The world is currently changing more than it has in generations. Certain topics have to be handled with extreme sensitivity, which gives me a sense of foreboding about writing about hot new business ideas.
The Coronavirus crisis has turned the working world upside-down. It seems likely that many of the unintended consequences could last for a very long time, if not forever.
For example, will the business world ever go back to handshaking, or will “elbow bumps” and bows now seem wiser forever more? Will commuters who’ve been conducting their business via Zoom and Skype be easily persuaded to return to a full-time office environment? Will anybody really be in a hurry to return to crowded schools and gyms?
It’s with those questions in mind that I decided to produce a list of seven hot new business ideas.
How to Adapt to the New Normal
Profiting from a crisis is not cool. That’s not the motivation for this article. But the reality is that literally millions of people are – at the time of writing – sitting at home trying to work out their next career move.
It’s crass to celebrate certain businesses thriving while others fail, but it is the way of the world. As I write this, bartenders and restaurant owners are losing their livelihoods, while those running food delivery services have waiting lists and are bringing in more money than they ever would have predicted.
It’s not just small businesses that are affected. While co-working office giant WeWork appears to be in serious trouble, the founder of Zoom (the video conferencing platform), has seen his wealth increase by nearly $4 billion in 2020.
That’s what this article is all about. Which hot new business ideas and sectors seem set to boom – right now, and in the “post-outbreak” world.
If you are looking for a new idea, or have time on your hands to learn and train, it makes sense to be guided by some of these ideas. There are myriad ways to get involved in all of these sectors, making this a good time to give really serious consideration to who you want to be and what you want to do.
Hot New Business Ideas and Sectors
Video Production and Editing
Video skills were already in huge demand before anybody had even heard of COVID-19. They topped the list in our previous article about in-demand freelance skills.
Some video skills are surprisingly easy to learn. We’re NOT talking about expert mastery of software like Adobe Premiere – producers spend years developing that. But what we ARE saying is that there’s demand for more low level skills too.
Think, for example, of things like video reviews, and screencasts that show you how to do something on a computer. It’s easy to throw something rough together, but if you take the time to learn about sound quality and professional presentation, you have a skill you can use AND sell.
If you’re willing to get behind the microphone or in front of the camera, that’s even better.
So many businesses KNOW they need to embrace video content, but delay and delay due to nervousness. If you can make it easy for them, there’s a LOT of work out there for you, and it’s creative and satisfying too.
Some Ideas to Get you Started:
- Think about learning Camtasia. It’s a great piece of software that we use ourselves for screencasts. (We also use it for the HomeWorkingClub podcast). Notably, TechSmith, the company behind Camtasia, include a huge range of video-based training materials that teach you the fundamentals of video production at a great pace.
- Learn the industry standard software, by taking a course on Adobe Premiere.
- Have a browse on Upwork for video production jobs. You’ll find some tips for using Upwork here.
Online Education
Speaking as a parent who currently has a school-age child at home full time, I’m in AWE of the work that teachers do every day.
The way the world has changed has served to demonstrate just how effective the internet is as a learning platform. It seems likely that this is a genie that won’t be going back in the bottle.
Obviously plenty of people were learning online before, but every day people are being introduced to more and more apps, courses and video content, and also having both group and one-on-one lessons online.
There’s loads you can do in online education: teach people yourself, develop courses, or even turn an idea into an app of your own. This is an industry that only seems set to grow.
Some Ideas to Get you Started:
- Take a look at Teachable. It’s a popular platform many people use to create profitable courses. You can start for FREE, but it’s well worth thinking about a premium plan because they come with lots of training materials that help you learn to create and market courses.
- Read our article on teaching online – there’s loads of demand and lots of places to do it.
- Learn to become an iOS developer and make an educational app all of your own.
Remote Access Solutions
Many more people are working remotely nowadays , and it seems probable it’s the way things will stay.
This creates various hot new business ideas. There’s now a whole new niche for IT consultants who want to specialise in creating secure and private remote working environments for companies of all sizes.
There’s also the considerable issue of data protection and GDPR. Many companies have set up remote working in a hurry, but the time will certainly come when everyone will need to think of the potential security concerns. Specialising in remote working compliance is definitely not the most exciting job in the world, but you can be sure it will be a skill that’s both lucrative and in-demand.
There’s also a market for people to help other learn to make the most of remote tools and video conferencing systems. This is a whole new world for many individuals.
For Inspiration:
- Take a look at Google’s IT Support Professional Certificate, delivered in association with Coursera.
- Read about my own experiences of selling IT support services.
