Mãe empreendedora - Enterprising mothers

Entrepreneurship

Enterprising mothers: 10 ideas for women who wish to start their own business

We know how hard and rewarding motherhood can be. We also know that many women give up on their careers to raise their children as best as possible. But if you still wish to undertake a business venture while taking care of your children, this post is for you! Check out these 10 ideas for enterprising mothers.

Barbara Santos

08/16/2017 | By Barbara Santos

What will we see in this post

Many women dream of becoming mothers, but sometimes they end up postponing this desire for fear of having to give up on their careers. Others are already mothers, but they are afraid of leaving their children to be raised by others and therefore, don’t continue in their careers. Regardless of the type of woman you are, you should know that if you are a mother or wish to become one, you don’t have to choose between your career and your children. It is possible to conciliate both as enterprising mothers and do everything you like most.

And it was thinking of women like you, who are enterprising mothers, that we wrote this post. Here, we will show you 10 ideas for women who wish to undertake a business venture without neglecting their children.

Choosing your niche

The first step enterprising mothers need is to understand the public you wish to reach, in other words, what is the market niche in which you wish to operate.

Look at those around you. What do you feel is still missing to help them solve small problems that seem to make their daily lives more difficult?

Thinking about the needs of people around you is a great way to start having ideas of new fields of operation for you.

But additionally, it is important to also think about you. What are the subjects you most identify with? Do you have a special skill that allows you to do something different from other people?

When you already have a specialty it is easier to think about content and strategies to create a business venture that will bring you a financial return and also add value for those who purchase some of your products or services.

Finally, you can also search on Facebook groups what people are missing and thus, begin to invest in it. This way you can undertake not only in something that is missing for those around you, but also that can reach a larger public than you imagined.

The main thing when choosing your audience is to carefully define who you wish to reach with your new business in order to develop content that is truly interesting for your persona. (In digital market, we use the term “buyer persona” to refer to the ideal client for your business. Learn more about the meaning of this term and learn how to create your buyer persona by clicking here.)

Ideas for enterprising mothers

Now that you understand the paths that can help you decide your market segment, let’s talk about a few ideas that are interesting for enterprising mothers.

We know that there are several paths that you can choose from, but we have set aside these 10 choices so that you can begin thinking about your first step.

1. Consulting for mothers

The first tip that we have set aside for you is a consulting service. We thought of this segment because we know that you, as a mother, have had and still have daily experiences with your child/children and therefore, you understand what will and won’t work in certain situations.

So why not become enterprising mothers and help other women, especially first-time mothers, to better understand the daily situations of motherhood?

You can use your knowledge and give tips for mothers during their pregnancy, postpartum, the baby’s first few days, etc. And don’t think that only mothers with small children can do this. If your children are already teenagers or adults, you can contribute with information about all stages a child goes through.

Of course, each child is different and acts in a unique manner. But don’t you think that other mothers would like to hear about your experiences so they will know they aren’t alone in certain situations that happen with their children?

Sharing your knowledge as a mother can help other women understand the hardships and joys that they will experience during this new journey of their lives.

2. Writing and proofreading

This area can often seem suitable only for those who are familiar with the language and the writing of texts. But you need to know once and for all that in order to be a good writer or proofreader you only need the desire and practice.

If you have any experience in writing it will be easier to venture in this area. But if you have no prior knowledge and wish to start, there are several online courses that can help you understand the structure of a text. Over time, with practice and a lot of reading and studying, you will notice that writing about several subjects will become easier.

The good thing about this area is that you can be an enterprising mother at home. You can write a blog on various subjects (even about consulting for mothers, as suggested in the first item of this post) or offer your texts to other blogs that need writers.

The important thing here is creativity. So, if you always have a new idea or like to research on various subjects, this is an excellent way to start or begin again.

3. Video-maker or photographer

When women become mothers, it seems that, at the same time, they become professional photographers and video makers.

Have you noticed how we take millions of photos and make videos of everything our children do? How about turning this passion for our children into a career?

The only drawback to this segment is that you will need to invest in a professional camera and lenses. But if you still don’t have the money for this, you can start by editing photos and videos, which is something you can do at home and, with the money you make from these jobs, you can buy your own equipment.

At first, you can take photos of those you know in order to practice. Then, after you have more experience, you can advertise your work. And in order to specialize, you can find courses on photography and video making; thus, you will be even more prepared for the market.

