612: 10 Ways to Make Your Side Hustle Feel “Real”

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1:14What's up? What's up? Nick Loper here. Welcome to the Side Hustle Show. We're part of the Entrepreneur Podcast Network because your nine to five may make you a living, but your five to nine makes you alive. I got a pop quiz for you. What's the difference between an amateur and a professional? You might say training, you might say practice or experience, but the real difference is that the professional gets paid. Today, I want to share 10 ways to make your side hustle feel more legit, feel more official, to make it feel more real. But before we get into any of those, you got to know this, none of them are a substitute for actually getting paid.

1:48Once you hit that money milestone, it's really official. You've made the leap from amateur to professional, and there's no looking back. That first income, no matter how small, that's an empowering moment. And that's why I always try and remember to ask, well, how'd you get your first customers? Remember your first sale? How'd you get the initial traction for your business? It's probably due for an update since it's literally 10 years old at this point. But I did a whole episode describing how I got my first sale in six different businesses. Later on, we had a fun roundup with another 25 members of the Side Hustle Nation community sharing their first sale moments in another episode.

2:21I can link both those up in the show notes. But I also understand that a lot of people, myself included, often want some level of quote unquote establishment before they feel comfortable saying they're open for business. It's actually a really common question I get. Do I need to register my business before I start creating or marketing my thing? So I wanted to create this episode to address that and nine other relatively quick and inexpensive actions you can take to make your side hustle feel more official in your mind and maybe in the minds of your customers as well. My only caution is not to use this list as an excuse to procrastinate, but to use it as a checklist to build some positive momentum and keep going.

3:04Number one won't cost you anything, and that's to simply make time for your business. If it's a priority for you, you're going to find the time to dedicate to it, even if it's just half an hour a day. Block it off on your calendar, take it seriously, even if you're pre-revenue, because you're never going to get to revenue if you don't invest the time to get it off the ground. So you got to find those cracks in your day, the bookends of your days, first thing in the morning, last thing before bed, your lunch breaks, your weekends. But consistency is key to building some positive momentum. In our subscriber survey earlier this year, I asked people, well, how much are you making from your side hustle?

3:38And then the next question was, how much time are you spending on it each week? And not surprisingly, there was almost a direct correlation to the people who were making very little with the people who were spending very little time. So that's the first thing you got to do to make your side hustle feel more official is to simply commit to dedicating time to it. Doesn't have to be a lot, but does need to be something. Otherwise, not going to happen. It's kind of like me expecting my golf game to improve despite never practicing. So that's number one. Number two is to register a business name or DBA doing business as name.

4:09So even if you're not ready to tell your friends and family about your business, perhaps telling the government is going to make it feel a little bit more official in your mind. And DBAs or fictitious business names, they're not anything shady. It's just a way to separate your name from the businesses, usually for marketing purposes. It's a reason why it's called Side Hustle Nation and not Nick Loper. It's registered. These DBAs doing business as names are registered at the state level, sometimes the county level, usually not with the federal government. You don't need to incorporate or create any other legal entity right now.

4:41The filing fees for DBAs are usually next to nothing, usually very affordable. for example in Washington state I think it's like five bucks and that comes in handy if you need to pivot if you need to change it later in most cases you can also run a search to make sure that nobody else is using the name that you have in mind it could be something like Bob Smith Photography Side Hustle Nation NJL Enterprises which was actually the name of my first company so that's number two register your business name or you're doing business as name number three is to incorporate if necessary and get your necessary insurance and licensing.

5:14And the incorporate if necessary, that's a big if for most side hustlers starting out, because for most listeners, your entity selection is going to be an LLC, a limited liability company. But with that comes additional registration fees with your state, which can be significant. In California, it was like a minimum of$800 a year on top of having additional paperwork filing requirements. And I need to caveat this with hashtag not legal advice, hashtag not tax advice, please consult the professional, all those disclaimers. But you have to ask yourself, what liability do I realistically have in this side hustle?

