store, .online, .tech, .press and others. You can follow Alisha on twitter @alishashibli.