Entrepreneurs have to add value to an idea before it becomes a business. Having an idea is not enough, and a hobby is often just that; an idea that you enjoy executing in your free time but that you have not put the work into to turn into a business. Turning a hobby into a viable business can be a great avenue if you want to become your own boss or want total control over your income streams. However, before you start putting in the work required to turn a hobby into a business, there are a few questions you need to answer.

Is There a Market For Your Products or Services?

It might sound mean, but not all hobbies can translate into a viable business. What we mean by this is the hobby making enough money to sustain itself as a business. The best way to gauge this is to find out if there is a demand for your products and services. Start by asking family and friends if they would buy what you are offering or selling.

Next, do some online research to see if there are businesses or individuals offering the same or something similar. If there are, it is an indicator, although not definitive, that there could be a market for you. Additionally, doing this will help you determine if the market is saturated or has stiff competition, and if it does not, it could be worth pursuing.

What is Your Unique Selling Point?

Your unique selling point is what makes you, your products, and your services stand out. What do you offer that other sellers do not? Do you provide benefits or meet needs others do not? If you have a unique selling point, you will be able to fill a gap in the market, as you will be able to give customers something they cannot get elsewhere.

Can Modern Tools Help You Sell?

Another indicator of whether your hobby could be a viable business is the ability to use modern tools to promote and sell your offering. Many hobbies do not translate well online and thus it gets harder to market reach customers and sell. For example, hand-knitted sweaters can be sold easily online, but selling items you have collected on your travels might be much harder to pull off.

How Will You Deliver?

Services translate well into online businesses because everything can be done virtually. However, you have to factor in cost and time if you want to sell physical products. Will you have time to take care of logistics, inventory returns payments, and everything else that an online business entails? If you can get someone or another business to take care of all these for you, you will do great.

There are some serious questions you will have to answer and some considerations to ponder over before concluding whether your hobby can become a viable business. However, you have a much better chance with the modern online climate to turn a hobby into a viable business than you had a few years ago.