No matter how much we earn, we always need an extra boost of money. A side hustle can be a great way to improve your budget.
You need to be careful when choosing part-time business ideas because some of them require much time or too many resources. Keep in mind that success doesn’t happen overnight. You will need a lot of researching, preparation, and making connections to start earning.
If you are interested in starting your side hustle, check out recommendations for the best part-time business ideas.
How To Find A Part-Time Business Idea
The best part-time business ideas are ones that give you enough time flexibility so you can work from home, away from your working hours. And you can meet deadlines during the time you are available for part-time work.
The first thing you need to do when choosing a side hustle is to define what you want to do and what your skills are. Ideally, you should choose something related to your hobbies. For example, if you are a passionate gamer, you can apply for a game tester. That will make you motivated to invest your free time hours into something you can earn from.
There are numerous examples where part-time jobs became full-time. But don’t fall into that trap, just let it go at its own pace. Consider how scalable your part-time business idea is. If you are creating craftsmanship, maybe you cannot quit your main job because you cannot produce enough items without a serious investment of money. If you are not eligible for a loan, you will jeopardize both jobs. On the other hand, if you are working as an online tutor, you can switch to a full-time job when you have enough pupils willing to pay for your tutoring.
The Best Part-Time Business Ideas
1. Tutoring
We will start with the idea we mentioned in the previous paragraph. Tutoring is a side hustle popular worldwide. Many experts are willing to pass their knowledge to others. The main areas for tutoring are languages (mainly English), mathematics, physics, and art. You don’t necessarily need a teaching qualification, although some sort of training might help you get started. If you own a degree in a certain field, that will make you more desirable as a tutor.
After you choose what topics you want to tutor and define your target audience, it is time to prepare a detailed tutoring plan. Develop a structured lesson plan or outline for your tutoring sessions. This will help you stay organized and ensure you cover the necessary topics within the given time. Consider incorporating interactive and engaging teaching methods to enhance the learning experience.
Next, decide whether you’re going to tutor online or in person. If you go with the online option, you will have more flexibility, but those lessons are paid less. Also, if you are going online, you won’t need a physical classroom if you amass students. Private tutoring lessons can be paid from 20-50 pounds per hour, sometimes more, if you have proven experience.
The final part is the toughest one. You need to build your online presence and promote your services. Start with social networks and use their resources, such as Facebook groups and similar. Register on tutoring sites and create a detailed CV which will be your ID card for potential clients. Also, create a profile on freelance sites, such as Fiverr (you can use them for almost any of the part-time jobs you pick).
Don’t forget old-fashioned terms of advertising, such as flyers and newspaper ads. They can jumpstart your part-time business.
2. Selling online
The largest customer marketplace is the internet, so focusing on ecommerce can get booming results. Selling stuff online can be a very lucrative side hustle, especially if you pick the right platform and properly market yourself.
If you are a creative person and like to create stuff like homemade jewelry or unique pieces of clothes, you can register on Etsy and use their guidelines to start a successful business. Also, if you are into selling old things from your wardrobe, you can effectively do that via eBay or Depop ecommerce platforms.
You don’t need to have creative ideas to start selling online, you just need dedication and determination. You can use these platforms for reselling things – you buy items for a lower price and sell them for a higher and earn a price margin. The best way to do so is to buy items in bulk with a discount and then sell them to individuals for a profit. This business strategy requires lots of planning and testing so be careful and research the needs of your target audience.
Alternatively, if you don’t have the space to store stock or the cash to spend on inventory, consider dropshipping. You can find a supplier who’ll send items directly to the customer once they’ve placed an order with your store, which takes a lot of the legwork away from you. There is a wide range of products that can be dropshipped ranging from t-shirts to custom water bottles. You can create your custom design and ship products as your own with your custom labels.
When starting to sell online, you can choose between online marketplaces, such as Amazon, or create your own ecommerce website. Both options have their advantages and disadvantages. For example, online marketplaces have already established customer bases, and you don’t have many advertising expenses, but you must obey their policies and pay fees for your transactions. On the other hand, with your ecommerce store, you keep all the profit, and you can customize it according to your needs, but it requires a lot of hard work to set everything up properly. Also, you will need to spend a fair amount of time promoting your website.
Whatever sale channel you choose, you will need to organize your packaging and shipping. You can create an SEO-optimized website that will be used for the promotion of your side hustle. Also, don’t overlook the use of paid ads and email campaigns.
