It is becoming increasingly popular to stay at home and earn an extra income. Side hustles are completely changing how people are earning an extra income, and 49% of Americans under 35 have a side hustle. Nowadays, everyone is looking for the next profitable side hustle. The best way to identify a new side hustle idea is to find a problem and create a solution. So guess what! Today, I’ll be talking about a few ways that you can make money from side hustles. 

1. YouTube Thumbnail Creator

There are 2 billion users worldwide in the YouTube community. It is one of the largest social networks that has a large amount of active monthly users. The first image to grasp any viewers' attention is the YouTube thumbnail and title. People say not to judge a book by its cover, but YouTube thumbnails engage potential viewers by showing what videos will entail. With COVID-19, there has been an influx of new YouTubers, and as a result, there are more opportunities to be hired as thumbnail creator. You should be able to charge $10-50 for each thumbnail, depending on the designs.

Even if you are not highly trained as a thumbnail creator, it is easy to practice on applications such as Photoshop and Canva. There are also multiple courses online that can help perfect and refine these skills. The best opportunity for success is to reach out to creators with a smaller following, as bigger creators will likely have a thumbnail creator. Ask them if they need help with creating their thumbnails – any channel that is making money would probably love to outsource this job, since it does take quite a bit of time and headache. 

2. Resume Writer 

Resumes are one of the largest identifiers in the job process, and companies look at resumes to identify potential employees’ skills and qualities. People are constantly adjusting and improving their resumes so that they can stand out above their competitors. Resume writers would consult with clients and to create an effective resume that gives them the best shot at getting hired. You need to be great at identifying important traits, wording things to make them sound their best, and creating a good layout.

Initially, it may be difficult to find clients, but social media is a great tool to find prospective clients. TikTok and Instagram are great platforms to give tips and offer free resume reviews; from there, users are more likely to reach out and request services. This is the ultimate way to build an audience and bring in organic traffic to your new service. As users see more and more of your content, the advice you give will cater to a specific audience and bring in more people. In this role, you can charge from $100-$200 per resume, and likely even more once you have the testimonials and experience to back it up. 

3. Niche TikTok/IG Account – Sell Products, Sell Ad Space 

The opportunities are limitless on social media platforms. There are hundreds of ways to make profits off of it nowadays. Currently, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram have the largest return on investment for social media channels.

 Niche channels target certain interests and are catered to a specific audience. It provides the ability to build up a brand and create unique, individualistic products designed for your specific audience. If you don’t want to create your own brand, ad space and brand deals are a great source of revenue to promote products or companies. Niche channels can provide opportunities to bring in a significant amount of revenue without having to leave your own house. 

4. Flipping Furniture

 With reality television, people have become more interested in the idea of flipping houses. However, viewers do not realize that there is also profit in flipping furniture. There are three main methods of flipping furniture: buy it undervalued, buy a set and split it, or refurbish it. The best places to buy undervalued furniture are OfferUp, Facebook Marketplace, or Craigslist. Sellers typically do not know their furniture's worth, such as their frames, couches, and dining tables. For example: Frames are very expensive and can average from $16 per foot to $200 per foot, depending on the quality and product used to make the frames. If you can buy old art that is already framed, many times you can buy it for quite cheap. Scrap the art or sell it separately, and keep the frame. Give it a light cleaning, and it should be good to sell for a big profit!

 Unfortunately, with this side hustle, it requires human interaction and is not scalable. Flipping furniture would not necessarily be a scalable business, but would bring in some revenue. It’s also a great way to learn the skills in buying and reselling, which you can apply in e-commerce later on.

5. Write on Medium

 Medium is a platform where writers can post content and earn money. There has been a significant rise in the number of users, and the site has about 1.4 million new posts a month. Medium is a great way to blog because users can write articles on Medium’s platform without hosting their own sites.

 To make money, you’ll have to join the Medium Partner Program. This is a completely free program that anyone can join. Medium has a team that reviews articles, and if they like the article you’ve written, they are more likely to promote your article. Although the return on investment isn’t as high, I would definitely recommend this side hustle if you love writing. This is one of the only platforms where you will get paid directly from the number of readers you get.

6. Sell Study Notes

 I’m sure we’ve all been there, studying last minute for a test and not having enough notes to help you understand the material for the test. During these moments, a cheat sheet or study notes would have been extremely helpful in better understanding the information. This industry is definitely untapped, and there is a large market for people to sell their study notes.

 Students are buying highly detailed and well-designed study notes that provide the information they need to learn. There are two different ways that you can sell these notes, either by a pdf version or having them handwritten. A pdf is more convenient and can be easily accessed by both the seller and customer. A great way to promote your study notes is by making content that offers value through social media platforms. From there, you can sell your products on either Etsy or Shopify. I have a friend who does this, and she is killing it!!! It is easy to make an automated process where buyers will immediately get their study notes after purchasing your products.

7. Trip Itinerary Planner

 Trips are probably one of the most stressful and relaxing activities at the same time. The process of determining a location and figuring out the itinerary can become extremely overwhelming. This is where you come in; you would start with a consultation call with your client to assess their plans.

 Sites such as Tripadvisor and Yelp can pinpoint great local spots, attractions, restaurants, and good deals. These sources can help put together an itinerary that will be the most optimal usage of your clients’ time. Google Docs is a great way to share the itinerary with clients and provides flexibility to adjust itineraries if an activity is canceled or something goes wrong.

 I would recommend initially charging by the day, $50-100 per day, for each itinerary that your clients would request for you to make. Solidified trip itinerary planners charge either an hourly rate of $125 or $35 for each travel day and $100 for each adult. With lower costs, people are more likely to give you a try before going to other companies. You can get your foot into this industry by creating a niche channel catered for traveling in those specific cities. As you build your audience with your niche channel, you’ll be able to gain a following of people who are interested in visiting that location and using your services. 

8. Sell A Course on Kajabi – Unlimited

 Kajabi has unlimited potential. The site provides the ability to market and sell online courses or coaching programs. Although this side hustle could have the most work without potential, there are ways to be smart about it. Pre-sales are a great way to promote your courses and predict the demand for your courses. It is important to make a course start date so that users know what to expect. After the start, release a module each week and build the course as you continue. From there, you can receive direct feedback and see what your viewers are looking for and topics they want to learn.

Once you’ve built a successful course, sales will continue to come in, and because this is a digital product, you do not have to worry about product costs. You can also scale ads for your courses, and all you really need is a good webinar and sales funnel. You have the potential to make $100-1,000 per sale. 

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9. Fiverr Gigs

 Fiverr is an online platform to sell their services such as voice-overs, video editors, or designers. All you have to do is create the gig, and if no one responds, there is no loss. If someone hires you for a job, you can work on the project on your own time and turn it from a side hustle to a full-time job. I would fully recommend at least trying Fiverr because you never know what skills, passions, or talents you have. This could help understand and provide the opportunity to explore different fields at no cost!  

 Try out Fiverr 

10. YouTube Channel

 YouTube videos can make from $50-10,000, if not more. This is one of the best long-term businesses, but it can be difficult to make money initially.

 YouTube is all about reaching, influencing, and giving value. If you can do these things, then you can reach hundreds of thousands of people. This also becomes a platform for you to build your business and gain income from ads and brand deals. YouTube has so many opportunities and to create future businesses with free marketing.

 Personally, it took me a few years to gain any revenue from my channel. I was able to make 6-figures from my channel and am living proof of the profitability of YouTube. I would highly recommend it to anyone.

There you have it – 10 great side hustles to start making money online in 2020 and 2021!