Last year, we rounded up 20 uber marketable freelance opportunities to help you make the switch from slacks to PJs in 2018 without sacrificing that corporate-size paycheck.
That list is still alive and kicking through the arrival of 2019, with plenty of amazing opportunities that might be just right for you.
In fact, between 2017 and 2018 alone, independent worker numbers rose by 2.2%, and of all full-time freelancers, 20.9% make more than $100,000 per year, up from 12.5% in 2011. On top of rising profits, the majority of those polled responded that freelancing made them both happier and healthier.
But, some of you read through last year’s post and thought to yourselves:
Man – all the freelancing jobs that make money seem a little…boring…
And for you, I’ve rounded up a big list of freelancing opportunities for the artsier, more creatively gifted among us, to help you unleash that creative energy in a way that’s fun and pays the bills.
How did I choose the opportunities below?
I scoured all corners of the web for lists of jobs that are or will be in high-demand due to labor shortages or rapid job creation, both because of and in spite of the robot revolution, with the paychecks to match.
I also took a look for some smaller but fast-growing niches where the potential for profit is high and the market isn’t saturated with fierce competition.
Then I compared across all those lists and variables and pulled the most creative jobs with high profit potential – and voila! – your opportunity list was born!
For More Traditionally Artsy Creatives:
1. UI design
Ever land on a web page that was full of jarring colors or kitschy flashing buttons and immediately navigate away, with little faith in the expertise and authority of the owner?
Or better yet, immediately point out what was wrong or a few things they could do to make the whole experience better?
You might have an eye for User Interface (UI) design. This is where you design the looks and style of a webpage or website to communicate both usability and branding associations (and in a time of increasing competition for attention and retention, brand is becoming more and more important for businesses, both large and small).
2. Art Direction
Maybe you’re not so hot on the execution, but you’ve got a knack for creating a vision and managing all the needed moving parts and people to make that vision a reality.
If that’s the case, art direction is a great option for you.
Even better is that art direction is needed in a variety of industries, from theatre and fashion through to video games, so there is bound to be an industry that sparks your creative fire.
3. Doodle Video Creation
Remember the “Draw My Life” video craze on YouTube?
Videos like that are still in high demand, and will continue to be so as more and more marketing efforts shift to video format to capture and hold the attention of their audiences.
This is becoming prevalent in marketing efforts, where a good video ad can produce huge amounts of revenue, meaning the value is extraordinarily high for great, unique doodle videos that sell.
4. Music Writing and Production
As marketing efforts (and pretty much everything else) shifts to video format in order to better hold the attention of consumers, the need for new and original music that isn’t copyrighted is rising quickly.
If you’ve got music chops and jamming up new jingles or melodies is your favourite past-time, why not sell your services to the millions of video content creators and advertisers in need of cheaper background music and effects, with less opportunity for litigation down the line?
5. Interior Design Consulting
Watch a lot of HGTV?
Live on the Pinterest home decor tags?
The unique tastes of every individual coupled with ever-changing trends and styles means this creative work will always keep you on your toes!
6. Photo Editing
Taking great pictures is one thing, but editing them is whole different story.
With the rise of Instagram as a social media platform as well as a marketing platform, the need for savvy photo editors can only rise.
Transforming camera-phone pictures into works of art worthy of sharing with the world, or curating an Instagram account for brand consistency, can translate into big bucks when done for the right clients.
7. Voiceover
Got impersonation talents or the voice of Morgan Freeman, but not interested in Hollywood?
Why not lend your voice to videos, which we’ve already established are quickly burgeoning as a huge market for creatives, or even as an audio book reader?
There is plenty of voice work you can do that isn’t animated acting, and with the audiobook and podcast industries growing, it’s looking like your prospects are only getting better.
8. Voice Acting
Another type of voiceover work, but with a little more acting flair and a typically different style of video, this is one way to live your childhood dream of making your favorite childhood cartoons come to life.
With the wide variety of animated videos, shorts and movies in various industries and with budgets ranging from Indie to Hollywood, getting into the voice acting industry could be tons of fun and highly profitable.
9. Landing Page Designer
Funnels, funnels, and more funnels.
If you’ve spent any time in the business marketing world online, you’ve heard of funnels, and you’ve probably heard of landing pages.
