Being a college student often means becoming an expert at stretching every dollar. I know firsthand how challenging it can be to manage finances while focusing on school. That’s one of the reasons we founded Sherpo—to make it easy for anyone, including resourceful students, to start earning extra income without the stress of upfront costs. After all, not having to worry about paying fixed fees while you’re just getting started is a huge weight off your shoulders.
If you’ve ever tried balancing a side hustle with classes, you know that time is just as valuable as money. That’s why I want to show you how Sherpo’s platform can help you tap into one of the best side hustles around: selling digital downloads.
And trust me, it's a lot easier (and scalable) than reselling your old clothes or textbooks on platforms like Vinted, Poshmark, Amazon, or eBay.
Let’s be real—selling your used items on Vinted/Poshmark or other resale platforms isn’t a bad gig. But it does have its downsides. You’re limited by the physical items you have on hand, and the process of taking pictures, listing items, and shipping them out can be time-consuming. Plus, there’s always that uncertainty: Will someone even want this old sweater or textbook? Having sitting inventory gathering dust in your room is not that fun.
On the flip side, selling digital products like class notes, e-books, printables, or even online courses is scalable. Once you create a digital product, you can sell it an unlimited number of times without worrying about inventory or shipping. That's the beauty of software having a marginal cost of zero.
And that’s where Sherpo comes in.
Sherpo makes selling digital downloads a breeze. You don’t have to worry about technical headaches or hidden fees. Our platform is designed to get you up and running with minimal effort, so you can focus on creating great content and making sales. Here’s why it’s perfect for busy students:
No Upfront Costs: With our free tier on Sherpo Flex, you can start selling without any initial investment. We only take a small percentage of your sales, so you’re not paying anything out of pocket to get started.
Automated Delivery: Gone are the days of manually emailing files to customers or sifting through your folders to find the right document. Once someone purchases your product, Sherpo handles the delivery automatically. Just upload your files, set your price, and let our system take care of the rest.
All-in-One Platform: We provide everything you need, from building a sleek sales page for your products, to managing customer distribution and payments. You won’t need to juggle different tools or services to get your business off the ground. We also facilitate everything else, allowing you to include FAQs, summaries, and more.
Not sure what kind of digital products to create? Here are a few ideas that have worked for others:
Class Notes: If you're already taking notes for your classes, why not sell them to other students? Upload them to Sherpo and market them to peers who might be struggling to keep up. I wish I had such a service when selling my class notes at university! (Fun fact: I had an affiliate—my friend Andrea—who deserves a shout-out for killing it with sales.)
Printables: From planners to study trackers, creating printables that help people stay organized is a great way to make passive income. Once you design them, they can sell over and over again.
Mini Courses or Tutorials: Do you have a unique skill, like graphic design, video editing, or coding? Turn that into a mini-course and sell it to others looking to learn.
Study Guides for Tests: Students are always looking for help preparing for midterms and finals. If you’ve mastered a subject, put together a comprehensive study guide and sell it.
While selling your old clothes or textbooks on second-hand resale platforms might help you declutter and earn some quick cash, it’s not a scalable solution. You’ll eventually run out of things to sell, and the time spent taking photos, writing descriptions, and shipping items adds up fast. And don't even get me started on the business of buying used goods low to resell them higher ("flipping")—it's a tedious, time-consuming endeavor.
With digital downloads, once you’ve created your product, you’re done. You can sell the same guide, notes, or printable 100 times with no extra work involved. Sherpo automates the sales and delivery process so you can focus on your studies—or, better yet, on creating more digital products to grow your side hustle.
Side hustles don’t have to be difficult or time-consuming. With Sherpo, you can turn your knowledge, skills, or creativity into a passive income stream by selling digital downloads. It’s a frictionless way to start earning, without the hassle of inventory or shipping.
And who knows? Maybe what starts as a side hustle today will turn into something much bigger after you graduate. So why not take the plunge and give it a try? After all, it’s free to get started, and you’ve got nothing to lose.
Why don't you try Sherpo?
Giacomo Di Pinto
Oct 8, 2024
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the sky is the limit!
