Image courtesy of dan taylor.

Summer is here and many people are looking for temporary work, including teachers, high school students, and college students. Depending on where you live, a summer job may be next to impossible to find. An alternative may be to start your own summer business offering a service. Here are some summer business ideas.

There are always the standard summer services including:

• Lawn mowing and landscaping – competitive pricing and professional service are the keys to success.
• Child care – many parents need babysitting or mother’s helper services for school-aged children during summer vacation.
• Car washing – consider going mobile; wash cars at owners’ homes or place of business.
• House sitting – many people go on vacation and having a house sitter adds some security in addition to keeping the plants watered.
• Pet sitting – an added house sitting service.
• Painting – indoors and out.

If you have a particular skill perhaps you can put it to use for the summer:
• Photography service – take pictures at family reunions, beach parties, and other summer parties and events.
• Tutoring – many parents look for help for their kids to catch up or get ahead during the summer.

Here are a few ideas that aren’t as common:
• Yard sale organizer – many homeowners would welcome the help to set up and run a yard sale.
• Window washer – while many people keep the inside of their windows clean, outside window washing is often a job that homeowners put off.
• Specialty cleaning services – think about specific items that could use a special cleaning like home computers and laptops, collectibles, all the framed artwork and photos hanging in the home.
• Specialty organization service – organize pantries and kitchen cabinets or collections of CDs and DVDs or books.
• Mover – many people move during the summer and need help packing and loading the truck. Or offer your services to help students move in and out of the dorms.
• Party helper – offer your services to help set up, serve guests, and clean up for summer parties.

With a little creativity and advertising you may find yourself very busy and well-paid all summer. Sometimes all it takes is finding that first job and word-of-mouth gets you booked for the rest of the summer. And if nothing else, it’s a great time to clean your own home and sell your unused items at your own yard sale or using an online auction site such as eBay.

Are you running a summer business? Leave a comment to let us know what you’re doing and how it’s going.

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