So you’ve got a side hustle. It’s a hobby that fills a certain part of your soul. Whether you are baking cupcakes, making hair bows or crocheting scarves, you pour your heart into your work because you enjoy it. Maybe you do it in addition to a full-time job, or it’s a nice little extra stream of cash while you are raising your kids and conquering the world.

But at what point do you ask yourself this question: What am I “hustling” for?

This is the point I hit at the six-month mark with my side hustle, which is growing hemp on our farm for our own line of locally grown and crafted CBD products. What started out as a “just for fun” idea last year, was starting to take up more time and energy than expected, and also provide personal fulfillment beyond what I ever imagined.

That’s when I decided I needed to really sit down and evaluate whether all the hustle and bustle was really just for fun, or if I believed in our products and myself enough to start looking at this as a business. 

I know there are other women who will read this and relate. That’s why I’m going to share three things I’ve done in the past few months to transition my hobby and my mindset to business mode:

1. Know your costs.

   Perhaps the one thing that has held you back from looking at your hustle as an income generator is the label you place on yourself. 

   “I’m not a business woman.”

   That’s what I told myself. Business sense is not my natural skill set, I’d rather poke needles under my fingernails than sit down and deal with numbers. But as my business has grown, I have come to realize I need to know the numbers, especially my costs. One of the best investments of my time was sitting down with my husband who works in finance to really hone in on the cost of each of my products. Not just the material cost, but all the costs. Every. Little. Thing. The mailing envelope. The half-sheet of tissue paper. The little plastic baggy. And most importantly, my time.

   Going through these numbers has empowered me to know where the cost centers and profit centers are in my business. If I want to run a special on a product, I can look at my spreadsheet and base that decision on my margin.

   Knowing that margin is also critical in growing your business. As I start to gain interest among local retailers interested in carrying my products, I now can determine price points that are appealing to the retailer but also profitable for me.

   One of my biggest “ah-ha” moments in determining my costs was discovering that I had one product severely underpriced. I was barely breaking even at the price point it was at. Now, I know my time and energy are purposeful.

   Knowing your costs puts the power in your hands to make sound decisions to move your business forward. With those numbers in hand, you can set revenue goals and make projections for where you want to be and how you are going to get there.

2. Know your customer.

   As a newcomer to the world of side hustles, it was a bit overwhelming to wade through all the opportunities for doing vendor shows (particularly pre-COVID-19) and advertising. Add to that the temptation to click “yes” to the notification to pay to boost a post or run an ad on social media. A small business can spend a lot of time and money marketing their product. 

   But who is your ideal customer? And how do you effectively reach them?

   When I started my hustle last year, I literally went to the library and checked out a book called “Digital Marketing for Dummies.” One of the most helpful exercises it walked me through was determining your customer “avatar” - describe the person you ideally want to provide your good or service to by answering questions like this:

   • Is your customer male or female?

   • What is their age range?

   • Where do they live?

   • Where do they shop?

   • Who do they trust?

   • What are their pain points?

   • How can you help solve their problems with your product or service?

   Writing this out helped me to hone in on who my ideal customer is, and when faced with decisions on where to place time and money to grow my reach, I can go back to that avatar and ask myself if that decision will put me in line with the people I want to work with. It keeps me focused on the best opportunities.

3. Make connections.

   Connecting with other people - particularly, local women with businesses, large and small - has been hands-down one of the most helpful actions I’ve taken to expand my mindset and my business. This isn’t just a shameless plug for The Nest, but rather, an expression of the value of conversations with others whom you can relate with and learn from.

   I joined The Nest primarily as an escape from my house in late May, and have enjoyed it not only as a quiet place to work on my full-time and side jobs, but have now found even greater appreciation for the women I’ve come in contact with there. 

   Running a side hustle can be a lonely road, if you choose to make it that way. Or, it can be a wide-open path, filled with others who will speak life and encouragement into your business and into your heart. Alone, you can focus on the struggle. Together, we can focus on the moving forward with key relationships, partnerships and collaboration. 

Wherever you are with your side hustle, take a moment to evaluate these three areas. They may be helpful for you too as you make decisions about turning your hobby into a business.

Written By:

Peggy Coffeen, owner/founder, P’ri CBD