Creative Ways to Make Money as an Artist
If you are willing to get creative with how you make money, the options really are endless…
As an artist, it can be really challenging to find ways to make money that also provide enough space for you to do your favorite thing: create. It’s actually kind of ironic that the most creative people are working some of the least creative jobs. So, I thought it would be fun to put together a list of job opportunities that you can do while also pursuing your craft.
None of these jobs is a “get rich quick” job, but with some creativity and a bit of elbow grease you can make some really good money with these side jobs — without exhausting all of your creative energy bussing tables.
Ready for the list? Here it is.
Freelance Writing
If you enjoy writing, freelance writing is a great way to make some extra cash. I used freelance writing to fund my music career for a full year. In order to get started, you’ll need to put together a portfolio consisting of a few different articles you’ve written.
You can easily do this on a Saturday morning while sipping your coffee. Then it’s just a matter of finding blogs and businesses that are looking for content.
You can either pitch your own articles or you can pitch your services as a writer for their platform. Most freelance writers are paid by the word, so before pitching yourself you should know what you’re planning to charge (most writers make an average of $0.05 — $0.10 cents per word starting out).
Virtual Assistant
Bloggers, Influencers, YouTubers, and other similar careers use virtual assistant services. You can get started by following brands and people that you resonate with and engaging with their content. From there, you’ll just want to start pitching yourself as someone who can be helpful to them. You might also be able to find virtual assistant jobs through an online job board.
Anything virtual is great for artists because it provides an amazing amount of flexibility.
Virtual Recruiter
In order to work as a virtual recruiter, you will need a bit of experience working in recruiting. The primary responsibility of a virtual recruiter is to liaise between potential hires and potential employers. As long as you can read a job description and read a resume and determine who would be a good fit for a role, this is a job that you could do. Recruiters are often paid on commission, so you might not make money unless you place someone in a role. However, if you’re willing to hustle a bit you can also make a really nice paycheck — virtually.
Social Media Manager
If you are a creative person, chances are that you also have an innate understanding of how marketing works. If you love spending time on social media and coming up with new ways to engage followers, becoming a social media manager is a great job option for you! Again, most social media managers can do their jobs remotely. Especially as our world moves more and more digital, every brand is looking for a social media manager.
Upwork
Freelance websites like Upwork and Fiverr (I personally have had a better experience with UpWork) provide really great networking opportunities for creatives. It’s an excellent way to promote your skills online and get paid for them. The only catch is that many of the clients on these websites have smaller budgets. However, using these websites as a way to build up your portfolio and get a few reviews is a great way to establish authority in whatever skillset you’re looking to use to make money.
Teaching a Skill
If you are an artist, you are already an expert in some unique skill. Why not get paid to teach that skill? You can also teach other things you’re good at. Are you really great at cooking? Why not start teaching a cooking class teaching others how to properly fuel their bodies? Or, if you’re deeply passionate about working out, you can start coaching and helping others to love their body. You can teach math, knitting, music, writing….the options are endless.
E-commerce
Following up on teaching a skill, you can also sell products online. Go through your closet and find things you can sell, pick up something at Goodwill and flip it and sell it at twice the cost, or make your own product and sell it online. This will definitely take some time to build up, but e-commerce is a great way to eventually make an easy (and almost passive) income over time.
Product Photography
Did you get a nice camera for Christmas one year in college? Why not wipe the dust off, learn some really cool lighting techniques, and establish a unique editing style in Lightroom or Photoshop and then start taking photos of products? You can post your photos on Pinterest and Instagram and then start pitching your services to brands and businesses. You can even sell your images as stock photos online.
Bookkeeping
If you’re good with money and don’t mind paying a bit of money to get certified, you can easily become a bookkeeper. Bookkeeping is an increasingly growing business and many bookkeepers are already making six-figures in their first 1–2 years. I know a few bookkeepers personally and they love the flexibility that this job provides. The only catch is that this job does have an upfront cost because I would not recommend providing financial services with a certification of some sort.
Photo Editing
Have a good eye for what makes a photo really stand out? Are you already really skilled at using Photoshop? You can edit photos for influencers, businesses, brands, magazines, etc…and make really good money doing it.
Podcast Editing
Podcasts are the new blogs. Everyone and their mother has a podcast. If you listen to podcasts, you can tell when someone hasn’t taken the time to edit their audio and make it sound really nice and clean. If you’re good with audio editing, you can edit podcasts and help your clients to stand out among the crowd.
Web Design
Similar to the other editing jobs out there, if you have a good digital eye and have a basic understanding of coding, you can design websites for other creatives, small businesses, and more. People will pay a pretty penny for a good website designer. To get started, offer your services to a few friends for free and then have them review you and use their websites for your portfolio.
File Organizing
If you’re very organized, people will actually pay you to organize their file cabinets. It might be difficult to find your first few clients, but once you do they’ll start referring you to their friends. You can charge hourly or by the day, but this is a great way to make some extra cash.
Cleaning Houses
Apps like TaskRabbit are also great for making some money on the side. Cleaning houses is also nice because it’s mindless enough that you can listen to music or a podcast while you clean. You can set your rate and clean away. This is an excellent way to build up recurring income because everyone needs to have their house cleaned at least 1–2 times per month.
Dog Walking
If you live in a big city, it’s entirely possible to make an amazing income walking other people’s dogs. What’s great about this is that you can make your own schedule and walk as many or as few dogs as you like during the day.
Editing & Proofreading
Are you a grammar nerd? Always annoying your friends and correcting their “your, you’re, their, and there’s?” If that’s you, then you would make an excellent editor or proofreader. Find some writers and start offering to edit their blogs, captions, website content, book, etc…
Virtual Data Entry
If you like spreadsheets and organizing data, you can make money doing data entry for businesses. This job is going to be paid by the hour and might require a minimum amount of hours per week, but it’s another great way to make money virtually.
So, there you have it! Keep in mind that this list is really meant to get your creative juices flowing so that you can find the right opportunity for you to find both financial and artistic freedom. You don’t have to be broke to be an artist, and you don’t have to be chained to the traditional flexible jobs like working at a restaurant, coffee shop, or gym.
Don’t settle for anything less than what you deserve. Go chase those dreams!