This is one way to get a share of the vast internet marketing profit pie, in a more creative capacity.
10. Video Editing
Video editing for vloggers and other video content creators is the equivalent of marketing for coaches and other service providers – it’s their least favorite part, and they’d much rather not be doing it.
If chopping up videos and audio into a masterpiece is your cup of tea, take this task off their hands in exchange for dinero, and everybody wins.
11. Editors (Video and Blog)
Now we’re talking in terms of digital curation.
If you’re creative and understand the ins and outs of your medium, but love being a bit of a boss, this might be for you.
Direct the types of content, when they publish, and who creates them to help your clients get, and stay, on top in their markets. This is all about getting creative with strategy and overseeing the execution, instead of doing it all yourself.
For The Wordier Folks:
12. Content Writing
Are you constantly getting sucked into your Google newsfeed?
Catchy headlines stop you dead in your mental tracks?
Why not turn that time spent devouring into time spent researching by learning how to create blog posts for others?
If you’ve ever read a post on a popular website and thought you could write it better, or it missed something, you might be right!
Take the expertise gained from years of consuming, and turn it into a profit stream to make you and your clients moolah from the comfort of home.
13. Video Script Writer
Videos are just visual representations of the written word, but there are a lot of times when writing for video can be more personable than writing for publications or blogs – which ups the ante on the fun and creativity involved.
As the need for video increases across the board, your skills will come in to demand more and more, and that’s a great sign for profit potential too.
14. Ghostwriting for Blogs
More than 409 million people view 22.3 billion blog pages each month, and most of the blogs they’re viewing aren’t giant media publications like the Huffington Post, but rather individual, personality driven sites within small niches.
You can bet that after a few years of running a blog, the owner might start to find themselves running out of ideas or just tired of the upkeep and ready to step back.
That’s where ghostwriting comes in.
If you don’t like the limelight, you can be a content writer under the names of other people, helping them achieve their goals while making your money under the radar.
Everybody wins.
15. Resumé/Cover Letter Creator
The job market is a volatile place, and competition is getting fiercer and fiercer, making it harder for the average Joe to stand out.
It takes creativity and the right knowledge to help someone stand out in the sea of job applicants, and that’s where you can come in and literally change someone’s life for the better using a little gumption and a lot of creative energy.
16. LinkedIn Profile Creator
Social media meets resumes and cover letters, and nine months later LinkedIn comes along.
This is like resume creation on steroids, and a great creative exercise with life-changing implications for your clients, the value of which is really indescribable.
Purpose meets profits, and in just 3 months you could be living your ideal life helping others find and live theirs.
17. “About Me” Copywriter
Gone are the days where people navigate to someone’s “About Me” page on their website to actually learn about them.
In fact, those days never really existed.
People want to know more about you not out of genuine interest, but because they want to know what makes you right for helping them.
Which makes the About Me page a covert sales letter, and a ripe copywriting field to exercise some creativity.
18. Sports Writing
If you’re a sports lover, or even just casually listen in because your family or friends are, then you already know that sports are less about the actual sport and more about the story behind them.
Bitter rivalries, lifelong aspirations, growth both personal and as a team, the heartbreak of loss and euphoria of victory…
If you’ve got a head for the complicated technical side of sports, then this type of writing could scratch your creative and passionate itches quite well.
19. Product Descriptions
It’s like tweets that are meant to convince someone to buy something.
If you’re gifted at keeping things short, sweet, and full of punch, this type of copywriting might be perfect for you.
After all, e-commerce is growing with no end in sight.
20. Editing
Love reading?
Got a touch of the grammar-police tendencies?
Editing might be perfect for you. If you’ve ever read a book or a blog post and found every typo or imperfection, your talents could serve future authors and content creators well by protecting their authority and polishing their messages to perfection.
For Tech Wizards:
21. UX Design
The other half of UI design is UX design, or User Experience design – this is a more technical skill but still requires plenty of creativity.
Instead of focusing on appearance, your job is to design a site flow that makes sense, and ensure that your client’s web page is a joy to use and navigate.
In a sense, you design the customer’s journey from the moment they land on the page, ensuring that there are adequate and obvious sign posts to help them reach their destinations, and making the hike as easy and enjoyable as possible.
