Unlock the Hidden Opportunity Tailor-Made for Passionate Writers
By Sandy Franks

It’s one of the Top 10–ranked universities in the U.S.

And since it also happens to be in Chicago, which was Neal Taparia’s home state, going to Northwestern University made perfect sense.

His older sister attended Northwestern and had a great experience. So really, it was a no-brainer to choose that school.

Now, as you know, many of the assignments you do while in college require writing term papers and essays. And you have to cite your sources.

While he didn’t mind writing the papers, Neal absolutely hated doing the bibliography section. Too time-consuming and tedious for him.

But he had a solution … one that made him a $60 million fortune. You see, when he was in high school, he wrote a program (with the help of a friend) that made the process of writing a bibliography easy.

Called EasyBib, it’s an online platform used by students, educators, and over 100 colleges, universities, and high schools. It holds over 1 billion citations and is used by 34 million students.

Going through the process of creating his own business made Neal fall in love with being an entrepreneur. These days he writes articles about entrepreneurship, as well as works for companies just starting out, offering advice on how to grow their business.

Neal also has a good eye for spotting future trends related to entrepreneurship. In fact one of his latest predictions is the hidden boom in micro-businesses.

What’s a micro-business, you ask?

Well, the technical definition is “a very small-scale enterprise typically defined by its limited size in terms of employees, revenue, or both.”

A micro-business usually has fewer than 10 employees and generates around $250,000 or less in revenue a year.

Micro-businesses are part of the gig, or passion, economy, which is much bigger than you think. Heck, it had already generated a whopping $452 billion in 2023. And it’s just getting started, because experts say it will reach $1.861 trillion by 2031.

Lots of businesses qualify as micro-businesses. For instance a micro-business could be a small-scale bakery run from home that specializes in custom cakes, cookies, or other baked goods.

Or it could be a person offering fitness training services, either one-on-one or in small-group settings, operating out of a home gym or local park.

It could even be an individual who happens to create and sell custom or handcrafted jewelry, through online platforms or local craft fairs.

And these micro-businesses don’t have to be run full time. They can be part-time gigs. With the flexibility and additional income they offer, Neal believes that over the next 10 years, one in three professionals will own and operate a micro-business.

Micro-businesses are ideal for freelance writers. Here are a few ways you could cash in on the micro-business trend:

You might decide to focus on creating a website that serves a specific niche audience, such as eco-friendly living, travel hacks, or personal finance. Your business earns revenue through affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, and ad placements.

Nick Usborne, a digital marketing expert who has been teaching individuals and businesses for the past 30 years how to create and write better websites, happens to have his own moneymaking website.

Nick has a passion for coffee … including how to make the best brews, find the best beans, and use the best equipment. He writes about his coffee adventures on his own website. And that website has been a steady source of extra income for Nick.

Or you might want to self-publish e-books on platforms like Amazon Kindle, focusing on a specific genre or subject matter. This can include fiction, nonfiction, guides, or how-to books, generating income through direct sales and royalties.

That’s what legendary copywriter Bob Bly does in his spare time. He owns and operates a micro-business selling e-books that he writes and publishes.

Or you might offer specialized copywriting services to small businesses, startups, or entrepreneurs, crafting compelling sales pages, email campaigns, and social media content to boost their clients’ conversions and sales.

Neal believes it’s much easier these days for people to shift from employee to freelancer-entrepreneur because of the availability of so many online platforms that are designed especially for micro-businesses.

The opportunities for micro-businesses are endless. It’s where freedom, flexibility, and fortunes live. It’s also a chance to define your success.