5:48After all, that's the primary purpose of a limited liability company is to limit your personal liability. And if you're doing tutoring or freelance writing or photography or creating YouTube content, I'm going to argue that your liability is probably pretty low and it might not be worth the additional costs and paperwork headache of incorporating at this stage. Now, if your business has more liability built in, maybe you're doing mobile car detailing where somebody could claim hypothetically that you damaged their car. And then it probably makes sense to form that entity earlier rather than later.

6:23And in addition to that, it probably makes sense to layer on a business insurance policy. And these are typically pretty affordable. For example, we've seen examples from the mobile notary side hustle where it's, I want to say under$200 a year for errors and emissions insurance. My wife carries a general liability policy for her photography business that would basically pay to restage to redo an entire wedding if for some covered reason the pictures were unusable. I don't know. Our partner CoverWallet can provide additional guidance on the type of insurance that would be best suited to your business and the cost estimates associated with that.

7:01And insurance could be a good idea whether you incorporate or not, again, depending on your realistic liability risk. And if you do choose not to incorporate, by default, your side hustle income is going to flow through to your personal tax return anyway, like it would with an LLC as a sole proprietor. And even as a sole proprietor, the world of available business tax deductions still opens up to you. Remember, the tax code, by and large, is written by business owners for business owners, and they really incentivize this stuff. So lots of new write-offs open up to you. And as we mentioned on the show, there may be a potential tax savings on your self-employment tax at certain revenue levels if you incorporate as an LLC with an S-corp tax selection.

7:41That's beyond the scope of this episode. Talk to your tax professional. I would say minimum$50 ,000 revenue before looking at that option. So for most side hustles, you may not need to go the entity registration route starting out. But another scenario where it might make sense is if it's a mental block for you. I opened my first LLC while I was still in college, really had no idea what I needed it for, really didn't need it for anything, but it felt good. And if I'm being honest, it made me feel smart and maybe more important than I was. Look, I'm a business owner. I didn't have any revenue, didn't have any customers.

8:14But when those eventually came, I felt like I was ready for it. The next question that comes up is, well, do you need a business license? And this was completely dependent on your local city and state, sometimes county requirements and type of business that you're in. So for example, I had, I even had to apply for a quote unquote home use permit and register my business with the city of Livermore. When we were in California, they wanted to make sure that I was operating a legal home business. Like it's entirely online. Nobody's coming to my house. And on top of that, I had to pay a fee that was based on top line revenue.

8:50It just always annoys me when different government entities do this. Like they tax on the top line revenue instead of bottom line profit. Super frustrating, but that's how they did. And it was relatively small percentage. But the reason for this, governments want to know what kinds of businesses are running within their jurisdictions. And they've got regulations in place, depending on what type of business that you have. And of course, they want their license fees too, to pay for services. So be sure to research your local laws. find out what's required. But if you're just starting out as a side hustler, I wouldn't worry about this in most cases until you've got some revenue.

9:21So that was number three, incorporate if necessary, or if that's a mental block for you, maybe leave the entity name a little broad. Remember NJL Enterprises, it could be anything or a little open-ended so you don't have to redo it. If you end up pivoting your business in a few months, hey, this idea didn't work out. I'm going to try something else, but I can keep the incorporation name the same. Get your insurance if you need it and get your local licenses in order if those are required, especially once your business is showing some revenue. I've got more ways to make your side hustle feel more real right after this.

9:50Did you know there's a disease running rampant among side hustlers and new entrepreneurs? It's called superhero syndrome. Symptoms include a feeling like you got to do everything yourself, thinking you're the only one who can do it right, and struggling to let go of certain tasks. Does that sound familiar to anyone? But the good news is there is a cure. Our sponsor Indeed can help you find the best candidates for the roles you need to fill and find them fast. Stop struggling to get your job posts seen on other job sites. Indeed's sponsored jobs help you stand out and hire fast. With sponsored jobs, your post jumps to the top of the page for your relevant candidates so you can reach the people you want faster.

10:27It's true. Sponsored jobs posted directly on Indeed get 45 % more applications because every superhero needs an amazing sidekick. That's why for my next hire, I'm using Indeed. There's no need to wait any longer. Speed up your hiring right now with Indeed. Side Hustle Show listeners get a$75 sponsored job credit to get your jobs more visibility at indeed.com slash side hustle show. Just go to indeed.com slash side hustle show right now and support the show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indeed.com slash side hustle show. Terms and conditions apply. Hiring. Indeed is all you need.

