Our world has changed over the past few weeks, and like
many people, you've probably found yourself in one or more of the following
situations:
You're stuck (but safe) at home.
Your income has gone down or gone.
You're increasingly concerned about your
financial future.
It's a tough place to be, this uncertainty, but if you
decide to regain control (and you should!), there may be
those new circumstances, like starting
or pushing a side hustle. Something that, depending on your goals, you can
use as extra short-term income or even as a stepping stone to a new career.
The prospect of starting a side hustle is exciting, but it can also be daunting. You might like the idea of starting your own
business, but maybe you just don't feel tech savvy enough to get started alone.
That's why we decided to prepare this guide.
In the following sections, we'll talk about some of the most
important things about starting a side hustle, explained in a way that anyone
can appreciate, regardless of your experience with technology.
Overcome mental block
First, it's important to address the mental block
negatively affects many people who would describe themselves as "uninformed." »
These days, new technologies are designed with accessibility
in mind. They are created specifically to make them easy to use, no matter your
skill level. If you go into your gig with the mindset that this is
something you can learn, and not something that's going to confuse you before
you even start, you'll have a much better chance of success.
Think positively. You can
do this.
Creating a website
No matter what kind of gig you're hosting, you'll need
a website. It may seem daunting, but it's easier than ever.
Many websites today are built with the help of
free website builders, like Wix, Weebly, and WordPress. Using these tools,
you can design and launch your own website almost immediately.
Most of these builders use something called a WYSIWYG editor, which means
"What you see is what you get." With it, you can drag and drop new items,
type new text, and see a live preview. And you don't need any coding knowledge to
use it. If web design isn't in your wheelhouse, you can use templates to build
your site, filling in the text details to get started.
One caveat is that most free website builders give you a
subdomain, such as yourname.wordpress.com, so you'll probably want to purchase and
connect your
own domain name. GoDaddy is a
popular tool and makes the process quite easy.
Manage social media
Social media connects us all, so your stampede
benefits from a presence. Getting started is free for most businesses
and it's as easy as creating a personal account. Some sites,
like Instagram, allow you to create a separate business account; others, like
Facebook, require you to log in from your personal account. (Don't worry, your
personal information won't be publicly visible on your business page.)
For example, on Facebook, when logged in on desktop, click the
arrow in the upper right corner to see an option to "Manage Pages". From
here, you can "Create a
Page" for your business or brand. After you click "Get Started", you will be
prompted to fill in various fields, such as your page name and category, and to add
a profile photo and cover photo. And just like that, your page is up, and you
can start publishing.
Try to post new content at least once or twice a week on
your social pages and reach out to new people and groups regularly. For
help figuring out what to post, check out “100 Killer Ideas for Your Social Media
Content. »
Creating a mailing list
Building a highly engaged email list can be a game changer for any side hustle. Mailing lists are essential for growing your audience, retaining customers and buying for the long term. However, many secondary fraudsters are so overwhelmed by the complicated technology involved, that they lose sight of the value a listing can bring to their business.
The good news is that setting up, launching and growing an email list has never been easier. In fact, most software available today has easy-to-use drag-and-drop functionality and is completely free to get started for new businesses with small listings.
Mailchimp is a great place to start your list building efforts. It's free to get started and easy to use. Whether you use Mailchimp or a similar email app, you'll again be able to design your own email templates with a WYSIWYG editor or by basing your work on templates. Here's a simple resource to get you started with Mailchimp in just a few hours:Mailchimp 101
Recording videos
Videos
as a form of content are gaining popularity, and are a great way to engage your
audience. Not only does the combination of visual and audio aid result in
absorbable information for the viewer, but it also provides more opportunities to
promote your brand across all platforms.
To
start your video recording, you don't need much more than your laptop or
smartphone, which have built-in cameras. Start by narrowing the lens of
your video, find yourself a well-lit space and hit record. It may be
easy!
Although
you don't have to worry about producing a professional, high-quality video
right off the bat, there are a few things you should keep in mind:
The audio is just as important as the video image. Without clear sound, video can lose more than half of its focus, so remember to speak clearly and avoid filming in places with excessive background noise.
Orient your video for the intended platform. Generally, videos are more visually appealing and perform better when recorded horizontally; however, if you're shooting something to share on social media, you can opt for vertical recording.
Overall,
uploading a video to your website or social media pages is as easy as posting a regular
blog post or status update, just like creating a website , videos
can be as simple or complex as you need it to be. Once you're confident in your
video abilities, try leveling up with a ring light or upgrading your sound
with a cordless phone-friendly microphone.
Use Google Analytics
One of the best things you can do for your website is to set
Google Analytics, a free service that helps you measure and analyze the
traffic coming from your website. Once you've set it up, you'll be able to see
how many people visit your site, where they came from, and what
they do when they get there (for example, do they a purchase?). Its
extremely useful for evaluating the effectiveness of your marketing
strategies.
Getting
started is easy, and the Analytics Help Center provides step-by-step
instructions:
Create an
Analytics Account.
Set up a property,
that represents your website.
Add the tracking
code to your website, so you can collect the data correctly.
Online Marketing
As you grow your side hustle, you may want to consider other
forms of online marketing. Many of these sounds seem technically complex, but anyone
can learn them using online tutorials.
Content marketing / blogging. One of the easiest things you can do is create regular blog posts for your site. With content marketing, you can make your site more robust, attract new customers, and hopefully achieve more conversions.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO). SEO relies on a combination of content marketing, changes to your site's wording and structure, and developing content with other publishers to increase your rankings in search engine results.
Paid advertising. There are many forms of paid advertising to make your website more visible, often leveraging platforms like Facebook and Google, but they require an upfront investment. Facebook is the easiest place to start, and here's a guide that will show you how to get up and running in hours:Facebook Ads
Troubleshooting
Inevitably, you're going to run into problems as you build your site, market your business, and make new sales. What's important is that you
know how to identify and solve these problems.
Here's a well-kept secret:All those "tech geniuses" you
know? They probably don't know much about technology. Instead, they are
probably exceptionally qualified at Google. Whenever they encounter an issue,
they type a description of it in the search bar (e.g., “WordPress blog post
not posting”) and watch the top results. In most conceivable scenarios,
you will find a short video or concise article that will walk you through the problem
and its solutions.
Get used to this research-read-apply flow, and you'll
be able to solve almost any technical problem, even without formal skills to back you up.
Plan your business
Even though your side hustle seems more like a hobby right now,
it's important to treat it like a business. Develop
a business plan, stick to your budget, and stay committed to
learning and adapting, and you have a good chance of succeeding – tech
savvy or not.
