Are there really hobbies that make money?
Yep.
We’re not talking about side hustles or part-time jobs here.
Those are things you may do for money but probably wouldn’t do for free. I mean, driving Uber at weekends for money makes sense – chauffeuring people around for fun doesn’t…
A hobby is fun and it can make you money. Plus, it might just be the start of a new career doing something you love.
In this article, you’ll learn about 11 everyday hobbies that make money, and how to get started today.
And stick around to learn the three-step formula to make money from any hobby.
1: Freelance Writing
Are you a wordsmith at heart? Do you love to share, teach, and explore passions, ideas, and concepts through the written word?
If so, why not earn money as a writer?
Aside from being a hobby that makes money, writing can also help to further your current career – or even lead to a whole new one.
Professional blogger and columnist
Holly Johnson earned a massive $225,000 in one year from freelance writing alone. “I barely got dressed, choosing to spend most work days in my pajamas on my couch,” she says.
Here’s the kicker:
You don’t have to be a New York Times journalist or bestselling author to make money as a writer. You also don’t need to be a certified expert.
What do you need?
You should be able to quickly learn about topics, ideas, and concepts, and then communicate them clearly. As Meir Ezra said, “
Good writing is clear thinking made visible.”
Add a dollop of organization and time-management skills, and you’re all set!
How can you earn money from your writing?
One of the easiest ways to start is to freelance for businesses writing content for their blog.
This helps them to build a relationship with their target audience and bring in new customers by boosting their exposure in search engines.
Just make sure to learn a bit about content marketing and SEO best practices.
You could reach out to businesses directly, or use a freelancing marketplace like Upwork, Fiverr, People Per Hour, or Freelancer.
Choose a niche – the more specific, the better.
This helps you to cut through the noise and position yourself as the perfect solution for your target customers.
2: Blogging
What if you love writing, but don’t want to write for other blogs?
Start your own!
Matt Kepnes starting sharing travel tips on his blog
Nomadic Matt. Today, his blog has grown into a successful business, providing travel guides, books, and courses.
Here’s the catch: You don’t make money from writing per se. Instead, you can earn money from a variety of different ways, such as:
- Placing Google advertisements on your blog.
- Selling products and services to your audiences, such as courses, coaching sessions, ebooks, or physical products.
- Linking to other businesses and receiving a commission when one of your readers makes a purchase (this is called affiliate marketing).
- Charging businesses to promote their products and services in your blog posts (this is called influencer marketing).
Now, you might have noticed something: All of these money-making activities require you to have an engaged audience that regularly visits your blog.
For this reason, starting a blog to make money isn’t for the faint of heart. It can take months, or even years of hard work to produce a sizeable income.
So should you bother?
Well, many of the most lucrative blogs were built on passion, not the simple desire to make more money. So if it doesn’t make money, you still had fun, right?
Once again, the key is to choose a niche.
To stand out, make sure you know who your target audience is and what benefit you’re providing in your posts.
3: Stock Photography and Videography
Do you love taking photos or video footage?
If you’re always capturing great images or video, consider uploading your catalog to a stock website like Shutterstock, Getty Images, or Fotolia.
Cathy Yeulet runs a successful stock photography and videography business called Monkey Business. She said, “Some people earn a really nice amount of money and flip from being part time to full time.”
Yeulet reports that on Shutterstock, a basic subscription will pay you about 50¢ per image sold. So the key is volume.
This is why Yeulet’s business currently has almost 72,000 images on Shutterstock!
The picture below was taken in her back garden and is one of her top sellers, making more than $13,000 – and it continues to make money.
Stock Image of Family
“It’s like [vinyl] sales – they sell over and over again,” she said. “A good image might make $8,000 over time if it does really well, but then you may get some that sell less. It all evens out.”
What’s more, this is a great way to earn passive income – which is money earned on a regular basis that needs little to no effort to maintain.
Shutterstock has paid out more than $500 million to creators since 2003.
