Affiliate marketing is usually thought of as a monetization channel for bloggers, but I think it’s also an interesting way for freelancers to make extra money outside of your current service offer.
The trick is to find the best affiliate programs for your audience or clients.
John Wilker of TheSimplestBiz.com has an interesting side hustle that takes up just a few hours a day and earns him anywhere up to several thousand dollars a day.
His business model? Buying industrial byproducts, the kind of stuff that’s used for shipping like pallets, cardboard boxes, crates, and so on, and selling them on for a profit.
A couple weekends ago I finally got around to creating a website for a new side hustle of mine; non-fiction book editing.
Now I should mention that this is something I’ve been quietly doing on the side for the last year or so without a website, landing clients via word of mouth and even a few through Fiverr.
When your service business is just starting out, you absolutely don’t need a website. In fact, it can be one big giant distraction from your primary goal of winning paying clients.
There’s a great deal written about how to find work in the first place, but once you have it, how do you manage everything effectively? You must avoid becoming a victim of your own success, keep your work-life balance healthy, delight your clients, and ensure you still have enough projects coming in.
If you want to work in harmony and avoid the anxiety monster, you need to look at every aspect of your work and ask “How can I make this better?”
You’re busy. I get it. There’s never enough time in the day to get it all done.
Yet you’re reading this … so that tells me you have a least some free time to dedicate to improving your productivity and starting or growing a side hustle.
This post will share 2 non-negotiable truths about time, my 3 favorite productivity hacks, and how to arrest the 9 biggest time thieves in your life to free up an extra 14 hours a week.
Thinking about starting a service-focused side hustle? Looking for clients to launch your side hustle?
For new side hustlers, finding clients is often the number one concern. You might be unsure how to go about marketing yourself and your services to attract potential clients. You might even have some fears about the sales process once you connect with potential clients.
But remember, you are only new once and everyone starts in the same place: with zero customers.
No — Side Hustle Nation hasn’t quite hit the $1 million mark yet.
That honor is reserved for true blogging elite, and in that spirit I’m excited to introduce Michelle Schroeder-Gardner, the founder of Making Sense of Cents.
On her blog, Michelle helps readers learn how to make extra money, save money, and reach their dream life. She currently earns $100,000 a month (wowzas!!) through her blog and affiliate marketing course, Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing.
So, you want to start a blog?
I don’t blame you! After all, it’s a great way to make money online and potentially begin to earn some of that elusive passive income.
And the good news is, it’s really not that hard (or expensive) to get started. In fact, you can be up and running in less than 15 minutes and for less than $3 a month.
Productized service businesses are all the rage these days. They involve packing up a service traditionally sold on a freelance or hourly basis, and instead selling it at a fixed price or on a monthly retainer contract.
Examples include Dan Norris’ WP Curve, which offers unlimited WordPress support for $79 a month, or Russ Perry’s Design Pickle, which offers unlimited graphic design tasks for $370 a month.
These services are popping up in a ton of different niches, and for good reason. They have low startup costs, low overhead, and a simple to understand proposition for customers.
Last fall, Chris Deardorff had a passion for startups and entrepreneurship, but wasn’t sure which direction to go. He had — and still has — a good job doing product marketing.
But as he studied the local startup scene, he noticed a common problem. Many startups struggled to gain traction for the products and services; a problem an experienced product marketer could solve.
In this episode, you’ll hear how Chris landed his first clients, the suite of services he decided to offer, and how he’s delivering the work in addition to his full-time job.