How to make your side hustle work

Side hustle small business

What is a side hustle?

You may have heard this phrase making the rounds lately – unsurprisingly, as more and more people are starting side hustles. If so, you’d be forgiven for not knowing exactly what it is! In reality, it’s pretty simple: any business running alongside a job or main business counts as a side hustle. 

For some people, a side hustle can be a useful supplement to a main role, while for others a conventional job may actually end up coming second. For these people, the side hustle might be their passion, and the thing they spend most of their time doing, but a more ‘traditional’ job might be what allows them to pay the bills – even just a few days a week.

How do you make a side hustle successful?

Just like the time-old question of ‘what makes a business successful?’, there’s no easy answer to this one. Generally speaking, the amount of time you put into anything will be reflected by how much you get out of it. This might be totally fine by you! This is the beauty of a side hustle: it can be as big – or as small – a part of life as you want it to be. 

Once you’ve decided how much you want to get out of your side hustle, however, there are a few things you can do to maximise your chances of success (and of being able to continue hustling):

Test it out
Before you do much at all, it’s a good idea to test your idea out on friends and family. Even business masterminds like Richard Branson sometimes need a fresh pair of eyes to make them see their idea differently! You’re already working, so you don’t want to waste any of your valuable spare time on something inherently flawed. Letting other people try out your product will give them a chance to give you feedback in a non-pressured environment, so you can iron out any kinks early on and save yourself time in the future.

Don’t give up (on) your day job
You’re starting a side hustle for a reason, so make sure it stays just that – at least for now. Don’t stop putting any effort into your day job, even if your priorities have shifted. Your reasons for doing this alongside your job still stand, whether they’re financial or personal, so you definitely don’t want to alienate your employers or start delivering sub-par work; this will benefit nobody! Be respectful of your employers and colleagues, as well as the importance of what your job gives you, and work on your side hustle when you can.

Don’t forget your own wellbeing
We’re big believers in work-life balance and the importance of not letting your work ruin your life – whatever it may be. There’s a real danger of becoming overworked when you have a side hustle, so it’s more important than ever to set parameters around your working patterns. Use the time you have wisely, but don’t feel you have to spend every spare minute working on it, or you’ll likely burn out. If you burn out, you’re less likely to be able to maintain your side hustle anyway, so it would all be for nothing!

Invest in the important things
Just as it’s important to take care of your wellbeing, it’s also important to take care of your bank account. It’s unwise to pour all your money from one job straight into another! Think about what will help you the most, and spend your money there. Is it a website, for visibility and legitimacy? Is it a physical workspace? Whatever it is, make sure it’s worthy of your hard-earned money!

Get the tools you need
Some of the things you invest in should make your life easier and give you the best chance of success. Technology can be essential for side hustlers: a website, for example, will give you a way to share your products with the world. A website with an online store included will let you make sales straight away, while an included domain name and email address will take you right from hobbyist to professional in one fell swoop! Try to find as many all-in-one solutions as you can: this will save you time and money. Another thing to look out for is how well tools and apps will fit in with your busy schedule. Many business tools are available as mobile apps, which can be really helpful if you’re frequently on the go.

Make sure it’s something you enjoy
Many of us can find it hard to motivate ourselves to work outside our paid hours. If you’re going to start a sideline business, you’re unlikely to give it the attention it needs if you’re not really engaged with it. This is why so many side hustles are hobbies people already enjoy – if something already brings you pleasure, the idea of doing more of it (alongside more administrative tasks) won’t fill you with horror!

Set goals (and check in with them)
It’s better to start small and have manageable goals to work towards than to give a side hustle everything you’ve got, only for it to not work out. Decide what milestones you want to reach, and what you want to do when you get there, and check back regularly to see how you’re doing. For example, if you want to start listing products once you’ve got at least 10 in stock, make a note of this, and try to keep to your plan! Checklists can be helpful for this: we’ve created one to help you stay on top of the online side of your business.

Learn by doing
Whatever happens, don’t be too hard on yourself! One of the best things about a side hustle is that it can involve more trial and error, thanks to the fact that it probably isn’t your main source of income. As you’re limited on time, it’s better to dive into something and then find that it doesn’t work than to spend months planning something – only to find out that it doesn’t work. Make a plan and set goals quickly, then go straight into finding out what works and what doesn’t. 


Side hustles are a great way to make a little extra money, share a hobby, make a difference or test the waters when it comes to starting a business, so it’s no wonder so many people are going down this route! They offer a huge amount of flexibility without the commitment of leaving a job to start a business, and this is definitely a good thing. As with anything, there are things to be wary of: burnout, financial problems and issues with maintaining an existing job can all come into play if you aren’t mindful of avoiding them. Taking the time to check in with yourself and your situation on a regular basis is essential; if you do this, you might find that you feel more fulfilled than ever. Your bank account may well end up thanking you too!

