How to Turn a Hobby Into a Side Hustle

Are you looking to make some extra money on the side? Creating a profitable side hustle is easier than ever, thanks to the internet. Whatever your hobbies, there’s a good chance you can share your passion with the world while supplementing your income. Here are the best hobbies to turn into gigs and how to maximize the benefits online.

>> Click here to watch: How to have the right mindset to overcome challenges that hold you back

Select the Right Hobby

The biggest step in creating a side hustle is deciding which hobby to monetize. While it’s a good idea to have a diverse range of pastimes and interests, choose wisely — not everything has the potential to become profitable.

Think about which of your hobbies has the best potential customer base. You don’t want to pick something so niche you won’t be able to find buyers. However, you also want to avoid oversaturated markets where you’ll get lost in the online crowd. Find a sweet spot that can make you a relatively big fish in a sizable pond.

Compare the cost of your hobby with its potential profit margins and ensure a manageable balance. You also want to make sure your side hustle is something you can remain passionate about. The last thing you want is to experience burnout that causes you to lose your income and hobby.

Popular Hobbies to Turn Into Side Hustles

There are endless possibilities for turning a profit with your passion. However, some interests have more potential than others. Here’s a sampling of the most popular hobbies to hustle on the side, especially online.

Vlogging

Thanks to today’s technology, making videos is relatively easy for anyone with a smartphone. Many apps are becoming more video-centric than ever, with platforms like TikTok, YouTube and Instagram all catering to video content. With ads and sponsors, you can make a nice bundle of cash on the side.

Plus, vlogging has limitless potential — you can make videos about anything and everything. Do you want to show off your stamp collection or share your love of trains with fellow enthusiasts? Once you establish a loyal following, you can create even more free and paid content to connect with fans and turn a profit.

Check out my two YouTube Channels:

My side hustle channel is all about sharing behind the scenes of my business, tutorials, and making money online.
My personal finance channel is all about saving money, paying off debt, and getting better with money.

Check out these videos:

Printables and Digital Downloads

Selling digital downloads and prints is a great way to make money while saving some time. If you’re an artist, for example, you can scan a painting or drawing and sell it as a print or digital download, rather than the old fashioned way of selling the physical piece of art.

This strategy also works for written work. You could write a short ebook on an area of expertise and sell it as a digital download, rather than having it printed. You can write a how-to guide about your favorite hobby, whether it be gardening, crafting or knitting. Make sure your ideas or tutorials are original, as people won’t pay for something they could easily find for free.

Watch: 30+ BEST DIGITAL DOWNLOADS ON ETSY | Digital Products to Sell Online | Digital Product Ideas

Freelancing and Blogging

If you love writing, freelancing and blogging are your best options. Write about something you know a lot about so you can use your personal experience.

If you’re a traveler, document your unique experiences on a blog. If you love baking, submit your best recipes to popular food magazines. Whether you start your own site or publish with existing publications, you can make some good money by simply writing about what you love.

These articles How to Start a Blog and How To Make Money Blogging – Monetize Your Blog will walk you through the whole process!

Resources you will need to start your blog:

• Web Hosting Site

• Purchase a domain

• Legal Bundle – contains all 3 legal pages you need for your blog: Terms & Conditions, Disclaimer and Privacy Policy

• Email marketing service

• AI with AppSumo

• How to Monetize Your Blog

Photography

Thanks to smartphones, almost everyone has a camera in their pocket at all times. However, there’s still a difference between someone who knows what they’re doing and someone who doesn’t. You can earn some money if you have a special eye for photography.

You can profit off your photos by selling them as stock photos. Alternatively, you can use sites like Redbubble, where customers can buy products with photos (or graphic designs) printed on them.

Thrifting and Reselling Online

Do you love the thrill of finding hidden treasures in the local thrift store or antique shop? Chase the high of a good secondhand purchase while putting cash in your pocket when you resell online. There’s a huge market for online shopping.

If you have a good eye for vintage fashion, try your hand at thrifting clothes. Books, records and furniture are other lucrative options. Consigning antiques allows you to discover beautiful pieces with high earning potential. Whatever your passion, you’re sure to find an eager audience online.

Do Proper Market Research

With your hobby-turned-side hustle in mind, now is the time to dive into market research. You should familiarize yourself with every aspect of your niche, from your target audience and potential competitors to what day-to-day operations will look like.

Familiarize yourself with the ins and outs of basic business practices. If you teach virtual classes or offer coaching online, how much will you charge per session? You should know basic pricing strategies for your industry. Are you going to advertise on social media or on local billboards? Creating a budget from the start will give a clear picture of where your business is going.

Connect with potential buyers or clients online. You can use everything from organized surveys to more casual social media polls and interactions to collect feedback. When your audience tells you what interests them, you can focus on delivering the content or products that best fit their needs.

Create a Unique Brand

Setting yourself apart is one of the biggest challenges of turning a hobby into a side hustle. Standing out online can be challenging enough — when you’re trying to convince people you have something worth buying, it can be even harder. Creating your unique brand will cut through the noise and ensure customers remember your name.

You can start with the basics, like coming up with a strong business name and recognizable logo that represents your passion. While you can hire a professional graphic designer, many online platforms allow you to create your own.

Next, determine your unique selling points. What makes your brand special? Maybe you’ve got decades of photography experience or have formal culinary training for your catering side hustle. Take advantage of your skills and wisdom — customers and clients want to support someone they can trust.

Set Clear Goals for Your Side Hustle

What do you want to achieve with your side hustle? Some people may be interested in turning it into their full-time career, while others might simply want to earn extra income. Having a clear idea of where you want to go will help you stay focused and find success, however you define it for yourself.

Setting goals will also help keep your side hustle manageable. How much time do you want to spend on your new business a week? Do you have unrealistic expectations for how fast you’ll grow? Creating clear and grounded objectives ensures you don’t overdo it and run out of steam before your enterprise has the chance to find its legs.

It’s much easier to track your progress when aiming for specific milestones. Steps like creating a vision board allow you to picture success clearly. You’ll be able to look back at your journey and feel a sense of accomplishment, whether you’ve successfully turned your hobby into a full-time job or happy to have a regular stream of supplemental income every month.

Turning a Hobby Into a Side Hustle Online

Whether you’re an artist at heart who makes crafts to unwind after your office job or a fitness fanatic eager to share your coaching with up-and-coming athletes, the internet is full of opportunities to share your passion. Turning a hobby into a side hustle is easier than you think. Do your research, set clear goals and stay organized to fulfill your dream.

Author bio: Cora Gold is a family finance writer and editor of women’s lifestyle magazine, Revivalist. She has been featured in publications including CafeMom and Mediabistro. Connect with Cora on LinkedIn, Twitter and Pinterest.

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