As soon as I see Halloween decor on store shelves, I know it’s time to start preparing for the holidays. And with the holidays comes a lot of shopping and money spent. So, before holiday shopping (and spending) arrive along with Black Friday deals and Cyber Monday spending-sprees, it’s a good idea to think about getting a seasonal remote job to help cover gift-giving costs.
Seasonal Remote Jobs
Tons of retailers need extra employees around the holidays to help with all the shoppers this time of year. But since it’s just a temporary surge, companies will offer seasonal (temporary) jobs instead of hiring on permanent full-time staff. This gives them the much needed help for a couple of months without the commitment of bringing on a ton of permanent employees.
How long is a seasonal job?
A seasonal job usually starts in early November and runs through mid-January. Depending on the company, the start and end dates may vary but, generally speaking, you can expect most seasonal jobs to last about two months. And the best part is, you don’t have to head to your local stores to find seasonal work–more and more companies are offering work-from-home seasonal positions!
1-800-Flowers
As one of the major online retailers of floral arrangements, 1-800-Flowers stays super-busy come the holidays. They also operate several online specialty retailers that sell things like fruit bouquets, gift baskets, homemade baked goods, chocolates, and even popcorn:
Holidays are a great time to deliver smiles to our friends and family, and what better way than sending fresh flowers, plants, and gift baskets?
Although you will be representing 1-800-Flowers or one of their other brands, the hiring process happens through an agency (CloudSource). Hiring is happening in rounds with positions starting every single week from mid-September until December.
The application process is super-simple. After you apply online your computer will be tested to make sure it meets the technical requirements and from there you’ll be sent to a virtual interview. The virtual interview process lets you record your answers to interview questions at your convenience (pretty neat, huh?). So, no waiting for a recruiter to call or nerve-wrecking phone interviews to deal with.
This position is open to candidates in the United States living in one of the 48 contiguous states. To start, positions are part-time and will move to full-time the week before Christmas.
Groupon
Your favorite daily deals site is now hiring seasonal employees!
This is a work from home customer service position where you will be responsible for helping customers via phone and email, so you will definitely need amazing communication skills to work here. You might be helping customers with general questions about their accounts or answering more in-depth questions about a specific Groupon offer (they can be a little tricky to understand if you’re new to redeeming Groupons!).
The customer service department takes calls between 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. daily — there will definitely be some flexibility in choosing your schedule.
Groupon is only hiring Seasonal Customer Service Representative for these locations:
This is a part-time opportunity (about 20-30 hours each week). The start date is November 9th and will continue through January. Pay rate is $11.00 per hour.
Amazon
The mega-retailer and creator of Prime frequently hires work from home customer service reps. But around the holidays, they ramp up their hiring efforts to keep up with the crazy number of orders that come their way (customers were buying 426 items per second from Amazon on Cyber Monday 2013!) .
Full time and part time opportunities are available in Arizona, Kentucky, Texas, West Virginia, Delaware, Minnesota, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and Virginia for our seasonal customer service associate position.
In addition to living in one of the places above, you’ll need a quiet, distraction-free work area and a dedicated landline. Prior customer service experience of one year and being comfortable navigating the internet and communicating through email and instant messaging are also a must!
This position pays $10.00 per hour but you’ll have the opportunity to earn bonuses. So if you think you have what it takes to temporarily take on Amazon, you can go ahead and start the application process here.
Hayneedle
Hayneedle sells about anything you can think of for your home. They also have baby items, toys, and pet supplies. You never know what you might find at Hayneedle since they sell a lot of speciality items that you won’t find at your everyday retailer.
Based out of Omaha, Nebraska, they are now hiring for Seasonal Online Retail Specialists. This position is part sales, part customer service. You’ll help shoppers find items and answer their questions but also initiate and close sales.
Hayneedle is only hiring Nebraska residents for this position. You must also have a dedicated landline and be able to pass a background check. There are full and part-time options available. On the hiring page, there is no mention of pay rate, but it does mention performance incentives. So, if you are a good salesperson, you can probably do well at Hayneedle.
