Although starting a business can be a lucrative way to earn a living on your own terms, it can take time for your hard work to pay off. If you’re launching a startup or growing a small business into a national brand, for example, your assets and liquid cash may be tied up in the venture. 

Additionally, many entrepreneurs and startup business owners choose not to take a salary from their company straight away, so that the profits can be reinvested.

While this can enhance your long-term commercial success, it can also mean that you’re on a limited income for some time. 

Fortunately, there are a variety of very good ways you can boost your income while you’re building a successful venture. To get started, take a look at these five side incomes to consider while growing your business:

1. Become a Consultant

Use your academic and/or professional experience to help others in your industry by becoming a consultant. From advising other entrepreneurs to helping established companies restructure their operations, there are a variety of ways you can use your expertise to offer B2B services. 

As an IT consultant, you could help firms to reduce their IT spend and secure their networks, for example. Alternatively, an HR consultant could help businesses to implement effective compliance strategies.

No matter what type of professional experience you have, you can leverage it by becoming a consultant and significantly increase your income. 

2. Incorporate New Services

As you’re growing your business, find additional services that complement your brand and use them to increase your cash flow. Reasonable suspicion training is an in-demand service, for example, and can be offered by virtually any type of business, including business advisers, risk assessors, and venture capitalist firms. When you find additional services that you can easily incorporate into your brand, you can increase your revenue instantly. 

3. Work as a Freelancer

The gig economy is making it easier than ever to generate an income as a freelancer. With platforms dedicated to connecting businesses with professional freelancers, securing clients can be simple and straightforward.

Furthermore, using established platforms ensures streamlined management and invoice processes, which means you won’t spend a lot of time on admin or client acquisition. 

Being a freelancer doesn’t just enable you to generate a side income; it allows you to work on your own terms. You can pick up projects during quieter times and prioritize your own business when demand increases, for example. Similarly, you can work on freelance projects at a time that suits you, which means it’s easy to accommodate your existing responsibilities. 

4. Rent Out Your Home

Although the majority of your assets and liquid cash might be tied up in your business, you can still use your home to increase your income. If you own your property, for example, you could stay with friends or family on a short-term basis and make your home available to tenants.

Alternatively, you might decide to rent out a room to a lodger or to make it available on an ad hoc basis via platforms like Airbnb.

If renting out your home isn’t a viable option, then take a look around your property and determine whether there are any other areas that could be utilized. If you have a secure garage or shed, for example, you could rent this out as storage to boost your income while you’re growing your business. 

5. Become an Affiliate Marketer

When you’re running a business, it’s helpful to have a good understanding of digital marketing. After all, you’ll need to use it to engage your target audience and increase brand awareness.

By becoming an affiliate marketer now, you can gain valuable experience that will assist you when it comes to promoting your own business, as well as generating a side income.

Furthermore, using affiliate marketing to boost your own income could enable you to make important industry contacts. By widening your professional network at the same as increasing your revenue, you’ll be able to scale your business more effectively.

Planning for Business Growth

Whether you’re getting a startup off the ground or expanding into a new region, it’s always important to have a comprehensive growth strategy in place.

When you have clear objectives and key performance indicators (KPIs), you’ll be able to monitor your progress throughout the expansion process. Not only will this provide you with useful data and insights, but it will also give you confidence in your plans as you grow your business and increase your profitability.