Food Delivery
As mentioned in the introduction, food delivery businesses are booming.
They’re obviously nothing new, with deliveries available from everywhere from the local Chinese to huge global giants such as Deliveroo. But it goes far beyond that.
In the past few weeks, whilst avoiding supermarkets due to isolation and lockdown, I’ve found everything from companies delivering the ingredients to bake your own bread, to farms launching their own online services delivering vegetables and dairy products.
It seems these businesses will continue to thrive regardless of how the world rebuilds itself in the coming months. Not only will people increasingly enjoy the convenience, treats at home will probably remain a popular option until we’re all satisfied that public places are safe and healthy to visit.
Furthermore, many people will also be rebuilding their finances for some time, making meals out a luxury too far.
For Inspiration:
- Read Homemade for Sale – a great book on establishing a food business.
Food and Recipe Blogging
We’ve mentioned unintended consequences already in this article.
Something that surprised me yesterday was reading a tweet from a food blogger who said she’s received a ton of traffic to Christmas-themed recipe articles despite it being April (at the time of writing).
It turns out that one unintended consequence of Coronavirus is people clearing out their cupboards and looking at what to do with left over spices, chestnuts and mincemeat.
My point here is that much of the world, even the reluctant cooks, now have had to find their way around the kitchen. Recipe books are sometimes useful, but when ingredients are thin on the ground they can be more of a frustration than a help.
Yes, the food blogging niche is incredibly crowded, but the sub-niches are endless. You could become the authority on all the different ways to cook a cauliflower at the moment and earn some revenue from advertising!
So, with that in mind, if you’re a foodie who’s always been keen to share recipes and tips, stop delaying, register a domain, and finally get that blog going.
How to Begin:
- Register a domain – and grab hosting for as little as $2.59 per month!
- Learn all about blogging in our article.
- Check out one of these courses if you need some extra help.
Games and Entertainment Businesses
I’ve done so many things in recent weeks that I never imagined I’d do: Buying and completing jigsaw puzzles, sourcing outdoor games equipment to make up for my son missing his school sports day, and sitting for hours playing Animal Crossing on the Nintendo Switch to keep myself reasonably sane.
Presumably you can spot the theme: games and entertainment.
Obviously we all hope we’re not going to be in lockdown for too long. However, it does seem likely that companies (and websites and blogs) in this sector will continue to thrive. People have rediscovered simple pleasures, have less money for more expensive pursuits, and are likely to be in no hurry to head back to crowded places any time soon.
So what can you do? Set up a blog about your favourite board games, create one of your own, sell accessories – the options are endless. Best of all, this is a great way to combine a passion with a way to make some money.
Growing and Prepping
The day before writing this article, I dislodged a filling on a tooth that my dentist is currently working on.
I headed straight to Amazon to see if I could get a temporary kit to tide me over, and found almost everything out of stock. Who’d have predicted that dentists would suddenly be shut for everything other than absolute emergencies?
In these unprecedented times (we hear the word “unprecedented” a lot at the moment), the “preppers” and survivalists suddenly seem like particularly sensible people. While I’m not saying that everybody will head out to buy the supplies for a “doomsday bunker” as soon as the lockdown has lifted, it seems likely that MANY people will want to be more prepared for unexpected events.
Having a few vegetable plants up the corner of the garden is wise, so is having hand sanitiser, plenty of batteries, candles, light bulbs. Millions of people, myself included, are quickly realising that it’s incredibly useful to know how to make and repair things in the house and garden.
As such, the last of our hot new business ideas is anything centred around providing the information and the products people need to be more prepared in the future.
Have a look at the Google Trends graph below. You can be sure that the bloggers who wrote about cutting your own hair have had an explosion of traffic and revenue.
Let’s just be very clear: This is not about profiteering. The people selling face masks on Amazon for extortionate amounts of money are sub-human scum. BUT there’s a growing market for products and information in this niche.
I hope that whoever has written the best content about cutting one’s own hair is making plenty of commission on the scissors, clippers and other products. There’s nothing wrong with building a business around what people need.
Inspiration:
Need Some More Ideas?
- Our recent article on the best freelance skills will give you lots more inspiration.
- Check out our huge list of online jobs.
- If you’d rather work for a company and not for yourself, this list of remote first companies will help.
Founder of HomeWorkingClub.com – Ben has worked freelance for nearly 20 years. As well as being a freelance writer and blogger, he is also a technical consultant with Microsoft and Apple certifications. He loves supporting new home workers but is prone to outbursts of bluntness and realism.
