Money Management

5 Reasons Why Your Side Hustle is Doomed to Fail

August 22, 2022

According to a 2020 survey by Viffa Consult, most Kenyans engage in a side hustle to help cater to their ever-increasing expenses. You're on the right track if you're planning to invest in a side hustle because a thriving side business can help improve your finances.

Extra income can come in handy to pay your ever-mounting bills and even boost your savings.

But even so, there is no guarantee that your side hustle will withstand the test of time. It can quickly unravel, disappearing into thin air if you do not give it your all. Here's why your side hustle might not see the light of day.

1. Your Side Hustle is Not Solving an Immediate Need

Problems will often beget solutions. As long as your target market has issues, you will see your side hustle soar when you provide a unique and near-perfect solution.

People do not just want an excellent product in such a fast-paced world. They want something that quickly fixes their existing problems. The faster the solution, the higher the demand.

For your side hustle to make an impact, your product/service has to be better and different from your competition. Whatever you sell has to solve real and not cosmetic issues.

If you ever want to grab your customers' undivided attention, sell a must-have product, something that will solve a pressing need.

Again, such products fly off the shelves faster. You do not expend too much energy convincing buyers. Instead, they seek you out.

And lastly, you never want to initiate a side hustle that won't see the light of day, so carefully do your research and validate your business idea with a robust and insatiable target market.

2. Planning Short-Term Instead of Long-Term

Most side hustles fail due to a lack of foresight and a well-thought-out concept that can withstand adversity.

Perhaps you read an article/blog of a successful grocer. Maybe a colleague does wonderfully at their Mitumba business. You would assume that it is a good side hustle with huge profits. And so, you jump in. But in less than a year, you throw in the towel for lack of capital, market, or stock.

Due to seasonal changes, supplies may outnumber demand. However, it all comes down to a lack of long-term planning. In retrospect, you may discover that the other person has been in business for more than two or three years and is still going strong.

It is because, like any other business, side hustling requires a long-range strategic plan to survive and thrive. Such a plan comprises your business goals and objectives and how they positively impact the buyers.

To execute successfully, you should first understand your customer's needs and preferences and study prior sales trends, depending on the type of business.

Long-term planning helps you to establish critical marketing strategies, including where to find the target market and maintain your market share.

It also allows you to manage your expectations while building shock absorbers in case things go wrong.

3. Not Doing Extensive Research and Learning About Your Side Hustle

They say knowledge is power, and research helps you dig out all the information regarding your side hustle. Of course, most people shy away from the topic because they think it's a scholarly data collection. But that is not the case.

Research for your side hustle merely establishes answers to your business decisions. For example,

Information will help you identify the target market and market scope for your products/services.
Research helps you to identify your competition. You can then make all the right decisions to gain an edge.
You can easily identify the gaps with your competitors and quickly take advantage to propel your side hustle higher.
Extensive research enables you to look back at historical sales and operating data to gauge if your side hustle can survive in a specific market.
Gathering relevant info about your side hustle enables you to test drive it even before you can fully immerse your energies and resources.
User research is perhaps one of the best ways to know if your product, marketing strategies, communication tactics, and packaging are working. If not, do more research to improve the weaker areas of your business venture.

Generally, the more you gather information, the better you make business decisions and solve emerging problems. While it takes work, massive amounts of data are the only way you can learn how to move your business in the right direction.

4. Not Being Passionate About The Business

The phrase "do something you love and you'll never have to work a day in your life" wouldn't be as applicable if you didn't have a passion for your side hustle. It works better if you market and sell something with which you are intimately familiar.

Passion in business is about enjoying the journey, even if the returns may be negligible initially. The dedication enables you to push on no matter what. It means you spend your waking hours doing something your heart and mind enjoy.

You devote more energy and time to your business than your competitors. Some of them may throw in the towel when things get tough, but you will persist.

Loving what you do gives you an optimistic outlook - a critical ingredient for success in any undertaking.

Some of the happiest and most successful people love what they do because their work involves solving a problem close to their hearts.

Meanwhile, the will and ability to execute come with passion because the only way to remain in business is to deliver.

Finally, time is everything, therefore never waste a single day of your life on something for which you have no interest or passion.

5. Failing to Identify A Key Customer Profile for Your Side Hustle

Customer profiling is an effective method for targeting, engaging, and marketing your products. Once you've identified a key buyer persona, your side hustle can quickly pick up steam because you'll know exactly what they need.

Assume you select products from a wholesaler. You will constantly have specific buyers on your mind. You are aware of their preferences and dislikes. You also recognize the consumer's characteristics and can improve your communication and marketing skills to suit their purchasing preferences.

Customer profiling also offers considerable value to your brand since customers become loyal, repeat customers, and powerful advocates for your products.

However, many side hustlers fail because they disregard this important tool for their businesses. How do you develop target customer profiles for your company? Begin by conducting comprehensive research and identifying demographic groups.

It could be by;

Household
Gender
Education
Personality

The scope is broad, and it is up to you to identify which demographic group works well with your products. Then use your marketing, communication, and interpersonal skills to engage them in sales.

WRAPPING UP

You have the best intentions for your new side hustle, which is admirable.

However, if you do not approach it like a professional, you may never be able to transform it into the thriving business you have always desired and envisioned. Change your goals and plans to ensure a robust and long-lasting start to your new business venture.

Conduct significant market research to identify your target market. Then use all of your marketing skills to attract and retain your customers. It's the only method to overcome the market's ever-changing and dynamic forces.

All the best!

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Ian Job is an articulate writer with over four years of experience in SEO writing, digital marketing and screenwriting. Away from writing, he's probably producing an indie movie if you don't find him mentoring upcoming content writers. You can connect with him on Medium.