In the past twenty years, the term “Side Hustle” has really started a rise in popularity. I understand that it is not a new term, it has been used since the early 1900’s and the origin of “Hustle” is Dutch. The internet though has really allowed the term to gain traction in contemporary culture due to the availability of ways to earn money outside of one’s main source. The interesting concept though today is that in a world that is connected in the manner we are, the “Side Hustle”, as it were, has morphed into something new and exciting.

I have a friend that has had the hustle for as long as I’ve known her, about 12 years, and it was a hustle because she always had a W-2 job to complement whatever the side thing was. I always viewed her as entrepreneurial because of how she treated her hustles, they were a building block to being able to work totally on her own.

Several years ago she was working at a radio station. She had been there for a while and co-hosted a very popular morning show, then one day it came apart, she was fired. I told her it was the best thing that could happen, he bounced high and landed on her feet. All those years of doing the “side-hustle” came back to bless her, and you know what, it was the perfect storm because of the internet.

Right now she doesn’t have a W-2 job, and at the same time, she doesn’t have one source of income that she relies on. This woman has many sources of income or many side hustles. Get this, she is a professional dog walker on the app Rover. From that business, she started her own house\pet sitting business, where she now has another woman working with her because there is more work than she can handle.

From her time in radio she does voice-overs for local business commercials, because of that business she was approached by a company to read audible books. She does a couple of other things, but the point is her side hustle blossomed into a garden where she can pick and choose where she earns her money.

Ten years ago this sort of lifestyle would not have been possible but with the advent of the internet, the smartphone, and the App, it is.

Ten years ago if someone wanted to side hustle they most likely would have looked at Amway, Mary-Kay, Pro-Paid Legal now LegalShield, Primerica or Rainbow vacuum cleaners, or any other MLM opportunity. Today someone can literally wake up, download an app, register, and start earning money within a day, it’s incredibly easy.

These apps are the battleground that modern network marketing companies must compete in for the people to promote their product or service. Why should someone sell to their neighbor when they can walk a dog and make the same $500\mo?

There are three big reasons why someone would choose to host a party or sell to their friends and family over driving for Uber, or being a dog walker on Rover.

1) Greater Income, Better Tools

2) Man, the Benefits

3) Your WHY

Money isn’t everything:

You’ve heard this statement before, and it’s true, but you can’t deny it is certainly a factor when choosing a side hustle. Another factor that should be considered today when choosing a side hustle is the technology behind the company. Sure, Sandy could drive for Uber in the morning, and walk a dog a two in the afternoon to earn some cash, but she can only drive so many people and walk so many dogs.

In effect, there is a cap on the amount she can earn. Let’s say she is also looking at joining a snap jewelry, party plan company with a killer comp plan. With this business, her income is really limited by the amount of work she puts into the business. If it’s the year 2000, there may have been some tools on the internet to maximize Sandy’s efforts, but it was still pretty sparse.

As main sources of advertising, she would have to put ads in newspapers, print out her own flyers, or call from the phone book. While all these methods still work to gain attention, using them would be like using a hatchet to cut a tree down when there is a chainsaw available.

Today, if Sandy were to join the same business, she would have an autodialer, social media, webinars, and all the other tools that are possible because of the internet. If you are offering an opportunity in network marketing today, you must invest in relevant technology to attract people. You need to make it easy for them to experience the magical power that referral marketing can offer them. The tools that you offer to market your product or service should so easy they can do while lying in bed.

Man, the Benefits:

If lying in bed and being able to get the word out about your product or service isn’t a benefit, I don’t know what is. Of course, there are many others as well. How about being able to take lunch with your child at school because you aren’t tied to a desk in some office?

One thing I believe everyone wants is to control their time. It’s not so much about having more time. Why do you want more time? Is it because your time now is used in an inefficient manner? If you could just have control over the time you do have then why would you need more time? I believe if people had the benefit of being in control of their time, then all the other desires in life would fall into place.

Earning money through network marketing has inspired millions of people to be able to control the time they have and do the actives they want. If your business is internet based, you could literally live on a sailboat in Alaska and work from your boat while anchored in Shotgun Cove. How about that for a benefit?

If you’re the decision maker in a network marketing company, decided in 2018 that you are going to give your distributors the tools to be able to benefit from more control over their time. You do this and your business will explode this year!

Your WHY:

What is it?

How do you inspire people to join your cause?

Here at Naxum,

“We LOVE to inspire people to share products and services they care deeply about so they experience the Magical Power of Referral Marketing”

If you have a WHY that resonates with other people, you don’t have to sell. Think about this. We all know that around the world there are factories that take advantage of people, have poor working conditions and abuse workers. Let’s say you have a network marketing company that sells clothes. These clothes come from factories around the world that may or may not take advantage of people, have poor working conditions and abuse workers.

Let’s say though that you have a WHY statement that says: “We believe that everyone should be paid a fair wage, have good working conditions and aren’t threatened at work. Here at ABC Clothes, we research the factories where our clothes are made so that we are not part of the problem but are part of the solution”.

I bet with that WHY statement, people who didn’t want to buy clothes that were made by exploited people would be attracted to buy from you. Not because of the clothes themselves but because of your company’s WHY. I challenge you to take some time, formulate your WHY then broadcast it through a megaphone. I bet you’ll see your business grow.

Next Steps:

When you are formulating your business growth strategies don’t forget to consider the three big reasons why a party plan company or an MLM would attract the side hustle people over an Uber, Airbnb or sell Rover, they are Greater Income, Better Tools, Man the Benefits, and Your WHY.

If you use these key points as a beacon to guide your growth you’ll see positive results. I invite you to register for a FREE demo of the Naxum S.P.E.E.D. system. We have developed tools that allow your field to present to more people and close more of that business after the presentation, and be more efficient with the use of their time.

About the Author:

MARSHALL KAIN
Account Executive