In the wake of the global recession, the American employment market has undergone a significant transition. This is part of an international trend, as individuals turn toward self-employment, contracting, and entrepreneurship as ways of earning a living. In fact, according to Quartz, it is estimated that more than 40% of the U.S. workforce will be working independently by the year 2020, equating to more than 60 million citizens. This entrepreneurial spirit was evident throughout the recession, as the Small Business Association (SBA) reports that approximately 27.5 million independent ventures were operating in America during 2009.
These trends have particular relevance to U.S. citizens in higher education, especially after it was reported by Reuters that American banks and lenders wrote off more than $3 billion of student debt during the first financial quarter of 2013. With many graduates struggling with joblessness and underemployment, current students can benefit considerably by establishing a side business as they pursue their educational goals. By accruing additional income and developing a range of entrepreneurial skills, students can reduce their debt liability and improve their earning potential for the future.
What Student Entrepreneurs Should Consider
Before you look to create a side business or income stream as a student, there are several key factors to consider:
Your business idea must be simple and require minimal start-ups costs, as otherwise you will simply incur additional debt. Given the burden of student loan debt, you should avoid any concept that demands additional lending, and focus solely on those that can be funded with your existing capital.
To help achieve this, try to target a concept that taps into your existing skills and resources. For example, if you’re a journalism major, put together an underground school paper and sell ad slots to local businesses to finance the paper and earn a profit.
2. The Importance of your Studies
As a student, educational attainment must remain your priority. With this in mind, your business idea should be relatively easy to manage and not consume a significant amount of your time. This can be measured in accordance with the nature of your degree, paying particular attention to its subject matter, academic level, and the amount of time that you need invest in your studies.
For example, if you have a heavy course load, launching a side business might not be a good idea at all. Or you may choose to start a seasonal business, such as pool cleaning, landscaping, or snow shoveling to do during school breaks.
3. The Quality of the Product or Service
Even if you are only operating a part-time business venture, paying customers demand value for their hard-earned money. Therefore, you must be able to deliver a quality product or service if your idea is to be sustainable. For example, should you choose to provide a tutoring service, it is crucial that you only offer lessons in subject areas in which you have a broad knowledge base. Otherwise, your service will fall short of customer expectations, and instead of giving referrals, your customers may actively discourage others from using your service.
4. The Importance of Market Research
Before you commit to any side business idea, you should conduct thorough market research. Be sure to evaluate each concept individually, in terms of both your chosen market and how you intend to reach target consumers.
Another key consideration is the level of competition relating to a specific idea, as markets that are well populated are far more difficult to succeed in. Depending on your schedule and the amount of money you intend to earn, you may be better off choosing less popular markets that are easier to break into. For instance, while the option of DJing is particularly competitive among students and requires significant investment in equipment, you may be able to operate as a part-time cleaner in a less competitive space and with a smaller financial commitment.
Best Side Business Ideas for College Students
With these points in mind, what side business ideas are the most suitable for students? Consider the following options:
1. Tutoring and Mentoring
Your innate skills and qualities are all marketable, which means that they can be used to develop a viable stream of income. By focusing on your knowledge base and specific areas of academic strength, you can offer a mentoring or tutoring service to students who may be struggling to achieve their potential. While there are numerous student-facilitated initiatives that allow you to mentor disadvantaged or overseas pupils, you can look to tutor on an independent basis and reach out to a broader group of customers.
Start by offering your service to friends and associates on campus, after which time your reputation will grow and allow you to benefit from referrals. Once you are established and earning income, you can even look to advertise through both online and offline methods, including everything from producing promotional flyers for campus notice boards to engaging with social media marketing platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.
2. Freelance as a Writer and Blogger
In the burgeoning freelance market, the demand for creative skills is continuing to soar. Freelancing as a writer or blogger can therefore be particularly lucrative, especially if you focus on commercial copywriting for large organizations.
While the market is extremely competitive and likely to become even more so in the years ahead, you can still succeed by placing an emphasis on the quality of your content. Businesses are increasingly aware that they need relevant, high-quality content to market themselves successfully online, so focus on writing in your area of expertise and using resources such as Elance and oDesk to promote your service. These sites, along with Freelancer.com, are well suited to newcomers, as they boast a wide range of tasks that suit all levels of experience.
Simply create a basic resume that showcases the quality of your writing and your academic achievements, and apply for jobs that suit this skill set. It may also be worth using these sites to research the rates of competing service providers, as this will enable you to charge a fair price without losing ground in the market.
3. Sell Your Essays and Revision Notes Through Online Communities
If your goal is to maximize existing resources as a way of making money, then you should look to advertise and sell your academic work for research purposes. Sites such as Gradesaver.com publish this content, and allow its members to use it as a reference point, while retaining the copyright so that individuals cannot claim the work as their own. Completed essays and notes made during the revision process have practical value, especially if they are of high quality and reflect a genuine appreciation of the subject matter. These documents can therefore be sold to fellow students through various online platforms, and create a stream of passive income without any additional effort.
The aforementioned Gradesaver.com pays up to $25 for literary essays, while Academon.com provides an online bidding platform where your revision and reference material can be sold.
4. Establish a Cleaning Service
Academic pursuits can be mentally draining, and you may decide to pursue a money-making concept that revolves around delivering a simple, hands-on service. If you are willing to embrace manual labor, establishing a campus-based cleaning service offers the ideal opportunity to earn income and refresh your mind. Given that student dormitories have a reputation for being unkempt, this idea also ensures a high and consistent level of demand. The biggest advantage of this concept is that it is scalable, which means that you can soon reach out to individuals outside of your social circle.
While you can start modestly and offer the service to friends and family, if you are successful you can then choose to invest some of your funds into creating promotional material, such as flyers and business cards. If you wish to win additional work during summer break, you can even expand into landscaping and pool cleaning while operating under the same business name.
5. Embrace the American Thrift Culture
The thrift store industry in the U.S. has rebounded significantly since the onset of the global recession in 2008, as consumers have looked to reduce expenditure and maximize their income. According to the National Association of Resale Professionals, the market leader Goodwill Industries generated retail sales of $2.69 billion from just 2,500 stores during 2011, as citizens flocked to sell their unwanted clothes, appliances, and household clutter. This represents an excellent opportunity for students, who can sell their possessions through both online resources such as eBay, Amazon, Craigslist, and local garage sales.
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