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  • Start a Ikea Furniture Assembly Side Hustle

    Start a Ikea Furniture Assembly Side Hustle

    People love their Ikea furniture. They don’t always love putting it together. Especially if you decide to furnish an entire apartment is one shot.

    Assembling Ikea is also a low cost side hustle to start, as most of the time you just need a multi-head screw driver, although getting a drill with the proper bits will make you far more effcient. The biggest challenge will be transportation, as you’ll be assembling furniture in people’s homes or offices.

    Still skeptical? There’s a company called TaskRabbit that is the official construction partner for Ikea.

    Getting Started on your Own

    If you want to start out on your own it make take a while to get a little traction until you get your name out there. Start with posting a flyer at your local community centre, church, coffee shop, or anywhere that has a bulletin board for local businesses.

    Even putting together a classified ad in the local newspaper or go digital and post something on Craiglist or Facebook.

    When someone reaches out, ask what pieces from Ikea they need help with, and you can research how much to quote them for assembly.

    Ikea posts all their instruction manuals online, so that’ll give you an idea of how big the project will be. TaskRabbit also gives assembly quotes online based on location. That tool can also give you a rough guide for how much to charge.

    When providing a cost estimate, also factor in transportation time and cost. If it’s going to take you 30 minutes to get there and back, make sure to factor in that hour of time into your estimate.

    Starting out with TaskRabbit

    TaskRabbit is the Uber for handymen or handywomen. A homeowner needs a task done, it connects them with someone with the skills to get it done.

    With TaskRabbit you get the benefit of a larger platform bringing potential clients to you. But TaskRabbit also has a service fee on top of your costs, making things more expensive for the client.

    They do have a $25 signup fee, and require background checks as part of the process to get on their platforms.

    For what it’s worth, we are not affiliated with TaskRabbit. As they are the assembly partner for Ikea, it is important to note it as an option.

    No harm in doing both

    If you want to make a little extra money assembling Ikea furniture, there is no harm advertising directly for clients and doing TaskRabbit.

    Tools

    Bare minimum, make sure you have a multi-head screwdriver with a ratcheting head. It’ll make things quicker for you.

    Consider investing in a drill with screwdriver bits. Your wrists and forearms will thank you. It’ll also make you significantly faster.

  • Watering Gardens as a side hustle

    Watering Gardens as a side hustle

    Consider yourself lucky if you have a green thumb. Many people try, but just can’t seem to make things click when it comes to their gardens. Take advantage of this skill and earn a little extra money on the side.

    Planting a garden in the summer is a lot of work. The summer is also when most people leave on vacation for extended periods of time, putting those beautiful flowers of drying up under the hot summer sun.

    This creates a perfect opportunity to water garden beds and planters while people are out of town.

    Getting Started

    To get started with your garden watering side hustle, it’s just a matter of getting your name out there. Start out with your local communities. Post a flyer on the bulletin board at your community center, church, the local coffee shop or any other place that has a community bulletin.

    Once you start, and do a good job, chances are word of mouth will be your best marketing tool.

    Gear

    Watering gardens when people are out of town is a great way to earn some extra money because it requires very little investment to get going.

    Chances are you can use the watering can where every you are going. If you are worried about the weight of some of the bigger watering cans or reaching up to the hanging planters, you could always bring your own watering wand with you.

    Things to think about

    Consider the area you want to cover. Even though you have a green thumb, do you want to be driving 15 minutes each way to water for 10 – 15 minutes. If you do, make sure you can price accordingly for your time. If you are in your local community, you can walk between houses giving you a little extra exercise each day.

    Pay attention to water restrictions: if it’s been a dry summer, pay attention to any water restrictions in place. Some municipalities only allow watering during certain days based on house number or during certain hours of the day. Make sure you ask first so you won’t be breaking any rules.

  • Starting a lawn services side hustle

    Starting a lawn services side hustle

    Typical suburban homes have a lawn. Lawns need to be mowed to stay in-line with city bylaws, Home Owner Association rules, and to just be a good neighbor.

