The person behind the person behind the person on this billboard could be you!
As a college student, trying to find effective ways to make money can be both time consuming and tedious.
But before you give up and turn in your application for a traditional part-time job, consider acting as a broker by promoting local businesses in your town by direct marketing.
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Have you ever seen people in front of businesses with ridiculous costumes holding billboards in an effort to get more attention and customers?
Sure you have, but you probably never wondered who was behind the scenes coordinating that style of advertising.
HOW THIS HELPS LOCAL BUSINESSES
The fact is that human billboards are a huge industry, and companies will pay a great deal of money to someone who is able to skillfully handle that segment of marketing for them. In other words, the businesses will have a greater interest in outsourcing the work to a promotional company instead of handling it directly.
What you can do is start your own small promotional company where you don’t actually stand out with billboards but act as the liaison between businesses interested in effective advertising and college students who need some extra cash.
HOW YOU CAN GET STARTED
Starting a local promotional business will not require much capital. All you need to get started is a business name, a list of other college students who don’t mind working for your company, mailing letters, stamps, and flyers to advertise your services around your town or city. You can market your business in between classes or during any free time that you have.
The majority of your focus should be on getting accounts and making sure that you have reliable employees in place to work for those hours. Don’t forget to look out for major events that are going on, because the businesses holding the events will definitely want to use your services.
WHAT TO CHARGE YOUR CLIENTS AND HOW TO PAY THE PROMOTERS
Once you get accounts, you should charge companies by the hour or per event. Charge whatever you like for your services, but make sure that it is enough to pay your employees a decent wage and leave a nice profit for yourself.
In my opinion, a decent wage for your employees would be around $2 to $3 above minimum wage. Make sure that you keep your wages competitive in order to have reliable employees who are willing to work hard for you. Nobody wants to work for peanuts.
HOW YOU CAN EXPAND
Starting a local promotional company is very profitable for a college student. While it may take some time to find initial accounts for your new business, it will be well worth it in the end because the accounts that you have will lead to referrals and more customers in the long run.
The major upside to this idea is that you’ll be creating a business that you can continue once you graduate and take with you if you decide to move to another location.
Know of any good side hustles that can help college students make money? Share them in the comments.
(Note: As with any business, you and anyone you employ may have to pay applicable taxes on any income earned. You may also want to talk to an attorney about how to best structure your business for liability and tax purposes.)
(Photo: agoodfella/Flickr)
Students willing to start their cleaning business can also offer green cleaning. Now-a-days, people are getting health conscious and usually prefer organic products. Organic cleaning products can increase your demand immensely.
I appreciate this! I have some friends that make money in cleaning services, and its something that I’m thinking about doing. This gave me some great insight! Thanks for sharing.