22. Chatbot Development
Have a habit of playing out entire conversations in your head before they happen, then restarting and doing it again by changing one reaction or phrase?
You can use your over-thinking to line your pockets by developing chatbot software and scripts for clients to help them better serve and sell to their clients.
Chatbots are a quickly growing marketing tactic and demand for savvy developers who specialize here is set to skyrocket.
23. Programming and Software Dev
A more classic freelance option that comes to mind when thinking through possibilities is programming (used interchangeable with coding in this instance) or software development to create custom solutions for clients.
With the rise in information businesses selling courses to their clients, the need for more and better customization will continue to rise as businesses look for ways to differentiate and distinguish themselves from the competition.
Top-tier software portals or apps for clients with custom specifications and adaptations that take into account their needs, might be a great place to start.
24. Web Design and Dev
The internet isn’t going anywhere, and just like our universe, it is continuously expanding.
However, as consumers our standards for the web pages, sites, and software we interact with are also expanding and rising, which means we need creative, skilled developers to keep pace with the demand and help people stay fresh and current.
25. App Developer
If everyone and their mother can start an online business, then all serious players really need to step up their game.
A lot of them do this by developing dedicated apps, which are associated with higher authority and value.
But of course, not everyone has the skills to do this themselves, or can afford to hire on a permanent app development team, so there’s great opportunity to help companies out with their app development needs.
26. WordPress Site Consulting/Development
There has been an absolute explosion of blogs, big and small, on the internet and around the world, and WordPress is the content management system of choice for the majority of them.
Sharpening your skills in this realm allows you to help clients build distinctive, branded, responsive blogs, and your customer base is somewhere around the 75 million mark.
27. Podcast Production
68 million people listen to podcasts on a monthly basis and people are starting to recognize this as a viable and powerful marketing tool.
With the fast-paced nature of our current society, podcasts and other audio media allow people to multitask, making them a go-to source of information and entertainment to be consumed while handling chores, driving, or working out.
But it takes a team to produce a great podcast, not just a couple of people with some mics, and that’s where you come in to help your clients reach and engage a wider audience.
28. Social Game Development
What’s more creative and fun than building a game?
Mobile games that interact with your social network or that you can play with friends are called social games, and include a wide variety – from casino games to the infamous Farmville – and are set to grow rapidly.
Mobile gaming is currently a $50 billion dollar industry, but right now all that revenue comes from just 5% of all players – that means there is a ton of room for growth and profit in this arena, which is the fastest growing gaming sector in the industry and is already worth more than Hollywood.
So why not cash in on your love of games by building them for others?
29. Information Technology Security Consulting
We’ve all heard about the multiple data privacy snafu’s under way with big industry names like Facebook, Google, and more.
So it comes as no surprise that information security in the digital age is quickly becoming of central importance to companies large and small alike.
If you’re well versed in keeping information safe, your talents are needed globally.
30. Augmented Reality
There have been books and movies about it for years, but augmented and virtual realities are finally stepping out of the sci-fi realm and wholly into actuality.
We may not be living in virtual paradises yet, but augmented reality is capable of helping buyers “try before they buy” a variety of things, like superimposing furniture in their homes to see if it fits or building a virtual car in your driveway you can explore as if you were in the showroom.
With experts projecting widespread use of the technology by businesses both big and small by 2020, this is a creative arena set to explode with possibility and demand.
For The Social Butterflies:
31. Personal Productivity Coach
We’ve already discussed how busy and distracting our modern lives have become, and with no end in sight to this cultural phenomenon, we’re going to need all the help we can get to stay focused and take care of our stuff.
If you love working with others, have a teaching mindset, and are awesome at managing your time and attention, chances are you can help or learn to help others overcome the madness of living in the digital age, hunker down, and get their priorities handled (or even just figured out!).
32. Relationship Consultant
If it was hard to find time to focus on and build relationships before, I don’t even know how to describe that challenge now.
We’re in a strange age where there are so many competing demands on our time and attention but we’re also becoming aware of the importance of staying connected in our primary relationships, and just how difficult that genuinely is.
Some people may not be down for the rigors and cost of therapy, but would love a helping hand and tailored suggestions to their relationship needs. If you happen to love love, this might be the perfect niche for you to get creative and have a positive impact on the lives of others.
After all, having a partner who can genuinely support you through the good and the bad, and share your happiness, is priceless.