    The challenge some people have is that during the summer, they are away for weeks at a time and need someone to take care of their yard. Or they are just too busy as it is and would rather pay someone to do it for them on a weekly basis.

    While the cost to have your lawn mowed varies based on location and size, the price range could be anywhere from $30 to over $100.

    Could this be the right side hustle for you?

    If you already have a lawn mower a trimmer you have everything you need to start. With just those two items, you could focus on your neighborhood and walk to the houses you are looking after.

    If you have a vehicle to help you out, you can expand the ares you can work in, but you’ll also want to factor in travel time and fuel costs if you are going more than a few minutes down the road.

    What about a blower? A blower definitely makes clean up easier and quicker, but it isn’t required to start. A simple broom is all you need to sweep of sidewalks at the start. Once you have established some clients and money is flowing in, then you can invest in a blower.

    Starting Out

    When you are first starting out, see if there are some low cost or free ways to get your name out there. You could post a flyer on a bulletin board at the local community center, church or even some grocery stores have local advertising. You could also drop off flyers to peoples mail boxes in your community to start to get your name out there.

    From a scheduling standpoint, plan your first few clients around your current commitments. If you have a 9-5 plan for nights or weekends.

    Think about safety gear

    If you are going to be operating lawn equipment for extended periods of time, it would be worth with to invest in some eye and ear protection.

    Lawn mowers, trimmers and blowers all produce a lot of nice, and extended exposure can result in hearing loss. Consider buying some ear protection, like these safety ear muffs from Dewalt. For under $25 it’s an investment worth making.

    Plenty of debris can be produced when mowing a lawn. Always make sure you have eye protection as well. These 3M safety glasses are a small investment to protect your vision

    Other things to think about

    Disposal: When mowing a lawn, setting your mower to mulch is the simplest as you won’t need to worry about disposing of grass clippings. If you do bag grass clippings you’ll need to get rid of them in a proper fashion. Some cities and towns have green bins, and if you are upfront about it, using your client’s bin might be an option. If not you’ll need to see how to properly dispose of them

    Insurance: As you’ll be working on other peoples property, you might want to look into having insurance for incidental accidents. Things like if your mower accidentally clips an underground sprinkler head. Having some insurance on your side in case something big happens might remove some stress from your shoulders

    Maintenance: Since you’ll be using your equipment more than you normally would, it’ll wear down quicker. Look into how often and how much it’ll cost service your lawn mower, then add a portion of that to your prices.

    Gas vs. Electric: If you are doing multiple homes in a row, a gas powered mower is likely your best option. If you go battery powered, it’s probably best that you have a back up battery or two available so you don’t end up without power and have an unfinished job to do.

    Noise By-Laws: Be aware of local noise by-laws. Some municipalities have noise by-laws in place that prevent mowing lawns after certain times of the day. While others have effectively banned gas powered blowers based on noise levels. Don’t get in trouble with the city or an Home owners association because of noise.

  • Canva

    Canva

    Canva makes graphic design easy and accessible for everyone. We’ve used it to create over thousands of social media posts. This includes images and short form video. We’ve made YouTube thumbnails. We’ve created presentations. We’ve created posters and flyer print outs. We have even used it as a basic video editing tool.

    It is an incredibly versatile platform that also maintains an easy to use feel.

    But you aren’t a designer…

    Don’t have a background in graphic design, that’s ok, neither do we. This is where the power of Canva comes in. With thousands of templates available to you, it’s easy to find a style you are looking for. Then it’s just a matter of changing the text/colors/images and your design will be ready to go in a few minutes.

    Materials Library

    Canva also comes with a giant library of images and video for your use. This makes it easy to help produce professional content. If you have a landscaping hustle, Canva will have a professional images of flower beds or a perfectly manicured lawn for your disposal.

    Cost

    There is a free version and a paid version of Canva. With the free version you have everything you need. Over a million templates and stock images and videos to choose from to get you going.

    The paid version of Canva gets you more templates and stock material than you can ever imagine. Plus you get more editing tools, and access to their new AI features (which truthfully can be hit or miss sometimes).

    Check Out Canva