TOP 10 SMALL BUSINESSES AND SIDE HUSTLES FOR NIGERIAN STUDENTS IN 2020
2020 is up and already bustling with activities. And so y’all are most likely into school grinding in full force, Twale to you.
The grind is good, but then all study and no hustle will make Einstein go broke. Time to hustle!
I mean it’s not even possible for the monthly allowees your parents dish out to meet your needs, is it? I don’t think so.
You can take positive steps to better your finances this year if you start early enough. I will show you the top 10 side hustles for students in 2020.
Make you sef no take las.
Alright.
1. Subcontract: The reason why I tagged this “side hustle” is because it’s something you can combine together with your studies without it interfering with your academic activities. In subcontracting; all you do is locate opportunities where you can play the middle man between a business transaction. I’ll give you an example: if you’re the social and outgoing type, why not approach department heads, student faculty heads, student bodies etc to get contracts?
Say a department’s football team is to organize a tournament of sorts, approach the organisers and see how you can brand jerseys, supply jerseys, supply refreshments, supply equipments etc, whichever one suits you. It’s very easy, simply locate businesses that will take up the contract you’re offered, then get your cut or commission. Following?
That was just an idea of what subcontracting involves. So now you know.
Look for needs around you, then see how to land contracts.
2. Assignments and Projects: this one is very common, but have you considered it? I suggest you do. Why?
Well it has a really strong advantage over other student side hustles because it solves an everyday need of students, which is the need to get assignments and projects done. And no, you don’t have to be the hottest brains in your class to do this business, not at all. All you need is a knack for research. Are you a good curator? Then this business is for you.
How to start?
Approach 3 popular students in your class and offer to get their assignments and projects done for free. Yes, free. Make sure you impress them with the job ( this is your ticket ). I’ve not finished o.
Let them know beforehand that terms and conditions apply. These are: that they will tell their friends what you do and that you will do free assignments for them for every 10 assignments that you get from them directly.
Business don start.
3. Sell physical products: Wow this one is loud. Yes it is. Physical products are goods you can offer for sale. When choosing what to sell, make sure that it is something students can’t do without. You are a student, you know the things you consume everyday, so look into these and see how you can start making money from selling physical products. I have a few to suggest here: menstrual pads, recharge cards, snacks, smoothie, fruit salad, chilled zobo, kerosene, petrol, engine oil, stationary, female underwear, female clothing, phone accessories, cold drinks, toiletries, handkerchiefs, socks, sweaters, etc. All of these are actually very profitable. Try it out today.
4. Photocopying: if you already have a small photocopier, good for you. Otherwise, just get out there and bargain with a business centre. Here’s how to go about this business, at the beginning of the school session (like now), send out bulk text messages to students in your faculty, particularly class reps, offer to do their photocopying at a cheaper rate than the commercial guys, this will save them precious time and money. On your part, meet with at least 2 business centres that have slow traffic or minimal patronage, tell them you will be bringing them jobs, at a slightly cheaper rate than the top business centres.
For example, if normal jobs cost N5 per page, negotiate to do 4 pages for N10, because you’ll be doing bulk jobs. Meanwhile, you must have offered your customers to get 3 pages done for N10, following?
I know all these N5, N10 you’re hearing is already boring you, don’t let it. With focus and consistency, you may end up owning a property from the N5, N10 literally!
5. Public speaking: Another top side hustle you should try out this year is public speaking. Public speaking is actually very broad and requires proficiency. Thank God it’s proficiency, because anything that requires proficiency is something that is “learnable”, alright? So no fears.
If you’re passionate about sharing knowledge, public speaking is definitely a business you should explore in 2020.
How to start? Good question. Start by reaching out to your own network, your church, student bodies, secondary schools around you, etc. Send letters and requests offering to speak on a trending topic for free. They can envelope transport fare for you if they’re led, but let them know it’s entirely free. Start from there, people will notice you, you will start getting speaking engagements just like that. The secret here is serious networking.
Be sure to attend trainings and seminars that will help you stand out. Don’t stop doing free engagements, continue showing up to dish out value, and in no time you will start earning pocket money from your speaking gigs.
6. Host events: Herein is another top side hustle for students. And it is very lucrative, no mincing words.
How to go about it? Alright.
Event hosting is very youth friendly, so jump in. Take a look at small businesses and organisations around you, you know they need publicity. Send out requests for sponsorship to this lot. That’s right.
For example, say you want to host a talk seminar on “SMEs development in Nigeria”, a number of bodies could be very well willing to sponsor your event.
Requirements: Make sure you have a good business proposal at hand. You will need to present this to your prospective sponsors.
7. Online Tutorials: Everybody has something they’re good at. It could be singing, baking, makeup, mathematics, etc, whatever you do and are good at. Why not package this knowledge for sale? Yes o. People need what you know. Starting is very simple, reach out to your network, in your department, in church, in your student groups, social media etc. Offer to teach “Metabolic Regulations”( I’m a proud biochemist ) for example, for free, we all love freebies, so yes, make it free. Create a Whatsapp group or telegram group for this. Run an intensive tutorial and make sure you give value. You can then sell physical products like books whether it’s yours or not, you will still earn money from selling them. By organising series of free online tutorials, you will be able to gain trust. From this point, you can then start creating paid online tutorials.
P.S. ensure that the cost of your tutorials are student-friendly. N1,000 to N3,000 per tutorial.
You can be rest assured of patronage anytime you advertise for a tutorial, your students will show up, because they trust you and know you will deliver value.
8. Laundry Services: I once knew a student who used to survive from this business. He was actually sponsoring his own education with it, and no, he didn’t own a shop or anything like that. He did manual washing and iron pressing all by himself in his room. You can too.
A new washing machine shouldn’t cost more than N80,000, a lot of students have such sums sitting around in their accounts gathering dust. If you don’t have the money, fine, do manual washing. All you need is washing tools and materials, along with an ironing board.
How to start? Meet with people in your network, other students, friends, church members, lecturers etc, tell them what you do, and then offer to do their laundry at a slightly cheaper rate than the commercial laundromats. Start like that and grow. Don’t be ashamed of your hustle.
P.S. target busy people like student doctors, medical students, lecturers, pastors etc
9. Photography gigs: If you have a camera, you’re a lucky chap. Start taking photos of people in class, home service, do passport photos etc. And you don’t need to have a studio, you can do your editing on your laptop. This one doesn’t need much explanations. Start snapping away!
10. Social media management: We bless God for social media, but if you’re not making money from social media – you’re wrong. Put your data to good use by opting for social media management business. As a social media manager, your duty is to manage your client’s social media accounts and get paid for your efforts.
How to start? Just reach out to local businesses around you, offer to manage their social space by regularly updating quality content and attending to requests, comments, and generally just engaging with customers online. These businesses are going to pay you for your expertise and your time; two things they lack and badly need. Locate them and start earning
Let the hustle begin!
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