“It’s the gift that keeps giving if you’ve got the right products and the right subjects. You make your initial investment and it keeps coming back,” Yeulet said.
Click the links to get started on Shutterstock, Getty Images, or Fotolia.
4: Photo Blogging
If you love taking photos in a particular niche or you don’t like the idea of taking thousands of photos for a stock photo website, consider photo blogging.
This Instagrammer, the Quin, shares his travel photos on his account
Ever Changing Horizon. As a full-time photographer, Quin earns money selling prints on his website and promoting businesses to his audience through his work.
What’s more, in terms of how much brands are willing to pay for a sponsored post, professional photography accounts are
second-most lucrative on Instagram.
Plus, you don’t need to have millions of followers.
Later researched how much influencers earn, and received rates from a health and nutrition blogger. One blogger told them that she had 30K followers and regularly charges $325 per sponsored Instagram post and $350 for a sponsored giveaway post.
Once again, the key is to pick a niche and target audience. So what are you into? Travel, beauty, sports, history… the options are endless!
5: Event Photography or Videography
If you’re a technophobe or would just prefer to earn money offline, why not try event photography or videography?
Wherever you live, there’ll be events needing a dedicated photographer – from live music to rodeos and business parties to weddings.
How much can you expect to be paid?
Well, event photography rates vary greatly based on a number of factors, such as location, experience, and how long you’d need to be there.
According to
photography website PetaPixel, amateur photographers can expect to charge up to $75 per hour or $500 to shoot a wedding. Plus, you can expect this rate to grow substantially as you improve your skills, gain more experience, and build your brand.
To start, you’ll need a basic portfolio website.
Simple website builders like Wix and Squarespace make this a walk in the park.
Then, learn the basics of local SEO so that your website shows up in the search results when someone’s searching for an event photographer or videographer.
You can also list your services on a marketplace like Upwork or Fiverr, People Per Hour, or Freelancer.
Finally, reach out to local event companies, venues, and wedding planners to strike up a relationship and see if they’re in need of a photographer or videographer.
6: Vlogging
If you love making videos but don’t want to film for other people, consider starting your own YouTube channel.
Vlogging icons like
Casey Neistat have paved the way for a whole new form of expression and creativity in the video.
Video blogging – or “vlogging” as it’s commonly referred to – is a great way to enjoy the creative aspects of video making, while also sharing your experiences and thoughts about the world.
Kayla Pimentel has 17,000 subscribers and makes videos about her life, academics, clothing hauls, long-distance relationships, makeup, friendship, and more.
And remember, you don’t need millions of followers to earn some extra money.
There are plenty of ways that you can earn money from your YouTube channel once you’ve built an audience.
Start by monetizing your YouTube channel with advertisements. And once again, you can always sell your own products, or dive into influencer marketing or affiliate programs.
7: Freelance Graphic Design and Illustration
Are you an artist or designer? Do you love creating graphics or illustrations? If so, there are countless ways you can earn money from your art or designs.
Businesses need tons of design stuff, including:
- Websites
- Logos
- Brochures
- Ad design
- T-shirt designs
- Book covers
- Posters
- Social media branding
- Infographics
- 3D product models
- … and more!
To get started freelancing, create your own website (using a service like Wix or Squarespace), and reach out to businesses directly.
Or try using Upwork, Fiverr, People per hour, or Freelancer.
8: Sell Your Designs on Merchandise
Alternatively, you can sell products featuring your designs.
This is a great way to make money from your artwork without having to pitch, manage, and cater your work to businesses.
The best part is that it’s probably easier than you think.
Let’s take a look at how to get started.
First, Shopify allows you to get up and running with an online store in minutes.
Shopify
Then, the Shopify App Store has a ton of easy-to-use apps that let you add your designs to merchandise, which is then printed on demand.
Take
Printful.
With this app, you can upload your designs to tons of different products, such as t-shirts, mugs, hats, bags, phone cases, and more!
Printful
All you have to do is create your designs and market your store. Printful will take care of the rest!
9: DIY Crafts
Do you like to make stuff?