4. Child health

Most mothers have major concerns about their children’s health, and we’re not only talking about the flu, colds, allergies or any other illness. You probably have concerns about your children’s diet and everything concerning their healthy growth.

Considering this, how about venturing into the field of child health?

You can, for example, create a delivery service for healthy foods to help mothers who don’t have the time to cook homemade meals every day. Or if you have any background/experience with physical education, you can put together a soccer team so that kids can practice a sport.

There are several ways to help other women with their children’s health. All you need is to think about what you do to keep your children healthy and market these products or services to other mothers.

5. Beauty & Skin Care

If you know how to apply makeup, style hair, do nails or perform skin cleansing, you can be an enterprising mother in this segment.

You can open a beauty salon even in one of the spare rooms in your home. This way you are near your kids and can also pursue a lucrative activity.

If you don’t wish to open an establishment, you can also go to your clients’ homes. The important thing is to talk with those you are visiting and explain that your children will be coming with you if this is your case.

6. Private Tutoring

Are your children already in school and is it you who helps them with their homework? This is an excellent segment to work in!

Many mothers, especially those that work out of the home, have little time to help their children with their homework. So you can help them while you earn some money.

Open a “classroom” at home and charge a fee so that children can spend their mornings or afternoons there doing their homework; this way even your own children will benefit because they will spend a few hours of the day studying with children other than their classmates and dedicate more to their studies.

If you are or have been a teacher, you can also offer tutoring for students who have difficulties in subjects you know well. And this type of service, as well as beauty and skin care, can be offered at people’s homes, if you don’t wish to teach at your own home.

7. Producer

Working online is something that has attracted many people, especially because of the possibility of being able to work at home, and thus, spend more time with your family. This is why it’s a good choice for mothers because you can work and stay home with your children.

A much sought-after option is a Producer, which are people who create online courses about a given subject they master well. Let’s look at an example:

Suppose you are an excellent piano teacher but you can’t take on as many students as you’d like due to lack of time. A good idea is to create an online video course to teach from the initial to the most advanced steps for those who wish to learn how to play this instrument. This way, several people can purchase your course and learn what you have to teach without requiring you to teach them personally.

For this type of strategy, what you need is to really master the subject you will be teaching, record your classes, publish them on a Distance Learning platform, advertise and sell them. And if you have doubts regarding sales and you’re not sure how to proceed, there are people who can do it for you, which are the Affiliates, our idea number 8 for enterprising mothers.

8. Affiliate

As you may have noticed in topic 7, Affiliates are people who work promoting and selling other people’s products or services (to learn more about Affiliates, read this post).

If you have worked with sales or have a knack for it, this is a way to make money. You can enter Affiliate programs and request the affiliation of a certain product you identify with or that you realize that you can sell well.

So, even if you don’t have an idea to create an online course, there is the option of working online and still spend more time with your family and sell other people’s products/services while earning commissions.

9. Small Repairs

Almost all of us have a favorite outfit we use so frequently that they come apart at the seams; or a pair of pants or skirt that need adjusting.

If you also go through these everyday problems, you know how nice it is to have a seamstress nearby who can make small repairs. So, how about you become this seamstress?

This is the type of market that can be done well from home. All you need is a small room to put your sewing machine and receive your clients.

Some people already have the natural gift and know how to make these small repairs very well. But if you still don’t, there is always the possibility to learn and start venturing in this segment.

10. Arts & Crafts

Our final tip is for you, enterprising mothers with a natural talent for arts and crafts.

Are you good at painting, embroidery, knitting, costume jewelry or any other type of arts and crafts?

Don’t hide your talents. Start producing objects and find a store to sell them, or open your own business. But if you don’t want to work in physical stores, there is also the possibility of having your own e-commerce, which is an online store where you post photos of what you sell with their prices and make commercial transactions online. After the person makes a purchase, all you have to do is send the product to the buyer’s address.

And if you don’t want to sell your products, you can also teach classes, online or in person, so other people how to make the same type of crafts as you.

Conclusion

In this post, we provided 10 ideas so that you can keep doing what you love: being a mother and an entrepreneur at the same time. If you’ve gotten this far, you have realized that it is possible to conciliate both careers, you only need to really understand your segment and the audience you wish to reach

As we said at the beginning of this post, there are several market options from which you can choose to undertake. And within these segments, there are also sub-segments, also known as micro niches, which are well specified and attract a more assertive audience.

Did you like these tips? Let us know in the comments section below!