If you’re starting any kind of business (side hustle or otherwise), it’s important to have a way for people to find you and see what you can do. Why not try Go Sitebuilder free today?

How to take great product photos

Product photography tips

Following on from our blog on how to write great product descriptions, we’ve rounded up our top tips for taking great images to match. When you’re selling products online, it’s absolutely vital to show them off with professional-looking, accurate images. A well-taken set of photos will immediately instil trust in your customers and make them more likely to purchase. While descriptions are great for explaining the ins and outs of a product and winning over customers, 90% of the information we absorb is visual. More than that, 93% of consumers consider appearance to be the most important thing when making a decision!

Choose your camera

The good news is that you don’t need to splash out on a big, swanky camera to take great product photos! Most modern smartphones have great cameras these days – and if yours doesn’t, you probably know someone whose does, who’d be willing to let you use it for an afternoon in exchange for a cup of coffee/chat/evening of babysitting. For more tips, Hubspot have a great guide to taking good photos on your phone.

Name your images

Give your product twice as much chance of showing up in search results by giving it a relevant title. It’s unlikely that many people will search for ‘image123456.jpg’ – and if they do, they probably aren’t looking for your image! Use concise, clear terminology to help people to find you. This will also help search engines to index your image, as well as providing a backup description if your image doesn’t load for some reason.

Consistency is key

The key thing to consider is uniformity; always try and shoot your images in the same style. This will ensure that the customer has a clear idea of what the products look like, and make your online store front look really professional.

Pick your light

Avoid fluorescent overhead lighting – nobody looks good under this, and that goes for inanimate objects too! Natural light is normally a safe bet, so try to shoot in this wherever possible. The light changes dramatically throughout the day, so pick a time when you like the light and try to always shoot at around the same time.

Use multiple images

Just as you need to make sure your written descriptions help customers to really get an idea of your products, you should also include enough of the right images to help people get a feel for them. You’ve probably noticed that most online stores include product shots from multiple angles and this is why – the majority of customers need to know that they aren’t missing any details by not being in a physical store and seeing a product for themselves. This also applies to product variations: if you have a product in multiple colours or sizes, always show them all!

Give an idea of scale

Hopefully you’ve provided the technical specifications of your products, but unless your customers have a tape measure to hand, they might want a more tangible idea of how big something is. You can help by providing a point of comparison: if your product can be held in your hand, think about including a photo of this; if it’s designed to be worn, show it on a person; if it’s something you put in your home or garden, include a photo of it in situ. This will help your customers to make an informed decision and help you to avoid having to deal with complaints when a product arrives and is a different size from the one they were expecting!

Create professional backgrounds

You can create a sleek, uniform background for your products by taping a large sheet of white paper between the wall and the surface your products are on, to form a curve or sweep. This creates a really professional look, and gets rid of any annoying unwanted background marks or shadows!

If you keep these tips in mind and get into the habit of following them, you’ll be on your way to having an online store to rival the best of them! A little effort and consistency goes a long way, and will ensure that you’re never selling your products short. 

If you don’t have an online store yet, you’re in luck: a Go Sitebuilder subscription includes an online store (with unlimited product listings!) and much more – for less than the price of a coffee a week. Sign up for a free trial today and put your newfound product photography skills to use!

How to write effective product descriptions

When shopping online, your customers are relying on you to give them a clear, informative and persuasive picture of your products, as they can’t get a feel for them in the same way as they might in a bricks-and-mortar store. We’ve rounded up some top tips for creating effective product descriptions to help your products sell and make your store a success.

Define your target audience

Who are you trying to win over? In an ideal world, you would have customers from all demographics and all walks of life, but chances are there’s one group of people who are more likely to buy your product. Think about what kind of language they would and wouldn’t engage with, and keep this in mind when you’re writing. For example, if your target audience is people over the age of 50, they probably aren’t going to be overly receptive to slang words or excessive familiarity; however, if you’re targeting millennials, they’ll be more receptive to this style of language.

Tell a story

Did you decide to create a product because you needed it and realised it didn’t exist yet? Did you already make it, and decide to start selling it because it was your grandma’s favourite? Many products have a story behind them, and this is a great way to gain customers’ trust and engage them. It doesn’t have to be long, but a personal touch in a product description can go a long way. 

Explain the results and benefits

Rather than just explaining what’s good about a product, explain why it’s good. If you’re selling a travel mug with a rubber sleeve, for example, what does this sleeve do? Chances are, it makes it easy to carry the mug on the go! Wherever possible, include this kind of justification so that your customers know exactly how they can benefit from the features you’ve put time and effort into!