Are you a carpenter, sculptor, or seamster? Do you enjoy making jewelry, ornaments, decorations, or something else?
If so, why not start selling your creations?
A great way to start is to use the online marketplace Etsy. This was created specifically for handmade, vintage, or custom items.
Etsy
Sarah Peterson managed to
make $5,000 in just four months using the site to sell her custom popcorn bag designs.
However, Peterson acknowledges the drawbacks to using Etsy and recommends that serious sellers create their own website.
Thankfully,
Shopify makes this easy to do!
10: Entrepreneurship and Marketing
Are you interested in social media, digital marketing, or entrepreneurship? Do you follow side hustlers and entrepreneurs like Gary Vee on social media?
Perhaps you’ve always wanted to start a business but you’re not sure how.
Enter
dropshipping.
This business model allows anyone to start a business. Each time someone orders something from your store, the supplier will ship it to them, and you’ll pocket the extra money.
You could sell apparel, beauty products, bags, watches, sunglasses – the opportunities are vast.
Ray Bridges made
$4,558.03 in just 9 weeks dropshipping phone cases. These guys used the dropshipping method to start a home decor business.
The list of success stories goes on.
To start drop shipping, simply set up a Shopify account, add the
Oberlo app, and then search for products to add to your store.
Plus, there are tons of interesting ways to promote your stores, such as social media marketing, Facebook advertisements, or influencer marketing.
11: Teaching and Coaching
Do you love to teach or coach people? Does your heart fill with joy when you help someone achieve their potential?
If so, why not start teaching or coaching?
What’s more, you can teach or coach just about anything – cooking, dancing, music, fitness, computer skills, maths, fashion, beauty, languages, and more.
And today, there are also plenty of ways to teach or coach people.
First, you could teach or coach individuals or groups in person. To start, get involved in the local community.
For instance, if you want to teach music, head to the local music store and ask if you can put a flyer in their window. Or if you want to become a fitness coach, head to your local gym and ask the trainers how they got started.
Alternatively, you could start a blog or a YouTube channel with instructional articles or videos.
For example, Dana Willard teaches DIY crafts on her blog and YouTube channel under the brand name
Made Every day.
She earns money from advertising and selling her design patterns to help her followers recreate her exact designs.
If you want to teach or coach online, start by following blogs and YouTube channels in your niche to begin learning what works.
Summary: The Three-Step Formula to Make Money From Any Hobby
To summarize, let’s run through how to start earning money from one of your hobbies.
Step 1: Choose Your Hobby
There are countless hobbies that make money. Are you good at fixing things, dancing, choosing outfits, applying makeup, photography, or music?
Whatever it is you love to do, there’s a way to make money out it!
Step 2: Pick a Method to Earn Money From Your Hobby
Here are four ways we’ve covered to make money from your hobby:
Freelancing: Use a third-party marketplace or create your own website to market your services to other people and businesses.
Blogging: Share videos, articles, or images on YouTube, Instagram, or your own website. Build an audience and make money from sponsorships, advertisements, or selling products or digital downloads.
Sell Products: Make stuff, put your designs on products, or source products from suppliers to sell online.
Teaching and Coaching: Charge for sessions in person. Or build an audience and make money from ads, sponsorships, and online coaching sessions.
Step 3: Set the Foundations to Make Money
However you go about making money from your hobby, you need a clear understanding of three things:
Your Niche: What is it you do exactly and why? Get specific to cut through the noise. When there are countless other options available, what makes you the perfect solution for your viewers or customers?
Your Target Market: Understanding exactly who you’re targeting is the first step in serving them effectively. So make sure you’ve defined your ideal customer and understand their needs, problems, fears, hopes, ambitions, and goals.
The Benefit You Provide: You make money by providing value to people. So what core benefits do you provide? Never stop asking yourself, “What’s in it for them?”
Good luck!
Did we miss any hobbies that make money? Let us know about your experiences in the comments below!
This article was originally published on Oberlo Blog, Written by Tom Joseph.
