A Beginner’s Guide to Marketing Your Side Hustle

Blog | August 9th, 2021

Turning your side hustle into a full-time career can be exciting. It can also be difficult. As a beginner, it can be confusing trying to start a business based on your side hustle. Where do you start? How do you get your business off the ground and market it?

In this beginner’s guide to marketing your side hustle, we’ll help you get your business off the ground. We’ll also provide some effective business models that work great as side hustle businesses. Finally, we’ll go over the best ways to market your side hustle business.

Getting Your Business Off the Ground

Starting a side hustle business won’t be easy. You need more than a great business idea to be successful. Different products require different business models. How do you plan to grow? Do you have achievable goals? Do you have time to effectively grow a side hustle business? These are questions that you need to answer before getting your side hustle business off the ground.

Which Side Hustle Business Model Is Right for You?

Not sure which side hustle business model is right for you? Your choice depends on the products or services you plan to provide. Whether you plan to sell handmade products or design an online educational course, you can find a business model that will match your skillset and goals. Countless ideas can work. Here are some of our favorites.

Sell handmade or homemade products online.
Create an online course, book, or podcast based on your expertise.
Sell online digital services. (copywriting, web design, graphic design)
Provide local services. (musicians, DJs, photography, videography, tutoring)
Build an e-commerce shop.

Setting Goals For Your Side Hustle

While a business plan isn’t necessary, you should still have a roadmap for your business. Setting goals will keep you on track. Meeting short and long-term goals will also keep you motivated. You’ll be excited about your 1st sale and 500th sale.

Maintain Focus

Many entrepreneurs focus on the wrong steps when setting up their businesses. Don’t waste time and money focusing on your logo, website, or company name at first. Instead, spend it on developing your product or service.

Focus on your product and what benefit it provides to clients and customers. Great products and services will create dedicated customers.

Goals For Your Side Hustle

Establish realistic goals based on how much time you’ll be able to dedicate to your side hustle. Don’t get upset if you miss goals due to work or your personal life. If you are missing goals, spend time analyzing your plan and make adjustments.

Marketing Your Side Hustle Business

There are more ways than ever to market your business. We encourage you to research your side hustle and see how other competitors advertise. Testing several different marketing ideas can help you find the right one that will work for your business.

Local Marketing And Word Of Mouth Marketing

Friends, family, and locals are always a great place to find interested customers for your side hustle business. Building your brand locally will grow your business quickly.

Utilizing word-of-mouth marketing is free and effective. Word of mouth marketing is also a great gauge to see if customers are interested in your products or services. It can help you quickly gain dedicated customers that will happily promote your business to their friends and family.

Social media can also be used effectively to promote your local business and services.

Digital Marketing Options

Online marketing has never been cheaper, easier, and more effective. Social media sites offer excellent advertising options for any sized business. They make it easy to create ads and target customers that are already interested in similar products and services.

Every social media platform is different, and you should plan to utilize the one that matches your potential audience. While Facebook might be ideal for selling t-shirts, you may want to advertise on Linkedin if you are selling a B2B online course. Learning how to use social media and digital marketing effectively can quickly transform your side hustle into a full-time business.

If you are providing an online service, there are several options available to promote your business. Freelancing sites like Fivver and Upwork will help you get your services out in front of potential clients.

Creating websites, digital advertisements, and posts is easier than ever. With a little practice, anyone can create stunning advertisements using free apps on their smartphone. There are countless tutorials online that will make marketing your side hustle easy.

Final Thoughts On Marketing Your Side Hustle

Launching a side hustle won’t be easy. But, it can be fulfilling and rewarding. Loving your work can transform your life, and we hope you can find a side hustle that rewards your skills and expertise.

If you have a side hustle you are trying to market, we encourage you to research your industry and research how to get your business off the ground. Don’t worry about being a beginner. Find the right business model for your side hustle and get started building your empire today.