33% of American’s did what? ????

I read a stat this week that was pretty shocking — it said that over 33% of Americans started a side hustle since the pandemic began.

And even more surprising, almost half of those reported that it was profitable.

There’s no doubt the economy is changing.

Getting a job out of school, going into the office every day, working yourself up the ladder, and retiring with a pension is not that common anymore — yet, that’s the route I was taught as a kid not that long ago.

So what does that mean for us and our industry?

I’m not sure any of us know for sure, but here are a few things that come to mind for me…

???? With more people turning to the internet and having their own business, that’s a lot of potential customers that we didn’t have B.C. (before Covid).

???? Tools for beginners (like Wix and Squarespace) will continue seeing a huge spike in users, allowing them to invest untold fortunes into making their platforms better, easier to use, and that much more powerful.

???? With so many more independent businesses, the value of standing out and being found through search is going to become harder and a lot more valuable to people.

???? Having more choices will allow customers to find people that meet their needs more specifically.

Some of these things excite me, and I can see a lot of opportunities for our industry to thrive. Of course, some of them are a bit scary too.

That’s the thing with change — it’s rarely all good or all bad. It’s a mixture of both opportunities and threats.

In the end, change will force some people to close up shop and disappear, while others will seize the opportunity. The biggest difference between the two might just be the realization and recognition that the change is happening.