51% of Singaporeans juggle side and full time jobs in gig economy – GoDaddy survey

E-commerce is the top
consideration for setting up a side job in Singapore

Asia is home to a vibrant and growing side job
community, reflective of a larger trend of people wanting to pursue their
entrepreneurial dreams. The survey sheds light on the entrepreneurial behavior,
including motivations and how people hold side jobs alongside a full-time job, of
people in Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines. The survey was completed in
October 2017 and covered a total of 1,500 respondents across the three markets.

The survey found that e-commerce is the number
one side job pursuit in Singapore. This is being enabled by the democratisation
of cloud-based technology which is empowering people to pursue side jobs thanks
to the ability to quickly, easily and affordably get their ideas online,
acquire customers, and sell their goods online.

GoDaddy’s Vice President of APAC Region Roger
Chen said: “This year’s 2017 Gig Economy Survey specifically focuses on three
key Asian markets for GoDaddy. It shows how having a side job is a developing
trend in Singapore, Hong Kong and the Philippines. This trend builds on the
rise of the so-called ‘gig’ economy in recent years, as well as people’s desire
to follow their personal passions by setting up a side job and even turn this
passion into a full-time job should it prove to be successful.”

Key highlights of the survey results in the Singapore
market:

“The results of GoDaddy’s regional survey also shows
that people in all three markets have run a side job at some point,
illustrating that the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in Hong Kong,
Singapore and the Philippines. In fact, in Singapore, most people would also
prefer to start their side job online instead of opening a physical brick and
mortar store, an area GoDaddy can help with. However, the survey also highlights
the difficulties, including time constraints, in keeping a side job going
alongside a full-time job. GoDaddy is well positioned to help here as we can
ease some of the burden people face when setting up a digital presence to
promote their side job online,” continued Chen.

For the Singapore market, the survey found that
the top three reasons why Singaporeans want a side job includes: increasing personal
wealth (67%), opening themselves to new experiences (43%), and following one’s
passions/interests (42%).

53% of Singaporeans also indicated that they
would consider transforming their current side jobs to full time jobs in the
next 10 years.

In all three markets, taking advantage of the
growth of e-commerce is the top consideration for people when deciding to set
up a side job. Singapore ranks the highest of the three countries, with 66% of
respondents choosing e-commerce over other sectors like advertising,
consulting, or communications.

While side jobs are typically associated with
Uber drivers and AirBnB renters, many respondents in Asia are particularly
focused on starting their own e-commerce business. Now would seem like a good
time to enter this domain as e-commerce in Singapore is rapidly growing, with
the market showing consistent growth and average spend per user is on the up[1].

Another interesting finding is that the
majority of Singapore respondents are inclined to try to start another business
for the fun of it, should their side job be successful. This is unlike Hong
Kongers, who would prefer to retire right away to live a good life.

The
survey showed that in all three markets, time management skills is the biggest
challenge.

While
technology allows employers to find freelancers more easily, freelancers, on
the other hand, realised that the situation can still be challenging. 72% of
respondents have experienced clients who expect to pay less for their work if
they are not properly represented by a website or a professional portfolio. With
more employers looking at social media profiles for recruitment, 45% of
respondents felt that it is a challenge to market themselves in a way that will
help make them a critical success.

Thankfully,
Singaporeans display a strong ‘Can-Do’ attitude when it comes to solving
problems. When Singaporeans encounter problems, more than 80% would search the
Internet for solutions and attempt to solve the problems themselves.

GoDaddy
has identified three key takeaways
from the survey: