I get it. You’re a student, and you’ve got homework, sports practice, and other responsibilities to juggle as well—but that doesn’t mean your mind has to be stuffed full of trivial stuff all day! There are plenty of business ideas for students (and adults) alike where you can find success running it as a side business on campus: 

The ideas discussed in this article will help any person run their own profitable business while still attending school or work during those few hours every week. 

Even when you do nothing but relax, these small-time investments could lead to significant returns if appropriately executed.

And #10 is something you’d like to try out.

Everyone wants to become a business owner, but only a few have what it takes. Although starting a business requires a lot of time and effort, especially without the right business plan, a college student can still handle business while going to school full time. 

Here are some ideas that do not require a massive amount of capital to start a business as a student in Nigeria

1. Start a public relations business

Are you outgoing, friendly, and good at connecting with strangers easily? If you are good at convincing people through your words, then why not market for business owners offline and online with public relations? For example, you can sell business services or products to business owners who want to become more popular or grow their following online.

2. Start an online business 

This business does not require a physical location where customers can visit or purchase what you are offering. You can be a business owner by just staying at home or your dorm room and working on your business. The only thing you need to do is set up an online business and start marketing your business online. You can sell digital products from e-books to music or even design logos for business owners.

3. Start a creative business from home

Do you have creative gifts, or have you been opportune to have mentored under a creative person? 

With your gifted hands and creative mind, you do not need to build a business location because you can work and run a creative business from your home. So, instead of opening a business that requires an expensive business location, you can start a company where you can work from home. For example, you can start selling handmade products to business owners, direct buyers, or even fellow students like yourself.

4. Start a business where you can do business with colleagues 

If you are attending university, you likely have colleagues who want the business done for them. There are loads of student needs that can be satisfied through paid services you can offer like;

• Copying Notes
• Handout procurement and photocopying
• Student documentation and registration for unavailable students
• Topic research and thesis development
• Tutoring, etc.

5. Start a business where you can offer cleaning and maintenance services

Not all students are used to doing chores or domestic cleaning because they weren’t brought up that way. So this home training lapse can be a massive advantage to you looking to earn a side income by going from door to door or just investing in printing flyers that you can hand out to get fellow students needing your service.

And as the number of your clients increases, you can hire other students and pay them a reasonable sum to get the job done while you focus on supervising.

6. Start a home food delivery business

Are you good at cooking different dishes? And do you belong to any faculty group online or a messaging app like WhatsApp, Telegram, etc.? Then you already have a customer advertising platform for your home food delivery business.

Just as we have some students not used to doing chores, you have just as many who don’t know how to cook but sure loves home-cooked meals, and this is where you provide the needed service in exchange for cash.

This business can be quite tasking starting, but it is rewarding over time.

And just like the cleaning and maintenance business, as your customer base increases, you will need to employ extra hands to get the job done faster, and you could retire into the role of a supervisor.

7. Start a Notes Digitization service

Are you very fast at typing? This talent can be a huge selling point for you if you can, considering that most lecture notes are handwritten, and you can then charge to have them typed and stored online as a document.

The service can be billed by word for you to write handwritten notes into Word documents, Excel sheets, or PowerPoint presentations.

If you enjoy working with people face-to-face and don’t want to manage an enterprise that is entirely dependent on the internet, this could be the ideal service to operate. There will be an element of human interaction since you will always have to pick up the notes since they’re an actual copy.

8. Start a Virtual Assistant business

Being a virtual assistant is one business that easily fits into a student’s life as a side hustle, but it is highly competitive. So streamlining your service within the school or focusing on a particular business niche with a wealth of experience would give you an edge.

It is remote-based, and you don’t have to be physically present to offer your service in exchange for wages.

9. Start a Language Translation/transcription service

For those studying and fluent in reading, speaking, and writing foreign languages other than their primary language, this can be offered as a service offline. 

As a student versatile in foreign languages, you can be booked ahead of functions where important dignitaries need your language transcription or translation service. And your proficiency in your service rendered can make you a most sought-after translator, increasing your worth over time.

10. Start a content writing business

Just as you have some people good at convincing other people physically (Public relations), you might fall under the category of those who are good at painting pictures with words and having their readers experience every paragraph in their mind like a movie.

Content writing is a gratifying business depending on how good you are with putting together words that quickly pass a clear message. 

This very post you’re reading is the work of a content writer, and I believe you’ve been able to read and understand all the business ideas for students shared without getting confused on which to start with based on your area of strength.

11. Start an online advertising agency

Starting this as a business requires technical know-how and experience with getting results with every campaign. Many small business owners and even fellow entrepreneurs online who are students need advertising to increase their sales and revenue while also growing their online followers in the process.

If you know Facebook advertising, Google AdWords, etc., you can offer this service that most business owners are earnestly searching for online. And if you consistently get results for your clients, you are sure to get referrals from satisfied customers.

12. Start a Photography business

Unforgettable memories are made while in school. And one of the many ways students store these beautiful memories is by capturing them in still images, and photography is one business that sells massively in colleges and universities.

To start this business, you’d need a capable camera, which can cost quite a sum. But once that is done, you can start with having your friends or colleagues within your network patronize you and then recommend you to other students in need of your service.

There are peak and off-peak periods with this type of business like during registration, conference, graduation, etc. However, even during the off-peak periods, you are sure to make some considerate earnings still.

13. Start Blogging

Blogging is more than just a pastime hobby because there are bloggers out there making 5 figure earnings monthly, which is more than the average salary of many people working a 9 to 5 job. And, it is time-consuming and involves a lot of research.

With blogging, your focus must be niche-based. It would show your knowledge and authority in the field as long as you can stay ahead of your competition and push out quality content consistently that the search engines love and readers desire to read.

As your blog readers increase, the opportunity to sell ad spaces to businesses looking to advertise on your blog will start to grow. In addition, the ad monetization with known ad platforms like Google, Adsterra, Bidvertisers, etc., will begin to yield more cash inflow. But all of this takes time and commitment.

In summary, there may be many kinds of business ideas for students you might be juggling in your mind. Likewise, there is a myriad of possibilities to consider as a budding entrepreneur. As such, the only limit you face is the imaginative small business ideas your mind can think of regarding your financial situation and free time. But in all, starting a side business as a student is possible without losing focus in your studies and dropping your grades in the long term.

If you found this post educational, please do drop your comments below if you have any, and don’t forget to share so others too can benefit from it. Thank you.

Originally posted 2021-09-20 14:46:43.