Unusual Money Ideas
The following is a selection of unusual money ideas. You'll
notice that some of these have actually worked, while others
are unproven. Maybe you can be the first to give those a try.
Fetal Greetings
I recently read the true story of a woman who has a business
online selling "fetal greeting" cards. They have a
picture of a fetus announcing his or her coming entry intro the
world. She got the idea while looking for a unique way to tell
family and friends that she was pregnant. A friend drew pictures
for her, and she liked the results so much that she decided to
make a business out of it. Since her site has been online for
seven years now, I assume she has had some success.
Make Your Auto a Billboard
Using one's vehicle for advertising is certainly not new.
Many small businesses use their vehicles to promote themselves.
But why not try renting space to businesses on your personal
car? You should probably document how many miles you normally
drive it and where, so the advertisers will know their ads are
being seen, and by their target audience.
From Garage Sale to Ebay
You have undoubtedly heard about people buying things at garage
sales that they then have sold on Ebay for big profits. I once
met a man who bought some old jeans for $2 and sold them on Ebay
for over $250. I had to look that night and see the bids (some
higher than that) to believe him.
The problem, of course, is knowing what will sell and for
how much. But what if you have a laptop computer with a satellite
internet connection? You could take it with you to garage sales,
and buy things only after seeing that they are selling on Ebay
- and seeing what the current bids are. This almost guarantees
you won't guess wrong and lose money too often.
Gas Station Target Practice
I recently visited a money-making blog and saw a hilarious
idea. The author wanted to set up a gas station that gave away
free gas. The catch? The gas came out very slowly, and mounted
cameras with paintball guns attached gave people online the opportunity
to shoot at the customers for a fee.
This may not work, of course, and he said that the city wouldn't
allow him to do it. But the general idea of interactive cameras
and devices for use online is full of potential. People might
pay to see people walking by, for example, if they could also
say what they wanted to them through a speaker, as they passed.
And there are certainly some better ideas than this out there.
At Home Grocery Store
When I used to rent room in my home years ago, I also sold
groceries to the renters out of a closet. They simply took what
they needed and marked it on a sheet of paper. The cost was added
to rent. This was one of several extra sources of income I made
from my tenants.
Now, to expand on this, what about the general idea of groceries
being available to people for purchase at home? Perhaps a mobile
grocery store in a truck or van would work. Like an ice cream
truck, you run a route with your store, playing music or some
announcement to get attention, and then you stop on each street
to see who wants to go shopping. Or maybe there's a way to put
a grocery store in an apartment building (an oversized vending
machine) and stock it once a week?
Check out the page More Unusual Money
Ideas as well.
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