Nordstrom
Nordstrom is a specialty retailer that sells an assortment of men’s, women’s, and children’s clothing, shoes, and accessories. They also have discounted apparel at their Nordstrom Rack and HauteLook brands.
Nordstrom is now hiring Seasonal Member Care Representatives to represent their HauteLook brand.
If you have a love for all things fashion, this is the role for you. You’ll help customers with their online shopping, make recommendations regarding fit and style, and answer any questions they might have.
Customer interactions will take place over the phone, via email or chat. And no matter what the question or inquiry, it’s your job to help resolve it! If you think you have what it takes to discuss fashion and provide customer service, you can apply here.
This is a full time position. The customer service department is open seven days a week from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. — so there’s a ton of room for flexibility when it comes to scheduling (plus, did I mention product discounts?!?!).
Skullcandy
Skullcandy markets and sells headphones, earbuds, MP3 players, hands-free devices and a number of other audio and technology products. This position will be a Brand Ambassador for Skullcandy but you’ll be hired and perform your work through VIPdesk Connect.
As a Brand Ambassador, you should already be familiar with Skullcandy and be enthusiastic about their products. You’ll relay this passion when interacting with customers in order to help them find the perfect product and answer any questions they may have.
This is a seasonal opportunity starting in early November, but it could potentially turn into a permanent gig (if you’d like).
Seasonal period runs early November to mid January. Temporary team members in good standing at the end of the period will be evaluated for continued employment on the Skullcandy or other teams at VIPdesk Connect.
You can choose to work full time or part time. Shifts are available Monday through Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. (EST). The pay rate is $9.00 an hour with the opportunity to earn incentives. If you live in AZ, CO, FL, GA, IL, KY, MD, MI, MO, NV, NJ, NY, NC, OH, OR, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, or WI you can start the application process here.
More Extra Money Ideas
So, if you’re still interested in making extra money for the holidays, but don’t think a seasonal job is the solution — no problem! There are other ways you can make extra money online (whether it’s for holiday gift-giving purposes or year round help).
Phone Mystery Shopping
If you don’t mind picking up your phone, you can make money each month as a mystery phone shopper. These are contract positions with varying amounts of work available, but if you sign up with multiple mystery phone shopping companies, you can actually make some good money. Most of these jobs require you to call different business, ask some questions, and submit a report. That’s it. You get paid for every call you complete.
Micro Jobs
Monetize your downtime with short task sites! Even if you have just a few hours of free time each week, you can use them to make money from home. Most of these sites are super-easy to sign up for and once you do, you’ll be able to start making money. The more sites you sign up with the more chances you’ll have to earn. Many tasks take a matter of minutes to complete. So, the next time you find yourself with nothing to do, why not complete a micro job for money?
Usability Testing
Get paid to think out loud. It’s no secret that User Testing is my favorite usability site. For each website test you complete you get paid $10.00, mobile tests earn you $15.00 and “peek” tests pay $3.00. There are a several other usability testing sites you can sign up with too. No matter what site you sign up with, you’ll need to be comfortable having your voice, screen, or face recorded as you navigate websites and complete tasks. All you need to do is provide your honest feedback as you do so. That’s it. Most website tests take about 15 minutes to complete and can pay anywhere from $8.00 to $12.00 depending which company you sign up with!
Still need more? Check out this directory of extra cash ideas where you can find a list of ways to earn money from home and helpful information about making money from simple tasks.
With seasonal jobs and year-round ways to earn extra money online, you can tackle even the longest wish list or put away money for a rainy day without ever having to leave home.
Awesome Post! Thanks for sharing!
Does Nordstrom keep you on after the holiday?
Hi Tanya,
Thanks for stopping by. Nordstrom may keep some seasonal employees on full-time after the holidays but there is no guarantee. If you apply, you definitely should go into it with the mindset that it is just a temporary job 🙂
Happily,
Ashlee