Make Money by Being a Corporate Greeter

If you've ever been to an out of town business conference, you probably were greeted by someone when you arrived at the hotel conference room, or, if you are important enough, they may have met you at the airport. In many cases these are contract workers who work as corporate greeters. They are meant to make clients and potential customers feel welcomed, and they can make good money.

Greeters for major corporations can make $3,000 to $6,000 per contract, usually only working for a few hours total. If you want to be a greeter you have to be physically attractive, have a good voice, and be friendly. These jobs are sporadic, so you probably won't be able to make a living off them, but you can certainly supplement your income this way.

Other greeters work at grocery stores and movie theaters. These people make considerably less money, but they don't have to be good looking, friendly, or anything. In fact, I think those traits are frowned upon.

Make Money by Trading Stuff for Other Stuff

Howtomakeadollar is a frequent practitioner of an idea known as "Trade Up," or sometimes called "Bigger and Better." The premise of this idea is that you start with something relatively small and common, like a tater tot, and you go around and trade it to someone for something else. Then you trade that item for something else, and so on. Eventually you work your way up to something decent that you actually need, like beef jerky. I pretty much always stop when I've successfully traded up to beef jerky. But it needs to be BEEF jerky, not any of that turkey jerky. That stuff is ok, but if you're going to get jerky, you want it to be beef. Thats just my opinion. 


Well, you don't have to stop at beef jerky. You can keep going. In fact, one time when Howtomakeadollar did this, we started out with a bic pen and within about an hour we had traded up to a treadmill and two one-day golf cart rentals. We only had the golf carts for the day, but we got to keep the treadmill. No kidding. We probably made six or seven trades total in that hour. But that was a long time ago in the middle of Maine , and I don't really like Maine anymore. If you're going to go to New England (not recommended) you may as well go to New Hampshire. Its way better in New Hampshire, and there are fewer lobsters.

I don't know what Howtomakeadollar did with the treadmill. We probably left it in the back of one of the golf carts by accident.

NOTE TO OTHER MEMBERS OF HOWTOMAKEADOLLAR: Which one of you guys was supposed to get the treadmill? Think of all the ways we could have used that!


But we didn't need to stop there either. In fact, there is a guy in Canada who started with nothing but a paperclip, and over a series of trades, wound up with a house. It was in Canada , which is worse than Maine , and all his neighbors are probably really into curling, but it was a free house. Thats pretty amazing. Another guy started with an old cell phone and traded up to a Porsche. I guess some people just don't like beef jerky.

In any case, Trading Up is a very good way to get something for nothing, and if you are willing to work for it and put a lot of effort into it, you can get some pretty valuable things this way.

How to Make Money By Having a Child

Business Name: The Diseased Children's Fund
Business Plan:
1. Find a baby
2. Adopt the baby. If you are unable to adopt a baby, you can try to make your own, but this is not recommended
3. Name the baby "Charity" if it is a girl
4. Name him "The Diseased Children's Fund" if it is a boy
5. Set up various fund raising events for "The Diseased Children's Fund."
6. Keep the funds for yourself

How to Make Money By Organizing Races

Business Idea: Organize local races and competitions

Business Description: Every summer you will see signs advertising some sort of race, usually it is a 5k or a marathon. Most of these races require contestants to pay an entrance fee of $15 to $50. Yes, thats right. People pay money to run even though they can run for free whenever they want to. All you have to do is plan some sort of course. I recommend a 5k, which is just over three miles. You should pick a somewhat scenic route, and you will probably have to get permission from your town. Once you get permission, just give the race a name and market it.

Business Expenses: Your town may make you pay some sort of fee to run on the course. Your other costs will be advertising, giveaways, (you should provide snacks, Gatorade, and T-shirts to your runners) and prizes.

Business Logistics: You will have to start work on this at least a year before your target race date because there are several steps, and all of them can take significant time. The more time you have to market your race, the more contestants you will get. Start by mapping out a scenic course through a local historic area or park. Once you have a good course in mind, go to the local authorities and ask for a permit. Pay whatever fee they charge, as long as its reasonable, like $100 or less. Then go find local businesses who will sponsor the event. To entice sponsors, you should offer to put an ad for the company on the back of the t-shirts you give out. Once you've collected enough money from your sponsors to pay for your expenses, you should start advertising. Put signs on nearby street corners, post bills on any kind of public bulletin board, and put an ad in the local paper. If possible, write an article for the paper. Get a free website that provides all the information. You should give your race a memorable name. The registration fee should easily pay for the t-shirts, and you should be able to pocket about $10 per runner. On  the morning of the race make sure the course is well marked, make sure there are tables full of snacks and drinks, and prizes. There should be age groups, and prizes for the top three finishers in each age group. I recommend participating in a few races before you actually host your own. These races get more and more popular every year, so make it a regular event.

Related Business Ideas: Triathlons, Wife Carrying Contests, Polar Bear Clubs

Business Risks: If you don't get enough contestants to cover your costs, you could lose big time. Try to spread out the risk by getting local business to partner with you.

Feasibility Quotient: 74

How To Make Money By Installing Peep Holes

Business Name: Peep Hole Installation Corp.

Business Description: Most people use a peep hole on their front and back doors so that they can look out and see who is there before opening the door. This is a simple safety feature that is built into many doors. It provides peace of mind for occupants. However, many people do not have peep holes on their doors. This is where you come in.

Business Logistics: There are dozens of places where you can buy a peep hole. I suggest looking at any hardware or home renovation store such as True Value, Lowe's, or Home Depot. You can look online as well, but remember that you'll have to pay extra for shipping. You want the cheapest peep hole you can find. The next step is to look for a housing development or condominium complex that does not have peep holes. These complexes are almost always built by the same company, and each unit is identical to all other units. If there is no peep hole on the first door you see, there probably are no peep holes anywhere in the whole development. All you have to do is knock on a door with no peep hole, give a short sales pitch, and then install it on the spot. It takes about 5 mins. You can charge $15.00-$20.00 for the service for very little work. The hardest part of this job is selling your service to your potential clients. That is why you should start with large developments. This will enable you to try numerous houses in a single Saturday afternoon.

Business Costs: Cheap peep holes can be bought for less that $5.00. You will also need a cordless drill, which is nice to have anyway. If you have to buy one, you can get a good one for about $50.00.

Business Risks: The only thing you are risking is the cost of your materials, which is minimal. Start with a single installation. If you find a customer quickly and easily, you can go out and use the profit to buy a few more peep holes. If you are only spending your profits, you can't lose.

Feasibility Quotient: 27

Competitors: None

Marketing: This service sells itself. If you find a house without a peep hole and present yourself in a respectable way, you should not have any trouble.