Making money from your hobby is possible, but it’s not as simple as having someone pay you for doing what you love.
No matter what anyone tells you, people will not pay you to do something just because you enjoy doing it. Sorry, but that’s just the truth.
You may be thinking about all of the YouTubers, bloggers, etc. making money doing what they love?
The thing is, yes, they love what they do. However, these people are not getting paid simply because they love it. They make money because they are providing value to their audience.
When most people think about making money with their hobbies, they see themselves getting paid to knit or write articles about celebrity gossip. The mistake you’re making here is that you’re focusing on what you want to do, rather than how you can provide value to others.
In order to monetize your hobby, it’s important that you change your way of thinking. Once you’ve made the decision to provide value, rather than be self-focused, you can then start making money doing what you love.
In this article, I’ll discuss how to get people to pay you for your hobby.
The Truth on Making Money from Your Hobby
More Articles You May Like:
- 20 Ways to Make Extra Money without Getting a Real Job
- How to Make Your First $100 Blogging
- 5 Reasons Why You Should Open Your Online Store with Shopify
1. Offer People a Product or Service
One of the most common ways to make money with your hobby is by selling a product or offer a service. For example, people will pay you to write blog posts that help them attract client’s website and grow their business.
While you can’t make much money writing simply because you enjoy it, you can make money by offering a service for a skill that you enjoy.
Recommended Article: Understanding How Bloggers Are Able to Make Money
In the same way, making money by photographing wildlife can be difficult; however, freelance wedding photography can be a very lucrative business.
If you have a tangible product like crochet or handmade jewelry; then consider opening a shop on Etsy.
Etsy is a craft goods marketplace. People enjoy shopping from Etsy because there is a higher level of buyer trust as other customers review the sellers.
Sellers are held to certain standards on Etsy. Not only that, you’ll have built-in traffic, as the site has millions of visitors daily looking for products similar to what you sell.
Another way to sell your products is to seek out local events where you can set up a booth and sell on the spot is a good money maker.
Schools, churches, farmers markets, and other organizations often host events where vendors are welcome. Usually there is a small investment involved; however, most make that back during the event.
Not only will there be many options for vendor shows in your region, but selling in person eliminates the need to ship your goods, like with an Etsy store. Be sure to do your research, and verify that the event or show has a history of good attendance.
The more people you can get in front of the better, but keep in mind with higher traffic, the fee to be a vendor will likely increase. You can find local events by searching your Events tab on Facebook and your newspaper.
Once you’ve started to network with other vendors, they’ll begin to share upcoming events with you.
Starting a blog is a great way to promote your products and services. Click here to learn how to start your own blog.
2. Find a Way to Entertain People
Getting paid to entertain people is what a lot of people think of when they want to make money with their hobby. But the reality is, to make money this way, you still have to provide value.
All of those six-figure makeup gurus on YouTube aren’t making money because they’re putting on makeup. Aside from earning ad revenue, they’re making the majority of their money because they are selling makeup, whether it be their own makeup line, or by partnering with makeup brands.
There are very few people who are getting paid purely to entertain others. Generally speaking, people are usually promoting a product or service in order to earn money by entertaining people.
GROW YOUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: If you want to grow your YouTube channel fast, I highly recommend checking out TubeBuddy. TubeBuddy is a free browser extension and app that helps you gain more subscribers, rank higher in search results, and more!
3. Teach Others in a Course
If your talents are a bit more complex or you’d prefer to sell it at a higher value, then a creating a course may be the best option.
Courses are more in-depth than an ebook and command a greater retail value, as they take more work for the creator to assemble.
We live in an era where people are taking their self-care seriously. In our busy lives, there is a wave of adults that are seeking to accomplish the skills and talents they’ve always wanted, without having to take too much time away from their family.
Recommended Resource: Get 2 FREE audiobooks from Audible (you get to keep them forever) when you sign up for a 30-day trial.
There are courses on everything from meal planning to entrepreneurial subjects that would rival what is learned in college.
If you have a particular talent, but don’t have the time to offer private lessons, then creating a course is a good alternative. Sure, it will take some time upfront to get it done, but you’ll have passive income forever.
Sites like Teachable and Skillshare are industry leaders in creating and housing courses.
I have a successful online business doing what I love, so obviously, I believe that you can make money doing something you enjoy.
However, you have to find a way to convert your passion into something that provides value for others. Once that happens, I have no doubt that you will succeed.