Create evocative descriptions

Sensory words (e.g. ‘feels’,’ sounds’, ‘looks like’) are really effective when it comes to making sales. Always use these where you can – although don’t fall into the trap of using them where they’re really not relevant!

Don’t forget the product specifications

It’s easy to get bogged down in the stylistic elements of creating a product description, but don’t forget to include the basics! Make sure you supply product dimensions, care instructions and other details as applicable for each product.

Use relevant keywords

It goes without saying that people need to be able to find your store for you to make sales. Using relevant, SEO-boosting keywords will help your website to show up on Google, so that people searching for products like yours will end up in the right place (on your website!).

Include reviews

Nothing breeds trust like trust. Wherever possible, include positive reviews on your product listing pages – either with the tried-and-tested star rating system or just as quotes from satisfied customers. If you don’t have any reviews to hand yet, try asking customers for feedback – although make sure you’re complying with GDPR and only contacting them if it’s okay to do so. This article has some great tips on how to get reviews, so you can start building that trust straight away.

Keep these guidelines in mind and you’ll have a simple format to follow for all your product descriptions. As with all creative business activities, you’ll find your own style, but these are things you should always try to include. A little effort will go a long way, and you’ll soon find your products flying off the virtual shelves!

If you don’t have an online store yet, you’re in luck: a Go Sitebuilder subscription includes an online store (with unlimited product listings!) and much more – for less than the price of a coffee a week. Sign up for a free trial today and put your newfound product listing expertise to use!

What is SSL and why is it important?

You might have seen the term online or noticed your fellow small business owners talking about it at the last networking meeting, but what is SSL? Why is it important? and should you be worried if your website doesn’t have it? We’re here to answer these questions and explain how this techy term can help your business to succeed online.

What is SSL?

In technical terms:

Secure Sockets Layer (also known as SSL, SSL Cert or SSL Certificate) is a digital certificate. It authenticates a website and encrypts information passed through an online connection.

To you and me:

It provides a secure, private connection when browsing the internet! It keeps your website protected and provides a safe experience for your customers. 

SSL has become the foundation of internet security, keeping you and your customers safe from hackers as your valuable data travels through the world wide web. Every day we are reminded about the imminent online security threat and how important it is to protect our data. This doesn’t just mean financial data, but any data. We already know that we should purchase some kind of malware protection and create complex passwords, but we should also be ensuring that we’re buying from and browsing trusted websites. SSL provides that level of security and we should all be aware of its greatness! 

How do I check if a website is safe?

It’s easy to spot if a website is being actively protected by SSL. All you need to look out for is the https:// at the start of the website’s URL and a closed padlock icon next to it. It might look something like this:

A website and domain being actively protected by SSL

Chances are, your customers will be looking out for this too – so make sure your site is protected!

If a website isn’t protected, you might see something like this:

An example of an un-secure website and domain not being protected by SSL

You might even be faced with one of these scary messages:

A browser security warning

This is all the more reason to make sure your website is protected. If you’re trying to sell products, the last thing you want is your customer’s browser warning them off!

Why is SSL so important?

Okay, so we’ve covered the main points of securing data and protection from online hackers. However, SSL provides more than just that, especially if you’re running a business. SSL can also:

  • Boost your Google rankings (who doesn’t want that?!): Google now considers SSL important for ALL websites, not just for those with checkouts or password-protected areas. With more activity online than ever before, Google and other major search engines are dedicated to countering security threats. As part of this, they’re using https as a ranking signal, encouraging people to be safe online and rewarding those who already are 
  • Provide credibility and build customer trust: Seeing ‘https’ or the closed padlock next to your website’s domain name instantly tells your website visitors that you are a legitimate business. This means that it’s safe to not only browse your website, but also to purchase from it.

What happens if I don’t have an SSL cert?

Your business probably won’t thrive online – and might not even survive. If you’re selling anything online or asking visitors to provide any data, such as credit card credentials or information via a contact form, you need to have an SSL cert in place. Even if you aren’t collecting this information, SSL will improve your SEO and your customers will know you care about their online security – it’s a win-win situation! If your customers don’t trust your website, you could miss out on valuable business. They might even be blocked from accessing your website completely if their browser deems it too unsafe to visit. 

While it’s always good to think about your website’s security, our advice would be to go one step further than this, and to invest in an SSL certificate today. There are lots of helpful guides out there to help you to choose the right SSL for you. If you’re using a website builder like ours, you might already have an SSL certificate included in your package; or perhaps your provider can supply one at an extra cost.

We know how important online security is for any business, so we’ve included SSL with every premium Go Sitebuilder package, completely free of charge; all you need to do is enable it! If you have a Go Sitebuilder website, here’s how:

If you don’t have a website or you’re looking to create a new responsive website that you can update from anywhere (plus a FREE SSL cert), sign up for a free trial with Go Sitebuilder.