Although student years are considered the most exciting time in one’s life, sometimes it can be hard t to cover your financial liabilities on your own. Nowadays, tuition costs have significantly increased in comparison to 1980s. According to Forbes, the tuition fee in the USA varies from $20,000 to $40,000. Generally speaking, an average tuition fee equals approximately $26,000 for a four-year bachelor’s degree in most of the public universities.
Such an amount of money is unaffordable for the majority of college students. Frequently, they take governmental or bank loans in order to cover their tuition fees. However, there are some ways out without getting deep into debt.
One of the most effective possibilities to overcome your financial issues is to establish a start-up or a small business during your college years. This will not only develop your managerial skills but also help you become confident and independent from financial institutions and banking loans.
In this article, we will talk about the top four opportunities you can undertake and start your first small business in college.
#1 Websites development
Although it may appear time- and effort-intensive, building websites is much easier than it seems. In 2019, site creation from scratch is suitable only for companies with very specific services or products. For everybody else, there is a lot of free software that allows you to manage web pages without lots of manual actions and coding. For example, you can use WordPress CMS for landing pages, biography websites, promo sites, etc.
However, the creation of a website is only half of the battle. In order to earn some money, you should learn how to configure the site for the client’s needs and ensure it will fulfill the functions it is developed for.
You should also take care of Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Engine Marketing (SEM), and website’s visual appearance. In order to learn how to make a site attractive both for clients and search engines, you should take basic website maintenance and promotion courses. Allegedly, one of the most effective providers of suchlike lectures is Google — you can learn about all the mentioned subjects through their Google Digital Atelier.
Note that you can make a nice profit in developing websites. If you decide to follow this track, you can improve your skills and enlarge your business. But, you should start by developing sites for your friends, mates, and relatives first to fill your portfolio and take orders from more serious clients. You can also ask around, maybe your peers or colleagues need a website?
#2 Transportation and Delivery
If you have a driving license and a car, you can consider launching a delivery or transporting business. This is a lucrative business opportunity that can help you cover student loans. Unlike the previous idea, it requires financial allocations, such as car maintenance and fuel expenses. On the other hand, you can start earning money without long-term learning and searching for clients.
In order to avoid legal obstacles and red tape, you can consider becoming an Uber driver. Uber classifies its drivers as independent contractors, and thus, you become a small business owner within your college years. From taking students to local destinations to delivering different kinds of goods, you can decide what possibility is the most suitable for you. Furthermore, you can manage your workload hours and activities on your own without compromising on college lectures and leisure activities.
#3 Online tutoring
If you are keen on a particular activity, you can consider earning extra by teaching others in your area of expertise. You can show your talents and invite people to learn from you by coaching online, which, in most cases, allows you to combine studies and working hours without sacrificing your free time.
Even though a lot of online courses are free, the majority of them do not contain any live support and are usually low-quality. By starting a private tutoring business, you can offer your clients personalized sessions with online assistance and practical recommendations. You can start with a small number of learners and adjust your workload accordingly.
For example, if writing academic papers grows on you, you can launch writing services for college papers. And the best thing is that you can find your first customers within your school. According to the Guardian, the majority of US students tend to use such services during their studies. So just ask your peers if they need writing help.
#4 Online retail store
Do you know the major factors that influence one’s decision to buy? In most cases, those are product diversity and delivery time. If you can help people avoid waiting and offer them a wide range of goods, you can earn money without considerable investments. An online shop is a perfect solution for college-time business.
With online access to worldwide trade platforms such as Alibaba, Taobao, and eBay, you can easily launch your retail shop within several months. First of all, you should analyze what products are trending nowadays. You can do it through social networks and Google Trends. Another option is to ask your peers about the products they want to get.Then, you should buy a trial lot of the said items and advertise it through your social webpage or a personal website. For instance, many students would like to buy mobile phone cases on the same day they buy the device. If you consider launching cases retail store, you can benefit from customers who need to protect their smartphones and do not want to risk waiting for several months until the case arrives from Taobao or Alibaba.
