Decent ways to make small amounts of $$$?

[Jeux]

I'll be working part time and doing various programming projects at home till classes start at my university (one of those projects being a mod for Fallout New Vegas). I would very much like to have some kind of gig or small "business" where I can bring in small amounts of cash.

 

I don't want to use the word "business" because that's not what I'm going for. Some things I had in mind:

 

1.) Investment. I know right now is a TERRIBLE time to do any investing, but I was interested in investing in stocks or land.

 

2.) Building Computers. I'm majoring in computer science. Apart from my rather extensive knowledge in software development, I know a great deal about computer hardware, configuration, efficiency, compatibility, cooling, etc. So i'd like to build mid-high end computers on the side. I just built 4 systems, all of them gaming rigs around $1000. I also helped build a rig with a 4-way SLI setup. This kind of thing isn't new at all; many people have been AND are doing so. So how would I go about finding a market for it? Where would I find customers? Tips? Should I go as far as making a website, affiliation, and so on? I would mostly build gaming rigs and professional systems, with some internet-surfing computers if called for.

 

3.) Retail Profiting. I thought it would be nice to find and buy products from wholesale retailers and re-sell them at a slightly higher price. An example would be buying a nice pack of earrings online with $1 value, setting up an eBay account and reselling them with $4 value. Or maybe buying expensive products like computer components that are on crazy sales online, then reselling them slightly higher than their sale price for very small profit. This is the most risky/unrealistic method, IMO.

 

4.) Other methods?

 

All advice is appreciated. Feel free to be as realistic as possible when necessary.

[ub3rman123]

Where I am, computer repair is a great way to make cash. Most people don't know how to remove viruses and install internet connections, along with upgrading hardware, so I can do that pretty easily for petty cash.

[HeyYou]

Where I am, computer repair is a great way to make cash. Most people don't know how to remove viruses and install internet connections, along with upgrading hardware, so I can do that pretty easily for petty cash.

 

This.

 

Most of the places around here are charging 50 bucks an hour, or more...... I charge 25 bucks an hour, and actually show up on folks doorsteps. I ran this as a business for a while, but, when the economy died, so did business. I folded up shop. I still had a few customers that would call me on a regular basis, and they started having their friends call me........ I have a couple disks with some assorted apps on them, that I take to a customers house, and that is generally all I need. (some of my customers are still on dialup..... so, downloading everything each and every time just doesn't work for me, or them.....)

 

Our newspaper has a section for "Call a Pro"...... if yours has something similar, run an ad for a week or two, and see what shakes loose.

[bben46]

First off, Investing now could be very profitable - If you find something that you can invest in that is. Right now, real estate is at it's lowest in 20 years. And while the stock people are constantly whining about how much they are losing, most stocks (IMHO) are still overpriced. People no longer invest in stocks for the long term or for the yearly return, but for short term gain, buy one day and sell the next for a small gain, then if it drops later that day, buy it again to sell tomorrow. A lot of that is done by bots and that is what causes so much volatility in the stock market. But again, if you can find a good stock at a good but reasonably low price, go ahead and buy it. A few years ago people thought that Apple stock was overpriced. :tongue:

 

Now for the drawbacks of building and fixing computers. Once you build or fix a computer for a friend or relative they own you. Anything that happens to that computer - or any other computer they own is automatically your fault. You will be at their beck and call at all times, weekends and after hours especially - So, be sure you get some kind of agreement and warranty in writing before you do any work or you will be expected to replace (for free) a heavily used hard drive three years from when you installed it.

 

As for programming, because of the economy, small time freelance programmers and computer builders are a dime a dozen right now. But you may be able to snag a small business that wants some custom work - build a complete top to bottom setup, server, routers, desktops, integrated phone, fax and print server, network, and set up the programs for them. Or modernize a setup by adding NAS and a print server to an existing office. But again be careful about how you present yourself, or they will be calling you for fixes and demanding free work from now on.

 

My own experience, I updated an independent water company to use a computerized billing system nearly 20 years ago. His meter readers each carried a small laptop (Tandy 100) to enter the readings, then when they brought it into the office it was plugged into the billing PC and the data was downloaded directly into the billing program. The owner still calls me whenever anything happens to any of his computers even though the system I built for him is long gone. And he is in a completely different business now. And he still insists on using DOS :rolleyes:

 

Buying and selling small lots - there are thousands of people already doing that on ebay. I know several personally. Some do well, others not so well. If you can, find a niche that few people are already in and throw out a lot of small deals daily - it can be a full time job with moderate cash flow possibilities due to low overhead. Watch out for licenses and taxes as governments think any small business must be making lots of money and they want their share. Unfortunately, they get to decide what their share is. :confused:

[Halororor]

Where I am, computer repair is a great way to make cash. Most people don't know how to remove viruses and install internet connections, along with upgrading hardware, so I can do that pretty easily for petty cash.

