What It's About
A remote working pro who helps free others from their desks.
Business Model
Skills Required
Complexity
Profit Potential
Words of Wisdom
Even if a market looks saturated from the outside, you shouldn’t be afraid. You can always make it work if you bring a unique and different angle to the topics in your niche.
Fun Fact
Interest in remote work has been increasing all over the world. No doubt people are now finding that remote work not only offers more freedom but also makes you more efficient since you save time traveling to your office. If your current job doesn’t offer the chance to work remotely, consider starting your own side hustle.
Notes from Chris
Episode 615
When Sireesha Narumanshi first started looking online for remote work opportunities ten years ago, she found herself at a total loss. The concept of remote work was still in its infancy, and such opportunities were scarce. The few opportunities she could find produced more questions than answers. Was it legitimate? Did it pay well? What was the next step? These were some of the questions that Sireesha had to wrap her head around. Nevertheless, she kept searching. With two young daughters, Sireesha believed that this was the best way she could spend time with her family while earning a living. Her patience and persistence paid off as she eventually found a job that was suitable for her. But not everyone is as fortunate. Several people she knew quit searching for remote job opportunities, abandoning the idea forever after encountering the obstacles. Over the next couple of years, Sireesha noticed that interest in remote work opportunities grew substantially. More people were looking for a career where they wouldn’t be bound to their desk from 9-to-5, even if they wanted to continue working for a company. By now she’d gained a lot of experience and had the potential to save others hours of frustration. Apprehensive and excited at the same time, Sireesha launched Crowd Work News in 2016. The first step was to conduct research to determine what was missing in the remote workspace. This gave her ideas for content that would appeal to her audience. For instance, she knew that those new to remote work wanted ideas on the type of services they could offer to companies. Remembering that she struggled with determining the legitimacy of jobs when she first started out, Sireesha also started linking out to trusted platforms where many of these jobs could be found. Although many job seekers felt that there was a lack of resources in the remote space, it wasn’t the case that there were no sites catering to this demand. A lot of sites had sprung up to accommodate this interest, just like Crowd Work News had. But as Sireesha says, you can always make it work if you come at things from a unique angle even if the market may look saturated from the outside. These days she’s earning over $2,000/month from affiliate marketing and another $1,000/month from display advertising. Her only cost is the $10/month she pays to host the site. According to Sireesha, the best part of this is that it’s all passive. She could take a week off, never touch the site, and still make money. Moving forward, she hopes to make the transition to a travel photographer. She’ll no longer just be creating remote work opportunities, but going to remote places to see them for herself.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
- Crowd Work News: Learn more about the ins and outs of remote working over on Sireesha's blog!
- Project Manager Helps Cubicle Workers See the World: When a corporate employee is told she can’t take a big trip because of her daughter, she starts a company to make travel more accessible
- Army Veteran Makes $650,000 Advertising Apps: A Wisconsin native hits the jackpot with his smart approach to blogging, bringing in multiple six figures with nearly zero overhead costs
- Nomadic Designer Profits from Writing About Life in a Bag: When a designer quits his job at Apple to travel the world, he realizes that his nomadic lifestyle hacks are a hot topic—and a profitable one, too
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Resources
CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE
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GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS
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Quote of the Day
Sponsors & Gratitude
CRAZY ENOUGH TO WORK
This week, Side Hustle School is brought to you by Crazy Enough to Work, a popular podcast and film series. 📈
When the rest of the world is still zigging, some companies know when it’s time to zag. Elizabeth Banks has teamed up with State Street Global Advisors to make a series of podcasts and films that uncover the bold moves mid-cap companies make to thrive and survive.
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