How To Use Automation Tools TO Manage Your Side Hustle?

Feel like you’re caught in a never-ending cycle of to-dos and responsibilities? Between your day job, your side hustle, and life’s many curveballs, you might wish you had a clone to get it all done. While science hasn’t quite delivered on that front, there’s a modern marvel that comes close: automation tools.

Finding the right tools can reduce your manual work by 15-20 hours monthly and give you extra time to focus on your family or even how to grow your side hustle further. 

What Is Automation? 

Automation is automating redundant and repetitive processes that only add to the overall production or delivery time.  

Therefore, if you plan on understanding how to use automation, you must also understand its basics. Knowing the fundamentals would allow you to understand the overall essence of automation.  

This will help you in employing the process with more clarity and context.  

Benefits Of Automation 

Since we are about to learn more about automation and how side hustlers can use it to expand their earnings, we should get the basics right. Therefore, let us begin our journey with a clear understanding of the benefits of automation. Here are some of the most significant benefits of automation.  

Operational Cost Reduction 

The foremost benefit of automation is the overall reduction of operational costs. In other words, if you automate a process, you are not just saving money, but you are also saving time. Therefore, it will bring down the general operational cost, which can help a business grow.  

Enhanced Reliability 

The second major benefit of automation is the enhance reliability. In other words, it has the capability of enhancing the overall reliability. This is primarily because automation can really negate the scope of gynab error. Therefore, you can rely on the process with more clarity and context.  

Unlocked Team Potential 

Finally, automation really has the potential to bring out the best in your team. This is definitely one of the prominent aspects of automation. In fact, it is one of the only aspects of automation that one needs to understand. It can make your team work at a much higher capacity compared other teams. Hence, increasing overall production quality and quantity.  

Challenges Of Automation 

Wel, we managed to point out the benefits of automation, but we are not done yet. We also need to understand the challenges effectively. Otherwise, a small challenge can completely blindside or derail your endeavors. Therefore, here are the challenges of automation that you need to understand.  

Employee Resistance 

One primary and common challenge that you might face is employee resistance. In some cases, employees might infer that automation will take away their jobs. Therefore, this can give rise to general resentment towards the process. Therefore, leading to disagreements. Which can greatly affect the overall essence of a business landscape.  

Integration Challenges 

Automation without integration is equivalent to a car without wheels. Automation module needs a proper integration plan in order to make things work out. However, this is one of the biggest problem you will face. In most cases, automatio integration prodyces some immense challenges. These challenges increase as the size of a business increases.  

Lacking Flexibility 

Finally, automation modules lack a sense of flexibility. In other words, an automation module will always work in a certain way. It will not or cannot change the way it works. Therefore, it cannot handle specialized cases in any way. Therefore, you need to understand that automation modules only work when the project essence is similar and linear. Any variation in projects will lead to problems.  

Are Automation Tools Made For Side Hustlers? 

Automation tools aren’t just for large corporations. Small business owners, freelancers, and yes, even side hustlers can reap significant benefits by automating repetitive tasks. According to a McKinsey report, automation can increase business productivity by up to 20%.  

Must-Have Automation Tools for Side Hustlers

1. Financial Tools

• QuickBooks: Automatically sync expenses, send invoices, and manage taxes. You can integrate your bank account with QuickBooks to take side hustle expenses. 
• Expensify: If you only want to track expenses, Expensify is the best option for tracking receipts on the go.

2. Marketing Automation

• Mailchimp: Automate your email marketing campaigns. Mailchimp also offers audience segmentation features, which enable more personalized messaging.
• Buffer: Schedule social media posts across various platforms to ensure consistent engagement without having to be online all the time.

2. Sales And Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

• HubSpot: A free CRM tool that offers automation features for emails, sales funnels, and customer tracking.
• Salesforce: Offers more advanced automation capabilities, designed for those looking to scale their side hustle into a full-time business.

3. General Productivity

• Zapier: Connects multiple apps to automate complex tasks. For example, you can set up a ‘Zap’ to automatically save email attachments to Google Drive.
• IFTTT (If This, Then That): Similar to Zapier but with a focus on individual use, rather than business use.

Related: Optimizing Business Performance With AI-Based Automation Solutions

How to Start Automating Your Side Hustle?

1. Identify Repetitive Tasks

Make a list of tasks that consume a lot of your time but don’t necessarily require your unique skills or attention. You can research on forums or Google on different tool options available. 

2. Pick the Right Tools

Select automation tools that fit your needs. Some offer free trials, so make use of these to see if they’re right for you. Many also offer special pricing for small businesses, so it is always a good idea to email them about it. 

3. Test and Adjust

Once you’ve set up your automation tools, test them out. Make adjustments as needed until you’re satisfied with the automated workflow.

4. Analyze and Optimize

Monitor the performance of your automated tasks. By identifying this, you discover new opportunities for automation and optimization.

As a small business owner, coach, and mom of growing kids, Carrie at Carrie’s Courses understands just how important automation is to maintaining work-life balance. That’s why it is a big part of her rental moving box side hustle course. If you’re considering an eco-friendly side hustle, it has the potential to grow into a more established business over time. Find more details on her website. 

Read Also:

• How To Choose The Right Tech Tools For Your Academic Needs
• 20 Ways To Use Automation To Improve The Customer Experience
• The Power Duo Of Operational Efficiency: AI And Automation In Business Processes