# Business vs Side gig **URL:** \ **Category:** Story Time!\ **Created:** [April 14, 2024, 6:06pm UTC](https://forum.notarycafe.com/t/business-vs-side-gig/45298 "2024-04-14T18:06:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 2
**Author:** ![cNsa5](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/forum.notarycafe.com/cnsa5/32/33381_2.png) [@cNsa5](https://forum.notarycafe.com/u/cNsa5)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2024, 12:01pm UTC](https://forum.notarycafe.com/t/business-vs-side-gig/45298/2 "2024-04-15T12:01:06Z")
**TO ALL MEMBERS:** 🏖 As I have shared on multiple occasions on the **Notary Cafe** forum within various threads, _ **please** _ do **your own due diligence** prior to investing your hard-earned funds into ANY business venture. 💵💰 Purely anecdotal experience can be insightful, but certainly **isn’t representative** of results across a region, state, nor the entire US. The statement “_Your individual results may vary_” is particularly germane in this instance. It is WONDERFUL that some have an evolving/blossoming General Notary Work [GNW] **event** & certainly those are in no way being discounted, but they are **RARE** indeed. Most members of the US population will take their GNW to their **bank or friend/neighbor/church member** who are notaries & have the service provided for **NO FEE** at all . . . The overarching theme is that there **is** GNW available for those who are no longer mobile or who have time constraints or particular signatory demands. Yes, for those types of instances there is GNW, but it’s not a reliable source of income. In addition, when the ever-evolving Remote Online Notarizations [RONs] are factored into the equation (_increasingly being performed on a NATIONAL level_) it **realistically** leaves very little GNW available. Those who have been a business owner within this business sector for a decade or longer have seen the volume of signing agent & GNW continually diminish. This is not to say that _ **IF interest rates drop** _ that signing agent orders won’t increase, because it WILL increase. Again, it’s **not a reliable source** of income. With all the Signing Services [SSs] that are falling by the wayside, becoming defunct, and going Out-of-Business [OOB] there should be **no question of the condition of the canary in the coal mine**. . . As we regularly witness on the Notary Cafe forum in various threads, some of those business entities that are OOB have left many Professional Signing Agents [PSAs] _ **UNPAID** _ for their professional services successfully provided. ====== So, in essence . . . - You owe it to yourself when investing (whether financially or in launching a business) to do your own **Research** - When investing regardless of the sector/investment “vehicle,” do **your own** due diligence - Check the saturation of EXISTING Notaries within your locale PRIOR to making a commitment into the venture you’re considering - Investigate this data for a REALISTIC revenue generation stream potential from **2021** : [Finally..a reality check as to how much a notary earns](http://forum.notarycafe.com/t/finally-a-reality-check-as-to-how-much-a-notary-earns/22434) - Also, investigate this data for the REALISTIC revenue generation stream potential from **2023** - Just **2 years** apart - **eye-opening insights** : [https://www.nationalnotary.org/file%20library/nna/download/nna-2023-notary-survey-results.pdf](https://www.nationalnotary.org/file%20library/nna/download/nna-2023-notary-survey-results.pdf) - Allow yourself **at least** between 2-5 years to establish stable revenue generation from your new venture - Always DIVERSIFY the services you intend to provide as it will “smooth out” the peaks & valleys of the income stream - If it ‘_sounds too good to be true_’ definitively applies in this instance - Of course, consider your financial needs. If you have only **nominal financial requirements** to meet, this could be a good fit for you! 🦢 --- _[View the full topic](https://forum.notarycafe.com/t/business-vs-side-gig/45298)._