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11:37And if you ever have any issues or questions, Shopify's award-winning customer support team is standing by 24-7 so you can get back to business as fast as possible. If you want to give your customers the best shopping experience this holiday season, you need Shopify. This Black Friday, join the thousands of new entrepreneurs hearing for the first time with Shopify. Sign up for your free trial today at shopify.com slash side hustle. That's shopify.com slash side hustle. Go to shopify.com slash side hustle and make this Black Friday one to remember. The fourth way to make your side hustle feel more real is to apply for an EIN.

12:14An EIN is an employer identification number. It's like the social security number for your business. And they're given out exclusively by the federal government, by the IRS. And you might be thinking, employer, I just want to be my own boss. I don't plan on having any employees, especially right away, but it's usually, an EIN is usually required for opening a business bank account. That's like probably the most important reason to get it early on. And having a business bank account, that's important to keep your finances straight come tax time. So irs.gov, you can get an EIN for free. Number five on this list is to get that business bank account.

12:49Again, so you can easily separate your business and personal finances. It gives you a dedicated account to deposit any revenue from the business and from which to pay your expenses. So even if you're operating as a sole proprietor, maintaining separate accounts, it's a smart habit to get into. It's going to make your life a lot simpler come tax time. How it worked for me, I just went into the same branch where I had my personal checking account, asked if I could open a business account. They said, sure. It was simple. The account was free. Hopefully yours will be too. That's number five, get that business bank account.

13:19Number six is to get a business credit card. And again, along these lines of separating your business and personal expenses. Easy way to do that is put the business expenses on the business credit card. On top of that, you have the advantage of earning credit card rewards, signup bonuses. I try to put all my business expenses, website hosting, software expenses, office equipment, advertising, different agencies that I hire, like on business credit cards, rack up the points for that. The glory is when I was really running a ton of advertising through my original side hustle, I could spend five, six, seven hundred bucks a day on advertising, rack up a ton of miles.

13:55It was fly for free. It was fantastic. But I'm going to link up some of the best current business credit card offers in the show notes for this episode. All you have to do is follow the link in the episode description and I'll get you right over there. Now, the question that comes up is, well, does my side hustle even qualify for a business credit card? What if I haven't made any money yet? The cool thing is banks understand that businesses typically have some startup costs before they revenue, and they're happy to lend you that money, usually at some pretty high interest rates. So just be careful about that.

14:25Don't spend more than you can afford. If your business is going to have some of those startup expenses or ongoing costs, you might as well recoup some of those in the form of credit card rewards or sign up bonuses and get in the habit of separating your business and personal finances at the same time. That's number six on this list. Get yourself that business credit card. I'll link up some of the best current business card offers in the show notes for this episode. Number seven is to set up your website, or at least, at the very least, secure your domain name. Now, building a website doesn't have to be expensive, doesn't have to be complicated, but it's important to have an online home base to explain what you do, to showcase your work, to give people a way to contact you.

15:06Now, this is easier than it's ever been, right? You can use tools like our sponsor Squarespace. Side Hustle Nation, for the sake of reference, is built on WordPress, which has thousands of free or very affordable themes that you can customize. And at the very least, like I said, I recommend registering your domain name for your business. That's the name people type into their browser bar to reach your website, SideHustleNation.com, for example, NickLoper.com. The reason is you want to claim that. You want to stake your claim to that piece of digital real estate before anybody else does because you don't want somebody else building a business around your name or the name that you want.

15:39Now, a lot of hosts will give you that domain name for free or the first year of it for free when you sign up for a hosting plan. Now, my tinfoil hat conspiracy theory is don't go searching GoDaddy for domain availability unless you're committed to buying it right then. Because I've heard from more people than would just be coincidence that they searched it, it was available, only to come back a day or two later and find that somebody else had already registered it. So most domains for the sake of reference are going to cost 10 to$30 a year, really low startup cost type of thing, depending on what extension you get.com.co.us.io, stuff like that.