3. Virtual Assistant
Are you highly organized and punctual when it comes to handling a range of different tasks? Then one of the best part-time business ideas for you can be becoming a virtual assistant.
Many business owners across the world started employing virtual assistants that help them be organized and updated 24 hours a day. They prefer virtual assistants to be available outside of working hours in their time zone so they can follow tasks all day long.
This position is very lucrative for the right person, but it asks a lot of dedication and attention to detail. The good thing is that you can do it from anywhere, but the best part is that this position provides you with lots of valuable and transferable skills.
The usual tasks for virtual assistants include sending and answering emails, arranging meetings, data entry, creating and editing documents, data research, managing customer feedback, etc. Previous office admin experience is a good starting point for becoming a virtual assistant but is not crucial. If you are flexible, confident, good with tech devices, and possess communication skills, you will easily find a job in this niche.
4. Start a blog
Yes, we know, you will say this niche is saturated, and nothing new cannot come out of it. We think that is not true, and here is why. There’s still potential to make money from blogging and establish a second source of income – if you’re prepared to be in it for the long haul.
Blogging went through several phases, from the most prominent source of information to the place for the backstories. With the emergence of AI-generated blogs and social media posting, people are now coming back again to blogs written by real people.
They want to read a personal experience, not a machine-generated one. So, if you have exceptional writing skills (they can be sharpened with apps, such as Grammarly), you can start earning money by blogging.
Keep in mind that this is not a very lucrative way, but it won’t take you much time, and you can blog whenever you like. Plus, you can write about your interests and hobbies. If you target the right niche and write interesting, engaging, and unique content, you are on the right track.
When your blogging topics reach enough audience, start with monetization. You can do that by adding ads to your website, creating sponsored content, or by affiliate marketing. With affiliate marketing, you promote products or services and earn a commission for every sale or action generated through the unique affiliate links you put on your website. You can also publish guest posts written by other bloggers or advertising agencies.
5. Copywriter
If you’re a confident writer with some good experience but you don’t want to start your blog, then freelance copywriting is one of the best part-time business ideas.
There is a high demand for quality copywriters with a quick turnaround. Many companies need someone to write sales pitches, marketing emails, whitepapers, or social media posts. They usually employ someone as a freelancer because they don’t need a full-time employee.
It is very important to create an excellent portfolio where you will prove all the writing skills you possess. If you don’t have any published work then put together some samples of writing, and try to find websites and blogs that you can contribute to.
There are many freelance platforms where you can start offering your services, such as Upwork. You can even set up your website, which you can use as a portfolio example. In the beginning, you will need to reach directly to your clients, but with time and successfully finished projects, they will come to you.
6. Photographer
One more creative part-time job idea is to become a freelance photographer. If you’ve got a camera and an interest in photography, then there’s a lot of potential for a profitable side hustle. You can even start this job without previous experience.
First, you need to choose what type of photography interests you the most. Do you want to become a travel photographer or a wedding photographer? Check what is in the highest demand in your environment and try to target that audience.
Being a successful photographer requires much practice, so be ready to learn a lot. You also need to be skillful with photo editing software to create the best possible photos.
Just like any other job, you will need a superb portfolio. Create your website and include the best works there. Also, create business profiles on all prominent photo and freelance platforms, so your future clients can easily find you.
7. Virtual call center representative
This can be a rewarding part-time job that offers flexibility and the opportunity to work from the comfort of your own home. Lots of remote call-center companies are seeking staff to hire, so it will not be a problem to find the first gig. You can search for it on freelance platforms or via their official websites.
To start with this side hustle, you will need some equipment, such as a quality headset with a microphone. Call-center companies also require that you have a quiet workspace and a reliable internet connection.
People who want to be successful virtual call center representatives need to have great communication skills and a deep understanding of the company’s products, services, and policies. This will help you provide accurate and helpful information to customers.
All new trainees will be provided with mentors, so don’t be afraid if you don’t have previous experience. Be prepared to attend and actively participate in any training programs provided.
Conclusion
These are just several of the best part-time business ideas we picked for you. There are numerous more out there you can try, from starting a podcast to being a social media manager.
The key to finding the right side hustle for you is choosing something that matches your skills and interests so that you’re happy to invest your free time into developing and growing the business. If you are enjoying doing this part-time job, you will be both happy with money compensation and with the way you are using your free time.