This Simple Hack Can Significantly Boost Your Side Hustle Earnings — But Almost Nobody Is Using It, New Research Reveals Practically anyone can start a side hustle. But making a lot of money with it is another matter.
By Amanda Breen Edited by Jessica Thomas
Key Takeaways
- There's no shortage of side hustles — but bringing together passion and business could benefit you the most.
- It's not enough to just enjoy the work; pair it with this selling strategy to up your side gig's earning potential.
We're living in the era of the side hustle, with 54% of Americans working extra gigs to supplement their primary sources of income.
There's no shortage of lucrative opportunities. Sell clothing online. Flip furniture. Rent out parking spaces. Teach in a virtual classroom. And so much more. However, some of the best side hustles might be those that marry passion or talent with a business idea.
People who enjoy their additional gig, whether it's designing cards, walking dogs or just about anything else, have a serious advantage in the side hustle market — if they know how to use it.
New research published in the Journal of Marketing found that "production enjoyment," or how much a seller enjoys making a product or providing a service, "is a key consumer cue in peer-to-peer marketplaces" like Etsy and Upwork, especially when the goods or services require a lot of skill.
Of course, having fun with your side hustle won't automatically translate into increased sales and revenue: You have to communicate that fact to your customers.
Buyers are willing to pay up to 10% for a good or service when sellers say they enjoy producing it, as they conflate production enjoyment with higher quality, according to the research. It might sound like a no-brainer, yet only 1% of Etsy seller profiles mention that they enjoy making their products.
What's more, the research revealed that sellers actually charge up to 15% less for the products they enjoy making the most — a sure way to undercut a side hustle's earning potential.
"Don't sell yourself short," Daniel Zane, research contributor and associate professor of marketing at Lehigh University, said. "While they might already feel like they are getting some inherent value from doing something they really enjoy for work, sellers shouldn't allow this to lead them to demand less monetary compensation."
Communicating higher production enjoyment in online ads also comes with significant benefits, per the research: It results in 40% higher click-through rates and boosts general buyer interest in sellers' products.