16:17That's number seven, set up your website, even if it's just a portfolio site, just a placeholder site, claim that piece of digital real estate. I think that's important. Number eight is to get a logo. And I don't want not having a logo to stand in the way of you doing the actual work, if that makes sense. You might find that getting a logo helps your business feel more official, just like everything else on this list. And it might help potential customers see it that way, too. For logo design, you've got lots of options, including doing it yourself. You could use Canva. You could use our sponsor, Taylor Brands.

16:50You could hire a dedicated graphic designer. the important thing to remember is it doesn't have to be perfect probably not that many people are going to see it right away and you can always change it later and it's not likely to be a deal breaker for any serious customer i mean how many times have you been contemplating a purchase decision and you're almost all the way to the finish line and then you're like yeah it's the product i want it's the price i want it's the company i want but that logo i don't know it's just ugly man i don't think that happens don't overthink it with that being said i think a logo can be a small trust building factor to show customers, hey, I'll put some thought into the small details.

17:25It sends a positive signal that you're taking the business seriously. Number nine, this is going to sound old fashioned, but get business cards. If you're going to be doing any in-person networking, business cards are still a must have in my book. And even if you don't plan on schmoozing your way to new clients, you would be surprised how often the topic of, well, what do you do comes up in conversation? Keeping a handful of business cards in your wallet's an easy way to be prepared when that opportunity arises. For example, I'm talking with other parents at the park after school. Well, what do you do?

17:56Oh, I have this podcast. And oh, that sounds interesting. I'd like to check that out. The odds of them remembering what it was called, finding it on their phone, listening to an episode, like those are pretty low. But if I can hand them the business card that has the cover art QR code on the back that they can scan, instantly opens up whatever their preferred podcast app is, I got to think that the odds go up. So having business cards, really low expense, really easy thing to do. Just keep a couple on you. You never know when it's going to come in handy. It gives you something, a tangible leave behind.

18:26It makes a better impression than just, oh, well, let me remember. What was that guy's business again? So number nine, get business cards. Number 10 is to claim your free business profiles. And this is where we start to build out a little bit of our web presence, our online footprint, our online foundation beyond just our own website. And so what I mean by this is by creating a Facebook page for your business, creating a Google business profile page for your business, maybe a LinkedIn page or a Yelp page. If you're doing business locally, maybe you set up an Instagram account. Maybe there are some other relevant directories you can add your information to.

19:00Is it going to drive sales? Probably not, or at least probably not right away, but you're starting to get more visible. And with each profile you create, again, it's another signal to yourself and to customers that yes, this is an official business. Yes, we're treating it seriously. Plus, all of those can link back to your website. You're starting to build that SEO foundation to hopefully make you more discoverable down the road. And it would totally be fair to say that a lot of these ideas in the wrong hands, of course, could be considered a positive procrastination. Just made that term up. Positive procrastination.

19:32It feels good to check these items off. Maybe some are more important than others. But if you're doing them at the expense of doing the actual revenue generating work, then it becomes a problem. So while we've been discussing ways to make your business feel more official, I can promise nothing is going to make it be more official than actually doing the real work and getting paid. So that's the bottom line. Just because you have a business bank account doesn't mean you have a business yet. But if crossing these items off your list gives you the confidence to move forward with your side hustle to start spreading the word, then let's get them out of the way and get down to business.

20:04What do you think? Is there anything that you've done to make your side hustle feel more legit? it. Was there anything you wanted to have in place before you started doing any marketing for your business? Anything you'd add to the list? Let me know. We'd love to hear from you. If you're new to the show, welcome. Thank you for joining me to make your listening experience a little smoother, a little more curated. I built a little playlist generator quiz. You can find it at hustle.show, answer a few short multiple choice questions, and it'll build you a personalized playlist of Side Hustle Show episodes based on your answers that will be most relevant for you.

20:38Then you can add those to your device. You can tune in when you get the chance. You can learn what works and you can go make some more money. Again, that's hustle.show to claim your personalized playlist. Thousands of listeners have already gotten theirs and I want to invite you to be next. So go grab yours hustle.show. That's it for me. Thank you so much for tuning in. Until next time, let's go out there and make something happen. And I'll catch you in the next edition of the Side Hustle Show. Hustle on.