We all know just how expensive the festive season can be, and yet, so many of us consistently fail to put enough money aside to compensate. If your own present-buying budget is coming up a little short, earn some additional cash quickly with the below tips.
10 ways to generate extra income with Christmas looming
- Deliver pizza
The winter is the very last time of year when many people want to have to head outside their cosy home or office to fill their bellies, so you can expect many of the usual food chains and delivery services to advertise for extra staff as Christmas nears. Just make sure you have a car!
- Make and sell cakes at markets
This is the season for Christmas markets, so why not take advantage of this by making some lovely cakes, sweets and jams and selling them locally? You’ll stand the most chance of success by keeping to a festive theme – the likes of Christmas cupcakes and gingerbread men are sure to be steady sellers.
- Become a freelancer
It’s become more typical for even those with steady ‘9-5’ jobs to also offer various other skills of theirs – such as writing, coding or graphic design – on a freelance basis through a site like Fiverr.
- Babysit
Given all of those looming Christmas parties, it’s inevitable that some people will find themselves with a sudden need for a babysitter – which you can earn more than £8 an hour doing even if you have no child care training. Now is the time to start advertising your services.
- Sell last year’s Christmas gear
You’ve almost certainly got some books, clothes or DVDs hanging around from last Christmas in which you never managed to summon much interest. Think carefully about how you can sell your unwanted items in a way that gives you money straight away – for example, musicMagpie pays you on the same day it receives your old clobber.
- Get a seasonal retail job
Now is the time when many department stores and other retailers will be advertising for additional staff to deal with the Christmas and New Year rush – so don’t be afraid to pop into the likes of Debenhams, Next or Marks and Spencer to enquire about vacancies.
- Complete online surveys
You admittedly won’t get rich from filling in a few forms (not these particular ones, anyway), but with as much as £3 to be potentially earned from each survey, it’s worth signing up to such sites as YouGov and Vivatic to see the latest opportunities.
- Sell your student notes
If you have recently left university or moved onto another module during your present course, sites like Notesale and Stuvia enable you to sell your old notes for cash.
- Go mystery shopping
Mystery shopping – visiting various shops and providing an agency with feedback on the customer experience – has long been a reliable way of making money. We especially love the Roamler smartphone app that pays you when you complete tasks in your locality, but there are plenty of other options out there.
- Place some matched bets
If you really do want to know how to make money from home in the shortest possible space of time, our answer is simple: matched betting. This use of online bookies’ free bet offers to effectively bet both on and against a particular event has been shown to be legitimate, and could give you hundreds of pounds more in your bank account between now and Christmas.
There you have it – 10 ways to quickly add to your income for those all-important festive expenses. Which of these have you tried yourself, which of them would you like to try this year and what other great ideas do you have for making a bit of money on the side over November and December? Feel free to comment below.
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Yes. Freelancing helps with me whenever I need extra money. Very convenient way to make money.