33. GDPR Project Managers
This is the flip side of the information security boom we’re seeing.
Companies need to make sure they walk the straight and narrow, and with all the different guidelines in different areas, having a specialist on call to help them find creative ways to ensure they are compliant but still as profitable as possible will be increasingly important, as similar laws are debated around the world.
Get real cozy with the GDPR and you can simultaneously protect consumers, the interests of your clients, and your bank balance, while staying creative by engaging with and overseeing a variety of projects with different clients.
34. Teacher / Faculty / Tutor / Instructor
What’s more creative than figuring out how to help someone else understand a new concept, language, theory, or practice?
The need for teaching around the world is only growing as globalization draws us ever closer to each other and opens doors to new opportunities for everyone.
Whether you do this by creating and selling a course of your specialized knowledge, teaching English to citizens of other countries or new immigrants, or hosting workshops and webinars in different countries and companies, teaching and knowledge sharing are only increasing in demand.
35. Social Media Management
If you’ve got a serious addiction to social media, why not make lemonade out of lemons by monetizing your time spent using Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest?
You can help companies and entrepreneurs better reach and engage with their audiences by posting relevant content, starting discussions, and managing and growing dedicated groups using your intimate knowledge of social media and how people use and interact with it.
If you can build and maintain a dedicated fanbase of buying customers for a client, you’ll be rewarded handsomely for spending the day browsing and interacting with posts and memes.
For Those Who Still Want to Leave the House for Work (but in Comfier Pants):
36. Landscaping and Groundskeeping
If you’ve got a green thumb, you’re a lucky one.
Plenty of people don’t, but that doesn’t change the positive effects plants and nature can have on everyone.
Help people enjoy the benefits of a beautiful garden or outdoor living by designing and creating the backyard of their dreams, or help them up the curb-appeal of their home by redesigning the front yard.
This isn’t easy work, but it’s certainly creative and a ton of fun, if being outside and working in the dirt is your thing.
37. Travel Consulting
Have you travelled extensively? Seen the wonders of the world? Gone off the beaten path?
Help others plan the perfect, individualized trips and getaways with your knowledge, and you could turn a pretty penny while simultaneously transforming your own beach lounging into bonafide work research.
You can even use your own vacations as marketing tools if you vlog or record and compile them into videos, or maintain a travel blog.
38. Party/Event Planning
If you live for a great party, you might want to get into the event planning industry, currently valued at $115 billion dollars in the U.S. alone.
Help your clients organize and run successful events that turn a profit, and you’ll see a nice slice of that pie yourself, especially if you’ve got a little marketing creativity to add to the mix.
39. Professional Organizing
Even before the “KonMari” method of tidying up became all the rage, first with the book and then with the binge worthy Netflix show, professional organizing was a well established industry.
With all the fast-fashion, fast-food, fast-everything in our lives, keeping our personal spaces clutter-free has become critical to helping us stay focused, productive, and just happy.
If you’ve always had a penchant for tidiness and a knack for organizing, finding creative solutions to helping others strike the right balance of stuff vs. space in their lives might be the perfect fit for you.
40. Visual Merchandising
Love to window shop?
Appreciate all the work and creativity that goes into holiday displays at malls, department stores, grocery stores, fashion stores, etc?
Try your hand at visual merchandising, and help your clients entice customers into their store. After all, brick and mortar retail is more and more about the experience, so this is a great way to keep local businesses going strong.
To Sum Up
We’ve shared a lot of information on the NPP Blog about the shifting realities of jobs and work.
All it takes is the right skill and demonstration of value to establish yourself and your reputation, and you’ll find people looking for help with the service you provide.
If you’ve got a creative career on the go but are feeling stifled by traditional corporate structure and rules, you can absolutely strike out on your own.
But if you’ve got no idea where to start, there are plenty of amazing options, even well beyond this list, that will serve to stoke your creative fire, keep you feeling purposeful, and fund whatever lifestyle you desire, so long as you’re willing to put a little elbow grease into it.
We Can Help
Starting your own business is always a risk, and going it alone can be stressful and terrifying, stifling your ability to achieve your goals as well as your creativity.
That’s why we built a community and a roadmap to help you through your journey to successful freelancing and beyond.
Find out more at thenopantsproject.com.