 

Yep, pretty much this. I formatted a external hard drive for someone a while back, and I felt to bad too accept it, so I declined taking the entire R200 (more or less 30 USD) he offered me.

[RZ1029]

2.) Building Computers. I'm majoring in computer science. Apart from my rather extensive knowledge in software development, I know a great deal about computer hardware, configuration, efficiency, compatibility, cooling, etc. So i'd like to build mid-high end computers on the side. I just built 4 systems, all of them gaming rigs around $1000. I also helped build a rig with a 4-way SLI setup. This kind of thing isn't new at all; many people have been AND are doing so. So how would I go about finding a market for it? Where would I find customers? Tips? Should I go as far as making a website, affiliation, and so on? I would mostly build gaming rigs and professional systems, with some internet-surfing computers if called for.

 

This. However, I'd recommend less building and more networking and virus cleanup than anything, from my own personal experience. I do work, mostly for friends/family/friends of friends and family, to keep a little extra cash in my pocket if I ever feel like buying something. It usually consists of some very basic diagnostics (aka: "My computer won't turn on!11!!1!!! Fix it!"), and then either virus removal, on the rare occasion some part replacement (power supplies going bad, network cards fried by lightning, and a GFX card that went nuclear after the fan was jammed with cat air... ugh, and that was just last month), and networking issues, either setting up or repairing.

 

As far as the market, it's a little dry at the moment, but still far from empty. The issue is most people get conned into the concept that places like Geek Squad are the know-all, end-all beings of the computer world, when 90% of them around here are tech support by-the-numbers with pocket protectors. Like I said, most of my work comes from friends, coworkers, or people my family recommend me to.

 

You could try to run an ad, though, in the local newspaper. Marketing was never my forte, I've been fortunate to keep a good supply of business purely from word of mouth, which now has me maintaining a server for a local doctor's office.

Edited August 13, 2011 by RZ1029

[Jeux]

WOW. These answers are wonderful, thanks guys for your input. Seems as though you all are pretty confident that one can get decent cash doing simple repair jobs, network troubleshooting, cleanups, virus removal, etc. instead of building machines. I'll begin to find out how I can advertise my services. Its amazing how much power you have when you KNOW something another man doesn't. Even more pathetic is the fact that those same men could research their problems (google) and save paying someone like me for service.

 

...oh well. :thumbsup:

 

But while you guys addressed my options to the fullest, I didn't really hear anything about new ideas. I hear blogging is good for some ppl...? I don't know, any ideas?

 

"Buying and selling small lots - there are thousands of people already doing that on ebay. I know several personally. Some do well, others not so well. If you can, find a niche that few people are already in and throw out a lot of small deals daily - it can be a full time job with moderate cash flow possibilities due to low overhead."

 

Any good ideas for products? My first thought was Newegg's Shell Shocker deals, since they only last 24 hours and they usually have excellent deals many people miss....but almost eveyone knows newegg at this rate. Even if I were to sell, I would profit that much so it wouldn't be worth the trouble. The idea I have is having an operation a bit smaller than real estate agents buying/fixing/reselling houses, or mechanics buying old cars, fixing them up and selling on eBay. Something where I profit from secondhand resale. But what product(s)?

[ub3rman123]

People don't really need machines built that often. It's more lucrative to specialize in virus removal and small repairs.

 

I'm not sure I'd rely much on reselling stuff. I get the feeling that eventually you'll wind up with a bunch of product nobody wants to buy.

[Fonger]

The idea I have is having an operation a bit smaller than real estate agents buying/fixing/reselling houses, or mechanics buying old cars, fixing them up and selling on eBay. Something where I profit from secondhand resale. But what product(s)?

if free money was that easy

 

it would be in your morning cereal already.

[Jeux]

The idea I have is having an operation a bit smaller than real estate agents buying/fixing/reselling houses, or mechanics buying old cars, fixing them up and selling on eBay. Something where I profit from secondhand resale. But what product(s)?

if free money was that easy

 

it would be in your morning cereal already.

 

That's the thing. It's not easy. Sounds good on paper, but it hardly works unless done right...Which is why i'm asking others on here for ideas.