If you haven’t noticed yet, gig economy jobs have been booming! Especially with technology making it easier for people to make more money and find new interesting paying jobs. Plus, the way people work and the demand for more flexibility in how we work has changed. To me, these are all great signs to help stimulate people’s savings, boost work from home and career interests.
And this is great news for anyone who may be limited on time or looking for some variety when it comes to how they make money. After all, sometimes our full-time jobs are not very fulfilling or even then struggle to pay enough to cover bills and cost of living. It’s also important to note, the gig economy is not just about doing menial tasks or just driving for Uber. It’s far greater than that and extends into some well-paying freelance opportunities.
1. Graphic Design and Branding
While you can certainly get a full-time position in a company doing graphic design, it’s also a popular gig economy job. If you have any skills and passion for creating logos, flyers, ads, etc. you can make some good money for small businesses doing this. You can look on freelance job boards, cold reach out to businesses, or sign-up for something like 99Designs or CrowdSpring. Creating graphics and branding is a great way to build a portfolio and you can quickly scale revenue.
2. Digital Marketing
This is one that I took part in when I was first trying to build my marketing skills up. But there is so much demand for people who know how to do things like social media, paid advertising (like Facebook and Instagram), SEO, etc. Most businesses will have some in-house marketers, but many need extra help or will be looking to outsource the work.
While some larger jobs may require a few years experience and a degree, smaller gigs don’t require that. Some minor experience and training is all it takes to get a good gig. Now, I’m not diminishing the profession because it takes years to be a well-rounded master of marketing, but there are plenty of smaller digital marketing jobs you can do. You can find many of these quick marketing jobs on Upwork.
3. Freelance Writing
Even today in a much more visual world, writing is still valuable and important. Not only do businesses need good content writers, but there are many online publications that hire freelance writers. And besides just straight up articles, you may be tasked with writing advertisements, billboards, website copy, or other forms of writing. This is a popular gig economy job as you can be anywhere in the world to write. And while experience and some credentials will help you get gigs, you can find success without that by practicing and building your writing portfolio.
4. Pet Sitting and Dog Walking
One of the common gig economy jobs is pet sitting or dog walking. In some cases, these can pay you to an equivalent of a comfortable full-time salary. However, that is generally not the norm. Instead, look at this as great supplemental income generated by tasks that are not overwhelming challenging. You can use an app like Rover that connects you with people looking for others to walk their dogs, feed their cats, or take care of any pets. If you get a few repeat customers, the extra income can start to add up.
5. Virtual Assistant
For many online business owners or small businesses, hiring a virtual assistant to handle many recurring and daily tasks is a time saver. Things like handling email, booking travel plans, scheduling social media, basic website management, scheduling meetings, data management, etc.
These are tasks that can be done anywhere in the world with a decent internet connection. If you are really good and organized, you can probably handle more than one client too. And it doesn’t require schooling, but you do need some experience.
6. Driving for Uber or Lyft
When you think about the gig economy, you might immediately thought about driving for Lyft or Uber. Those two have been quite popular, but as you can see from the list — there are many options. Ride sharing has been popular now for a decade and these apps have changed the way people get rides. However, there has been some backlash over the years too, which prompted these companies to make changes.
7. Web developer, Coding
Coding is an art form and there are tons of languages out there that many people and businesses may need help with. If you have noticed, the gig economy is really about the opportunities that tech has brought us. As a web developer or coder, you’ll be troubleshooting, creating websites, helping develop software programs, and mobile apps specifically. Because there is a demand for great coders, you can freelance this work and do it whenever you have a good internet connection.
8. Deliver Food
Food delivery services became wildly popular in the last few years, which gave more people opportunities to make money on their schedules. You can be flexible as to when and how often you accept deliveries. Once you are approved by the company you may be a deliverer for, you can start accepting jobs right away.
Some of the popular food delivery apps include Postmates, Uber Eats, and DoorDash. Additionally, you could deliver groceries for people through Instacart.
9. Proofreader/Editor
If you are not into writing articles, you might want to consider being a proofreader instead. You may enjoy catching grammar and misspellings. Hell, I know I could use one myself but can’t afford anyone quite yet!
But this is a solid gig economy job that anyone with some skills can get paid to do. You might naturally be good at this, have previous education in the field, or you can learn to become a strong proofreader. Whatever the case, there is always a demand to help edit and clean up content.
10. Video Editor
Video and visual media are huge parts for businesses and entertainment. That means there is a demand for good video editors who know the in’s and out’s of editing software and camera equipment. You’ll be doing everything from editing clips, making transitions, adding music and adjusting sound, and more. These gigs you can quickly find on Upwork or Flexjobs, where you’ll find some strong pay rates for this quality of work.
11. Advanced Technology Jobs
Some of the highest paid gig economy jobs fall under the technology umbrella. Not only are these skills and knowledge in demand, but it makes it easier for people to work on their own terms. So what tech jobs might I be referring to? Well there are a few that come to mind like AI, robotics, blockchain, virtual reality, and data science.
For these types of gigs, you’ll need to have some experience, probably a degree, and a good experience track record. But if you fit this area, you can very well go on your own, work when you want, and make some really good money.