How to Go from Hobby to Business

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Are you thinking that you’d like to turn a hobby into a business? What are your hobbies?  Is your hobby something that people often comment on and suggest you sell?  Those people could be right, you know.  Many hobbies can double as money makers! You have your creative outlet, although it can be very lucrative, too! If you have started to think about taking your hobby from just something that you do, to what you would like to do for a living, it may be time to start a business.

There really are endless opportunities for hobby type businesses (that’s how many businesses start out after all).  For many people, starting a business can be a little intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be.  If you need a little bit of help, check out these tips below on how you can go from hobby to business.

Do you really want to sell?

First and foremost, you need to decide whether you really want to sell your creations and/or services.  Believe it or not, some people don’t like their hobby so much when they “have” to do it.  Sometimes it really is best to leave your hobby as just your hobby, even if just for your mental health.  If you feel like you would love to do this for profit, it’s definitely time to look toward starting a business.

Choose what part of your hobby you will be selling.

What part of your hobby do you expect to sell to others?  You have several options.  Do you want to sell your creations themselves or would you rather sell knowledge?  Here’s what I mean.  Let’s say you make beautiful beaded earrings.  You could sell those earrings and make a nice profit or, instead of selling those earrings, you could offer classes on how others can do it or you could even create YouTube videos and monetize that way. Or, you could sell your knowledge through intensives, retreats, PDFs, online courses, etc. If you’re looking for help on that, click here. 

Time to start planning

If you want to grow your business, you must first treat it as a business.  That means that you need to create a business plan, keep track of your income and expenses and all the other intricacies of a business.   Start off though by creating a business plan and setting goals and plans for your business.

Register your new business

Now that you have planned out what you are selling and how you intend to progress, it’s time to get in and register your new business name.  It is at this time that you should also consider whether you wish to incorporate your new business.

Create a presence

Make sure people know who you are and what you are offering.  You can do this the old-fashioned (and still effective) way of going door to door and shaking hands or you can use technology to your full advantage.  You could consider setting up a booth at a craft fair if you’re selling crafts. 

In this day and age, technology and social media are both crucial tools for business. Blogging, your website, social media profiles – ALL of it. If you need help with that, hire an expert. You can create a presence on social media and use that to advertise yourself and your business.  You can also use that presence to network with other businesses to further your reach.

Now that you have the tools to get started, what are you going to create? If you’re looking for help, check out how you and I can work together: