Blogger Gemma Clough confesses she is obsessed with side hustles.

The 34 year old even appeared to hit UK headlines last year, after saying she has saved thousands of pounds by not putting her heating on.

Instead of seeking the typical 9-5, Gemma from York earns her income from a variety of side hustles and roles, as well as saving as much as possible day to day.

Sharing her advice on her Instagram and blog, Gemma is now here to tell us Messy readers how we too can get involved.

After all, who couldn’t do with some extra cash?

Some tips from Gemma:

• Mystery shopping and Survey apps

Apps such as ‘Proinsight’ pay you for mystery shopping tasks, for example taking pictures of stock or the inside of a shop, or rating your customer experience. You can get paid per task you complete. This is particularly easy if you live near a city centre, Gemma has completed thirty tasks in just one day, making roughly £5 per  short task.

If you are a foodie but want to save on pricey meals out, there are also mystery shopping opportunities which bag you a free meal at restaurants, just for sharing your review.

Make sure to never sign up for anything you have to pay for upfront, there should be no sign up fees and this may be a scam.

• Take part in market research.

Gemma gets roughly £40-£200 per one hour zoom call, where she just has to give her opinion on new products, for big brands such as Tesco. You also get lots of freebies, with a free Dyson hoover being a top pick for Gemma.

• Growing your social media accounts 

Brand deals, ads and posts. Having worked to grow her side hussle account over the last three years, Gemma’s 70,000 followers means she gets paid for brand deals, ads and sponsored posts. One of the bigger wins for Gemma, who is open about how much she earns from sponsorship, was gaining £1000 from one company,  just for creating three instagram posts. She recommends, if you have a hobby, interest or niche, to start putting your spare time into growing your account and engagement.

• Start beginning to Invest your money

Gemma also works to save every penny of what she has already, and advises us to avoid buying into the consumerism we see so much on socials.

‘’It’s fine when you’re young, but I think making sure you are not spending money on five minutes of enjoyment, it’s those quick fixes’’, says Gemma.

‘’The majority of normal people, like my sisters, follow lifestyle accounts or celebrities, and they see constant people having these things and getting these things. It must be exhausting, because you want it and it’s normal to want things.’’

‘’There is ways to do things, and you don’t have to go down the route everyone else is going down”, says Gemma.

Gemma’s account for more helpful tips and tricks can be found : @helpsavemoney 

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